NHL Hitz 20-02 was a very good hockey game, but this is a new year, and with it comes Hitz 20-03. It’s got everything that was in the original, and a whole lot more.

Omissions from the first game that most sports games have these days include stat-tracking, all-star teams, and a franchise mode. 20-03 adds all of these, including Olympic teams and end-of-season awards, much like those in the NHL. Other new modes include a new Hockey School featuring Scotty Bowman, more mini games in the skills competition, and more. Teams have a more robust roster, with 11 players to choose from on a team, instead of last year’s six. There are also more fantasy teams and arenas to unlock as well. Of course, if you’re not satisfied with what’s available for you, you can create your own player or team from scratch.

The gameplay is what made last year’s title a hit, and this year’s version is set to improve upon it in every way. Player and goalie AI has been tweaked significantly, meaning it will be a bit tougher to score on the CPU. If you feel you’re being scored against too much, there’s also the option of manually controlling your own netminder. Also new this year is the Hockey Shop, where choosing the right skates, sticks, or pads can help or hurt you out on the ice. Of course, the checking, fighting, and scoring are still there, but now the goalies can do all of that too. (There’s nothing better than seeing a goalie fight, let me tell you.)

Hitz 20-03 will also boast some impressive improvements in the graphics department. Player models are now much more detailed. Arenas will also get a massive facelift, with bigger 3D crowds (more than ten times the size than the first game), benches with players on them, and even jumbotrons. Blackbox has also done new two-person motion capturing for more realistic checking, not to mention twice the player animations. It’s going to look really nice.

Other new stuff includes a two-man commentary team (Midway’s own Tim Kitzrow and ESPN’s Barry Melrose), the addition of an on-ice referee (who is just as tough as the players, according to Midway), new licensed music, DVD-esque bonus features, and a new cover man, the St. Louis Blues’ Chris Pronger. There’s so much more in NHL Hitz 20-03 compared to last year’s version, meaning it can only be better. It’s due out around the start of the 2002-2003 hockey season at the end of this fall.