Genesis Collective Genesis Game Index

# A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z 

NHL Hockey Series

Excerpt from Genesis Game Guide by The Scribe

NAME:             NHL Hockey series (8 titles)
AUTHOR/VENDOR:    Park Place/High Score/TH*Q/Electronic Arts
RELEASED:         various
TYPE:             Sports (hockey)
LANGUAGE:         Czech, English, German, and Swedish known - possibly
                    other versions exist

PREMISE:          Real hockey, real players, real action.  Skate with the
                  game's greatest players as you go head-to-head with over
                  500 professional hockey stars.  Challenge faster, more
                  more intimidating goalies, injure key opposing players,
                  and track individual player stats. (Electronic Arts)

IMPRESSIONS:      This series has earned a worldwide reputation for its
                  overall excellence, and its easy to see why.  Excellent
                  sound and graphics throughout the series, and the
                  gameplay ROCKS, plain and simple.

VARIATIONS:       This series was released under the name Elitserien in
                  the German and Scandanavian markets, and under the name
                  EA International Hockey in other world locales.  The only
                  real difference is that those titles feature teams and
                  players from around the world instead of the American
                  National Hockey League (NHL).  The variants listed below
                  are the American ones, but should also apply to their
                  non-American cousins under the appropriate name.

                  NHL Hockey 91 (the first in the series - not as
                    impressive graphically as its sequels, but a good
                    start nonetheless - the Euro variant is referred to as
                    "EA Hockey - European League" in Bruce Cantin's Genesis
                    FAQ)
                  NHL Hockey 92 (so much like the first game, except for
                    the team rosters, that it's often hard to tell them
                    apart - one clue is the different artwork used in the
                    title screens)
                  NHLPA Hockey 93 (significant improvements in graphics,
                    sound, and gameplay, and the best in the series before
                    High Score Productions got their on-screen credit)
                  NHL Hockey 94 (not as good as its immediate precursor,
                    the game tunes just plain stink - what a waste)
                  NHL 95 (the first of the High Score games, and a big
                    improvement over the previous installment)
                  NHL 96 (the most balanced of the NHL Hockey series, and
                    the "house favorite" among fans of the sport)
                  NHL 97 (no observable difference between this and NHL 96
                    apart from the music and the team rosters; there is
                    also a user-hacked Czech version apparently out there)
                  NHL 98 (identical to NHL 97 for all practical purposes
                    aside from the team rosters)

Page Viewed 21014 Times

"NHL Hockey Series" | Login/Create Account | 35 comments
Threshold
The comments are owned by the poster. We aren't responsible for their content.

Best Hockey series! Period! (Score: 1)
by Mr_KHaKi (ToNe@YoMommaHouse.com) on Tuesday, June 26 @ 17:32:28 EDT
(User Info) http://www.tonism.cjb.net

EA Sports was just revolutionary those days...
EA Hockey got us bodycheckin' while playin' soccer! (Imagine if we played Quake).
In those days the gameplay was good.
Like FIFA later, this game brought in a different game-view compared to other games in that genre.
While in other games (I can only think of Ice Hockey & Blades of Steel) you had a side-view, here it was top-down. Somehow, the action around the crease became more fun...

NHL 95 still stands out as one of the best experiences. 96 had faster gameplay, but 95 got me playing the whole competition with my pals over and over again..(screw roster updates =p)

On the G/MD Electronic Arts rules...period...
Bring in the Zamboni!!


[ Reply ]

NHLPA 93 = The Best (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Wednesday, March 10 @ 16:32:55 EST

NHLPA 93 is the best because of gameplay. Rebounds are huge in hockey, and are a lot more noticable in this game. Crazy puck bounces, gotta love it. I also loved how any shot had a chance to go in the net. Plus...FIGHTING! AND BLOOD!!

94 was good too, but the one timer feature actually made the game less challenging after a while. Plus the puck 'stuck' to the goalies more in this game, 93 was more like the real NHL. Dont get me started on the garbage that is 95, and 96-98 were all dull clones with average gameplay.

Hey who could forget the awesome intro music in 93? Or the "Make Gretzky bleed" line from Swingers? LMAO! (Of course had Gretzky been with the Rangers at that time it would not have been funny) :)

I have a hacked version of this classic featuring all the great teams of years past, plus WHITE ICE! The game looks great with white ice. I play it on Gens 2.11 on my comp and its awesome, I call the network "EASN Canada" now just for shites and giggles. Lots of fun changing Ron Barrs commentary,and the BLOOD looks funnier than ever on white ice!

