The Great One is about to lace up his skates once again — this time inside a video game — to help promote NHL Slapshot, EA Canada’s first hockey game designed specifically for the Nintendo Wii console.
Due out this fall, Wayne Gretzky will be the cover athlete for the video game, plus he’ll serve as a playable character and coach in one of its modes.
“Not only is Gretzky one of the greatest hockey players of all time, but his name is synonymous with quality hockey and community — so we thought he’d be perfect for the game,” says Burnaby, B.C.-based producer Joe Nickolls, in a recent telephone interview. “Plus, many know of Gretzky’s history, as he worked his way up from Pee Wee to the NHL, and you can mirror this rise to stardom in our game,” Nickolls adds.
Along with a quick pick-up game — as or against your favourite NHL team — a lengthy career mode has you start playing Pee Wee, 3-on-3, on a backyard rink, progressing through the Bantams and CHL leagues, and eventually getting drafted into the NHL.
While the game doesn’t offer an online mode, players can update their rosters with a free download. And up to four players can compete in front of the same TV.
Motion-sensing is the name of the game in NHL Slapshot, which will ship with a 21-inch hockey stick peripheral the player snaps together, and houses the Wii Remote controller. With it, players can shoot, pass and stick handle in front of their televisions as if they were on the ice.
“This is hockey, so wiggling a remote around just won’t cut it,” says Nickolls. “With our stick, the game really feels right — when you shoot you’re doing a shooting motion, and when you check, it just feels natural — so I think skeptics will realize it’s not a gimmick when they get their hands on it.”
NHL Slapshot for Nintendo Wii will launch September 7, the same day as EA Sports’ NHL 11 for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
Loading ...
Scott Steinberg is the CEO of video game consulting firm TechSavvy Global, and founder of GameExec magazine and Game Industry TV. Hailed as a top technology and video game expert by dozens of publications from USA Today to Forbes and NPR, he’s covered the field for 400+ outlets from Playboy to Rolling Stone. A frequent on-air analyst for networks like ABC, CBS, NBC and CNN, he’s also the author of Video Game Marketing and PR.