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Could Have Been Great - But. EA won't respond to customer outcry.
Initially I was dissapointed in this game. The advertised features seem to have been either not included or poorly implemented on the PC version of this game. I have come to be even more dissapointed over time realizing what a great game this is but not being able to really enjoy it due to some easily fixable (but no answer from EA) issues.

Purchased this game for my son for Christmas as he is a huge NHL fan and regularly plays NHL 06 on gamecube. HE could not wait for NHL 08 to come out. Since we own a WII and Gamecube, we were hoping for a WII version but EA dropped the ball and ignored WII users. So I thought, hey we can get the PC version. So, excitedly my son opens his gift, we load it up (no tech issues as I have the latest hardware) and wow, we are going to play NHL 08 including all his favorite players. "Wait, dad where is my goalie... I slightly press down on the direction button on the controller while moving my guy and it pulls my goalie...how can I play" "I don't know son..lets go to options, these things are usually easily remappable...hmmmm...the program won't let us change anything to configure the controllers......hmmmm..usually games at least let you reconfigure to the controller you own...let's check for a solution on the web...wow, lots of others are having this problem too....EA MUST have addressed it if so many are experiencing it also...I can't find any solution...I guess you are out of luck son and can't play NHL 08...". Thanks to all the EA developers for leaving out that critical piece that would have made this game truly great. You made my Holiday truly "special".

Cons:
- You are essentially forced to use a Logitech controller to play this game effectively. I purchased the latest XBox360 wireless controllers for windows (pretty much the new standard) and they are not supported by this game. Not only is it not supported, there is no way to remap the keys within the NHL 08 PC program to make it work. It sort of shows the controller remapping on the options screen but you cant change anything to make it work. This is a ajor oversight by EA and frankly shoddy work. If you want to really play the game, you will probably be buying a new controller. EA should have bundled a controller and charged more if they were going to make this a playable game. On my controller you cannot really shoot correctly and you keep accidentially hitting the "pull goalie" function during gameplay due to the inability to turn off or remap that feature. Finding out you have no goalie on the ice (after the other team scores on the empty net) does not give you that warm and fuzzy feeling about this release.

- No roster updates for PC version eventhough the console version have had this (why not?).

For some reason (arrogance, don't care, etc) EA will not officially offer and help or response to people would otherwise probably love the game because without these two issues, it is a great game. EA forums only offer a surly moderator who only knows enough to be of no help to anyone. Poor Custoer Service EA. And this from a game that is winning all sorts of "Sports Game of the Year" awards (they must have been reviewing the console versions).

Pros: Graphically the game is great. The field of view and gameplay is actually quite good. Too bad I can't really play the game as I cannot control it correctly (come on EA, how hard could it be to fix this small issue). I can even live without the roster update but refuse to spend another $80.00 on two new controllers JUST to enjoy this game with my son.

What could have ben a spectacular game really turns into a black mark on EA's NHL franchise. It is almost as if the developers said "whatever, just release it, who cares..." and that is a sad day for EA customers. I don't think EA customers are asking for much - just an official adressing of the problems which have been so thoroughly documented on the web by disgruntled uses of this PC version.

Come on EA, get your head in the game. I thnk I will be moving onto competing products (for both the PC and future consoles I purchase) and EA will be riding the bench next season.

Very Bad!!
I use to love this game and I am thinking of buying an old used computer so I can play NHL 2004 the last decent version of the game.I had NHL 05 but the controllers wouldn't work right in the game. I bought a new computer recently and just installed NHL08. I could not believe that I have the same controller/gamepad problem four versions later with a different computer and controller.
When I have a controller/gamepad connected to my computer the set up screen for a game will not let me pass that screen unless I choose keyboard along with my controller.So I have to play every game with a my gamepad controller and keyboard.
You would think after 4 years EA would have addressed this problem since I am using a whole new system and different controller it cannot be a hardware problem.In NHL 2004 I remember playing with some friends using 4 controllers with no problems! The graphics are not even much better in NHL 08 than the last 4 versions and many people find the gameplay AI intelligence better in older versions.Has EA Sports been sleeping these last four years?

NHL 08 and Game Controllers
I received this as a gift for Christmas, like a tradition as I have for many years now.
This year EA decided to severely limit the number of controllers this game will support. Now, my tried and true MS sidewinder cannot be used effectively in the game. It seems most all controllers will be recognized and usable in the game, but you will be forced to use the games default controller mapping during gameplay.

As per the EA Sports support pages/FAQ, there is no plan to address this issue. In fact, one reply from a Customer Service Tech stated, " We're surprised by the amount of people that don't read the requirements".

So make sure your mother in law knows what computer equipment you have before she buys you a gift!

Great for new users; some bugs exist.
I bought this game because NHL 06 did not work on my laptop. While the gameplay, animations, and audio are basically the same, I enjoyed some modest improvements. For one, the menu interface is a lot more responsive than NHL 06 was. However, it can still be difficult to navigate through editing your lines and such. Gameplay also feels quicker and smoother than the 06 edition did.

I feel that the difficulty is too easy. Even on the hardest settings it is only a matter of time before you're winning every game. The franchise statistics don't make sense either. A penalty kill of 88%, which would be great in the real NHL, is going to be the worst in your franchise league. Likewise, the best power play is usually at about 15%, which is weak in real life. They seem to make up the difficulty in your goalies' performance. You will score on about 10% of your shots while your opponent will score on you about 20% of the time. You still usually win because you often outshoot your opponent 40-15. Some settings are still set a year back - for example, Ray Emery is considered a rookie in this game, and the team goals are set a year behind - for example, Carolina is expected to win the Cup based off of the previous season, while Anaheim's goal is "make the conference finals". I started my franchise one year and for fun, started 30-0-0. Your owner's confidence will rise very slowly and will drop if you lose any game he expects you to win. I also played a game or two where Marc-Andre Fleury is consistently called "Cam Ward" by the announcers.

I still give this game 4 stars because it is fun to play if you have not played the NHL series before. I was disappointed at the lack of change from 2006 but I still feel that it's a little smoother in terms of gameplay and the menus. The minor issues tend to add up, but they're still minor in nature.

Could EA improve on anything?
I have NHL 06 and now I have 08. I can only find a couple of minimal differences between them.

1.It is much harder to score. The skill stick in 06 isn't there and the goalies don't just lay on the ice like they did in 06.

2.The menu lookes different, but I think it is just the same. I haven't explored the AHL teams yet.

3.The game play is choppier. Don't get me wrong, I have a new computer running on XP. I have a 2.80 GHz procceser and 1GB of RAM.

4.The boards say NHL 08 instead if 06.

5.The rosters are updated.

In all I would reccomend you buying 06 or 07. You might want to get this game, but only when it goes down in price to $10 or $15. That is all it is really worth. You would think that after 2 years in the rate that tecnology is progressing, the graphics might inprove at the very least. But no, the gameplay get's choppier instead. I am glad I got this as a gift and didn't spend my own money on it. EA is just putting in all their game devolopers into the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 versions of the game. It's pretty sad, that even though PC is considered part of the next gen consols this game is so uniproved.