SNAP Review – Hero Hockey

Arcades used to have these machines that were like air hockey tables but they had bubbles over the top and it was almost like foosball, but for hockey. The guys had little sticks. Do you remember those?

Did you ever want to take one home? Now you can!

Game

This is a SNAP review for Hero Hockey. Hero Hockey is a two player dexterity battle.

It’s published by Asmodee in the United States. A game takes maybe 10 minutes. Anyone can play.

Art

What do you think about the art in this game? Well, there’s some art. There’s really nothing special. You have two characters and a field of play. There’s a nice insert that sits down into the field.

There are clips on the sides that work for score markers. Honestly, they don’t work very well, and the tolerances for the plastic molding are not that great. But we’ll talk about those more later.

Mechanics

I don’t think Hero Hockey could be simpler if it tried.

Each player sets up their “hero”, with the magnet holder underneath the table. Then go to it! Both players try to knock the ball into the goal on the other side to score a point.

You also score a point if your opponent loses control of their guy and can’t get it back (if it drops in the goal, falls over, or gets knocked to the opposite side of the playing field).

The first player to 6 points wins!

Expectations

Well, it’s impossible to not think of the game Klask when you see Hero Hockey. The legs of the table are even kind of the same shape. So I expected something like that where you’re moving your connecting piece underneath and playing kind of like air hockey.

I expected this to be a fast moving, great spectator game and it’s exactly that. In our family we heard that familiar call of “I got next” over and over. This game is so much fun and it’s so easy to get into!

Surprises

What surprised you about this game?

We mentioned the “tolerances” before. The plastic table is not flat. It’s obviously kind of supposed to be, but it was definitely made with cost concessions in mind. If you’re moving slowly, you’re going to be subject to the lack of flatness on the table.

I didn’t really expect it to make that much of a difference. And when you’re moving around like crazy, it doesn’t (like kids do). But there will be times when the ball is rolling toward a goal and for some reason, because it’s not that flat, it just rolls around it.

I really liked that the goal doesn’t go all the way to the back like it does in air hockey or foosball. The number of times the ball rolled behind the goal and everyone started yelling? It happened a lot more than I would have expected.

Recommended?

How can you not recommend this for a family? At $30, this is a great family gift that I guarantee will get played immediately after opening on Christmas Day. It’s a fantastic age equalizer and it’s just fun for everyone.

Yes, there are imperfections. The clips stink. The table is not flat. But at the end of the day, the game is just fun. That’s what it’s supposed to be, and that’s what it delivers.

So I’ll just tell you. We’re rating Hero Hockey four hockey bat-stick things out of five.

---

The Family Gamers received a copy of Hero Hockey from Asmodee for this review.

This post contains affiliate links, which do not change your price, but help support The Family Gamers.

SNAP review music is Avalanche, provided courtesy of You Bred Raptors?