3-On-3 NHL Arcade (PS3) Review

nhl_arcade3 On 3 NHL Arcade is the first PSN game I’ve tried where the demo version converts to the full version with just a token download. It is also fantastic with just a few minor nitpicks, and one big one.

  • Minor: Your teams, while easily distinguishable, are just red/blue. So you can’t pick the Flyers and get their jerseys.
  • Minor: Limited player selection, you can’t pick the Flyers and get their players.
  • Giant Humongous Failure: No friend invites/searching for friend games

What were they thinking with the no friend invites! In order to play versus a friend I had to set the custom unranked game to play-to a certain number of goals so my buddy could find it when he searched for a custom game. I know the PSN isn’t the best in the world, but I’m sure that NHL 09 had some kind of system for inviting friends, right?

Despite all that, I heartily recommend NHL Arcade, it is a fun game with almost all of the complications removed. In the place of those complications remain the tight skill stick or button controls, and cartoon stylings to the characters along with power-ups.