Where were you the first time you played NHL Hockey on the Sega Genesis? Let me re-phrase .. If you were at the front end of the 16 bit revolution, your first taste came with “NHLPA” Hockey. Effectively, it’s the same game minus the player licensing if memory serves, but truth be told, my memory ain’t what it used to be. Suffice it to say that this game had a huge impact in living rooms around the country. Oh the memories! The best of times! The most intense battles! The fighting only enhanced the frantic nature of play. This game still connects me to my dearest friend, Dave. He left us far too early, but when I think back to our Friday night battles, it’s as if he’s sitting next to me, Genesis controller in hand. The incredible thing about this series is its staying power. This is still our go-to hockey game!
Here we are some 25 plus years later, and its legend has not waned. What is it that you recall about this series? The flawed CPU goalie that would get beat on his opposite side once you had him moving with you on breakaways? The blood? The glass boards being shattered? Whatever it was that had you coming back… you kept coming back. This game got the most use of any Genesis cart in my collection at the time, and for good reason. I’ve often wondered … Did the developers have any idea what they had on their hands? They may have realized that it was a very solid effort, but I would go so far as to say that this game set the bar for all sports games to come.. even to this day. I now play this game with my son, and the legacy continues.
I’m one of those hardcore retro gamers that believes that games changed significantly when we went from sprites to 3d rendering. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not bashing the amazing advances we have experienced in gaming, but there is little doubt that games changed significantly when the focus became how well a developer could render a 3D environment. It was all about immersion. The first effort I recall which rendered hockey players in 3D was on the Sega Saturn. Sure, it was cool and different, but it never challenged the magic that was achieved with the NHL series on 16 bit platforms. The precision and speed of the game could not be matched. You won and lost by your ability to translate thought into a button push in the fraction of a second. It so happens that my son has made the claim that he is a better player than yours truly in the NHL series. Today, we got down to business. It’s going to be a short best of 3. We have agreed to take the same team, as to avoid any advantages which might favor one player over the other. Game one was a tough fought battle. See for yourself..
RetroDudeZ 