NHL 12 Review Xbox 360 | LoudMouthedGamers

NHL 12 – Review – Xbox 360

By Travis Gardner (Editor - Co-Founder) on 18 September 2011 in Reviews, Xbox 360 with 213 Comments

Every year there is one sports game i salivate to play, and that game is EA’s NHL. This year is no different, sure I love Madden and can’t wait for Fifa, but NHL has been my bread and butter since back in ’94 with the oversized cartridge in my genesis and Jeremy Roenick running over all comers. The past few years have shown major improvements in the way the game is played and this year is no different.

Story:The story aspect of sports games is usually lost on most gamers, but if you read my Madden review you know that there is a story if your willing to partake in the Be A Pro or Be A Legend modes. Tailor make your own hockey rookie as young as 16, choose your favorite player in any league, or start a career as one of the NHL Legends in the game. This year also does something very rare for sports games, it gives you the ability to make your Be A Pro a female. There is no storyline but playing out your hockey career and having to achieve certain goals and tasks throughout adds some substance.

My favorite mode is by far Hockey Ultimate Team or HUT for short. This mode originated in the Fifa series and now seems to be in the EA’s big three sports titles (Fifa,NHL,Madden) for good. Collecting cards and building up teams is awesome fun. This year EA has added the ability to download other players teams so you don’t have to play against standard teams. You can tell EA has spent sometime on HUT this year, with the additions of Legends in packs and it looks like they are adding weekly stars to packs too (you can search for them on the auction house), much like Fifa has with the “in form” cards. The only downside to this mode is the seemingly absent matchmaking, many times ill be paired up with someone who’s skill level is far below or far ahead of my own. This is only a problem in HUT though as the ranked head to head does match you up correctly.

Gameplay: Breaking glass, checks into the bench, helmets being knocked from heads, goalies being movable, what world is this? NHL 12 has added all of the previous things along with way improved puck physics. The gameplay this year is as intense as a playoff hockey game so smooth that you will be coming back all year long. Players are no longer frail little stick figures on skates that get strewn about the ice anytime a defender touches them (with exception to Crosby he still dives at all times). The net is now an actual item on the ice not just an immovable extension of it, which is an addition that has been needed for years. The Winter Classic makes it long awaited arrival to the series, but with only Heinz field as a playable venue and the snow always falling take a little bit away from mode. I understand it may not be possible to use other venues due to rights, such as 2K having the MLB stadiums wrapped up, but the fact that no matter how many times you play the mode it is always snowing is just a bit cheesy to me. NHL 12 has vastly improved on a game that I thought didn’t need much to be the best sports game in production, and they have made those improvements and a few others that make this game the sports game all others wish they could be.

Graphics/Audio: Playing with the backdrop of an all white surface should over saturate your eyes in brightness leaving players muddled blurs of color, but that is not the case in NHL 12. Players looks crisp and pop off the ice surface, and the new presentation during intermissions is also very well executed. I love going into an intermission and watching the highlights of goals,hits, and shots without having to navigate to a sub menu. The downfall of NHL and seemingly all of this years EA Sports titles is in the commentary department. As a Flyers fan I love Bill Clement, but he has to go as an announcer. His color work is just not good in the game and Gary Thorne is becoming more overplayed then Lady Gaga. I would love for the franchise to bring back Jim Hughson who has the best voice in hockey. NHL 12 also has a very lackluster soundtrack this year, it boasts about 12 tracks and they become stale about 6 hours into play.

Overall:NHL 12 is a fantastic improvement over last years game. I love the fact that minor improvements, such as making the goalie and net movable objects adds a whole new depth and strategy to the game. EA has proved year in and year out that they know what hockey gamers want and they keep delivering it. This is by far the best sports game I have ever played and I hope that the hot streak of sports games EA has been on this year continues with Fifa later this month.