NHL 09: A Game Review

It has taken the Grand Canyon over six million years to carve out its mile deep gorge in the earth but EA Sports' NHL 09 drives right to the core from the instant you start up on your Xbox 360 or PLAYSTATION 3. Gamers are greeted with "Be a Pro Mode", where they begin creating their NHL Superstar entering name, home town, birth date, and handedness. After choosing hair color, skin tone, facial hair, scars, visors, gloves, skates, and stick, the soon to be AHL grinder, playmaker, or sniper is immediately sent to the ice to rank their early skill set.

Once you've set your ability levels, you must chose the NHL team with which you strive to win the Stanley Cup. Do you want to play with Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby in Pittsburg? Or maybe be the defensive partner of Chris Pronger for the Anaheim Ducks? You may even want to be the heir to manning the pipes for the New Jersey Devils. Whichever NHL franchise is your favorite you must first earn your spot by playing on the third line for their AHL affiliate. Each game you are graded on three categories, position (the area of ice you are responsible for), team play, and stats. After four to six games, you may receive a call up to the next line if you've performed well in these categories. Continue to put the biscuit in the basket or set the table for your line mates and it won't be long before the NHL is calling.

Some of the sweetest aspects of the "Be a Pro Mode" include the unbelievable stat tracking and customizable features. You are presented with certain goals to reach through your NHL career such as play in 75 games your first season or record 50 assists. Also you are able to change the music for every single arena in the game. Lets say you want to hear "Hey Man Nice Shot" by Filter every time your Grand Rapid Griffins score, just make it a playlist on your Xbox 360 console and BOOMSTICK!

However, all of these nifty bells and whistles would mean nothing if the gameplay fell on its face like someone diving to draw a penalty. Really, EA could have put the same gameplay from the '08 version in and been fine, but NHL 09 has become even more realistic. More passes are blocked and tipped, the puck is poked lose and not simply collected and the boards are alive. With a new camera in place for "Be a Pro Mode" resembling the floating above field camera used during NFL telecasts, you can hit opponents and enjoy all new animations that send guys flipping and slumping from the corner boards. Just like Detroit Red Wing Pavel Datsyuk, you can lift the stick (new feature) of a foe causing them to lose control of the puck. It's easier to change lines on the fly with one button selection.

In closing, this is a must have for the sports gamer. Ask for it for Christmas or start returning those Pepsi cans piling up by your computer desk because EA Sports' NHL 09 is bound to pick up even more accolades than its predecessor and I haven't even begun playing any of the new online features. Look for a review on those in the next month.