| Hockey League Simulator 2 | |
| Developer: | Bethesda Softworks |
| Publisher: | Bethesda Softworks[1] |
| Designer: | Nick Volkov |
| Released: | October 1992[2] |
| Platforms: | IBM PC |
Hockey League Simulator 2 (HLS2)[1] is a 1992 ice hockey-themed sports game from Bethesda Softworks. The game is fully compatible with Wayne Gretzky Hockey 3.[3] [4]
Hockey League Simulator 2 features gameplay from an executive's perspective, allowing the player to draft a team and organize its schedule, and hire or fire the coach.[3] As the general manager of a team, the player has the ability to trade players and send them down or back up from the minors.[2] The player can become involved in preseason negotiations to draft hockey players.[2] The player can create custom leagues that can use game played in Wayne Gretzky Hockey 3 as well as fantasy or rotisserie leagues.[1]
The player uses detailed menus to access commands for all of the different options. The player is able to manipulate and change player statistics, financial statistics, and performance statistics.[4] This game included an 'injury prone' option so that players could set the level of injuries during a season.[2]
The player can switch back and forth between viewing the final scores after playing games, to watching a period-by-period recap of the scoring.[1] The player can replay an entire season in a single sitting.[1] The player can play through each game of the season using either Wayne Gretzky Hockey III or with a quick simulation mode.[3]
Peter Freunscht from PC Games rated the game a 29 of 100 criticizing the poor sound and other issues.
Mika Nirvi from Pelit rated the game a 92 of 100 stating "The game comfort is good. The optimal mode of play is the combined mouse-keyboard combination. The direct-dial keys make the game easier and you can catch up quickly. The sounds and animation are top-notch and they create their own atmosphere in the game. The wide selection options and the ability to play HLS2 games keep Wayne Gretzky Hockey 3 as its hockey king".