NHL 08

by Electronic Arts

Product Features

• Realtime, realistic gameplay and action ready for Windows Vista optimization
• Experience a realistic sense of team control on the ice. Command every movement and make precise passes with controlled velocity and accuracy
• Play your style of hockey at both ends of the ice, with on-the-fly coaching
• Control your offensive flow by effortlessly crashing the net, screening the goalie or pinching your defensemen
• Counter the attack by clearing out the crease, setting up a break out for an offensive rush, or clearing the zone

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000QB0594
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches ; 4.8 ounces
• Media: DVD-ROM
• Release Date: September 11, 2007
• Average Customer Review: 2.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,958 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
  • #1 in Video Games > PC Games > Sports > Hockey
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Platform: PC

No Game Is Ever the Same!Product InformationNHL 08 brings back the champion of hockey games with better gameplay andfaster on-ice action. Take command of tape-to-tape passing behind-the-net playsand precision give-and-go attacks. Dominate the ice with NHL calibergoaltending skating checking and puck handling with the deeply enhancedanimation system. Featuring all-new presentation elements commentary andcut-scenes NHL 08 brings the ice to you. Now you get into the action!Incredible new Character animations for goaltending checking shooting andpassing bring you authentic on-ice action. Product FeaturesIncredible Skill Stick MomentsControl the puck like never before with improved stick-handling passing andshooting accuracy.All 29 AHL TeamsChoose your favorite team from the NHL development league Finnish SM Liiga orthe Czech Elieserien or start your own European league Dynasty.On-Ice AuthenticityEach athlete is rendered with a meticulous attention to detail from playerlikeness to the equipment being worn for a truly authentic hockey experience.Deeper Franchise ModeNow with everything you need to take your team to the top including fantasydraft contract negotiation feedback trophy leaderboards and more.Minimum Requirements Windows 2000 XP Vista 1.3 GHz or faster processor 512 MB of RAM 2.8 GB or more free Hard Disc space DirectX 9.0c compatible Video Card (Video Card with 64MB or more memory) DirectX 9.0c compatible Sound Card Keyboard or dual analog gamepad 8X or faster DVD-ROM drive 

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars An unbelievable scam..., September 15, 2007

By 

Mark (Canada) - See all my reviews

= Fun:2.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: NHL 08 (DVD-ROM)

EA Sports has pulled some bad stuff in the last while, but this one takes the cake. This is borderline false advertising.

I bought this game after reading about the new features, i.e. the new advanced stickhandling, creating your own plays, and stellar graphics that appear on the TV advertisements. EA's "NHL" franchise has been pretty bad for releasing products that are essentially the same thing only with updated rosters. Unfortunately, this has happened again despite the company's claim to new features. I skipped NHLs 06 and 07 respectively because of this. I can say that short of a few small differences, the PC version of NHL 2008 is almost IDENTICAL to the PC version of NHL 2005, the last one I owned.

First of all, the new stickhandling feature does not exist for the PC, it appears that you have to purchase a PS2/XBox 360 "Hybrid" controller in order for this to happen. The "create your own strategy" is also nowhere to be found. Finally, the game's graphics are literally the exact same as NHL 2005. Beware: you will not see the sleek images you see in the adverts. This is preposterous considering the capabilities of the PC, which can easily compete with PS3 and 360 respectively. The graphics look dated and mushy, and the animation is choppy, nonsensical, and does not flow together. Even after 3 years, you can still see odd distortions on the backs of players jerseys due to the poor graphics engine. Some players are modelled fairly well (i.e. Ray Emery) but others simply look alien or disfigured (i.e. Mats Sundin).

The gameplay is still odd, very often you still get huge clumps of 4 or 5 players between the hashmarks, pushing and shoving each other and generally not doing anything.

Also, for some reason your players have ATROCIOUS aim. I went to the options and put the "Shot Accuracy" option to full, and my players were still missing the net by a great deal from less than 6 or 7 feet away from the net. I know this sounds like an odd complaint, but this happens A LOT, i.e. more than 60% of the time. Considering that on higher difficulties, getting this close to the net is rare. Therefore, the shot accuracy problem makes for a VERY frustrating gaming experience.

Players still skate and behave oddly. For instance, even with my offensive strategy set to "crash the net", my players would head to the net and then instead of stopping would continue skating onwards by themselves, thereby negating the whole strategy.

Even the new AI feature that I had such high hopes for failed. It is a great idea to make your opponent's defense change to accommodate a player's attack, but I could still get around them the same way every time. A good idea, but it needs tweaking.

This is truly sad. It is hard to believe that the PC version has essentially been slapped together while the production teams at EA Sports have very obviously concentrated on the PS3/XBox 360 releases. If you have NHL 2005, 2006, or 2007 for the PC, just simply update your rosters. This game is not worth it. It is absolutely absurd that 2 versions of a game (i.e. Xbox 360 vs. PC) could be so drastically different.

Shame on EA Sports for doing this. I have been buying their "NHL" games since 1995 (back in the days of 2D my friends), and I refuse to ever trust this franchise again.

If you truly wish to find out for yourself, find a friend who has the PC version, or find a way to obtain this product for free. EA Sports does not deserve your money for this excuse of a video game. I sincerely hope that a major overhaul will occur at EA Sports for next year, and hopefully the individuals responsible for this will never work on another. Here's hoping the changes made to the console versions are decent enough...

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars NHL, October 3, 2007

By 

M. Nealon - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:3.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: NHL 08 (DVD-ROM)

This seems to be a pattern with EA Sports, they've done the same thing with there Madden franchise, 08 is no different then 07 except of course the updated rosters. They really need to get with the program and start updating their produts. NHL could use a video replay feature, more fights, how about 6 on 6 brawls every once in awhile. Or how about a deflecting the shot feature? There is so much they can add to this and yet they don't. Perhaps they've cut back on the programmers.

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Get NHL 07 cheap instead, September 30, 2007

By 

Skyhound (New Mexico USA) - See all my reviews

= Fun:1.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: NHL 08 (DVD-ROM)

I have played every version of this game back to NHL '97. I hear the same kinds of complaints every year: the game hasn't changed much, it's buggy, the between game interface has been changed, but only in ways that make it less intuitive and useful, much-needed new features never appear, cool things you like disappear, etc.

Yet, every year I have found that, while the complaints are essentially true, they are exaggerated. For instance I read that there is no difference between NHL 07, NHL 06 or NHL 05, and this isn't really true. The game play (which is the most important part) did change enough between those versions to make it new enough that it was still many hours of fun. NHL 07 in particular was a very good game. There is no way I'd go back to 06. I play these games a lot over many months and by the next season I can score with my eyes closed on the highest difficulty. This is the main reason I get a new version. NHL 07 kept me going longer than any previous version.

But this time the complaints are right on. NHL 08 really is just NHL 07 warmed over. Not only are all the graphics and interfaces the same as 07 but so is the game play. Yet, somehow, it plays more choppily than 07 did on my aging 2.8 GHz P4 (I pulled it out and compared them). How they managed to slow the game down while not changing anything is beyond me! The only thing that I could find to make the program more challenging was the new skill stick (which does not require a hybrid controller--just a typical PC game controller). But I began to master that in less than an hour and the game was already becoming boring!

If you didn't buy 07 then I urge you to do so. It's really quite fun. It will take some time to update the rosters, but it is doable. If you did play 07 and want a new experience, then I am sorry to say that 08 will not likely deliver.

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