Ice hockey video games and fighting. In recent installments of hockey video games, fighting is a lesser part of the game. While the animations and tactics are better than in older games, players don't typically drop the gloves as much as they used to. Especially when it comes to 6 v 6 play in EASHL, being forced to sit in the penalty box for 5 minutes (or even more if there isn't a whistle) deters many from partaking in a virtual joust. As a result, many reading this may be shocked to hear that there's an ice hockey video game in which you actually got punished for losing a fight, and the winner didn't suffer a single disadvantage. I introduce to you: Blades of Steel. 

Blades of Steel was an ice hockey video game released by Konami Group Corporation, was released initially for North American arcades in 1987,m but was eventually released for both Family Computer Disk System and Nintendo Entertainment System a year later. The game featured fictional teams based out of 8 North American cities, ranging from Los Angeles to Montreal, and reach team comprised of 3 forwards, two defencemen, and a goalie.  The game was renowned for it's fast-paced style of hockey action, playable by up two players, but it was most known for it's fighting.

To initiate a fight, two players had to bump into each other three times in a row without touching anyone else. The two players then would stop skating and engage in a pre-fight interaction. Interestingly, if a player quickly punched their opponent rapidly during the pre-fight interaction, you could actually knock the opposing player down and no one would suffer a penalty. However if mutual punches were thrown, it would instead result in a fight breaking out. Once in a fight, a player could choose one of the following options: punch high, punch low, block high, or block low. Each virtual combatant was given a health bar with 5 hit points. Whoever lost all their hit points first lost the fight.

Now here's where the craziness picks up. The game didn't send each player to the penalty box for 5 minutes to give them time to think about what they had done. Instead, the loser of the fight was given a two minute penalty and sent to the penalty box, while the winner was able to stay on the ice. This lead to a 5-on-4 powerplay opportunity for whoever won the fight, giving them an advantage over the opposing team. This resulted in players actually benefiting from initiating and winning fights far more than current ice hockey games, but it gets even crazier.

In traditional ice hockey, teams can be penalized to a maximum of a 5-on-3 powerplay opportunity, and if another penalty is taken more time is added to the 5-on-3 instead of taking off another player. Blades of Steel disregarded this, and allowed up to 4 players to be penalized and sent to the penalty box. If you remember from before, each team only had 5 skaters + a goalie, so this resulted in the potential to have a 5-on-1 advantage for one player. We don't care how good you think your penalty kill is, a 5-on-1 penalty kill is a death sentence for anyone foolish enough to lose four fights in quick succession.

While it may not be a traditional and authentic ice hockey experience, Blades of Steel delivered by providing players with a unique and fun arcade like experience. The game was well received by critics, and was followed by two sequels in 1999 and 2000. Both sequels received average reviews, which isn't hard to debate when you consider how good the original installment was.