3 on 3 NHL Arcade Review

EA Sports has given us a little mid season treat with 3 on 3 NHL Arcade. Remember that old basketball game where you were 2 on 2 or whatever, and you’d be on fire after three buckets in a row? Well, the hockey version is finally here, and I have to admit that I kinda like it!

I was a little skeptical at first because I’m a die hard NHL 09 fan, and wasn’t sure how this little cartoony game would stand up, but have to say its not bad at all. Of course it doesn’t have the depth or the skill requirement of 09, but what did you expect when the players skate around with huge heads, and you can use powerups along the way to clear the path to victory?

There are some pretty fun powerups which include:

Super Shot: Basically gives you a Zdeno Chara / Sheldon Souray slap shot equivalent when you shoot.
Big Player: Your player becomes huge and completely unstoppable. Makes it pretty easy to barge right through the middle and try and burn the goalie when you don’t have to worry about being checked off the puck.
Freeze: Kinda like a power play as it turns one of the opposing players into an ice block for a little while, leaving you with a 3 on 2.
Banana: Apparently players are skating around with bananas in their pockets… and you guessed it, skating over it makes you slip and fall.
Super Speed: Uh, what do you think?
Double Score: Two goals for the price of one when you score.
Small Goalie: Opposing teams goalie becomes pint sized. He isn’t a total sieve, but he can’t handle a rocket to the top shelf.
Big Goalie: Your goalie becomes so massive that its nearly impossible to score. It’s not completely impossible tho as I’ve seen the giant goalie scored on a few times.

The sound effects during game play are pretty entertaining, but the thing that I noticed the most was the heavy metal soundtrack that was chosen for this game. You’d think that a game that is likely targeted at the family / younger player would have a softer soundtrack (NHL 09 anyone?), but hey I’m not complaining cuz I love the double kick drum just as much as the next guy.

Anyway, that’s my quick and dirty review. The real review for me will come sometime this afternoon when the little hockey wizard that I know comes over and has a rip on it. She is a 09 and outdoor rink genius, so it’ll be interesting to see what she thinks of this cartoony adaptation of the game we both love.