• ESRB Rating: RP (rating pending)
• Sports

Gamers can take their hockey game on the road and play anytime, anywhere with Gretzky NHL for the PSP handheld entertainmentsystem. Officially licensed by the NHL and NHLPA, Gretzky NHL for the PSP features fast-paced skating, precision passing, bone-jarring checks and players that convey the power and emotion of their sport. To challenge the skill levels of all hockey videogame fans, the game offers the Gretzky Challenge with unlockable, playable Gretzkys from his days as an Edmonton Oiler, Los Angeles King or New York Ranger. Additionally, hockey fans can play a quick game in either Quick Start or Exhibition Mode, act as owners in Season Mode, or compete locally against friends or other hockey fans in head-to-head play via wireless multiplayer connectivity. By combining authentic gameplay, intuitive play controls and an enhanced presentation with the fast, fluid, hard-hitting intensity of arcade style play, Gretzky NHL for the PSP delivers the look, feel and passion of hockey and provides gamers with a true-to-life simulation. Media - UMD

Gretzky NHL was a launch title for the PSP that was horrible to say the least. I rented this game yesterday, and just in the first game I got pretty bored.

Graphics: 7/10. There is a little framerate problem that is pretty annoying, but it could be much worse. Character animations are FAIR, and the presentation is decent, but the graphics are really Playstaion 1ish.

Sound: 6.5/10. Where is the commentary? Playing a sports game without the commentary is not nearly the same. There isn't any commentary! Why?! All you hear when you play is the crowd OCCASIONALLY saying "Go (hometeam) go". That's about it. At the beginning of the game, the one guy says " Here is your (hometeam)." When a goal is scored, "goal by (team).", and at the end of the game, "tonight's three stars" and "goodnight and see us next time." or something like that. That is pretty much all you will hear in the game besides the music. Heck, the music isn't very good. I don't know if it's licensed or not. ( I don't think so ) and if it is EA Trax, it's very unpopular bands.

Control: 7/10. Since there is a framerate problem, it kind of hurts the controls. For me, this was a bit of a strange-to-control hockey game. O to shoot? That was odd. Anyways, So get a puck passed to you it has to be right at you; your computer won't auto chase a foot, and if you want to pick up a puck that's just laying around, you have to get right on top of it. This is rather annoying.

Fun: 6.5/10. I am a huge hockey fan and I was dissapointed. Another thing about this game that is also aggrivating, is how the teams always seem to dump the puck, so there will be icing after icing and then off sides after off sides, and if you turn the rules off, it's still annoying, so it's either a lot of face-offs or a lot of racing. This game really isn't worth your time, huge hockey fan or not, unless you can find it for under 10 dollars. ( Good luck with that. )

This is the worst hockey game ive ever played. Im a fan of hockey and this was an embarrasment. The framerate was flawed and the computer opponents can beat you with ease on the easiest setting. Of about 10 games i won 2 of them.This game had so much potential. It just messed up.

Is this game for anyone? Way to go sony development. Hmm. We have to ship a hockey game when the psp comes out. Let's just half finish this piece of hooey, and tack gretsky's name on it. This game is complete trash. I would be embarassed if I were Sony. Camera is terrible, game is slow, controls are terrible.

Bottom line: Is it fun? No. Will I keep it? Some poor sap already won it from me on Ebay. Is it for Kids? If you are training your child to find the worst videogames in the history of mankind. Can you smell the stench of rushed first generation games?

I really put in a lot of time trying to get used to the way this game plays and I feel like I gave it a more than fair chance. Unfortunately, Gretzky NHL just turns out to be really dissapointing from a game play perspective. The controls are very poor. It's really hard to navigate your player exactly where you want to go, especially when there is a loose puck! I can't tell you how many times I've overskated a puck by a pixel. It seems almost impossible to pick it up sometimes. It's like the programmers have never played hockey before and don't realize that the player can use his stick to pick up the puck beside him. Also the computer AI is terrible. Again when there is a free puck it's like your own computer players have no idea where it is. They even skate in the opposite direction from it most of the time. It's becomes ridiculously frustrating how oblivious your own players are to where the puck is. Even trying to set up plays is impossible because your teammates aren't even in the possitions they're supposed to be in. Half the time they are just floating around randomly. I played NHL '94 last night just to compare how they played and the AI in that is at least twice as good and all your teammates are actually in the right spots. It was way more fun and I was surprised at how good the game play was. And this game is over 11 years old!

All in all, Gretzky NHL is just a frustrating mess only because of its gameplay. The graphics look great and there is a fiar number of cool features. I just wish they took the time to make it play well.

I'd like to start off by saying I am a hockey fan. I have been since age 10, played for 5 years, and reffed for more. Especially with this past season being cancelled, I'm certainlly in need of my hockey fix, so I picked this game up.

989 forces you to use the analog button for skating. I'm not sure it's because of this, or because of the engine, but whatever it is, the player controls are sloppy. If you know what it's like to walk on ice with a layer of water on it, you've expierenced the amount of control you have over your skaters. At first, it's excusable, but after you miss check after check and play opertunity after play opertunity because if it, it becomes extreamly agitating.

The only other large flaw with this game is the passing system. Luckly, 989 saved face by throwing in a precision passing system, where you can control who it gets passed to. If you use the defult mode though (or even sometimes with precision), you really can't be guarenteed that the pass to will be to anyone, at all, anywhere near the ice. Your team missing passes is common place, where the other teams (even on rookie mode) will make picture perfect passes all game long.

Unfortinatly, the awful control and passing overshadow the chances that this game will be much fun longer than 15 minutes. This title should only be considered by extreamly die hard fans with lots of patience, otherwise, wait untill EA gets something out.