NHL 2K7

"Total Control Hockey"

This honestly is by far the best hockey game I've played in my life. There are still areas that need refined and worked on that I will touch on that kept this game from being a 10.....but over-all this game is truly amazing and worth the price of admission.

Controls: 10/10
The controls in this game are by far the best in any hockey game out there. I used the Advanced control set, which I admit were tough at first, but now I couldn't live without. The defensive skating and total stick control are priceless when killing penalties and playing defense in your zone. The addition of saucer passes and flip passes help you get those passed through the tight spaces during 3 on 2s and 2 0n 1s. If you've ever played real ice hockey, you will appreciate the little things you can do with the control set offered on 2K7. There are Poke dives, block shots, board pins, kicking the puck, elbowing the guy pinning you....it's truly a joy to play.

Gameplay: 9/10
Due to the amazing control scheme this game plays like a dream. My only complaint is the fact that no matter how much you lower the computers hitting power they still knock you down if they barely touch you. This is one thing that really needs to be addressed and balanced by next years game. It's sometimes hard to work around the boards and behind the net when if you get slightly grazed by a player you lose control of the puck or just fall flat on yer wallet. Another area that could use some tuning is the puck clearing and passes around teh boards. They can at times be frustrating to pull off effectively. Other than a few minor tunes and tweaks, this game plays great and you always have the option of tuning the game how you see fit with the gameplay sliders.

Sound: 7/10
This game offers a nice variety of sound options, my favorite being the cinemotion commentary version that boost rink and player chatter, but also keep the commentary. There is also a version that plays like symphonic music while you play...which I just wasn't feeling at all. There are a few glitched in the sound of the PS3 version of this game, one will just blast a few seconds or so of grating static through your speakers while yer playing...another is a repetitive noise in the game menu screens if you turn all the 2K Jukebox songs off. Other than these few minor hiccups the game sounds are great and really help the over-all hockey experience.

Graphics: 7/10
Although these are some of the best player models I've ever seen in a sports title, the overall presentation of this game graphically just doesn't live up to my expectations. Area one of disappointment is player faces. Most of the major stars faces have been modeled(Forsberg,Crosby) but alot of the other players look nothing like them. The fact that we are in the next gen, it's vital that the players actually have their faces....or at least offer us a face creation option like teh one found on Tiger Woods so we can edit them. Some of the faces are so way off it can be annoying. Jordan Staal has a goatee and busted teeth on this game....which if you've seen him is not at all what he looks like, he's a baby faced teenager and wears a mouth piece. My second gripe is the crowd. The people in the crowd look horrible....I thought next, gen meant everything next gen, but I assume the crowds in sports games aren't included...they might even appear to be from the PSone era. They look nice in cut scenes, but along the glass the look blocky and have faces just pasted on their blocky heads. They did do a good job of personalizing the arenas though. Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh has the dome and the seating correct and Madison Square Garden in New York has its signature roof as well. Over-all the players and the rink look amazing, the action and animations are amazing(especially goalies) and the puck physics are beyond what you'd expect. You will regularly see pucks on edge, wobbling pucks, crazy bounces off the glass and unpredictable rebounds, which frankly lead to more exciting and compelling gameplay.

Performance: 7/10
Although this game look and sounds well, there are some serious glitches when it comes to saving data.....which to some can be the Achille's heel that prevents a purchase. The main error comes in season mode.....once you reach a certain point in yer season...about a month and a half in...kiss the rest of yer season goodbye, you wont be able to save past it. My suggestion is to simply play in Franchise mode, I have had no problems saving my season is Franchise mode at all. But don't I repeat DO NOT PLAY IN SEASON MODE!! The whole save set-up of this game needs streamlined....and this is a problem I've had with 2K Games since the PS2 era as well. Let's say you modify your game set ups and penalty levels, then sav them to you settings file. Now you load up your season.....those settings will not carry over into your season. You have to modify everything while your season is loaded then save the settings. Which I think is kind of bass akcwards. So just make sure you you get a grip on how the saves in this game are partitioned or it will make you crazy for a few games. Another glitch in this game is an occasional frame rate drop(which I only experienced in multi-player 3+) which sends the action into a sputtering mess. Although this at times only lasts till the next face-off, I've seen it last till the end of the current period....which means if yer early in a period you better start blinking as fast as you can to counter act the strobe effect the frame rate drop creates. The Save Glitch and the Frame Rate Glitch compounded with the Audio hiccups really drop this game to a 7 in performance and an 8 over-all score. If these items are corrected and addressed this game can easily hit a 9 or 10 over-all next year.

Replay: 10/10
This game has so far been the game most often found spinning in my PS3, it has offered me and my friends countless hours of multi-player goodness. The game-play and controls are so solid, that if you give up a goal...it's more than likely YOUR FAULT and not a cheap computer goal. But the same can be said if you score, it's all up to you. This game is by far the best sports title on the system to date, easily destroying that mess of an NFL licensed game, can't seem to remember the name of it....or even care at this point. So if you are a fan of the NHL or a fan of good sports games, I highly suggest this title to you. If you can look past the hiccups and glitches and realize this is a first generation game for the PS3 and a work in progress you will enjoy this game.

BUY/RENT: BUY!!

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 02/23/07