NHL '94 was argaubly the most iconic sports game of the 1990s. Because it was super fun. And it still is today #retrospective #SOFTDRINKTV #game #review #sdtv
We would have parties in my garage with at least 20 people all playing NHL 94 tourneys - still to this day when I smell burning wood I'm instantly transported back to that garage and the wood burning stove we'd used to keep ourselves warm while playing. NHL 94 was some serious business in the day.
4:21 Michigan Jack,,that’s a great story dude and I would say atleast 1million Gen-X dudes had NHL and Madden tournaments where everyone played their fav Team.. We did this with 94 and again in NHL97 And nhl04. Same with Madden during the PS2 Golden age.... -The NHL rosters for sure have never been the same as 1990’s. I dunno, maybe I am biased as it was the era I grew up with but I doubt it. -anyways Jack,,,I’d love to hear more about how ur crew handled it who ur main crew played etc. -hit me up on Steam if u ever wanna shootTheShit about it. Steam name is McSipp
We had tournaments but it wasn’t on this game. Those tournaments with friends in the same room playing those 8-16 bit games were the best! Great times 20 people? Did you have multiple systems hooked up or just one game going at a time? I hope you wrote the tournament brackets down on paper like we used to do 😝
@@President.GeorgeWashington Go Wings! (back to the central conference and win us another cup 😁) - Nice to meet you Jack from Michigan. 🖖🗽 People often ask, "Are you from Michigan?" and I just tell them no, "I'm from Tuscaloosa." 🤣
@@brianmeen2158 Yeah we had like 4 systems (sometimes 6) and quarter ton of CRT monitors (we had to hire a semi truck to move all that weight lol) - While everyone had their stuff over we would also all play Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter and a few other choice titles just to take advantage of the gathering. Oh yeah we an official Trapper Keeper and plenty of grid paper to keep track of all it. I sure wish I still had just a few of those laying around. We would come up with the craziest team names.
Fun fact, the lead programmer wasn't a hockey or even sports fan. But he knew how to program a fun game. He was tasked with implementing one-timers on 94 which he figured would be quite difficult to pull off after being told what one-timers were. Obviously, he figured it out perfectly.
So glad NHL 94 is still being talked about today! I grew up playing this game 24/7 and never grew tired of creating my own leagues, scenarios, etc...Even founded my own game studio to create a spiritual successor! 😅
"NHL'94 is as good as 2-player video games get" - I think you really hit the nail on the head here. I started playing this game online back in 2006 and STILL remember those first few online matches I played, and how much my hands were shaking after each game, they were intense. The single player gameplay was revolutionary and is still fun, but the legendary status of the game is the head-to-head play, just like how people still play the old Smash Bros games. Still hoping the King of 94 live tournaments can get as big as Smash some day :) Some extra thoughts: The game, or rather the gameplay, is actually surprisingly deep. Sure it doesn't have full season mode etc, but think of it more like an arcade fighter and putting together combos and counters, and the mindgames that develop when playing against real people. No one would say chess isn't a deep game just because the peices can generally only move in 4 or 8 directions! It's also a really funny game, you laugh at the occasional bodycheck that sends a guy bouncing off the boards and across the rink, or when players get knocked over by shots hitting them, or when a loose puck causes chaos in the goal mouth and eventually either it goes in or stays out. You know a sports game is good when people who don't follow the sport like the game. Before I started playing online, I re-found the game in 2005 and played it a ton with my roommates -- they weren't even hockey fans but they still liked it (one started playing actual ice hockey after getting into 94), and there's enough variety in the teams that people of different skill levels can play each other and the games are close and fun by picking the right teams. EA actually reused the game THREE times :). It's also in NHL 2006 on the PS2.
How did you play this game online? Yes, imo there isn’t a great source of fun to be had in video gaming than sitting with your friend(or friends) in the same room playing old school 8-16 but Nintendo or genesis game! Plus the sports games back then were not so complex like todays sports games. I’d much prefer playing a football game like tech Super Bowl over the most recent Madden
Blades of Steel. I think that was a Nintendo 64? Right? That was fun. I used to beat my main rivalry (my next store neighbor) with the pass shot! right in front of the goal. He used to get so mad. Man the fun we had with these hockey games back then. 😊🏒🥅 I love hockey.
@@dmzabo3914good call 💯💯 while not a big hockey guy, I used to rent blades of steel for n64 all the damn time haha 🤣 fuckin mighty ducks. The tandem of my guy Paul kariya and teemu selanne 💯🥶 couldn't tell me shit. Good times lol
95 was better than 94. Create a player, season mode, the actual award ceremony at the end of the year...the perfected one timer with a buddy (man we used to SNIPE on breakaways). I never understand why NHL 95 doesn't get the same love when it improves on what NHL 94 did.
Yep , I used to go down my buddies house and just get it in. He older brother would try but we used to embarrass him till he quit bothering us. Those were the days. ✌🏻
We (my friends and I) played a ton of NHL '94 and Coach K College Basketball back when we were in high school. But the hockey game that we loved even more, although we didn't play it as much due to college, was NHL '96. I still play '96 periodically to this day!
