NHL 09 is the annual EA Sports ice hockey simulation on PS3. Revolutionary Be a Pro mode for a full NHL career experience. The reference hockey franchise on console with the official NHL season.
Your verdict
Category
Sports4 players3+
Description
EA Sports official NHL hockey simulation recreating the NHL 09 season with licensed players and teams. Published by EA, released in the USA in September 2008. All licensed NHL teams, Be A GM franchise mode, Be A Pro career mode, realistic analog stick controls, and online multiplayer. Console hockey reference.
NHL 09 review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
All the readability rests on the puck and the net. A tiny black disc streaks across white ice, and the game sets about tracking it everywhere: deflected off a stick, ricocheting off a skate, vanishing under a scrum then resurfacing. When it crosses the line, the mesh bulges and trembles. The art direction makes the smallest object on the ice the center of attention, the drama of a dot crossing the white.
The soundtrack pounds to the beat of rock and punk. Its selection favours saturated guitars, fast tempos and shouted choruses, a locker-room repertoire that fits the brutality of hockey and the energy of the checks. Far from ceremonial anthems, this aggressive playlist acts as fuel, keying the game's edge to that of a concert rather than a hushed rink atmosphere.
Gameplay
"Solid"
Fun
"From the very first minutes"
Addictiveness
"Captivating"
Difficulty
"Easy"
Lifespan
"Massive"
Carrying a player from the bottom of the league to the top in Be A Pro takes patience, and Be A GM adds a whole layer of long-term management. Online play revives the competition each season. This blend of credible simulation and felt progression explains the long lifespan prized by hockey enthusiasts.
An ice hockey simulation from EA Sports, NHL 09 introduces the Be a Pro mode following a single player on the ice and an enriched television presentation system. The stick puck control, the fluidity of the play and the depth of the dynasty mode made it a genre peak at the time. The absence of roster updates and the closure of online servers weigh. An excellent period hockey for fans of realistic ice play and nostalgics of the NHL series on this generation.
