NHL 2002

THE BAD:
YOu couldn't have bench brawls or goalie fights. the team you made had to be ea blades or ea storm. You couldn't play the team you made in season or tournament mode. You can't repeat the same task over and over again and get points. There is barely any cheats. the computer is not theat good.

SUMMARY:
I hope the next one they come out with will be able to go online so you can have a real chalenge. Have goalie fights and mabye even the ocasional bench brawl. The cards will hopfuly be easeir to get.

THE BAD:
I would like if you could have some exabhition games
also if you could add some of the old teams and players ex: Football you can use the 1985 49's.

SUMMARY:
this game is amazing I don't know how you guys do it but you seem to out do your selfs every year. This game takes hockey to new levels. What I realy like is how hard it is to score (thats a good thing) its realistic. I like how the players actually play their positions ex: your defence actually play defence, and when a defenceman rushes with the puck a foward will drop back and cover their position.

I can't wait until NHL 2003. Keep up the good work.


Sean Wilson.

THE BAD:
Yes u have to do trade up dates, but they are few.
New nhl cards featurea time waster.
The ref gets in ur way and u can't knock 'em down.

SUMMARY:
Wa, for a nhl game this takes the cake(till2003 comes out). A good all rounded game w/ few if any flaws. Career mode is only 10 seasons,,tell that to messier and others. Reasonable draft and free agents signing, but u can only make a multiple trades w/ 1 team.
You dont need cheats or make a exsiting player to make a all round great player as the CAP mode is the best and if need be u can make a player w/ overall 100 rateing,,,if need be.

Overall the best nhl game to date

1=poop on a stick 10=excellent

Playability - - ->10.0(all round great!)
Graphics - - ->9.5(well done)
Sound(s) - - ->9.5(well done)
Roster - - ->8.8(need to make a few trades)
CAP Mode - - ->10.0(the best CAP mode to date)
Loading Time - ->8.0(could be faster but ...)
Fun Factor - - ->9.5(great fun, time well wasted)
Overall Cost - ->10.0(priced reasonbly and will drop in price in a few more months)
***Rent b4 you buy***Unless ur familiar w/ the nhl series, then just buy it.

THE BAD:
It's not quite as good as the orginal NHL... You can't check the goalie.

SUMMARY:
Ever since they changed the rules to protect the goalie more (In real hockey) - playing video game hockey is just not as much fun. One of the most fun ways to score in the original NHL is to check the goalie so hard that the puck gets knocked free and flys into the net.

This game looks so good it's fun to just watch it sometimes, the framerate feels fast and smooth.

I bought this game because I played it in the store and I saw the breakaway cam and thought "wow, that's cool". Besides, I didn't have a hockey game for my PS2, and I used to LOVE LOVE LOVE multiplayer console hockey back in the day of the Sega Genesis - that black plastic cartridge with the letters "NHL" on it may very well have contained the best video game of all time.
The breakaway cam is cool, but instead of making it easier to score (which it should) it actaully seems harder to score when you get a breakaway.
The graphics are slightly improved over 2001, and the gameplay seems to be pretty decent once again, better than most recent "3D" hockey games from the past few years.
I couldn't give a rat's ass for any feature other than gameplay - I don't care about cards, or player trading, just give me tight, fast gameplay! But, for those of you who like those things, this version does seem to have more to offer than the last one.
I can't believe that they have "auto shot aim" on by default?!?? What gives?

THE BAD:
The only thing bad about this game is rosters arent fully updated. Brett Hull is still listed as playing for the Dallas Stars.

SUMMARY:
GRAPHICS: This year EA improved immenensely on player model graphics. Last year is was hard to tell who players were sometimes. It still is a little bit but for the most part players look like there true to life self. The crowd has probably improved the most graphically. The first couple of rows are 3d modeled. During stoppage in play the camera will focus on certain fans and they will act like fans act. For instance the camera focuses on this guy and he nudges his wife and points at the jumbotron, realizing there on TV, He waves at the TV and his wife buries her head. The replays have been drastically revamped to look more like the madden replays. If your goalie makes a big save or you make a big hit play stops and it automatically shows a replay. This might seem like it would get annoying but it adds to the game and u get used to it.

GAMEPLAY: Again when compared to last year there is no comparision. Like last year you can pretty much customize the game play how u want to, In the options menu you can change everything from speed of the game to how much the emotion meter effects the tempo of the game. While playing a game you notice that this year it feels more like a true-life hockey game. No more is the game just everybody checking each other for the puck. EA toned down the hitting and made it feel more like real hockey. They could have improved the fighting sequences, which are pretty much the same as last years. The biggest thing EA has done to improve gameplay this year has definetly been the addition of the Game Story Feature. Depending on how and what your players do in a game depends on what the game story turns out to be. For example if i am in the 3rd period and the score is currently 4-0 my favor, then during gameplay stoppage the announcers continually make comments on how my my goalie is working on a shutout and the shutout is the game story, like its an actual TV brodcast game.

OVERALL: This game is a drastic improvement to last years game and i would dare say it brings back memories of playing nhl 98 (the best in the series) The players emotion is finally up to par (they react how a real hockey player would react after scoring a goal etc...) This game is a definite must buy for any hockey fan and even if you don't like hockey i would rent this game and try it out, you wont be dissapointed!!