I never played this when it came out. When NHLPA 93 came out I got a copy for my SNES and I had so much fun with that game that I didn't bother with NHL 94 when it came out. The next hockey game I bought was NHL Stanley Cup and then after that NHL Face-off 97. None of my friends were hockey fans either so I had no idea during my teenage years NHL 94 was so legendary until I joined the military. That was the early 2000s and I remember a friend of mine being shocked I had never played it. So I downloaded a Genesis emulator and the Rom and hooked a couple of controllers up to my computer and I swear we didn't play anything else that night. Just a lot of hard liquor and NHL 94.
Me and my bro would play this game all the time. I knew nothing about NHL or hockey at all but man was it FUN! When I talk about the good ol days for myself, it was during this time period and this game was near the top of the top.
Hockey is an awesome sport having similarities to basketball, football, soccer and golf - you almost get it all under one roof. I spent a great deal of time playing NHL 94 with friends back in the day; to this day it is still one of my most favorite hockey games and a source of many good memories. I can also say the same about NBA Jam. Good video.
The games I still play from the 90's. NHL 94, TECMO SUPER BOWL, MADDEN 93 and Tony LaRussa 95...Baseball Sim 1000 for NES is another, but I think that was 1989.
NBA Live 95. The NHL games. John Madden football. Triple play. Fifa International Soccer ⚽ The 90's were some of EA's best work with their sports franchises. The "little men" graphics still cannot be beat imo. Gameplay was amazing and fun.
During the Genesis/SNES era, EA was the king of the mountain top. Their sports games were all awesome, but they also had great IPs like General Chaos, Haunting: Starring Polterguy and the Road Rash series.
General CHaos was a blast. My best friend and cousin had Sega. Played all the EA games. I was going to get Sega until I played Street Fighter 2 and in that moment I went with SNES. I actually love NHL 94 on SNES for the defense control and manual goalie button but Genesis beat it in sound and gameplay for sure. Sega and EA made magic back then.
Thank you for the video, cant tell you how surprised I was to see it. I am a part of the online 94 community and if you ever want to reach out for more information about our community, I can certainly help in that regard and explain as to why it is still such a popular game to this day. Also, don't sleep on this game, there is a lot more depth than at first glance.
I thought I'd comment on this, since I am neither american nor a hardcore hockey-fan. Pardon for the long, incoming wall of text... This game, along with NHLPA 93, were THE definite and most memorable NHL games for me and games that properly introduced me into NHL. I'm a big reotroista in my late 30's now and I come from a very small village in the middle of nowhere in Norway, and I cannot emphasize enough how "unknown" NHL was here back in the early 90's, with football/soccer being the biggest and most popular sport, but with NHL 94, more and more people suddenly got aware of the league, me included. I mean, our only star NHL-player today is Mats Zuccarello, which says how few NHL-players are from Norway. I was and I still am a much bigger football/soccer-fan, but since 2012, I've started to watch more and more NHL matches (even if they air during nighttime for me). Before that, I really didn't cared that much for hockey in general, but NES titles such as Ice Hockey and Blades of Steel have always kept me at least a little bit interested in hockey, but NHLPA 93 and NHL 94 were the games that properly introduced me to the sport and also NHL. It should also be noted that Madden/NFL and NBA titles were never popular here in Norway. After titles such as International Superstar Soccer/Winning Eleven, FIFA, Sensible Soccer and even Tecmo Football, I'll dare saying that NHL 94 is the most popular non-football/soccer game and also the best known old school NHL-game there is, which says it all about the popularity of this game. For a non-hockey fan back then, it was an easy, fun, enjoyable, well-made, entertaining and a competitive interesting game to play, especially with a friend (or foe). Its "start-and-play style" was what made it so easy to like and enjoy, even for us non-hockey enthusiasts. The totality of this game is what makes it so good and enjoyable, and I'll even dare going as far as saying this is probably the best sports game when it comes to 2-player mode enjoyed at its best. It's as good of a sports game that you can get for 2 players, without a doubt. For a non-american who's into more genres than sports only and thus looking at his more objectively, I can say that while NHL 94 might not be THE best 2-player game when comparing it to titles like Super Mario Kart, International Superstar Soccer, Pro Evolution Soccer, FIFA, Secret of Mana, Mario Bros., Street Fighter-games, TMNT-games, Double Dragon,, Lost Vikings, Rock n Roll Racing to name some, NHL 94 definitely belongs among those titles too. This shows how fun a 2-player game really can be. So yeah, this was a fun nostalgia video to watch, and it was definitely a video that brought back a lot of great memories with this game.
the aura of this game matched the spirit of hockey at the time. It was a great era for the game. It wasn't about massive contracts and calling team "organizations". I was in grade 3, die hard leafs fan, and a house league all star and this game was so special to me at the time.
The reason I cheer for the Habs to this day is because my dad handed me a sega genesis, and picked 2 teams, the Habs and the leafs (he's a leafs fan) he told me to pick who I wanted to play as, and I saw the screen, said "well he's always mad about the blue team, so I'll pick the red one" when I started paying attention to hockey, saku koivu was the captain and I fell in love with the team. It all started with NHL 94
I always preferred the Super Nintendo version. I wish it would come to Steam. All these years later though i fire it up on my SNES emulator. Tape to Tape is coming out on Steam that has some old school NHL 94 nostalgia to it.
