Nhl 09 is 100% in the game
Nhl 09 has allot to live up 2 with the high bar set up by nhl 08. 09 meets and breaks and a throws the bar into the sun. Nhl sticks with the old and true saying if not broke why fix it. So at first glance while graphically it may appear the same has 08 there are many improvments which warrent a new purchase.
Just like 07 and 08 nhl 09 brings back the skill stick with all it bells and whistles added in 08 and like its older brother adds its own twist to the skillsticks. New in 09 is the defensive skill stick which takes everything you loved about the skill stick on the denfensive side of the game. These new functions of the skill stick include the abillity to control where your player postions his sticks on the ice to block passing lanes or controle which direction you want to poke check. These sweeps are done using the right sitck while holding down the poke button. Another new d-man move added in for 09 is the abillity to lift sticks and while on paper this sounded it good its could use some work for nhl 10. The sticks lift works by pressing A while not in control of the puck. Your player will then attempt a way to often successful stick lift regaing the puck. Ea tried to not incourage spamming of this by placing in a high sticking minor for missed attempts however it not called nearly enough leading to online abuse. Other new gamepaly features includes the abillty to dump pucks into the corner and attempt forechecks with grinder lines. This again sounds good on paper but in pratice does not work out has well. 90% of your dump in attempts will be recoverd by the opposing team.
Besides new gameplay features nhl 09 with its returning gamemoes offers two new gamemodes to series that will change they way people will play nhl from now on. So nhl 09 now offers the standerd play now,tournment,franchise and the abillty to create your own team and players. However its main selling point are the new be- a- pro mode and the EASHL online hockey leauge. Be a pro allows you to create a palyer from scratch or take an exsisting player from the nhl and play an entire career in the saktes of that player. If you choose an exsisting nhl pro you will start off on his current team and line and continue from there. However I suggest to get the most out of this mode you create your own palyer from scratch. Once this is done and you chose your palyer type and postion you will start of in the ahl miniors and have to work your way up to the pros. Now depending how good you at the game or other circumstances like your pro team gets hit by the injury bug your jump from the pro could take a month or 5 games. The way you prove your skill in the be-a-pro mode is how well you perform game to game in 3 catagories. These 3 catagories are Postioning how well you stay in your postion based on the type of player you are and your postion. For example a dmen not getting to involed in the offensive zone and risk getting caught. Dont worry for people not all that sure of the postions and hockey there is a helpful blue arrow that appears on the ice that tells you where you should be. The second catagorie is teamplay which goes up or down on how well you pass the puck. Pass the puck well and get assists on goals and watch it go up. Pass the puck poorly and get it intercepted or take bad penalty and watch it go down. the fianl catagorie is stats. Stats will go up or down depending on if you getting the points for the team or the other team is getting points while your out on the ice. All 3 catgories are rated on A+ to F- scale. You can see your progress everytime your return to the bench and during intermission these stats are not set in stone tell the end of the game so if you had a bad first you can turn it around in the second. Besides these 3 catagories your palyer will have season goals to achive based on your palyer type. For example a sniper might be asked to score at least a set number of goals while a goalie might have to keep up a his save % to certian number. These goals if reached will give your extra exp at the end of season along with the exp you gain after each well played game. These exprince points can be used to pump up your palyer to superstar level.
While be-a-pro is fun the EASHL takes it to a whole new level allowing for 6vs6 teamplay using your be-a-pro with other people be-a-pro. Stats are kept seperate from your offline be-a-pro so you can change your player type anytime you want. The online works the same as offline for the most part yuo are still ranked on the catagories but the way you achive experince is diffrent. instead you get card based on the number of games you played and the average grade at that time. Each time you gain a new card you gaiun more exp.
Nhl 09 is a heck of a game which i feel can be enjoyed by puckheads and non nhl fans a like. With its nhl 94 controls with two button paly almost anyone can jump in and play. That being said eas did not forget about the hockeyfans by adding in more retro jersey's and even a habs 100 year team featuring all time montreal canadiens great's like the rocket and lafleur.
go out and get this game now!!!!. :)
