On paper, NHL Hitz 03 seems like a massive upgrade to the previous year’s version. It has more teams, a singleplayer mode where you have to complete tasks within matches, a bunch of minigames and all sorts of other features. Despite this, I didn’t enjoy this one at all. The over the top nature of the game seems to have been dialled back, with shots not feeling as powerful and the game feeling much slower (even on the fastest setting).
It still has the crazy teams and ice rinks, although even these are somewhat more subdued, and even the graphics have taken a step back, with the marks left by the players being the most notable absence in this version. Overall, it feels far more like a step towards the simulation style of ice hockey games, instead of the over the top fun that made the previous so much fun.