They also had NHL 94 on the ps2 version of NHL 06, along with the anniversary mode on NHL 14 and NHL 94 rewind in 2021. Although it was a scaled down SNES port, there was also NHL 2002 on the GBA.
Yep, I think it's only on the PS2 version of 2006. Same game, but with the player names changed and a few of the defunct teams renamed due to trademark and union player name licensing.
Many thanks! Played the crap out of this game on my 486 dx2 66 in 1994. What a glorious time! Introduced me to the NHL at a time when there was not much media available in Germany. Still think of 90s players in nhl 94 stats and ratings.
Side story - The first NHL Hockey game came out on Sega Genesis in 1991 as just NHL Hockey and a young player named Jaromir Jagr was in the game on Pitt (Number wise). Fast forward some 32 years later and Jagr still playing pro overseas. People talk about Tom Brady but Jagr been in videogames since 16 bit lol.
NHL '94 is the greatest PvP video game ever created. I have my fingers crossed that countries will settle disputes playing his game, and the world will be a better place.
That brings back some memories, used yo rule my friends with the Nordiques, had the unstoppable move that I use as my moniker here. Such a simple game compared to what's come out since, but so incredibly fun to play against your buddies.
I still have my nhl pa 93 for Sega Genesis I do love 94 but 96-98 were the best to me 94 not having fights along with the OP one timer haha still a great game though
Played the crap out of this back in 94/95… I think this might have been the first time I started to notice a decline in a gaming franchise as the subsequent titles just couldn’t compare. Years later I got into NHL14, and the same thing happened.
My first EA NHL game was NHL 16. When I was around 7 or 8 back on Christmas of 2015, I was visiting my family for the holiday and my cousin gifted me and my brother her copy of the game. We played the hell out of that game and bonded over it and made fun memories. If I loved NHL 16, which is considered to be on the lower end of quality compared to other games, that much, I can’t even imagine how great NHL 94 must’ve been.
absolutely epic game. I was always on Toronto. Gilmour, Ellet, Borshevsky, Andreychuk, Clark. My Dad and I had unreal battles. Swear to god he came back down by 3 with a minute to go and scored the go ahead at 0:00.
In terms of pleasant physics, simple and enjoyable gameplay, I would argue that Bill Walsh College Football 95 is the real football equivalent of NHL 94-the sweet spot of what 16-bit “simulation” games could offer.
I’m looking forward to the completion of Tape To Tape. An indie hockey game that takes heavy influence from NHL 94 and brings it into a unique roguelite setting.
We are still playing annual tournaments with my friends(we are now on our 40s most of us). We have real Cup created only for that with names carved on the cup and all. And its not going to end.
NHL 94 ON PC DOS was great. I remember the game didn't work at first when we bought it. Not enough EMS memory. Never knew much about computers back then. Basically convinced my dad to upgrade our motherboard to a 486. Ahh the good old days. haha. Sound blaster and all.
This video was suggested to me as the goaltender featured here wearing 33 in white makes yet another comeback as a visitor's head coach, this time his new gig with the Islanders. It's 3-0 Canadiens.
I STILL have my Sega copy of NHL 94. It's one of my most prized possessions. My first hockey video game was NHL PA 93 but NHL 94 was THE GAME! I actually play the version on the NHL 21 game with my buddies. It's the only NHL video game I will play today. These recent EA NHL games are trash. I loved NHL 93-NHL98 on the Sega. Classics! Only get better with time.
For my money, NHL ‘95 for the SNES is the superior NHL game of the 16-bit era. While the SNES versions of NHL were lesser than their Sega counterparts every other year (before and after), NHL ‘95 had a redesigned physics system that was as smooth as anything on the other console. The graphics were also more polished, more realistic. The colors exploded with vibrance and the game felt like a real hockey game. For added fun with friends, go into practice mode and play one v one, two v two, etc. hockey. It’s a blast even to play one v one with the CPU. NHL ‘95 for SNES is probably the most under appreciated game of its era, if not ever, and I’d argue it’s because nobody ever gave it a chance. Again, I’ve played every other NHL on SNES and none of them compare to their Genesis counterparts or to NHL ‘95 on SNES. It was one of a kind. I’d argue the Sega CD version of NHL ‘94 is a close second overall, though I would concede that it was far more revolutionary than NHL ‘95 on SNES, another reason why ‘95 may not get the love it deserves. Not hating on ‘94, it’s a great game, I just think ‘95 on the Nintendo side of the fence gets slept on.
Soft drinkGuy, again dude you are a gem to spreading awareness. -I’ve personally sent atleast the 20 dudes from hometown where I used to play old school madden & nhl. And some of the younger employees we have who play modern Madden. Every one of those dudes in hometown are 100% with you and we watched a couple videos about a year ago when I went home to south fl for a week. I miss our Madden and nhl tournaments for sure.good times and our champion always drank for free when we went out after 10/10 Edit = can you make a video covering how awesome the PS2 maddens are for your fans who get the features like tony Bruno show mixed up. My personal Fav in 2004 with Vick on cover and 2007. But each one inbetween was epic and should get its own video brother.......
