Hit the Ice

n/a

Hit the Ice
System(s): Sega Mega Drive
Publisher: Taito America
Developer: Aisystem Tokyo
Original system(s): Taito System B
Developer(s) of original games: Williams Electronics Games, Taito
Genre: Sports (ice hockey)
Number of players: 1-2
Release Date RRP Code US 1993-02 11096
Non-Sega versions Arcade Game Boy PC Engine Super NES TurboGrafx-16

Hit the Ice is a 1990 arcade ice hockey game for Taito's B System arcade hardware by Williams Electronics Games. Aisystem Tokyo ported the game to the Sega Mega Drive in 1993, releasing it exclusively in the US.

Gameplay

Hit the Ice is an arcade-style hockey game in which two teams of three players (one forward, one defense, and one goalie) compete against each other. Most of the rules of the original sport are dropped, so there are no fouls, and the aim of the game is simply to hit the hockey puck into the opposition's net by any means necessary (including hitting opposing players). Arcade sports games of this nature (where rules are sacrificed for quicker and more aggressive gameplay) were popular in the late 1980s and early 1990s, so the game can be considered an ice hockey equivalent to Arch Rivals or the later NBA Jam.

Games consist of three periods that are 5 minutes long (though the period length can be changed in the options). The game can be played by one player against the computer or by two players cooperatively (against the computer) or competitively (against each other). Goals are always worth one point each. If the game is tied at the end of the third period, it goes into a sudden death period where the first team to score wins.

	Face-Off
	At the beginning of each period and after a team scores, the teams meet in the center of the rink for the face-off. The referee drops the puck in between a member of each team, and they fight to hit the puck with .
Error creating thumbnail: /bin/bash: line 1: /usr/bin/convert: Permission denied Error code: 126 Error creating thumbnail: /bin/bash: line 1: /usr/bin/convert: Permission denied Error code: 126	Defense
	When the opposing team has possession of the puck, the team member skates in any direction using the D-Pad. The active team member has a number above him indicating the player that controls him (and when off-screen, the player's number appears on the side of the screen to indicate the position of the team member). The team member can check (attack) an opposing team member with or . Holding and releasing or does a "Special Skill," which is a special attack that varies depending on the team member and the team but which generally knocks down the opposing team member. Hitting the skater with the puck can cause him to lose control of the puck, and skating over the puck gains control of it. Hitting someone too much can result in a fight where both players duke it out. The loser is briefly knocked out and taken out of the game until he recovers. The player controls the same team member over the course of the game (and cannot switch to the other team member, even when playing with a computer ally). When playing with a computer ally, the player switch between two formation modes with . In one mode, the computer ally is more aggressive and skates toward the defensive player with the puck to try to get possession, while in the other, the computer ally is more defensive and only engages the opposing player when he comes near. When the opposing player shoots the puck toward the goal, the player can move the goalkeeper (concurrently with the forward) using the D-Pad. The goalie has a limited area in which he can move. He can shove an opposing team member with or or catch the puck when it comes near with or . The goalie can be temporarily knocked out if hit by the puck (rather than catching it). He automatically throws the puck to a team member when he catches it.
Error creating thumbnail: /bin/bash: line 1: /usr/bin/convert: Permission denied Error code: 126 Error creating thumbnail: /bin/bash: line 1: /usr/bin/convert: Permission denied Error code: 126 Error creating thumbnail: /bin/bash: line 1: /usr/bin/convert: Permission denied Error code: 126	Offense
	When the player's team has possession of the puck, the team member skates in any direction using the D-Pad. The active team member has a number above him indicating the player that controls him (and when off-screen, the player's number appears on the side of the screen to indicate the position of the team member). The team member can pass the puck to the other team member with . The team member can shoot the puck with while using the D-Pad to aim. Tapping does a wrist shot, but holding and releasing does a slap shot that is faster and harder (but the team member is more vulnerable while shooting). The shot can be charged while moving when the player has possession. Charging the shot for long enough causes the team member to start flashing, indicating that he will do a "Super Shot" when is released. This is an especially powerful shot that cannot be blocked by the goalie (though it can still miss the goal if not aimed correctly). The player controls the same team member over the course of the game (and cannot switch to the other team member, even when playing with a computer ally). When playing with a computer ally, the player switch between two formation modes with . In one mode, the computer ally moves independently, while in the other, the computer ally tries to move in formation with the player by staying in a similar horizontal position. In either mode, the player can tell the ally to pass with or shoot with .
	Fighting
	Checking an opponent sometimes results in a fight. The team member does a high jab with , a low punch with , or an uppercut with . The fight ends when one of the players is knocked out, which briefly incapacitates him before he recovers. When fighting, other team members wait until the fight is over before continuing play.

Modes

The game has the following modes:

• Com vs. Play 1: Plays a one-player game against the computer.
• League Play: Plays a series of games against every other team in the game (for a total of seven games). This mode is a single player against the computer. There is a password system for continuing.
• Play 1 vs. Play 2: Plays a two-player game against each other (with each player on separate teams).
• Com vs. 2 Plays: Plays a two-player game against the computer (with both players on the same team).
• League 2 Plays: Plays a series of games against every other team in the game (for a total of seven games). This mode is for two players against the computer (with both players on the same team). There is a password system for continuing.

In the options, players can set the difficulty level of computer opponents (Easy or Normal), the game speed (between 1 and 5), the length of each period (2, 5, 10, or 20 minutes), and whether obstacles are enabled.

Obstacles

Fans occasionally throw these objects onto the ice.

	Bottle
	Causes a skater to slip.
	Octopus
	Causes a skater to fall. Likely a reference to the Legend of the Octopus.

Teams

There are no real teams but a selection of fake teams that are part of the fictional Video Hockey League (VHL). Like the NHL, VHL teams hail from Canada or the United States. The original arcade game only had two teams (the Reds and the Blues), which was expanded to eight teams for the Mega Drive port.

When selecting a team, pressing shows the statistics for each team member (in five categories: Speed, Shot, Pass, Defense, and Stamina) and pressing chooses the team. Players can choose the same team.

	Reds
	Blues
	Pinks
	Yellows
	Purples
	Greens
	Grays
	Skyblues

Magazine articles

Main article: Hit the Ice/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

Print advert in Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) #39: "October 1992" (1992-xx-xx)

Print advert in Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) #41: "December 1992" (1992-xx-xx)

Print advert in VideoGames & Computer Entertainment (US) #50: "March 1993" (1993-0x-xx)
also published in:

• Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) #44: "March 1993" (1993-xx-xx)
• Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) #45: "April 1993" (1993-xx-xx)

Physical scans

Sega Retro Average
Publication Score Source

{{{{{icon}}}|L}}
Based on 0 review

Sega Retro Average
Publication Version Score 1700 igr dlya Sega (RU) 40 Consoles + (FR) 68 GameFan (US) 80 Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming (UK) NTSC-U 68 Mega (UK) NTSC-U 36 Mega Fun (DE) NTSC-U 42 Play Time (DE) NTSC-U 45 Sega Power (UK) NTSC 31 Sega Pro (UK) PAL 42 Sega Force Mega (UK) NTSC-U 50 Tricks 16 bit (RU) 32

	49
Based on 11 reviews

Hit the Ice

Mega Drive, US
Cover
Cart

Technical information

Main article: Hit the Ice/Technical information.

References

NEC Retro has more information related to Hit the Ice