The Official Which XBOX Hockey game are you getting thread AND WHY?!!? (espn vs. ea)

[Young_Fledgling]

hey all,

just wanted to see what hockey game everyone is thinking of getting... espn 2k5 or nhl 2005 by ea sports.

I am leaning towards espn just because it has been the better one the last 2 years and it looks to be improving once again. Let me hear your thoughts.

AND VOTE! :cool:

[Prior]

I was always a big fan of ea when it came to hockey games so i'm gettin Nhl 2005 i find that Ea has the better graphix,i like the gameplay its just the best overall hokcey game IMO

[Yankeez]

ALways been a big fan of sega hockey, and for $20 u cant go wrong

[Wolfboy_888]

Segas cheaper and better ...me and my friend from school are going to have a hella time playing online live leagues..and going to his house with other friends and playing the party games is going to be awesome.. 2k series is more realistic..and the gameplay graphics are leaps and bound over eas.

[memphissheik]

truth is...this will be my first year buying a hockey game ever. I don't know the rules, don't fully comprehend all of the dynamics. okay, lemme be honest. I couldn't identify a set hockey play if my life depended on it, but I'm willing to give ESPN Hockey a shot at $19.99. I might actually get a thrill out of it. Topspin did it for me with tennis, so why not hockey.

[Casper]

I like how EA made their hockey games 2 years ago - when it wasn't as slow and sluggish as it was last year. As far as ESPN goes, it's almost too much of a sim, I was getting so aggravated at getting caught against the boards all dam game. But for $20 and what I see with ESPN's network with the leagues, I'll be getting this.

Someone needs to take XSN Rivals attributes and implement the 6 Xbox's in one game on Live and make that a key feature - nothing beat having 8 gamertags on ice (2 guests) and it needs to happen this year.

Any word on Hitz this year?

[Brutus]

I buy the new Hockey game every year, the day it comes out. It used to be EA. Then two years ago, we got pretty screwed... But then last year, we were blessed with good things. Two solid games but I couldn't turn down Sega's hockey. I'm very Anxious to see how awesomely cool this years Hockey game is.
Oh yeah: There's a reason why ESPN's hockey last season was one of Xbox's best selling titles last holiday season - We were all waiting for that cool of a hockey experience!!!!
+ we are all looking at the best improved, just like their football, for only $20.00 / man, why not, you cheap *******s! hahah!
It's all about that shiznit!
Let's Go Blues!!!!!

P.S.
...they better have a season this year... Please reach an agreement, players & owners!!!

You know what makes me mad? The fact that these owners sign 2.5 to 12 million dollar players to contracts & then complains saying that their players are making too much money!?!?!?!?! Then you got teams like the local Coyote's picking up Brett Hull! How they going to afford that?! I thought they were complaining about the contracts they've made!?!?! Oh yeah, they'll pay to win, but if they can snake their own contracts, they'll do it & save money at it too, eh?!

They'd better reach an agreement... What do you all have to say about that one?

[Fonzie]

THANK YOU for posting this as I was just about to make a thread about it. Anyways i think im gonna go with espn since its cheaper and its the first time I can get it because last year I had gamecube and they only the had nhl series. If espn dissapoints Illl just get nhl 2005.

[Fonzie]

By the way, who here actually plays hockey. I live in Canada so you can pretty much guess my answer.

[Casper]

By the way, who here actually plays hockey. I live in Canada so you can pretty much guess my answer.

http://www.xboxaddict.com/forums/images/buttons/edit.gif

:)

I used to play, but am 27 now - but in high school, I was a keeper. Since I got older, I stick with football (soccer) indoors and still play in the net - IO love it.

[Fonzie]

Yea sorry about the double post, its a little early.

[Stifler]

NHL 2K5, and I'm gonna be kicking some ass with my Maple Leafs

[CrazyCougar]

Definitely ESPN. EA used to have a good hockey title, but it seems to have regressed like its baseball series. I didnt lik the feel of the game at all last year because it felt like you were floating on air and not skating on ice. Now ESPN, feels and plays like real hockey. And this year looks like they improved it even more, if that was possible. Definitely ESPN all the way. And at $19.99 how can ya go wrong.

[MajorTom]

I've been getting the ea hockey games since nhlpa hockey 93 for snes. I'm not about to swith to espn now

[MajorTom]

http://www.xboxaddict.com/forums/images/buttons/edit.gif

:)

I used to play, but am 27 now - but in high school, I was a keeper. Since I got older, I stick with football (soccer) indoors and still play in the net - IO love it.
I live in Canada and I'm one of the few that doesn't paly hockey. Mainly cause my parents couldn't afford to put me in hockey when I was younger so I never started. I do play soccer though and it's a great sport.
Do you watch any soccer?

[Brutus]

I've been getting the ea hockey games since nhlpa hockey 93 for snes. I'm not about to swith to espn now
You won't even try it? Not even for $20.00?
:confused: To all his own. I mean, I try them all too, & I totally love the ESPN's feel way more. Ever since Dreamcast's Visual Concepts I wanted them to make it like that but better & they finally did with last years title. Now it's better!

