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Description
The head-to-head online play in NHL? Hitz Pro features online player rankings and tournaments. NHL? Hitz Pro also includes 100 percent NHL? legitimate, 23-man player rosters that bring together pro players and authentic team lines with real offensive and defensive team formations in precise correlation with each NHL? team.
NHL? Hitz Pro includes an improved AI that is so authentic gamers will think they are playing with the NHL? pros. Goalie animations, logic and behavior are realistically captured and feature everything from stick saves to stoning a knee-buckling 5-hole shot to slapping the ice with five seconds left in a power play. Gamers also have the ability to score from anywhere on the ice and will feel the tension and strain of NHL? action with a new Player Fatigue System that causes them to tire out after experiencing tough checks.
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MIDWAY ANNOUNCES NHL? HITZ PRO
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Playing on accurately diagrammed rinks, players will get cheers and jeers from the realistic crowd that reacts to the action on the ice. Additionally, an upgraded Franchise Mode allows players to build a Dynasty and manage every aspect of the team; a re-tooled Hockey School Mode teaches and tests gamers’ hockey skills; and a Multi-player Tournament Mode allows gamers to set up tournaments with up to 16 teams.
In addition, Midway has signed an exclusive deal with Nicklas Lidstrom, star defenseman of the Detroit Red Wings?. Lidstrom appears on the packaging and cover art for the game and also brings his big hits to NHL? Hitz Pro’s DVD section. Viewed as one of the top defensemen in the NHL?, Lidstrom is a four-time finalist and recipient of the coveted Norris Trophy and member of the 2003 Western Conference All-Star team
Features
New Online Play – Head-to-head gameplay for PlayStation 2.
New 5-on-5 Gameplay – Just the way hockey is played in the NHL®, 5-on-5.
Every team, every player, and every position.
Full NHL® Penalties and Violations – From offsides and two-line passing to
interference and cross- checking, authentic NHL® penalties will get players
time in the “sin bin” in NHL® Hitz Pro.
23-Man Player Rosters –100% legitimate NHL® rosters. All players are
available and all authentic team lines – from the scoring to the checking
lines – are ready to hit the ice.
Real Stadiums –NHL® arenas are accurately recreated in NHL® Hitz Pro.
Real Offensive and Defensive Team Formations – Every team’s offensive and
defensive scheme in NHL® Hitz Pro is in precise correlation with the actual
team in the NHL®.
Player Fatigue System – Just as in a real NHL® hockey game, when players
dish out the checks or as the player gets checked to the ice, they become more
tired.
Line Changes – See the line becoming tired or spot a mismatch in the
defensive team and switch up the line to have the freshest players on the ice.
Legitimate Stick Handling – Just like the real players in the NHL®, glide
and move the puck back and forth like a yo-yo near the net through the use of
the analog stick. NHL® Hitz Pro offers the most realistic stick and puck
handling of any hockey game to date.
Realistic Crowd Reactions – For the first time, a sports videogame will
accurately recreate a realistic crowd and player emotion based on the flow of
the game. You might get a “ho-hum” reaction from the crowd and your teammates
by scoring a goal to go up 8-0 against your opponent, but the crowd will flip
out and your teammates will rush you when you score the game-winning goal in
overtime.
New Commentary –Tim Kitzrow and Harry Tienowitz will be commentating for
Midway Sports to give players their take on the game as well as the lowdown on
favorite NHL® players. The commentators will say what you’re thinking without
the sugar coating.
Upgraded Franchise Mode – The GM Mode option lets you build a Dynasty and
manage every aspect of your team. Build your team from a bunch of rookies into
an NHL-caliber franchise. Unlock team and hero equipment upgrades, which
improve your team’s attributes. The ultimate goal: entry into the National
Hockey League.
Retooled Hockey School Mode – NHL® Hitz Pro features an all-new and
restructured Hockey School where the game player is taught and the skills
tested. Your instructor will introduce an NHL® All-Star to tell you a little
more about what is important in hockey, as well as provide an NHL® Hitz Pro
game tip.
Score from Anywhere on the Ice – NHL® Hitz Pro now has multiple new ways
to score, new context-sensitive plays like wraparounds, deflections and flip
passes from behind the net.
Advanced Options – With different tunable settings and sliders, you can
completely customize your gaming experience, from game speed right down to
puck friction.
Enhanced Fantasy Draft – Choose your favorite team and begin your NHL®
season from the absolute beginning, when all players become free game and are
eligible for the draft. Feel like an NHL® owner and all the pressures that
come when trying to construct a team from scratch.
Improved AI – Smarter players, realistic offensive and defensive behavior.
NHL® Hitz Pro delivers such realistic AI, you’ll think you’re really playing
one of your friends.
Improved Goalie Animations – NHL® Hitz Pro has gone to great lengths to
ensure the best and most realistic goalie animations ever. From stacking the
pads to smothering loose pucks and diving headfirst across the crease, if a
goalie can make the impossible save in the NHL®, he can make it in NHL Hitz
Pro.
Improved Goalie Logic and Behavior – From slapping the ice with five
seconds left in a power play, to sprinting to the bench for the sixth attacker
with one minute left in the game to give your team the one-man advantage.
Goalies in NHL® Hitz Pro behave and react like the real thing in the NHL®.
Officially Licensed Equipment – Through Franchise Mode, players will be
able to gain equipment to better suit their players. There will be five levels
of equipment, including many of the biggest brands in hockey: The Hockey
Company, Bauer Hockey, Itech and Easton.
New Motion Capture Animations – From new checks, slapshots and goalie
animations, NHL® Hitz Pro improves on more than 1,500 motion-captured
animations in the game.
Latest Game Comments (0)
ESRB Rating
GameZone's Review/Preview
| Gameplay | 9.5 |
| Graphics | 9.5 |
| Sound | 9.5 |
| Difficulty | Medium |
| Concept | 9.3 |
| Multiplayer | 8.5 |
| Overall | 9.2 |
GZ Preview:
Michael Lafferty - 07/13/2003
Midway’s NHL Hitz Pro has upped the ante with improved animation and online play
Full NHL Hitz: Pro Preview
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