NHL '09

[The Varsh]

The Varsh has just heard some awesome news about this years installment of EA's hockey franchise. Along with the customary tweaks to controls and new control features, the game will follow in the footsteps of Madden, FIFA, MLB The Show, and NBA The Life, NHL '09 will have a "career" mode! In Be A Star as it's being called in '09, you start with a rookie in any position you like and make your way up the AHL ranks and into the NHL. During your shifts your coach will grade you on several parameters of your play and you will be given "experience" for how well you do. The Varsh has been waiting for a feature like this in a hockey game for a looooong time. Mostly because of the fact that The Varsh could never realize his dream of becoming an NHL player in real life, now he can do it in the comfort of his own home!!!

Another interesting feature is the EA League. EA is dubbing it the first sports MMO and it seems to be pretty interesting. Players will create a character and join other players on a team. They will then play 6-on-6 against six other users. At some point in time EA is going to take a snapshot of the league standings and the top teams will duke it out for the EA League Championship!!! Whooooo!!! So yeah...all of The Varsh's fellow hockey fans...DISCUSS READY GO!!!

[Lodis]

Make your way up the AHL ranks?

Boooooooooooooooring.

The whole thing should start with getting drafted out of the CHL, or some other Major Junior system.

[Ges]

I shall probably be getting it if you hockey folks here are.

Question, what version would you all be getting? 360 or PS3? I dunno if they can play each other online. And that is what would happen, I'm hoping. Start a small tourney or something.

[Sushi_b]

EA can suck me. I don't like their products and I really don't give a rats arse if NHL 08/09 is great. I stick with the 2K series, as I prefer the challenge that it has (although it has some incredibly cheap goals at times, such as scoring on 3 shots at the beging of ever 2 or 3 games). EA's game has always felt too much of a scoring fest and any team can come back at any moment no matter how hard you play.

Anyways, I suppose a larger number of people flock to the NHL series as a whole because they do in fact like the goal scoring that it creates. That and because it's a very long series with lots of tradition dating back to 1991.

Sorry for the rant. :P

[Jarrid]

Only EA sports title I can stand are the Tiger Wood games.