Ice Hockey’s a funny old game. Not content with playing normal hockey on a field with a ball, these guys like to slide about the ice and try to slam a puck into the net and of course have a good old scrap halfway through the game and end up in the sin bin.
And, if you’re from the UK, the rules may seem a bit confusing so it’s a good thing then, at least if you’re British, NHL 2K10 presents an arcade-style experience which is simple and easy to get into.
The first thing you’ll notice is the action tends to be very much end-to-end. Once you have the puck in your possession it’s not too tricky to hang on to it as you skate and deke round your opponents and have a slap shot at the net. It’s a bit of a hassle to keep having to hammer the right trigger to get up to speed and it would have been nice for speed to just be implemented into how far the analogue stick’s being pushed. Everything feels a little bit too ‘sticky’ on the ice but this doesn’t necessarily completely ruin the gameplay experience.
It’s also nice that your mates can jump in and play with or against you in almost any game mode. Unfortunately, there’s not really a game mode in there you can really get your teeth into over time. Franchise mode is improved over last year but it still doesn’t have the depth of EA’s main mode in their yearly ice hockey game.
The main improvement by far is the visuals. Everything has been bumped up and it all looks gorgeous. Not only the look of the players, ice and arena but also the animations as players body check each other and whizz around all over the place. If you want an ice hockey game that delivers instant arcade-style action then I’d say get this over EA’s effort. However, if you want something with a but more meat on its bones which will last you longer, this won’t be what you’re looking for. NHL 2K10 gets a good 6 out of 10.
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