NHL 97

Was erwartet man von einem Spiel wie NHL 97? Ein paar neue, aber eigentlich unwesentliche Gimmicks und natürlich die Daten der aktuellen Saison. EA Sports wollte aber nur ein Update, sondern ein komplett neues Spiel entwickeln, das die Konkurrenz vor Neid erblassen läßt - und es ist ihnen gelungen! Das einzige Problem: man weiß nicht so recht, was einem an diesem Spiel besonders gefällt. Ist es die Grafik, der Sound, die Spielbarkeit oder vielleicht doch die Atmospähre? Vermutlich sind es alle vier Komponenten zusammen, die dafür sorgen, daß NHL Hockey 97 das zur Zeit wohl beste Sportspiel ist.

With NHL '97, you can see that EA was content to milk its cash cow, putting out basically the same game as the year before. Minor enhancements include a "skills challenge" mode, national teams, and four simultaneous seasons. Nobody asked for these, so they hardly justify an upgrade. But it does deliver the same exciting action you've come to expect from the series, so you can't complain too much.

Dat ijshockey niet zo populair is in Europa, zoals in de States en vooral Canada, mag de verkoop van dit spel niet beïnvloeden. Het moet gezegd, basketbal én vooral voetbal zullen beslist hoger scoren dan ijshockey. Maar de kwaliteit van NHL '97 is zo goed dat deze sport via EA Sports een serieus inhaalmaneuver zal maken op zijn concurrenten.

Fast, furious and fantastic to look at, NHL 97 is a dream team combination of styles. There's a very talented team of programmers in one of the offices at EA Sports. And I just can't understand why they aren't being used to design the really big sellers. It won't, of course, but this game deserves to do much better than FIFA.

NHL '97 is a game not just for hockey fans but for sports fans. It's for people who prefer the intensity of a playoff game to the star-studded flash of an all-star game. It's a game for people who would rather see an overtime than a slam-dunk contest. If you want to jump over the heads of your opponents, do two flips and then jam the stupid ball while holding your hand over your eyes, get NBA Live or its "high flying" automotive equivalent, Destruction Derby 2. If you want to play and feel like you're really playing the game, pick up NHL '97. I just completed my first 25-game season and finished Philadelphia in first place in the Eastern conference at 18-7-0, and the playoffs start in about five minutes.

NHL '97 is a game not just for hockey fans but for sports fans. It's for people who prefer the intensity of a playoff game to the star-studded flash of an all-star game. It's a game for people who would rather see an overtime than a slam-dunk contest. If you want to jump over the heads of your opponents, do two flips and then jam the stupid ball while holding your hand over your eyes, get NBA Live or its "high flying" automotive equivalent, Destruction Derby 2. If you want to play and feel like you're really playing the game, pick up NHL '97. I just completed my first 25-game season and finished Philadelphia in first place in the Eastern conference at 18-7-0, and the playoffs start in about five minutes.

Hot on the skates of its Playstation predecessor, NHL '97 rockets onto the Saturn rink. Although the graphics don't shine as brightly as they did on the PlayStation, the game's addictive action will keep you lighting up sirens like Lindros.

Hardcore hockey buffs will turn to Faceoff '97, favoring it's deeper, more strategic features and gameplay. But if you want to juke goalies and rack up the score, NHL '97's setting off sirens with gorgeous graphics and it's own brand of fun, furious action.

Nu kunne man frygte, at denne realisme vil gå ud over tempoet i spillet, men også her har EA Sports klaret frisag, for tempoet er i orden, og der kan faktisk komme nogle ret hektiske kampe. Styringen af spillerne er næsten for enkel, men det fungerer godt, og så skal man jo ikke brokke sig.

Hockey has always been one of the most difficult sports to capture in a video game. For years we have been accustomed to playing realistic golf simulations. Baseball and football have been mainstay products since video arcades existed. Racing enthusiasts have seen several great games come their way recently. But the hockey fan has always never quite been satisfied. Electronic Arts has made it their duty to remedy that situation with the release of this year's update of what has become one of their most popular products, NHL 97.

But there's so much fun to be had here, especially playing against a human opponent, that I can overlook the problems. That doesn't mean I don't think EA shouldn't address the issues, but it does mean that even with all its flaws the game is still a real blast. As a matter of fact, I think it's time for a face-off right about now....

