Kuura Playhouse Oy, a small Finnish studio, released Puckoff: Reloaded, a story-driven hockey game, on Xbox Series X|S on Oct. 30. The game costs $14.99.
According to the game’s store description, Puckoff: Reloaded is a new version of Puckoff, which was previously available only for personal computers.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Developer | Kuura Playhouse Oy |
| Platform | Xbox Series X/S |
| Price | $14.99 |
| Launch date | October 30, 2026 |
Marko Haaja, the game’s developer and producer, described the project in a post on Xbox Wire, Microsoft’s Xbox news site. He said the five-person team built the game around the hockey they played growing up in Finland on frozen outdoor rinks and ponds. Many of the game’s rinks are ponds inspired by those places, he wrote.
Haaja said the team started from a simple question: “What if winning didn’t mean scoring more goals?” In the game, players can score, set up a teammate or make a pass. They can also knock an opponent out, and Haaja said fighting is part of the sport and its “strange underground culture” rather than a side activity.
Between matches, the game uses a presentation inspired by visual novels, a style of game built around text and illustrated scenes, to tell a larger story. Haaja said the hockey games are part of a journey rather than separate challenges.
The story centers on a hockey legend named Dominator. Haaja said Dominator has played underground matches for decades and has never lost a game. The player character wants to find him and eventually play alongside him.
Reaching Dominator means getting through the Cage, an underground venue where the game’s boss matches take place. Haaja said those matches pit the player against characters with their own identities, abilities and ways of playing.
The store description says players build a team of has-beens and legends and learn different playstyles. It names three teammates: Sarah, who it describes as ever cheerful; Eddie, described as the best beer-league goalie; and Coach, described as ever grumpy.
Haaja said he hopes to make more story-driven hockey games with the scope and production values of big-budget titles. He described Kuura Playhouse as five people in Finland making the game they wanted to play.
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