NHLPA 93 has several advantages over NHL 94: Aiming shots is more reasonable and effective, you can score with a slapshot, the momentum/physics feel better (I know, this one is subjective) and it still has fighting in the game. But with that said, 94 just somehow feels like a more complete package. Plus you get the NHL license, one-timers, and all of the music (game menu and arena organ) sounds better--and there's more variety in the organ music. NHL 94 also eliminates most of the "nonsense" goals that happen in NHLPA 93 (own-goals, or pushing the other team's goalie out of the way to score). I've been hopping back and forth between the two games, and I really can't decide which one I like better overall. I'm going to try NHL 95 soon in hopes that it's the best of both worlds.
Hey buddy another great video ty. I was wondering if you might do a video about ncaa game breaker football the last 989 sports college football game ty.
Ya I remember me my buddies would hangout and play these nhl games and play drinking games you know get a goal the other guy takes a drink get an icing call take a drink and so on lol, ah the good ol days before life got real lol
Ha. Just played this Wednesday when my Big 6 Genesis controller arrived. DET 6 QUE 3. I still got it. Ha. While I love 94, 93 I have as well for the need to make Gretzky bleed!
If your a Red Wings fan as I am These games mean that much more to us due to the rivalry that developed with the no longer nordiques, and I have no shame admitting they are the worst thing since 96
I just found NHL 95 to be too fast. That was my only knock against 95 and 96. Even the NHL 2002 on Gameboy advance. They moved to fast for me at least. I played a ton of 95 . Create a player and season mode were great but NHL 94 for me speed wise was the best. I love 93 on Genesis as well. 93 on SNES was too choppy.
Konami made two more Blades of Steel games with the NHL license but the GBC versions of those are better than their N64 and PS1 versions, but the OG Blades of Steel on NES is a certified classic
Sai it before. I'll say it again Give me limited hardwar and smart people, and you get amazing games. Also NHL 95 was just as good. Same for hockey games as a whole, I'd argue 94-97 were the golden years really.
Please do an MLB the show series! It's stale and nothing has changed since The Show 15! It's Madden, but the baseball version! No competition means subpar work from the only game in business! Keep up the hard work, SD! Love your work! Thank you for all you do!
Игры
We would have parties in my garage with at least 20 people all playing NHL 94 tourneys - still to this day when I smell burning wood I'm instantly transported back to that garage and the wood burning stove we'd used to keep ourselves warm while playing. NHL 94 was some serious business in the day.
4:21 Michigan Jack,,that’s a great story dude and I would say atleast 1million Gen-X dudes had NHL and Madden tournaments where everyone played their fav Team..
We did this with 94 and again in NHL97
And nhl04.
Same with Madden during the PS2 Golden age....
-The NHL rosters for sure have never been the same as 1990’s.
I dunno, maybe I am biased as it was the era I grew up with but I doubt it.
-anyways Jack,,,I’d love to hear more about how ur crew handled it who ur main crew played etc.
-hit me up on Steam if u ever wanna shootTheShit about it.
Steam name is McSipp
We had tournaments but it wasn’t on this game. Those tournaments with friends in the same room playing those 8-16 bit games were the best! Great times
20 people? Did you have multiple systems hooked up or just one game going at a time? I hope you wrote the tournament brackets down on paper like we used to do 😝
I like your username. I am from Michigan and my name is also jack lol
@@President.GeorgeWashington Go Wings! (back to the central conference and win us another cup 😁) - Nice to meet you Jack from Michigan. 🖖🗽
People often ask, "Are you from Michigan?" and I just tell them no, "I'm from Tuscaloosa." 🤣
@@brianmeen2158 Yeah we had like 4 systems (sometimes 6) and quarter ton of CRT monitors (we had to hire a semi truck to move all that weight lol) - While everyone had their stuff over we would also all play Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter and a few other choice titles just to take advantage of the gathering.
Oh yeah we an official Trapper Keeper and plenty of grid paper to keep track of all it. I sure wish I still had just a few of those laying around. We would come up with the craziest team names.
Fun fact, the lead programmer wasn't a hockey or even sports fan. But he knew how to program a fun game. He was tasked with implementing one-timers on 94 which he figured would be quite difficult to pull off after being told what one-timers were. Obviously, he figured it out perfectly.
except, you should not be able to shoot one timers on the backhand...... which you can in this game.
So glad NHL 94 is still being talked about today! I grew up playing this game 24/7 and never grew tired of creating my own leagues, scenarios, etc...Even founded my own game studio to create a spiritual successor! 😅
It's always a good day when a new retrospective comes out!
NHL '94 on Genesis is still my favorite game ever. Endlessly replayable.
Yep. Even Setsuna Yuki also love this NHL 94 as well.
