ESPN NHL 2K5

"Why are you reading this? You should be playing this!!"

Last years game was the first year of the ESPN licence and it was a doo-sie. 2K4 included Gary Thorne and Bill Clemet, two of the greatest sounds of hockey doing the commentary. It also had the full ESPN experience, including the scoreboard. 2K4 was one of the greatest hockey games ever made, then 2K5 came out.

Gameplay - 10/10

This game improves everything that 2K4 had and adds some more. The inclusion of better controls even helps the cause. You can now use the circle button to body check and use different button combinations to Slash and Elbow. Franchise mode has been revamped and includes cool things like: scouting, hiring staff and managing your junior league team. Last years sky-box has been upgraded too. There are now more extras to unlock and new games to play like shuffleboard and trivia. Air hockey is also back!!! You can unlock things from classic teams to the heritage classic to different arenas to play at. Two new modes in this game are :Party Mode and Dream Team Mode. Party mode puts in the midst of 15 mini-games to play against your friends or the computer for total ice domination. Dream Team Mode is one cool addition. Now you can play against teams made by the likes of: Chris Drury, Martin St.Louis and Kush Games!! You can also create your own team or player if you like, using logos from classic team like the Minnesota North Stars!

Graphics(4/5)/Sound(5/5) - 9/10

Graphics have easily been upgraded for the better, but with a price. The graphics are memorizing, you can see the glare of the arena of the player's helmet. Everything has been revamped in the graphics department, but slowdown often creates a flaw in this diamond. Most of the slowdown usually occurs after the face off because there is so much going on. the game also skips a frame or two every so often but nothing that radically affects game play. If you cruise around the board for this game you might see people complaining about the game freezing. I have never, up to this date experienced a freeze in 2K5. The cut scenes, how cool as they are, are to far in between. You can fix this however by pressing down during the pre-game warm up. This affects the amount of cut scenes and replays for the better.
The sound in this game is amazing. Gary Thorne and Bill Clemet return for another season of ESPN hockey. They bring so much to the table, including commentary, and replay. Their personalities add so much to this game its unbelievable. The soundtrack for this game is amazing. So many great songs, it's almost scary.

Playtime/Re-playability - 10/10

Lets remember now, this is a sports game. Its also the best hockey game ever made. That alone gets rewarded a 10/10. You can play a season, franchises, tournaments and on-line play. Hello people, on-line play. You can also create your own team and play them against NHL teams as well as international teams like team Canada. This game is jam packed with re-playability. The party mini-games add a lot to this game. You can have a battle with your friends to see who's the champ or have skill competitions to see who's the most skilled. on-line adds to the mix. You can have mini-games and skill competitions on-line with regular old hockey games. You won't get bored with this game for awhile unless you're crazy or something.

Final Recommendation

Why are you still reading this? You should be getting in your car to race to the nearest electronics store to pick up this game. The price you ask? $20 US funds, $30 CDN. Are you kidding, you might ask. No, I'm not. The whole ESPN NHL franchise has outdone itself. Tons of new features and better graphics would have warranted a $50 US purchase. But let's all praise them. We get a game thats cheap on price, Big on everything else.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/06/04