Games

This year's edition allows you to compete against legendary players including Gordie Howe, Bobby Hull, Phil Esposito, and Marcel Dionne. New Jersey Devils announcers Mike Emrick & Darren Pang call the games. There is an exhibition mode for up to eight players with the Multitap, a season mode for multiple players, playoff mode, tournament mode, a practice option, and shoot-out mode, that helps to sharpen your breakaway and deke moves. Also new this year are the updated rosters of all NHL teams including expansion teams Columbus BlueJackets and Minnesota Wild.

Midway introduces hockey with its no-rules twist that is seen in NFL Blitz. Hockey may have fewer rules than football, but NHL Hitz features hard-hitting action and very simple 3-on-3 gameplay. The game has franchise modes for a created team that you can design along with championship and exhibition modes. You earn attribute points and credits that you can use to unlock items and improve your players along the way. There are several mini-games and extras hidden deep in the game for you to unlock. NHL Hitz is Midway's attempt at making the most action-packed hockey game to ever hit consoles.

The NHL Hitz series has been on all next-generation consoles since the early days of the 32-bit era. With that said, its no surprise that Midway brings NHL Hitz 20-03 to GameCube, with Hitz' trademark 'On-Fire Mode', over-the-top animations, and fully 3D crowds. Like all NHL Hitz games, NHL Hitz 20-03 features gameplay modes for up to 6 players, in-game fights and hidden teams, players and stadiums. The game will also feature Create-A-Player modes and mini-games.

NHL Hockey is a two-player, action hockey game for the Intellivision. Players control their team's puck handler, while the CPU controls all other team members, including the goalie. The players can either shoot the puck quickly or pass it slowly, and can also trip other players (at the risk of a penalty if they do not have the puck.) Stealing the puck and intercepting shots are also possible during gameplay. NHL Hockey features 4 different speed settings, selectable at the beginning of the game.

NHL Open Ice is the NBA Jam for ice hockey, with a 2 on 2 arcade action featuring a full NHL license including actual team names and logos and 120 actual NHLPA players with reflective stats for the 1995-96 season. The game features power-ups that will aid the players along during a game including the "Hot Meter" which is filled with every score, body check and steals. Once the meter is full, the player will literally catch fire and their stats will max out for a brief period of time, allowing the player to score goals better, steal the puck more often, etc. There is five difficulty settings and adjustable options such as period time times and cheat options such as "Big Head" mode and multiplayer capabilities for either head-to-head action or co-op play. Chicago Blackhawks announcer, Pat Foley, lends his voice talents to the game for in-game commentary.