NHLPA 93 will always be KING!!

[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey 94 (Score: 1)
by Flanker80 on Tuesday, May 28 @ 09:22:13 EDT
(User Info)

Electronic Arts cannot be praised enough for the release of this title. I am always tempted to quit NHL 2002(PC) and throw on NHL 94 for genesis. For some reason, it just seems more real. Great crossing passes are rewarded, the goalie can actually be deked, the cross checks into the benches are fantastic( in what other game do players actually fly INTO and OVER ther boards?) and the introduction of one-timers to the series clearly make this game a revolutionary and timeless classic. Later versions are decent titles with the inception of trades, free agency, created players etc. However, I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for this one. A fantastic game. Score: 9/10

[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey Series (Score: 1)
by themosthotguy (themosthotguy@hotmail.com) on Wednesday, June 27 @ 01:06:23 EDT
(User Info) http://none!

ok i love these games, 94 is considered the best of the bunch by most folks (they say it is the most violent also) but i feel that 98 was the best, it is just like 97 but is newer, and ya can beat that! on a side note i swear i saw 99 in a rental place for sale used a couple of years ago...

i give 97/8 a 3.5/5

[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey Series (Score: 1)
by HaloMan on Friday, January 18 @ 14:45:16 EST
(User Info) http://www.pocketheaven.com

The NHL Hockey series is great. Shame about the weak early ones though. Don't think about getting any version of the series before 94 as they are really bad (I own EA Hockey and NHLPA Hockey '93).

Good, but make sure you buy a decent one.

[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey Series (Score: 1)
by plaidlesspez on Tuesday, March 26 @ 10:49:52 EST
(User Info)

All these games are great. 93 has blood in it if you injure someone, but 94 you can't even fight! I guess a lot of parents complained. 94 is my favorite though just because you have to focus more on passing to score, and that's what hockey is.

[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey Series (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Wednesday, July 17 @ 11:47:37 EDT


[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey Series (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Saturday, August 03 @ 16:50:07 EDT

Hacked the Sega CD version of NHL'94 http://members.shaw.ca/nhl94/NHL94%20MAIN.htm

[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey Series (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Wednesday, August 07 @ 00:21:57 EDT

Just plug my Genesis back in 2 days ago, and I havn't put this game down, it's a wonder how I ever stopped, but I can't remember how to deak out a goalie, If anyone remembers I'd love to hear from ya at yahoointhecorner@hotmail.com

[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey Series (Score: 1)
by Brikindawall on Friday, August 30 @ 22:34:21 EDT
(User Info)

I own NHLPA 93 and I still have fun playing against friends. Now that's lasting power. This was the game featured in the movie "SWINGERS" hillarious. The gameplay is great a 10. I hear the previous titles sucked though. I tried NHL 94 and did not like it back in the days controlling the goalie was just too hard. I hear the latter versions were pretty good.

[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey Series (Score: 1)
by DryGin on Saturday, October 05 @ 22:12:50 EDT
(User Info)

This game is the nexus of all hockey games. A true classic. A finer hockey game has yet to be produced on any system.

[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey Series (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Friday, October 18 @ 07:14:16 EDT

There seem to be some sort of misunderstanding regarding the Elitserien versions of NHL.

1. I don't really think they were released anywhere except Sweden (perhaps in Scandinavia) since it only focuses on the Swedish hockey league. I don't see any point in releasing that game in, for example, Germany.

2. The NHL games wasn't called Elitserien in Sweden. We got BOTH the NHL versions and the Elitserien versions in our shops. So it was just a matter of choice between bying NHL 95 and Elitserien 95, or preferably both.

Hope that cleared some thing up. :)

[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey Series (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Saturday, February 01 @ 15:24:32 EST

NHL 95 a "big improvement"?? BWHAHAHAHA!!!!! By FAR the WORST game of the hockey series. And 96 the "house favorite"? Who's writing this shit Gary Buttman? 94 is was and will always be the BEST hockey game EVER. Jackass.

[ Reply ]

Re: NHL Hockey Series (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Saturday, May 01 @ 22:37:13 EDT

94 was the best.

By 95 the player movements became to linear, a similar problem that plagues modern ps2 hockey games. 93 was almost as good but no goalie control + no one timers, which made 94 the best.

[ Reply ]

Copyright © 1999-2002 by Genesis Collective