4 stars

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While hockey fans were waiting for the NHL season to start, there was nothing better to do than play NHL 2k13 while the lockout continued.

The game is very much improved from last year since there are more scoring, hitting and skating moves while playing. Last year it was tough to score on any team. This year, if the player passes around their team, they are more likely to score. However, online is pretty much the same as last year. The soundtrack is awesome as well; it’s just too bad that “Key’s to the City” from the Chicago Blackhawks theme song is not on the game.

The skating mechanics have improved. EASports.com says, “Driven by real-world physics and more than 1,000 new gameplay animations, NHL 2k13 authentically replicates the explosiveness, momentum, and top-end speed of NHL players. Adding a whole new layer of creativity for players to discover on the ice combined with control offered by the Skill Stick finally gives gamers access to the entire toolset of an NHL player.”

This means players get the real opportunity to play as their favorite player on NHL 2k13, and skate or have the same exact Stick Skill as the player in real life.

Some people will ask about the hockey IQ of the game. The answer is that it is much better from last year, plain and simple. According to EASports.com, “A completely overhauled A.I. system, players are now fully aware of every other player on the ice, resulting in quicker, smarter and more true-to-life decision-making. EA SPORTS Hockey IQ also delivers the deepest and most customizable set of real-world hockey systems and strategies ever for the franchise.” The players within the game will know where they need to be on offense and defense, as well as goalies’ ability to stop the puck, and this makes the game better.

If some video gamers remember how the early generation NHL games were, the goalies were not as athletic or flexible; they were just a dot on the screen that players had to move up and down to save the pucks. Every year, goalies have become more athletic and more shaped as far as how they are viewed on screen. This game is no exception, and the graphics seem as authentic as the actual goalies fans see on television while watching any NHL game.

What’s new this year compared to any other year is “NHL Moments Live.” Rewrite or relive history as players get to replay some of the most thrilling moments from today’s NHL. With 26 moments from the 2011-12 season, from Gagner’s historic eight-point night to Crosby’s epic return to the ice, among other legendary moments.

Even if a player didn’t like the game they just watched on television in real life, they can replay that game to adjust the outcome to the player’s liking. Players can even replay last year’s NHL Stanley Cup and have the New Jersey Devils win the cup instead of the L.A Kings.

With all of the new aspects NHL 2k13 has to offer, it is an all around great game to play. Every year NHL 2K’s are improving and getting better and better, which gives cause for excitement to see what they have in store for next year’s game.