NHL 09 review (X360)

Be a Pro in FIFA 08 was a revelation for EA. It firmly outlined that it is truly thinking about its franchise and is trying to improve it each year. So it’s not a great surprise to see this brilliant mode transfer over to the other sports franchises that EA has in its pockets. Oh and if NHL 09 is anything to go by, FIFA fans should be very excited.

It’s in the game

Be a Pro has now become the main mode in NHL 09 and it’s easy to see why. The whole point of this mode in NHL 09 is to make your player into a hockey superstar. There is also NHL Pro which allows you to take to the ice as any NHL player and play their career.

In Be a Pro you’ll start as a rookie goal keeper or outfield player, selecting the NHL franchise you wish to be a part of and starting life in their AHL team. From there, you will be closely monitored by your employers and will be set certain goals you need to achieve to help your career progress.

Once you take to the ice a blue arrow may appear showing where you should be on the ice if you’re not in the correct position. The more you see this, the more your positioning grade will suffer. The coach gives you this grade each time you’re off the ice.

Coach says...

And it’s also your team work and stats such as shooting accuracy, number of penalties conceded and goals scored that the coach will be commenting on. It’s these grades that will decide on what line you’ll be appearing in and whether the NHL is the place for you. You’ll also receive up to 4 comments from the coach, 2 positive and 2 negative. These are things you need to concentrate on to improve your overall grades.

As a goalie you need to play well enough to ensure you keep your starting place. Play well enough and you could get the call up to the NHL. The same goes for outfield players. You will start on the third line and try to work your way to the first, where you then have a chance of impressing the GM and getting promoted to the NHL team.

Shifting out the dead wood

But don’t think that it’s all about moving up. If you play badly, you’ll find yourself moving down the lines. Playing for the NHL team and not playing well enough will see you being shifted to their affiliate quicker than you can say Ice Man.

The bad news for your out of form player doesn’t end there. If you have played badly enough and found yourself back at the AHL team, you need to start performing again or you’ll drop through the lines. Continue like this and you could even be traded off to another team.

Depending on how you perform, different offers are received when it’s time to re-negotiate a contract. You receive between 2-4 offers depending on how well you play. Obviously the better you play the more offers will come your way and the more lucrative they will be.

Worldwide Pro

And it’s not just offline that Be a Pro is part of. EA have taken the mode one step further online and have launched the EA Sports Hockey League. Create your own team or join an already established one and be part of an online team hoping to be the best. Once your team has the full roster it requires, you’re ready to hit the ice.

But don’t worry if Be a Pro isn’t your thing. The more traditional modes are still there and the ability to create your own franchise and put them in the NHL is also still available.

The other option

The Dynasty Mode has been slightly changed. No longer do you control ticket prices, but you now have a scouting network and the ability to move players between feeder club and NHL franchise. Trading is of course still there and you have full control of this, draft signings and of course contract negotiations.

I mentioned in last year’s review that the controls were quite hard to master, especially the tackling aspect. This year again sees duel analogue controls being used, one for movement the other for stick control and it does appear that it has been fine tuned and works better than last year’s effort.

Sack the camera man?

It’s not perfect. Playing in modes other than Be a Pro where the camera angle is higher can see you sometimes struggle to line the tackle up properly. It certainly does seem to be easier to get the hits across in the Be a Pro camera mode. If you do find yourself playing with different camera angles after spending a long time on Be a Pro, it could take a little while to get used to it.

The one problem I had with Be a Pro came when playing as the Goalie. When opposition players come down the wide side and into the corners, it can be difficult for you to position yourself correctly as you’re not 100 percent sure where they are. A small problem but one that shouldn’t cause any real problems during gameplay.

No need for glasses

Graphically, the game seems to have had a face lift as well. The ice isn’t so reflective you’ll need to wear sunglasses and the facial animations and player movements all look really good. It really does seem like EA has responded to comments, suggestions and the competition they had.

EA have really thought about NHL 09 and with the introduction ‘Be a Pro’ this year, they have taken things further. The bar has well and truly been raised by EA and others will have to respond. This can only be good for us gamers and I can’t wait to see what EA has in store for FIFA 09 and the Be a Pro mode if this game is anything to go by.