We don't even have a team! Granted, the UK isn't renowned for its Mad Ice Game Skillz, but you think we could have managed to put a squad together for this game. But it isn't to be - when you play NHL2K3, you're going to have to play as France! Really! Actually, not really; the game has every NHL team and player there is, and by not choosing a team from England there's every chance you may actually win a game. And best of all, Australia doesn't have a presence either.

As an ice hockey simulation, NHL2K3 absolutely rocks. Complete with full ESPN-style presentation, the game looks great and plays better. It may not have had the graphical makeover of its other sporting stablemates like NFL2K3, but it has everything you're going to need - purty reflections in the ice, plenty of determined-looking player faces, and enough animations to start your own animation side business. Top of the coolio list is the superb player AI. Your team-mates work as hard as you do on the ice, blocking, clearing the goal, and generally trying to stuff up the opposition so you can score. Better still, they're always in position - right where you expect them to be for a pass.

New stuff for this version in the series is the ability to check players against the boards (i.e. smack-'em-up against the side of the rink), Dolby Digital 5.1 sound and new, improved goalie physics. For example, if the goalie stretches a leg out for a shot, it leaves him vulnerable to one side for a second or so. Which is a second for you to get a shot on goal.

But don't start worrying that you don't know enough about ice hockey to play this game. All the game's settings and rules are on difficulty sliders, so you can adjust it to make the game less or more arcadey. If you want, you can even hand control totally over to the computer. Line editing, roster adjustment, degree of goalie control: they're all managed by your trusty Xbox if you don't understand or, more likely, don't want to understand it all. To really make it less sim-like, you can increase the skating speed and then max out the sliders for checking, fighting and boring old line management (swapping crews in and out).

For more advanced players, there's a complete franchise mode, the option to go full manual, and more complex shooting - holding the triggers down modifies the kind of shot you play, for instance. It's great fun, you don't need to be an expert to enjoy it and, just so you're sure, Australia isn't in it.

Power
All the teams, players, stadiums and stats you could ever need. Gameplay is very smooth, too.

Style
It doesn't have the visual polish of its stablemates, but still manages to look very decent.

Immersion
The ESPN-style presentation is just like it is on TV and creates an enjoyable atmosphere.

Lifespan
It's a lot more fun playing against a mate rather than the CPU. Should be great on Xbox Live.

Summary
As good as it gets for ice hockey sim fans, but lacking the arcade polish of the competition.

1. Great player AI
2. Realistic physics
3. Plentiful configuration options

1. Weak commentary
2. Presentation a little flat