You guys should try out EHM 07

Have you guys heard of Eastside Hockey Manager 07 by SI? I recently bought it (only available by digital download) for PC and it is extremely fun. Some of it will be very familiar to FM players but some of it is obviously very different and feels like a refreshing change. Some of you probably know a lot about hockey and how american sports work and some of you maybe don't but instead of buying & selling players, you have to trade & draft players and fit them inside a salary cap. You can send players down to your farm team or to the juniors and you have prospects that you own the rights to. You can also send your scouts out to find new players and get the low down on that year's draft picks. You also aren't limited to the NHL as the game allows you to manage teams from all around the world - even junior hockey teams - which provides many different types of challenges. Some people will know it's not for them but if you are uncertain I would urge you to check it out. I believe they have a demo try-before-you-buy that you can play for 6 months in-game time. It's pretty easy to jump into because you can have your assistants do a lot of the work while you're figuring out what's going on. I can't imagine any FM player not loving this game!!!

Have you guys heard of Eastside Hockey Manager 07 by SI? I recently bought it (only available by digital download) for PC and it is extremely fun. Some of it will be very familiar to FM players but some of it is obviously very different and feels like a refreshing change. Some of you probably know a lot about hockey and how american sports work and some of you maybe don't but instead of buying & selling players, you have to trade & draft players and fit them inside a salary cap. You can send players down to your farm team or to the juniors and you have prospects that you own the rights to. You can also send your scouts out to find new players and get the low down on that year's draft picks. You also aren't limited to the NHL as the game allows you to manage teams from all around the world - even junior hockey teams - which provides many different types of challenges. Some people will know it's not for them but if you are uncertain I would urge you to check it out. I believe they have a demo try-before-you-buy that you can play for 6 months in-game time. It's pretty easy to jump into because you can have your assistants do a lot of the work while you're figuring out what's going on. I can't imagine any FM player not loving this game!!!

I've played the 2005 version and love it, but saying that I love watching Ice Hockey.

I think a little knowledge helps with this game, I.E. what team to pick and what players to look out for. But its a very good game too play.

How much did it cost you to download?

I think it was $35. You can then spend another $10 to get the CD. Not sure how much it costs in pounds - you'd have to check. You can get it from here: http://www.eastsidehockeymanager.net/. I have found it to be a lot of fun. One thing I've noticed is that there is a bigger emphasis on scouting. Obviously in the NHL there is no transfer list where you can splash a bunch of cash and get a great player. You really have to scout future draft picks and be cunning with trades. And it's nice to know that if you have a bad season, you will get one of the first picks in the draft and therefore have the potential of getting at least one excellent young player. You can trade up for draft pics etc. Also I noticed an option when I started to prevent yourself from being fired - which is nice when you're starting out and learning everything. It's also a challenge starting 20 players for each game instead of the 11 we have in footy. Exciting getting high-scoring games. And it seems there are many different ways to succeed but I can definitely apply quite a lot of what I've learned from FM to this game but there's also a lot to learn. Anyway, can't go wrong with a free demo!!!

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">I've played the 2005 version and love it, but saying that I love watching Ice Hockey.

I think a little knowledge helps with this game, I.E. what team to pick and what players to look out for. But its a very good game too play. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I think you could step in with no knowledge of teams/players. I think it's just worth looking at all the teams first. And as with everything SI, it's very realistic so you could just look at the final standings in 2006 to see how good the teams are, then it's worth checking the teams out in the game to get a feel for whether it's a young team or what etc. Also, each team's 2 or 3 star players have a star next to them so if you're not familiar with the NHL, you quickly understand who the great players are. However, you don't even need to manage in the NHL as there are a ton of leagues to choose from. Even junior hockey which is hugely different to NHL and would be like playing a whole new game because the set up is so different. One thing I have found a bit complex is the contract system, learning about restricted free agents, unrestricted free agents, waiver wires etc. I'm sure I'll get the hang of all that pretty quick though.