P.S. They'd better play this year!!!!!

Oh yeah. & I still play Roller Hockey whenever everyone else is done crying about how hot it is here in Phoenix, Arizona.
If they're crying to bad, I rollerblade a lot!

[OC Noob]

You won't even try it? Not even for $20.00?
:confused: To all his own. I mean, I try them all too, & I totally love the ESPN's feel way more. Ever since Dreamcast's Visual Concepts I wanted them to make it like that but better & they finally did with last years title. Now it's better!

P.S. They'd better play this year!!!!!

Oh yeah. & I still play Roller Hockey whenever everyone else is done crying about how hot it is here in Phoenix, Arizona.
If they're crying to bad, I rollerblade a lot!


Crying about heat???


No way, its been so cold I'm freezing my @ss off! Its been at least mid ninties to low hundreds with these storms we've been having. What the heck happened to summer??? Brrrrrrrr, freezing my @ss off here.



Oh yea, I liked Hitz last year. The arcadish hitting and all that is what I liked. I played NHL2k3 (EA) and it was very slow and sterile. Gfx sucked too. What is ESPN like, I'll probably get it for $20, unless its slow paced and boring like the EA hockey game was.

[Fonzie]

I agree. I found that i always had to crank up the speed meter if i wanted it to be fun.

[revernd]

espn 2k5 all the way! better price tag, liked 2k4 over nhl 2004. Stickin with sega

[Brutus]

Crying about heat???

Oh yea, I liked Hitz last year. The arcadish hitting and all that is what I liked. I played NHL2k3 (EA) and it was very slow and sterile. Gfx sucked too. What is ESPN like, I'll probably get it for $20, unless its slow paced and boring like the EA hockey game was.

Man. Try 115 degrees in the Shade. They have Bake offs in cars with pound cake. I think the record this year is like 33 minutes. It's just crazy hot here. The sun is relentless.

But yeah, 2K3 was week. I bought it, but, sheesh. When 04' came out I got so excited I wet my pants. My brother loved to play my Xbox hockey but he hadn't bought a console since the genesis & when he saw & played ESPN '04, he bought the XBox & the game. That's all he owns in his house!

I'm not going to say that ESPN games are console pushers, but they were in this situation!!!!!

Trust me, a very adamant Hockey Fan. I was front row banging on the glass when the Blues came to town last October. This is the best Hockey Experience available on any console as of yet.

[RichVGS]

Let me start out by echoing Brutus' "GO BLUES!" statement (brought a tear to my eye when I saw those beautiful words).

I have been transformed from a hardcore EA NHL gamer to a militant ESPN supporter, and price and online play has nothing to do with this decision. NHL 2004 was a cakewalk, even in its hardest setting. ESPN came in and it was a major challenge. I've never gotten so worked up over a game in my life until ESPN NHL 2K4 graced my Xbox.

As a hardcore fan, I'll probably own both so I can play online against all my fellow hockey fans, whether they own EA or ESPN. But I tell you this, every time I play against the computer, or in season mode, I'll be hitting ESPN hard.

Once Again, GO BLUES!!!

[mrmp3]

I see where you've played EA Hockey since Genesis, I owned NHLPA 93' , NHL 93' - 97'. THOSE were some good hockey games. Excluding Mutant League Hockey (god I wish they made some new Mutant League series games), only one to have blood. My bro KO'ed this guy in a fight with Tie Domi (who then was a NY Ranger) and since we were little we didn't know better, but we could've sworn the guy fell into the goalpost, which we thought caused the bleeding. The guy was out for like 2 games (i think...) or somethin like that, but still, it was awesome. However, NHL is nowhere near as fun. 2002-2003 were absolute crap. Breakaway cam was garbage, they removed the front flip checking animation from 2001 (which btw was the only entertaining one) and added no new ones till 2004, and the fighting system was crap (till' 04). Not to mention, wtf is up with the WEAK goalie AI? You take a slapshot, if it trickles through and goes behind the goalie, he refuses to fly around and grab it, but rather skates backwards and knocks it in his own net. Only way to counter it is have the defensemen hopefully get his stick on it before it goes in. However, when it happens to the AI, they gain possesion without turning around. Absolute BS. Difficulty is a joke. Like someone else said even on toughest difficulty it's a breeze. In my franchise with the Rangers I am currently 52-8-4-2. And the ref, you can't check him and he always gets in the way of the puck. Fact is, the game has turned to crap after PS1 days (who remembers ability to check referee's in NHL 98'? That KICKED ASS!) and ESPN last year, if it had some better checking animations (that over the boards one kicked ass) which they added this year, and a better fighting system (the new one I know nothing about), I would've bought. They didn't last year, they are doing it this year, and this time, it's only gonna be $20. KICK-ASS! My vote goes to ESPN.

[Spaztic]

ESPN and hopefully they get the some of the bugs fixed.