Kombo’s Review Policy: Our reviews are written for you. Our goal is to write honest, to-the-point reviews that don’t waste your time. This is why we’ve split our reviews into four sections: What the Game’s About, What’s Hot, What’s Not and Final Word, so that you can easily find the information you want from our reviews.
What the Game’s About
NHL 2k9 is the 2K Sports effort for hockey season. Let’s grab our skates and hit the ice. If you don’t know what hockey is by now, you really need to spend some time with Wikipedia.
What’s Hot
The first thing you’ll notice about 2k9 is that the focus is on getting into a game and playing. The game plays fast and there is a focus on accessibility rather than simulation. The game has an almost arcadey atmosphere because of the quick hits and fast goals. The game is drifting away from realism and power sliding into more unrealistic ways that prove fun.
2k9 scores some points for extending beyond the NHL and including what is important to legions of hockey fans, pond hockey. It is nice to see some modes that go back to the roots of the game. Another cool mode is the mini-hockey that is 3v3 that plays even faster than the full team modes. It further gives credit to the push to make the game more arcade-like and offers a few diversions from standard modes.
What’s Not
Hockey is a game that is meant to be challenging because of the heavily padded goaltender blocking most shots. In 2k9, it is easy to trick them into giving up a goal even when you are not trying. Your teammates will also get in your way or opponents will bunch up. Overall, it feels like the AI could use some work.
The graphic detail is good but the main stars (the hockey players) do not. The faces look rather lifeless and plastic. It is jarring to see the athletes look like they do but the rest of the trimmings around them so well done. Voice work for the announcers is spot on but you’ll catch a few spots where the “stitching” of the voice tracks hiccups a bit. The new modes included don’t give much value added to the core gameplay and can easily be overlooked.
Final Word
The age old debate of what sports game is better will indefinitely rage on. Judging solely on the 2K Sports games, there doesn’t feel like a large effort was put into making this year the best with outside pressure closing in rapidly. The gameplay focuses on quick, fast play and that will appeal to a lot of players looking for a more relaxed version of what otherwise would be a dry simulation game.
