NHL Hockey

6 on 6 with controllable goalie. The definitive 8-bit era hockey.

★★★★★8/10

The Story

NHL Hockey was another Mattel sports masterpiece: 6 players per team on screen, directly controllable goalie, passes, slapshots and bodychecks. The ice rink scrolled following the puck — a remarkably smooth scrolling effect for 1980. Compared to Atari sports games, it was another world: you could develop strategies, change formation, and the directional disc allowed precise diagonal movements. Used in George Plimpton ads as yet another demonstration of Intellivision's graphical superiority.