Out of Bounds: NHL 95/96 and the Trappings of Old

[Eski33]

I agree. I am 39 years old and I have seen the evolution of sports games over the years. The NHL series has been my favorite. NHL 94 is my all-time favorite because of the teams, the ability to make trades and it was the first in the series to have a season mode.

I made an 80's Oilers team with Jari Kurri, Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Andy Moog, Grant Fuhr, Paul Coffey, just to name a few that were on other teams at the time.

I also miss the Nordiques, Whalers (which I used a ton) and the Jets, which were all around during the NHL series birth.

Going back to the Genesis days, I played NBA Live 95 on my computer a couple months ago. Talk about fun. That game is still awesome....

[JaFFiTh]

I think nhl 95 was the game I had (the season right after the strike season) then first one I owned too. Just checked out the 94 site and omg.. the graphics are definitely a BIG difference! But I remember I was addicted to the game, gilmour, andreychuk.. and all that player as a Leaf.. can't get any better than that! I have also owned pretty much every game since 97 or 98 except for that one year off due to the strike.

I also enjoyed playing Blades of Steel for the Nintendo. My buddy had that so whenever I went over we'd play that. One day a couple years ago or so we played it for the heck of it.. omg so damn different. I wouldn't go back to the games 'cause I'm HUGE on graphics so ****ty graphics = garbage to me lol but it was fun while it lasted

[Eski33]

Quote: Originally Posted by FBeaule04

I played almost every year of NHL except NHL 03. I started with NHL 92, on the Genesis. I had **** battles with a friend who was a Wings fan while I use the Hawks for the rivalry purpose. It was a ton of fun at the time, with the goal post crazy sound and the siren at the end of period. NHLPA 93 wasn't bad, the only version we're we had blood but it's true, NHL 94 was a pretty good game. I wouldn't go back to those years since the game as progress a lot, but back at the time, it was fun. I think it was NHL 96 that had the season, scoring leaders, etc. This one was also a blast but the bug that made your season get away when you hit the 77 or so games ruined it for me. NHL 98 with online leagues was a ton of fun too! :-)

I almost forgot NHL 98. NHL 98 was awesome. I remember the first time I played an exhibition and the Bruins sported their yellow alternates. The graphics at that time were outstanding and the music when you scored a goal was sweet. I believe it may have been the first licensed music to be incorporated in a game...Can't remember the song though...

[BurghFan]

Heh, I remember NHL 95 for Genesis mainly because the copy I had had all kinds of bizarre and funny glitches. Sometimes I would have 2 goalies in my net, sometimes I would have every goalie in the NHL on my bench, and sometimes a mysterious extra player with a screwed up number would skate in from the crowd to join my team on the ice. Unfortunately some guys who were supposed to be remodelling our bathroom stole that game (and Sonic the Hedgehog 3). They did a lousy job on the bathroom too. Anyways, I also remember being really good at one timers and it being really easy to score.

[Tikker]

nhl 95 for me was the pinnacle of the series

that being said, I really enjoyed nhl10 last year, and really looking forward to 11

[Nunyerbiz]

It was insanely easy to score in NHL94, single player was useless. BUT... defense was insanely easy as well, which made it an incredibly sound two player game. Perhaps the best NHL ever made for head-to-head. The key was the hook. Those deke moves and "skate parallel to the goal line" cheese goals simply went away with a well positioned defender and the hook button. Mario? Wayne? Stevie Y? bring em all on... any average scrub blue liner could render all cheese useless with a well-timed hook.

I thought 95 was an ambitious step forward, but it never really clicked with me or the other 10-20 guys in our college dorm that organized tourneys. NHL96 on the other hand, that was the gold standard of 16-bit sports gaming.

[Dirty Turtles]

NHL 94-NHL 98 were my childhood, especially NHL 94 and 96. I was a Nordiques fan, and subsequently an Avalanche fan, but I had to use the Chicago Blackhawks because I loved their fight song. It's still stuck in my head from time to time when I'm playing the newer games.

[RynoAid]

I went 31-0 before losing my freshman year in our wing of the dorm back in 93-94. I played with Quebec and Sakic, Sundin and Owen Nolan.... what a line that was.

We kept all the user records for about 7 of us on our machine and played non-stop the whole year.