NHL Hitz 2003

How do you follow up a great title from the previous year? That question is asked by many sports game developers with few finding the right mix that achieves continuing success. By improving the graphics, adding new in-depth features, and retaining the hard-hitting formula that Midway brings to the table, NHL Hitz 2003 manages to find a way by not only offering a comparable performance but also dramatically improve their extreme hockey series from the previous year.

NHL Hitz 2003 still has the same adrenaline charged hockey as last year at its core. A hard check may send a player through the glass, helmets are knocked off and slide across the ice, and of course penalties are non existent, allowing the game to become rather rough. In addition, the control is still as responsive and easy to use as last year, critical for decent multiplayer capabilities as new players can quickly become comfortable with the game.

What has changed from last year, however won't disappoint. First, the gameplay options have been expanded with the addition of a franchise mode, hockey school mode, multiplayer tournament mode, and mini-games mode to name a few. Other additions include improved graphics with a crowd size increase from 350 to 4665 and the number of animations has more then doubled from 700 to 1500.

With the improvements and additions made to NHL Hitz 2003, it should be a welcome addition to any sports fan's library. The multiplayer abilities and extreme style of play will also attract players not historically interested in hockey and may reach a larger audience than Midway's flagship NFL Blitz series has.