NHL FaceOff

"THE Hockey Game.....of 1995"

This is the first of many games in the NHL FaceOff series. It has decent visuals and sound, but really lacks in gameplay.

Gameplay- 4
NHL FaceOff's gameplay was superior back in its day, but it is far outdated and considered by today's standards, mediocre at best. It is fun at first, but quickly becomes boring and repetitive after a few games, so you almost certainly will not want to play a whole season because of this. All you do is just skate around trying to score a goal while at the same time trying to stop your opponent from scoring, just like in real life, except for the occasional fight or check which never happens in this game. But, of course you need a strategy, too. The controls are a little bit hard to learn at first, but once you get them down, they become second nature.

Story- NA
Since this is a hockey simulation, it really doesn't have a story.

Graphics/Sound- 5
The graphics are nice and detailed when compared with other PlayStation launch games, but when compared to more recent PSX games, they're not very good. All the colors are rich and bold, the players sort of seem like pixelated stick men. At least the ice has its nice, whitish colors which is a redeeming quality (and strong point) of the graphics. The audio is where this game lacks badly in. When a whistle is blown or a puck slapped, the noises are not realistic sounding at all. The fans are extremely annoying when they cheer and boo.

Play Time/ Replayability- 4
The game only ends when you get tired of it (which won't be long), since it's a sports game. There's not much reason to play more than a few exhibitions, much less a whole season. Unless you are a diehard hockey fan, you might not even finish a single whole game. If you have a favorite player (like Wayne Gretzky) that has retired since 1995, then you will want to play it for a while. Other than those 2 reasons, you won't get any enjoyment out of it for long.

Final Recommendation
This game is only worth a rent at best, but since it's so old, you'll be forced to buy it used or borrow it from someone. Anyways, this game is only worth owning if you collect PlayStation big box games or, for some reason, like old, sorry PS1 games.

Reviewer's Score: 4/10, Originally Posted: 01/22/03, Updated 01/22/03