"NHL'94 is as good as 2-player video games get" - I think you really hit the nail on the head here. I started playing this game online back in 2006 and STILL remember those first few online matches I played, and how much my hands were shaking after each game, they were intense. The single player gameplay was revolutionary and is still fun, but the legendary status of the game is the head-to-head play, just like how people still play the old Smash Bros games. Still hoping the King of 94 live tournaments can get as big as Smash some day :)
Some extra thoughts:
The game, or rather the gameplay, is actually surprisingly deep. Sure it doesn't have full season mode etc, but think of it more like an arcade fighter and putting together combos and counters, and the mindgames that develop when playing against real people. No one would say chess isn't a deep game just because the peices can generally only move in 4 or 8 directions!
It's also a really funny game, you laugh at the occasional bodycheck that sends a guy bouncing off the boards and across the rink, or when players get knocked over by shots hitting them, or when a loose puck causes chaos in the goal mouth and eventually either it goes in or stays out.
You know a sports game is good when people who don't follow the sport like the game. Before I started playing online, I re-found the game in 2005 and played it a ton with my roommates -- they weren't even hockey fans but they still liked it (one started playing actual ice hockey after getting into 94), and there's enough variety in the teams that people of different skill levels can play each other and the games are close and fun by picking the right teams.
EA actually reused the game THREE times :). It's also in NHL 2006 on the PS2.
How did you play this game online?
Yes, imo there isn’t a great source of fun to be had in video gaming than sitting with your friend(or friends) in the same room playing old school 8-16 but Nintendo or genesis game! Plus the sports games back then were not so complex like todays sports games. I’d much prefer playing a football game like tech Super Bowl over the most recent Madden
Well funny enough i got into ice hockey after buying nhl 06
@@brianmeen2158 emulation netplay.
@@brianmeen2158 To play NHL94 online you just need to search :) (it doesn't let me say exactly, comment was deleted)
Had no clue NHL 2006 had it as a re-release, need to get my hands on that one. I spent a ton of time playing NHL 07
NHL 94, NBA Jam, Sensible Soccer.. all amazing and still very enjoyable to this day. Just pure, no bs fun.
all the NHL games on the genesis throughout the 90s were all very fun and solid. Definitely the golden era of NHL video games.
Blades of Steel. I think that was a Nintendo 64? Right? That was fun. I used to beat my main rivalry (my next store neighbor) with the pass shot! right in front of the goal. He used to get so mad. Man the fun we had with these hockey games back then. 😊🏒🥅 I love hockey.
@@dmzabo3914good call 💯💯 while not a big hockey guy, I used to rent blades of steel for n64 all the damn time haha 🤣 fuckin mighty ducks. The tandem of my guy Paul kariya and teemu selanne 💯🥶 couldn't tell me shit. Good times lol
95 was better than 94. Create a player, season mode, the actual award ceremony at the end of the year...the perfected one timer with a buddy (man we used to SNIPE on breakaways). I never understand why NHL 95 doesn't get the same love when it improves on what NHL 94 did.
NHL 95 Had Faster Gameplay Unlike NHL 94!
This was my first NHL game and it’s probably the one I do have the fondest memories with
Over 30 years later and nothing can top this game for action and excitement. 1 vs 1 or 2 vs 2 - it is always a thrill to play.
This is the best sports game ever. My brother and I played this everyday for years.
Yep , I used to go down my buddies house and just get it in. He older brother would try but we used to embarrass him till he quit bothering us. Those were the days. ✌🏻
We (my friends and I) played a ton of NHL '94 and Coach K College Basketball back when we were in high school. But the hockey game that we loved even more, although we didn't play it as much due to college, was NHL '96. I still play '96 periodically to this day!
Coack K was awesome hoops game. Man that was a blast from the past. T.Y. for reminding me. That was good but NHL 94 WAS THE BEST.
I bought this game brand new way back when. It changed everything. It was street hockey in your living room. Miss those days. lol 😊
I never played this when it came out. When NHLPA 93 came out I got a copy for my SNES and I had so much fun with that game that I didn't bother with NHL 94 when it came out. The next hockey game I bought was NHL Stanley Cup and then after that NHL Face-off 97. None of my friends were hockey fans either so I had no idea during my teenage years NHL 94 was so legendary until I joined the military. That was the early 2000s and I remember a friend of mine being shocked I had never played it. So I downloaded a Genesis emulator and the Rom and hooked a couple of controllers up to my computer and I swear we didn't play anything else that night. Just a lot of hard liquor and NHL 94.
NHL 94 was awesome. I have this game on Sega CD since the early 2010s and it kicks ass.
Me and my bro would play this game all the time. I knew nothing about NHL or hockey at all but man was it FUN! When I talk about the good ol days for myself, it was during this time period and this game was near the top of the top.
As a diehard fan of Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, i still played NHL 94 thanks to PS3 RETROARCH! Thanks, SOFTDRINKTV!
Hockey is an awesome sport having similarities to basketball, football, soccer and golf - you almost get it all under one roof.
I spent a great deal of time playing NHL 94 with friends back in the day; to this day it is still one of my most favorite hockey games and a source of many good memories.
I can also say the same about NBA Jam.
Good video.
NHL 94 on sega CD sounded great!
Those were the good old days.
