Bush Hockey League

 PC
Metascore
48

Generally unfavorable reviews - based on 7 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 7
  3. Negative: 4 out of 7
  1. Riot Pixels
    Apr 10, 2017
    45
    Despite the lack of decent hockey sims on PC, there's little reason to buy Old Time Hockey right now as it's a bouquet of bad game design decisions and technical problems.
  2. Game Informer
    Mar 29, 2017
    45
    As a fan of retro sports and arcade games, I was rooting for Old Time Hockey to succeed. I love the ‘70s sensibilities, and the sports gaming scene needs more varied offerings. But the slew-footed story mode and ridiculous amount of crashes make this game a healthy scratch. If V7 Entertainment can stabilize the performance, the modest $12 price tag makes this a decent option for those looking for couch co-op options, but don’t expect much beyond pick-up games.
  3. DarkStation
    May 16, 2017
    40
    It’s worth noting that the way to play Old Time Hockey is with friends. The game offers up to 4 player co-op but even then I wouldn’t recommend it. While it can be fun to get a group of friends together for some couch co-op, the game just isn’t that fun to play. The novelty of it all wears off fairly quickly and before you know it you’ll be looking to play better games like Blades of Steel or Gretzky. To be honest, you’re probably better off playing one of those anyway. Old Time Hockey tries to capture the attitude of hockey’s past with the arcade fun of historic hockey games, but it does neither particularly well.
  5. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    May 15, 2017
    40
    An arcade game that can only increase your blood pressure with its unfairness and which you will suspect that it was badly counting the score if you lose. [Issue#274]
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User Reviews

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User Score
4.2

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 5 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 5
  3. Negative: 4 out of 5
  1. walkerguy124
    Mar 28, 2017
    4
    Lots of passing and shooting lag, horrible ai and useless goalies. Goalies are uncontrollable, let goals in like swiss cheese and constantlyLots of passing and shooting lag, horrible ai and useless goalies. Goalies are uncontrollable, let goals in like swiss cheese and constantly dump the puck in the corner even if there are players from the Opposing team there. You can't used the advanced controls either until you unlock them from the tutorial meaning you have to get destroyed game after game to unlock the controls that actually give you a chance at winning. Also the opposing goalies stop everything. One game I outshot the other team 25-10 and lost 4-1. Overall not worth the money. The more I played this game, the more I wanted to run nhl 94 on an emulator. Maybe they will fix some of this in the future but for now, avoid it.… Full Review »
  2. MisfortuneCooky
    Mar 31, 2017
    0
    A missed opportunity, an abysmal launch, a clueless developer with a chip on their shoulder. "What does the escape key usually do in PCA missed opportunity, an abysmal launch, a clueless developer with a chip on their shoulder. "What does the escape key usually do in PC games?", I was asked, days after being reassured of their rock solid dedication to PC (I made a Steam post endorsing the team, making a fool of myself), but before being called a dick. There is an army of their younger brother's high school friends in the steam forums waiting to spit acid at anyone with a technical problem. All you have to do is look at the critic scores for the PS4 version, or the steam reviews, to know the truth about this turd. Anyone praising this is either sniffing glue, or sniffing the developer's ass, enjoying the aromatic bouquet. Verified purchase reviews only. Do not trust the steam discussion forums. This 'game' is a broken mess.

    The return of hockey to PC - finally! I'm a hockey *fanatic*, I was psyched! This sports-starved platform would be getting a hockey release, with EA style stick handling controls! Whoa! Don't get too excited though... The PC release was such an afterthought that, when I told the developer the "escape key" did nothing, and that it was a cardinal sin on PC, jokingly... He asked me "What does escape usually do on PC?" I was pretty shocked. After their previous assurances re: PC, and doing a few hours of bug testing for them with my 360 controllers (after paying full price for an apparent final release...) I was called a dick, and it was admitted that PC was an afterthought, and they just "threw it on steam" because of some fan demand. Their focus is on PS4...

    Smart idea guys, go where the money ISN'T. So, you want to compete, with this garbage release, head-to-head against the EA monster and their NHL franchise, instead of focusing on the decade-long PC hockey famine? Really smart. I guess, if you've only ever played games on consoles in your short life, that's what you'll build games for. Then, you pay the cheapest option you can find for a port, and try to make quick cash off the "anything goes" Steam cesspool. It seems that, based on the forums, all the PC testing was done with PS4 pads and Xbox controller emulation software.

    Support for 360 controllers in Windows 7 *does not work*. After being called a dick by the studio for expecting a PC developer to know what "escape" does in every PC game ever made, I pushed my own escape key (I can locate it and know what it does) and requested my refund from valve, jumped out of the plane, and pulled my damn parachute. Then, all my comments were censored from the steam discussion forums. Thank goodness, as I was feeling ill after the endless barrage of harassing comments kept pouring in from their teenage brigade (I was done, I opened them to remove the notification, but could not bring myself to read the poison coming from their "fans").

    Congratulations should be extended to their forum of "heroes", as their vitriol has motivated me to spread the word about this sorry excuse of a PC release. This is alpha at best, maybe beta. Ever heard of early access? If not for the straight-faced lies of the developer, I would have just refunded and walked away. "What does escape usually do in a PC game?" Maybe you should try playing one next time before making one? You know, you could have checked out Fifa, it's huge on PC... Or the NBA2K series...

    So, this is not the return of PC hockey. Sorry folks. These developers have not even *PLAYED* PC games before, let alone developed them. They do not have a passion to bring a fantastic hockey experience to PC.

    Technically speaking, the game plays in slow motion, due to a "shader problem" or a myriad of other excuses. "A monkey could fix it, 5 minutes, no problem" is the common refrain of the developer. Well, couldn't a monkey have made it work to begin with? Maybe hire more monkeys? They might do a better job. 5 minutes, easy. The developer indicated that they had not even *tried* the game on PC until complaints started coming in, and admitted to me their "fans" are wrong and my problems were real (shock).

    Barely any Q&A was done on the PC version, and it's a mess. The frame rate is perfectly smooth, but the players move as if they're skating in mud. The first few games were fast, then it slowed and slowed and slowed. Some kind of memory leak, maybe a shader problem. A monkey could fix it. Easy. Five minutes. Menus and players react so slowly you'll think you're having an aneurysm backwards.

    These design geniuses initially forced you to play a *THREE HOUR* tutorial involving impossible objectives before you could unlock season mode and "advanced" (EA style) controls. Smart stuff... Nice way to f*ck customers out of a steam refund though, by keeping hopes up for the *real* experience. Maybe they have never played *a* game before?

    Avoid like a ripe diaper, and dump this stinking puck over the glass. If your goalie had to make a save, you'd waste your timeout so that he could wash the sh*t stain out of his glove.    … Full Review »
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