Amory Wong started working at EA Canada when it was still independent developer “Distinctive Software”, or DSI. They developed a number of noteworthy sports and racing games in the late 80’s and early 90’s, including Hardball II, Test Drive, and one of my all-time favorite DOS games, Stunts (A.K.A. “4D Driving”.) DSI was eventually bought … Read more
As an avid retro sports gamer, I’m always picking up old sports games that I either don’t have or have never played. Doubly-so when they’re Ice Hockey, Golf, or Baseball games. Sometimes I find a hidden (at least to me) gem, and sometimes that dollar would have been better spent if flushed down the toilet. … Read more
I’ve probably spent more time playing NHL 97 (albeit on the Playstation) than any other hockey game on any system. In fact, it was one of the main reasons that I finally upgraded to a Playstation from the Sega Genesis. When it came time to review the Saturn version of this game, I was worried … Read more
While NHL 97 looks very bad compared to subsequent EA hockey games, for its time the game was a real leap forward from the 16-bit generation. The players are all large and fully polygonal, but the low polygon count takes away a lot of the detail. The glass over the boards looks more like a … Read more
The first time you fire this game up, you’re greeted with a full motion video highlight reel of big hits and big goals from the NHL that gets you psyched to play some hockey. Unfortunately the game that follows will leave you feeling unfulfilled. All-Star Hockey allows you to play a single game, a full … Read more
If NHL 94 is considered to be the hallmark of the series, then NHL 95 is the red-headed stepchild. Fans of the NHL franchise consider this game to be the low point of the series on the 16-bit platforms. EA chose to take the series in a slightly new direction by speeding up the game … Read more
NHL ’94 enjoys a cult following, and is even hailed by some as the best hockey game ever made. For this third installment Electronic Arts brought in a new programmer, Mark Lesser, to develop the game. Lesser had previously worked in the industry designing handheld electronic games for Mattel including Auto Race, which was … Read more
NHLPA Hockey ’93 is the second game in the franchise, and the follow-up to 1991’s NHL Hockey. The game was renamed to reflect the addition of actual player names instead of just using their numbers. While this is a welcome addition, EA apparently felt that they could only afford to pay for one license, so … Read more
NHL Hockey was the first hockey game to be released on a true 16-bit console, and until its release hockey fans had to make do with games like “TV Sports Hockey” on the Turbo Grafx 16 and “Blades of Steel” on the NES. NHL Hockey was a huge step forward from all previous hockey games. … Read more