The games I still play from the 90's. NHL 94, TECMO SUPER BOWL, MADDEN 93 and Tony LaRussa 95...Baseball Sim 1000 for NES is another, but I think that was 1989.
NBA Live 95. The NHL games. John Madden football. Triple play. Fifa International Soccer ⚽ The 90's were some of EA's best work with their sports franchises. The "little men" graphics still cannot be beat imo. Gameplay was amazing and fun.
Ah, THE LOOP. Skate to goalie, sharp turn, turn back, skate parallel to goalie and then smack one in.
The cross-crease-cheese move! Always fall back on that if down late in the game against the CPU
During the Genesis/SNES era, EA was the king of the mountain top. Their sports games were all awesome, but they also had great IPs like General Chaos, Haunting: Starring Polterguy and the Road Rash series.
General CHaos was a blast. My best friend and cousin had Sega. Played all the EA games. I was going to get Sega until I played Street Fighter 2 and in that moment I went with SNES. I actually love NHL 94 on SNES for the defense control and manual goalie button but Genesis beat it in sound and gameplay for sure. Sega and EA made magic back then.
Thank you for the video, cant tell you how surprised I was to see it. I am a part of the online 94 community and if you ever want to reach out for more information about our community, I can certainly help in that regard and explain as to why it is still such a popular game to this day. Also, don't sleep on this game, there is a lot more depth than at first glance.
Can you point me into a direction? I'm currently playing it for my genesis, but it's on it's last legs
I thought I'd comment on this, since I am neither american nor a hardcore hockey-fan. Pardon for the long, incoming wall of text...
This game, along with NHLPA 93, were THE definite and most memorable NHL games for me and games that properly introduced me into NHL. I'm a big reotroista in my late 30's now and I come from a very small village in the middle of nowhere in Norway, and I cannot emphasize enough how "unknown" NHL was here back in the early 90's, with football/soccer being the biggest and most popular sport, but with NHL 94, more and more people suddenly got aware of the league, me included. I mean, our only star NHL-player today is Mats Zuccarello, which says how few NHL-players are from Norway. I was and I still am a much bigger football/soccer-fan, but since 2012, I've started to watch more and more NHL matches (even if they air during nighttime for me). Before that, I really didn't cared that much for hockey in general, but NES titles such as Ice Hockey and Blades of Steel have always kept me at least a little bit interested in hockey, but NHLPA 93 and NHL 94 were the games that properly introduced me to the sport and also NHL. It should also be noted that Madden/NFL and NBA titles were never popular here in Norway. After titles such as International Superstar Soccer/Winning Eleven, FIFA, Sensible Soccer and even Tecmo Football, I'll dare saying that NHL 94 is the most popular non-football/soccer game and also the best known old school NHL-game there is, which says it all about the popularity of this game.
For a non-hockey fan back then, it was an easy, fun, enjoyable, well-made, entertaining and a competitive interesting game to play, especially with a friend (or foe). Its "start-and-play style" was what made it so easy to like and enjoy, even for us non-hockey enthusiasts. The totality of this game is what makes it so good and enjoyable, and I'll even dare going as far as saying this is probably the best sports game when it comes to 2-player mode enjoyed at its best. It's as good of a sports game that you can get for 2 players, without a doubt. For a non-american who's into more genres than sports only and thus looking at his more objectively, I can say that while NHL 94 might not be THE best 2-player game when comparing it to titles like Super Mario Kart, International Superstar Soccer, Pro Evolution Soccer, FIFA, Secret of Mana, Mario Bros., Street Fighter-games, TMNT-games, Double Dragon,, Lost Vikings, Rock n Roll Racing to name some, NHL 94 definitely belongs among those titles too. This shows how fun a 2-player game really can be.
So yeah, this was a fun nostalgia video to watch, and it was definitely a video that brought back a lot of great memories with this game.
the aura of this game matched the spirit of hockey at the time. It was a great era for the game. It wasn't about massive contracts and calling team "organizations". I was in grade 3, die hard leafs fan, and a house league all star and this game was so special to me at the time.
The reason I cheer for the Habs to this day is because my dad handed me a sega genesis, and picked 2 teams, the Habs and the leafs (he's a leafs fan) he told me to pick who I wanted to play as, and I saw the screen, said "well he's always mad about the blue team, so I'll pick the red one" when I started paying attention to hockey, saku koivu was the captain and I fell in love with the team. It all started with NHL 94
That's myself Tecmo Bowl and the Dallas cowboys
Nothing better than a cool hockey Dad. ✌🏻
got NHL 94 the NHL 21 pre-order. so much fun
I always preferred the Super Nintendo version. I wish it would come to Steam. All these years later though i fire it up on my SNES emulator. Tape to Tape is coming out on Steam that has some old school NHL 94 nostalgia to it.
Thanks, was really glad to see a reference to Tape to Tape in this video! NHL 94 is the main reason we're creating Tape to Tape!
The genesis version has better gamplay cause of faster CPU.
Played the hell out of this game. I always picked the ducks too because of the 90s nostalgia
Still playing this instead of paying for a recycled EA NHL game, NHL Rewind 94 is just as good!
