I sit here in my room, on my bed, with my trusty 'ol NES fired up and a game of Super Mario Bros. going. As all of this is happening, I can't help but begin to feel a bit nostalgic. I all of a sudden realized that I have owned my NES since right before I started high school. I graduated last Friday. Where the hell has the time gone? All of this makes me reflect upon my gaming past. And if you'll indulge me, I'd like to sit here and give you a short history.
When I was just a young lil NESman, (Before I actually ever played an NES, so I was more of a lil SNESman, but I digress), I loved video games. For the longest time, we owned no video games in our house, save maybe those little childish, yet awesome, LCD games. However, we did have access to a Sega Genesis over at my grandmother's house, so we played that when we could. Soon after that, we finally got a SNES in our house!!! Even after that, because we didn't have many games, I continued to play the Genesis (Lay off! They had both Sonic and Sonic 2, what more could you want?!).
Well, as time went on, I finally got my very own system that I could call mine when I was six. On my sixth birthday, I got a Sega Genesis 3. Well, then I ended up finally getting a Playstation, then a PS2, about 2 years ago.
I have acquired these classic games of the last 4 or so years, except for the Genesis model 2 and 3 that are the self same ones that I've owned since I was but a lad.
I know this was probably a total waste of my time and your time, but I felt the need to do it. It's weird to sit and play a game and have it make me look back and reflect. However, since I have graduated high school and am going off to college in the fall, I have to look back and realize how fun a time I had with all of these video games. Chances are, I'll never let them go.
In the early to mid-1980's, the North American video game market began to severely decline. Too many companies tried to make a quick buck with their own video game systems, like the Fairchild Channel F, and the Bally Astrocade. Also, the software companies began to just put out basically shit to keep up, for example, Atari's E. T. The Extra Terrestrial. After this, the market plummeted sharply and completely crashed in 1983. The North American video game market would not recover from this crash for 2 years.
Then, in 1985, a small, unknown Japanese company called Nintendo, decided to bring their Family Computer (also called the Famicom for short), video game system to our shores. The system was re-branded and re-tooled as the Nintendo Entertainment System. Because the original run of the system came with the R. O. B. (Robotic Operating Buddy), the system was seen as, not just another video game system, but a robot gaming system, as the robot was used to play games with you. Also, the system was also a video shooting gallery, as 2 of the set variations came with the game Duck Hunt. The graphics and sound of the system were unparalleled for the time, and the games on the Atari systems gave way to games that could actually be completed, such as the Super Mario series, Mega Man, and Contra, just to name a few. Because of these things, the system was an instant success, and the North American video game market was going strong once more.
This system was also the first to have different sets of systems with different included accessories. The ones made were the Deluxe Set, Action Set, Challenge Set, Control Deck, Sports Set, and Power Set, and finally, the Control Deck, with the NES 2.
Here are the different sets, by year of release
NES Set Variations
Deluxe Set-1985-System, hookups, 2 controllers, R. O. B., Zapper, Duck Hunt, Gyromite
Control Deck-1985-System, hookups, 2 controllers, Super Mario Bros.
Basic Set-1987-System, hookups, 2 controllers, The Official Nintendo Player's Guide (does not include game pak.)
Action Set-1988-System, hookups, 2 controllers, Zapper, Super Mario Bros./Duck Hunt
Power Set-1988-System, hookups, 2 controllers, Zapper, Power Pad, Super Mario Bros./Duck Hunt/World Class Track Meet
Sports Set-1990-System, hookups, NES Satellite, 4 controllers, Super Spike V' Ball/Nintendo World Cup
Challenge Set-1990-System, hookups, 2 controllers, Super Mario Bros. 3
Control Deck-1993-NES 2 System, hookups, 2 "Dogbone" controllers. (does not come with game pak).
As the years went on, the NES began to be rivaled by newer, more powerful systems, such as the Sega Genesis in 1989. Still, the system continued to thrive, all the way into the 16-bit wars. The final set was the control deck, consisting of the top loader, and 2 dogbone controllers, and the final game, Wario's Woods, was released in 1994, and was the only NES game to have an ESRB rating.
After all was said and done, the Nintendo Entertainment System sold close to 62 million units, with the best selling games being Super Mario Bros. (40 million units sold), and SMB3 (18 million units sold). For many gamers in the 1980s, this was their first and possibly their favorite system of all time. Although I did not grow up in the 1980s, I own an NES, and would not give it up for the world. This one also gets a 10/10.
Well, any classic Nintendo NES fan will know that, like other consoles, the NES has its own number of sports games, such as Slalom, and 10 - Yard Fight by Nintendo. There are even games from third parties such as Tecmo's Tecmo Bowl and Super Bowl. One in particular, Ice Hockey, is the one that I will be reviewing here. Starting off, you will notice the cartridge and box art are different than most Nintendo sports titles. Most come in the black boxes that we've all seen at one time or another. Strangely, Ice Hockey comes in a bright blue box with a picture of some random ice hockey player. This is the only Nintendo sports title that hasn't had the cartoony style characters on the box and cart.
Now, as you first boot up the game, you are treated to some quite cheerful music and some small hockey players on the screen. Like most NES games, Ice Hockey has the option of either 1 or 2 players. As you press start on the controller, you get a screen of several options. On this screen, you get to choose your team (USA, Canada, Russia, Czechoslovakia, Sweden, and Poland), your opponent's team, the speed of the game, and the length of the game, ranging from 7, 10, and 15 minutes. The last thing that you will set up before the game begins, is the setup of your team. You choose which type of players will be on your team. Once all of the options are selected, the match can begin.
As the game begins, you will start out at center ice to battle for the puck. The gameplay mostly relies on being able to pass the puck, shoot, and how you selected your team. From the get-go, none of the teams have a statistical advantage over the others. Before the game, each team has five players (a stocky player, 2 average players, and a skinny player). The stocky players are the best at shooting and bowling over other players (which is pretty entertaining), the average players are average all around, and finally, the skinny ones are the fastest but tend to be the ones that get bowled over the most often. Also, each team has a goaltender as well. The controller only controls the player that is selected, but it will also control the goaltender no matter which one is selected. Fights can also ensue, and will continue until the ref stops it and sends the starter to the penalty box. Goals can be kind of hard to achieve at times, but when you do score one, it is damn satisfying! One other thing to note is that, when the game is paused, the pause sound is the same pause sound from Super Mario Bros.!
As you can see, this is one of the greatest sports titles to be released on the NES, and is personally one of my favorite nes games of all time. I'll give this game a 9/10
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