Franchise Hockey Manager 3

Franchise Hockey Manager 3 is a fantastically crafted title well worthy of praise. Unfortunately, with this release being a pretty basic retread, there is a prevailing sense of staleness. The game does have some minor improvements that are mostly visible with the streamlined startup process and visual data provided while in-game. Long time fans of the series may not need to update, but any new player looking to try a sports sim would be hard pressed to find a better place to start.

56%Game Brain Score

gameplay, music

graphics, stability

56% User Score Based on 88 reviews

Critic Score 85%Based on 1 reviews

Platforms

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About

"Franchise Hockey Manager 3 is a detailed hockey strategy game, now officially licensed by the NHL® for the first time. Create your own hockey universe or take control of a team in one of 22 global leagues, managing finances, scouting, trades, and more. Build your dream team through drafts, free agency, and trades, and aim for the ultimate goal - capturing the Stanley Cup®."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

56%

Audience ScoreBased on 88 reviews

gameplay3 positive mentions

graphics3 negative mentions

The game offers a lot of depth and complexity, making players feel like a real NHL GM.
Improvements over previous versions include better tactics, player development, and the addition of international tournaments.
The game has a dedicated developer team that actively works on updates and fixes, enhancing the overall experience.

The game suffers from frequent crashes and stability issues, making it frustrating to play.
The user interface is clunky and unintuitive, leading to a cumbersome experience when navigating menus and managing teams.
AI trade logic is often unrealistic, resulting in frustrating and nonsensical player transactions.

gameplay
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
17%
33%
The gameplay is generally well-received, with users praising the modern day mechanics for their depth and realism. However, some players express a desire for additional features, such as salary cap fluctuations and improved contract negotiations, particularly in the "Path to Glory" mode. Overall, the gameplay is considered enjoyable, with effective farm system mechanics.
- “The modern day gameplay is awesome, and incredibly in depth and realistic.”
- “The gameplay is very fun.”
- “You might think I’m comparing apples to oranges, but sports management video games are fairly similar in the user interface department at least, if not game mechanics.”
- “Gameplay-wise, I only played Path to Glory, but it lacked some functions that I would have liked to see, such as fluctuation in salary cap, expansion teams, and better negotiations for contract renewals.”
- “You might think I'm comparing apples to oranges, but sports management video games are fairly similar in the user interface department at least, if not in game mechanics.”
music
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's music aspect is criticized for lacking a soundtrack, which is noted as a significant flaw, although players find the overall experience enjoyable once they acclimate to the user interface.
graphics
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Reviewers feel that the graphics during the ice hockey games could be enhanced to improve the overall gaming experience, suggesting that the current visuals may not meet expectations.
- “I feel that the game would be improved by better graphics during the ice hockey games themselves.”
- “The graphics are outdated and lack the detail expected from modern games.”
- “The character models look flat and lifeless, which detracts from the overall experience.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game exhibits stability issues, with users reporting occasional crashes on macOS and frequent text glitches in emails, indicating that it still has unresolved bugs.
- “Still has bugs; on OSX, I occasionally experience crashes out of nowhere and encounter a lot of text glitches in emails.”
- “The game frequently crashes, making it nearly unplayable at times.”
- “There are persistent stability issues that disrupt the overall experience.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
FHM3 is praised for its effective optimization, ensuring that the simulation engine runs smoothly, which is crucial for this type of game.
- “With these types of games, getting the simulation engine to run smoothly is the most important thing, and FHM3 does a pretty good job at that.”