NHL 06 from EA is a fun game of hockey. The best way to review it, I feel, is to compare and contrast it with NHL 2K6. Both games have their good and bad points. First, the good points. 06 has great presentation. From the menus to the arenas to the sound, the game is very well done. It's very easy to pick up and play and controls fairly well especially the classic "all-left-stick" deke controls. The action is paced a bit slower than it's competitor making it easier to react and handle your players for hockey novices. The hitting is decent and the ability to vary the ferocity of the check with your Y button is good for more experienced players. The right analog stick allows your star players to score amazing looking goals and makes for some really nice eye candy. The goalie save animations are nice even if they tend to flop onto their backsides a bit too often for me. If you were never a hockey goalie, you probably won't notice this as a problem. Conversely, 2K6 has a substandard menu system mostly due to the loss of the ESPN license. Everything outside of the rink in 2K6 seems a bit inferior to the EA offering. The controls in 2K6 are different but just as easy to pick up. The speed of the game is a major difference. 2K6 made their game move a bit faster this year. This is great news since I moved the sliders all the way up last season. This year, I only move them a bit past halfway. In 06, I have my speed slider maxed out and it still feels a bit slow for my taste. 06 feels more like an arcade hockey game based on ease of play and eye candy. The slower speed allows for almost any player to pick it up and do fairly well. 2K6 feels a bit more like a sim and is a bit more satisfying for me. However, they lack the up-to-date rosters that 06 has so you'll need to wait for a roster update before starting your franchise. I'll probably play 06 more with friends who are not hockey nuts like I am while I'll probably play 2K6 more online and in franchise mode because I prefer the gameplay. Either choice is good for a fun game of hockey and real hockey fans may want to pick up both games for the price of one regularly priced xbox title. (NHL06 - $30 and NHL 2K6 - $20)
I love NHL 05...i mean 06. so little has changed since last year that i thought i was playing 05 alot of the time, which to me is not a bad thing. Though its gameplay is not as good as 2k6s is, it is still enjoyable. Th... Read Full Review
Gameplay: 7 Why: NHL games have been around for a long time. Having said that, you'd think by now companies could come out with a game that is true to hockey, in realism and design. Unfortunately, since the gaming compa... Read Full Review