But there's so much fun to be had here, especially playing against a human opponent, that I can overlook the problems. That doesn't mean I don't think EA shouldn't address the issues, but it does mean that even with all its flaws the game is still a real blast. As a matter of fact, I think it's time for a face-off right about now....

Pedanten mögen über die faulen Goalies motzen oder die lächerlichen Breakaway-Versuche der Computerteams belächeln, doch bis auf die hauseigene 98er Version hat NHL 97 keinerlei Konkurrenz zu fürchten. Präsentation und Spielbarkeit sind einfach hervorragend, wenn auch 3D-Karten-Besitzer in die Röhre schauen. Eine erfrischende Abwechslung ist die Beschränkung auf zwei Feuerknöpfe, die trotzdem genug Steuerungsfinessen möglich macht.

Pedanten mögen über die faulen Goalies motzen oder die lächerlichen Breakaway-Versuche der Computerteams belächeln, doch bis auf die hauseigene 98er Version hat NHL 97 keinerlei Konkurrenz zu fürchten. Präsentation und Spielbarkeit sind einfach hervorragend, wenn auch 3D-Karten-Besitzer in die Röhre schauen. Eine erfrischende Abwechslung ist die Beschränkung auf zwei Feuerknöpfe, die trotzdem genug Steuerungsfinessen möglich macht.

NHL 97 är utan tvekan det bästa hockeyspelet just nu, förutsatt att du har en monsterdator. Däremot är passningsspelet som sagt lite underligt, vilket gör att femman uteblir. Kanske fixas det till NHL 98 men jag skulle inte vänta tills dess med att få uppleva äkta hockey på min dator.

After a full season without a next-gen NHL game, gamers have become very hungry for EA's classic series. And to feed this hunger, EA has made the switch to polygon players and for the most part, it is a huge success.

So you get the point. If you're a fan of the series, then you need NHL '97. Its visual delivery is astounding. If you're one of the guys who hops on the games.sports.newsgroups to complain about the series' history of goofiness, your grumbles are not going to go away with this entry. For certified hockey lovers to whom NHL Hockey has always been a unique love affair, here's your annual Valentine, decorated even prettier than usual.

So you get the point. If you're a fan of the series, then you need NHL '97. Its visual delivery is astounding. If you're one of the guys who hops on the games.sports.newsgroups to complain about the series' history of goofiness, your grumbles are not going to go away with this entry. For certified hockey lovers to whom NHL Hockey has always been a unique love affair, here's your annual Valentine, decorated even prettier than usual.

If you're in the market for a Playstation hockey title, look no further than NHL 97 - even if it lacks the perfection generally expected of EA Sports.

Beim Eishockey gibt es (dank eines Tricks im Regelwerk) keine Eigentore, und trotzdem ist NHL 97 ein solches gelungen. Ja, die Grafik ist auch für Nichtanbeter von EA Sports extrem gelungen. Noch nie habe ich eine Sportsimulation mit derart realistischen Spielerbewegungen gesehen, noch nie gab es soviel edle Pixelpracht selbst in den Menüs. Steuerung und Computerintelligenz sind auch makellos. NHL 97 bringt die Atmospähre und Spannung einer Eishockeybegegnung ohne Einschränkungen auf den Monitor. Doch zu viele Mankos lassen eine klare Empfehlung für NHL 97 nicht zu.

Beim Eishockey gibt es (dank eines Tricks im Regelwerk) keine Eigentore, und trotzdem ist NHL 97 ein solches gelungen. Ja, die Grafik ist auch für Nichtanbeter von EA Sports extrem gelungen. Noch nie habe ich eine Sportsimulation mit derart realistischen Spielerbewegungen gesehen, noch nie gab es soviel edle Pixelpracht selbst in den Menüs. Steuerung und Computerintelligenz sind auch makellos. NHL 97 bringt die Atmospähre und Spannung einer Eishockeybegegnung ohne Einschränkungen auf den Monitor. Doch zu viele Mankos lassen eine klare Empfehlung für NHL 97 nicht zu.

As you can imagine, his canned, generic comments provide no insight whatsoever, and it's not unusual for him to repeat the exact same "analysis" for two periods in a row. Chalk that up as another failed 32-bit video game experiment. NHL 97's single bright spot is its audio. Its crisp sound effects put those fuzzy Genesis noises to shame. Organ music plays during the action, and I love the techno music that plays over the menus. NHL 97 may be just another monkey in the evolution of hockey games, but I've played worse sports games on the Saturn.