They also had NHL 94 on the ps2 version of NHL 06, along with the anniversary mode on NHL 14 and NHL 94 rewind in 2021. Although it was a scaled down SNES port, there was also NHL 2002 on the GBA.
I love how it still gets roster hacks. NHL 94 2023 is actually the way I’m trying it for the first time.
Fun fact, even nhl 06 has a mode where you play hockey like this so.
Yep, I think it's only on the PS2 version of 2006. Same game, but with the player names changed and a few of the defunct teams renamed due to trademark and union player name licensing.
Many thanks! Played the crap out of this game on my 486 dx2 66 in 1994. What a glorious time! Introduced me to the NHL at a time when there was not much media available in Germany. Still think of 90s players in nhl 94 stats and ratings.
Side story - The first NHL Hockey game came out on Sega Genesis in 1991 as just NHL Hockey and a young player named Jaromir Jagr was in the game on Pitt (Number wise). Fast forward some 32 years later and Jagr still playing pro overseas. People talk about Tom Brady but Jagr been in videogames since 16 bit lol.
Me and brother played the heck out of this game. The complexity of today's NHL games takes away a lot of the fun IMO.
95 was the golden jem for me.
Couldn't agree more: masterpiece, loved this game.
NHL '94 is the greatest PvP video game ever created. I have my fingers crossed that countries will settle disputes playing his game, and the world will be a better place.
That brings back some memories, used yo rule my friends with the Nordiques, had the unstoppable move that I use as my moniker here. Such a simple game compared to what's come out since, but so incredibly fun to play against your buddies.
I still have my nhl pa 93 for Sega Genesis
I do love 94 but 96-98 were the best to me
94 not having fights along with the OP one timer haha still a great game though
Played the crap out of this back in 94/95… I think this might have been the first time I started to notice a decline in a gaming franchise as the subsequent titles just couldn’t compare. Years later I got into NHL14, and the same thing happened.
My first EA NHL game was NHL 16. When I was around 7 or 8 back on Christmas of 2015, I was visiting my family for the holiday and my cousin gifted me and my brother her copy of the game. We played the hell out of that game and bonded over it and made fun memories. If I loved NHL 16, which is considered to be on the lower end of quality compared to other games, that much, I can’t even imagine how great NHL 94 must’ve been.
absolutely epic game. I was always on Toronto. Gilmour, Ellet, Borshevsky, Andreychuk, Clark.
My Dad and I had unreal battles. Swear to god he came back down by 3 with a minute to go and scored the go ahead at 0:00.
In terms of pleasant physics, simple and enjoyable gameplay, I would argue that Bill Walsh College Football 95 is the real football equivalent of NHL 94-the sweet spot of what 16-bit “simulation” games could offer.
I’m looking forward to the completion of Tape To Tape. An indie hockey game that takes heavy influence from NHL 94 and brings it into a unique roguelite setting.
We are still playing annual tournaments with my friends(we are now on our 40s most of us). We have real Cup created only for that with names carved on the cup and all. And its not going to end.
NHL 94 ON PC DOS was great. I remember the game didn't work at first when we bought it. Not enough EMS memory. Never knew much about computers back then. Basically convinced my dad to upgrade our motherboard to a 486. Ahh the good old days. haha. Sound blaster and all.
This video was suggested to me as the goaltender featured here wearing 33 in white makes yet another comeback as a visitor's head coach, this time his new gig with the Islanders. It's 3-0 Canadiens.
It's funny you mention this game. We loved playing this game. It's still the best game NHL wise
What really made this game stand out was making Gretzky's head bleed
Thats nhlpa 93
I STILL have my Sega copy of NHL 94. It's one of my most prized possessions. My first hockey video game was NHL PA 93 but NHL 94 was THE GAME! I actually play the version on the NHL 21 game with my buddies. It's the only NHL video game I will play today. These recent EA NHL games are trash. I loved NHL 93-NHL98 on the Sega. Classics! Only get better with time.
I'm sure I won't be the only one to say this, but as much as I love NHL 94, I think NHL 95 is even better.
I grew up in NHL Stanley Cup on SNES and LOVED IT!!! Great soundtrack too!
It's hands down the best multiplayer sports game in history. Nothing was more fun than playing with friends
I particularly like the Sega CD version, those were the days... 🤗
We have an entire community devoted to online leagues tournaments and in person tournaments!
For my money, NHL ‘95 for the SNES is the superior NHL game of the 16-bit era. While the SNES versions of NHL were lesser than their Sega counterparts every other year (before and after), NHL ‘95 had a redesigned physics system that was as smooth as anything on the other console. The graphics were also more polished, more realistic. The colors exploded with vibrance and the game felt like a real hockey game. For added fun with friends, go into practice mode and play one v one, two v two, etc. hockey. It’s a blast even to play one v one with the CPU. NHL ‘95 for SNES is probably the most under appreciated game of its era, if not ever, and I’d argue it’s because nobody ever gave it a chance. Again, I’ve played every other NHL on SNES and none of them compare to their Genesis counterparts or to NHL ‘95 on SNES. It was one of a kind. I’d argue the Sega CD version of NHL ‘94 is a close second overall, though I would concede that it was far more revolutionary than NHL ‘95 on SNES, another reason why ‘95 may not get the love it deserves. Not hating on ‘94, it’s a great game, I just think ‘95 on the Nintendo side of the fence gets slept on.
awesome clip !!
This was the game we had to get the super 5-play for the snes. Got to play through the playoffs with my dad and brother. Good times.
Can't wait to see you hit on the Winning Eleven series. Games 7 to 9 on the PS2 had maybe the best gameplay of any sports game.
Soft drinkGuy, again dude you are a gem to spreading awareness.
-I’ve personally sent atleast the 20 dudes from hometown where I used to play old school madden & nhl.
And some of the younger employees we have who play modern Madden.
Every one of those dudes in hometown are 100% with you and we watched a couple videos about a year ago when I went home to south fl for a week. I miss our Madden and nhl tournaments for sure.good times and our champion always drank for free when we went out after
10/10
Edit = can you make a video covering how awesome the PS2 maddens are for your fans who get the features like tony Bruno show mixed up.
My personal
Fav in 2004 with Vick on cover and 2007.
But each one inbetween was epic and should get its own video brother.......
Great video, subscribed!
OMG I used too play this when I was very little!
So glad I grew up in this era
W 🔥
I remember dustin brown was a big hockey video game fan . wonder if more pros grew up on this
When the technological limitations of the time are considered, this is right up there in terms of best games of all time.
The most legendary hockey game of ALL TIME!! 😀👍🏻
This is a game I got for both my Sega and Snes, it's just that great lol
NHLPA 93 has several advantages over NHL 94: Aiming shots is more reasonable and effective, you can score with a slapshot, the momentum/physics feel better (I know, this one is subjective) and it still has fighting in the game. But with that said, 94 just somehow feels like a more complete package. Plus you get the NHL license, one-timers, and all of the music (game menu and arena organ) sounds better--and there's more variety in the organ music. NHL 94 also eliminates most of the "nonsense" goals that happen in NHLPA 93 (own-goals, or pushing the other team's goalie out of the way to score). I've been hopping back and forth between the two games, and I really can't decide which one I like better overall. I'm going to try NHL 95 soon in hopes that it's the best of both worlds.
NHL 94 is a fantastic video game and it's one of the best NHL games
I have sega megadrive, and nhl 93-95 games 😎 nhl 93 is my fav 🫶
I miss these type of games
Best video game of all time. I still play almost every day. With the amazing online community it is always challenging, evolving and fun!!
Hey buddy another great video ty. I was wondering if you might do a video about ncaa game breaker football the last 989 sports college football game ty.
Ya I remember me my buddies would hangout and play these nhl games and play drinking games you know get a goal the other guy takes a drink get an icing call take a drink and so on lol, ah the good ol days before life got real lol
Ha. Just played this Wednesday when my Big 6 Genesis controller arrived. DET 6 QUE 3. I still got it. Ha. While I love 94, 93 I have as well for the need to make Gretzky bleed!
If your a Red Wings fan as I am
These games mean that much more to us due to the rivalry that developed with the no longer nordiques, and I have no shame admitting they are the worst thing since 96
@@aceassn716 F the Avs. But I really miss that kind of rivalry. Too bad this season won't get back to playoffs. Looking up tho.
The best game ever
For real NHLPA was the one the first NHL game
This game is fire
I was 10 during this time, I played the crap out of NHL 94, I loved it, but I’m gonna tell y’all right now…NHL 95 was the best one.
I just found NHL 95 to be too fast. That was my only knock against 95 and 96. Even the NHL 2002 on Gameboy advance. They moved to fast for me at least. I played a ton of 95 . Create a player and season mode were great but NHL 94 for me speed wise was the best. I love 93 on Genesis as well. 93 on SNES was too choppy.
If you haven't already, you should try out Blades of Steel on the NES. It's my favorite hockey game. Would be sweet if you did a review of it!
Konami made two more Blades of Steel games with the NHL license but the GBC versions of those are better than their N64 and PS1 versions, but the OG Blades of Steel on NES is a certified classic
correction , NHL 94 for the sega cd is the version that is legendary and one of the best sports games of all time
NHL 94-04-14 the three goats.
🤙🏻 Thanks bro
cm punk loves this game
Fantastic
I had a great rivalry with my buddy Chip in this game.
Please do NHL 07, NHL 08, NHL 10, NHL 2k5, nhl 2k6, NHL 2k7 retrospective.
I don’t give a shit about hockey but I’m here to support the boy AND the boyz
95 was epic as well but no fights was only downside.
Sai it before. I'll say it again
Give me limited hardwar and smart people, and you get amazing games. Also NHL 95 was just as good. Same for hockey games as a whole, I'd argue 94-97 were the golden years really.
There's a good chance I could still beat anyone in this chat! This game is truly a masterpiece!
You could make a whole video about the physics in this game. Maybe someone should do that?
That game and NHL 95 are the best games on the Sega Genesis
Please do an MLB the show series! It's stale and nothing has changed since The Show 15! It's Madden, but the baseball version! No competition means subpar work from the only game in business! Keep up the hard work, SD! Love your work! Thank you for all you do!