Re: So EA...is there any reason to think '24 will look/play any different than '23?

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@KlariskraysNHL wrote:
@rsandersr47I think it's also unfair to compare NHL and NBA in terms of popularity. NBA games probably sell like 4mil+ copies while NHL at it's best was only selling like 1.5million copies. So I would assume the size of budget and teams greatly differ. Investors aren't gonna throw money to lose on improving a game that they probably deem doesn't have much of a player pool to entice. I mean the reason the game probably has some arcade feel is to get the average person interested in it.

But honestly if you are a diehard fan and buy the same sports game year after year it just all feels the same. And I feel as we grow older we notice these things even more and feel let down.

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Agreed.

I'd like to see EA take some radical steps to improve the photorealism of the game by way of new lighting, maybe a refresh of player models. Obviously, we all want bug fixes too - but in the spirit of making a game feel refreshing - a graphical leap is in order for this series. The move to Frostbite yielded some new fidelity, but it's nowhere close to what we see in FIFA or Madden yet. 

Like every year, all we can do is hope.

When you compare the series in 3-5 year gaps they actually do make large strides but as Follisimo said, when you play the game every year it becomes a wash. They basically took the year off with '23 so I expect more from '24.

I made a new Truculence build the other day and there are definitely things that need to get addressed for next year. One extremely blatant no-call interference that lead to a goal and completely bouncing off a guy during a nice charging attempt (i'll make a new thread), for example.

This extremely well put!

Arcade even the playing field for the newbies, those who grind very little or prefer a fast pace with lots of WOW moments, even those where everybody is laughing at how drunk the goalie was on the fluke bouncing deflected in the between the goalie's leg missed pass the player with the highest momentum attempted.

How does EA try to keep them both type of players; the hardcore Full Sim player like me and my pals with their online game mode? Give me an option to rent a server where I can run my own GM Connected style of game mode and I'm gone!!! They played me this year... and that was not nice. After all, I played every hockey game since 1989! 

By doing what EA did, they kept me and my pal to stick around this CHEL game mode while new player, not as skilled or just different play level, will face us and others in a high AI interference game mode. 

Enough of this scam. I did not agree to that when I purchased it. More control and realism was the selling pitch. Was it A lie? NO: the game is running on new gen and it shows when you play be a pro or Franchise.  A deceptive marketing strategy? Absilutely!!! And this kiind of action (action speak louder than words) that does not carry much water over longer period you know! I will not buy 2024 if we have arcade game mode as the only option for playing with my friends. Isn't that the major goal of online gaming, playing with your friends?

EA, I ran a survey on a facebook page that has 20K+ where I'm asking the participant to tell which game mode is most realistic simulation.... we have now over 230 participant and 70% think that CHEL is simulation while Offline Franchise or offline Be A Pro obtain 7% and 8 % respectively. When you run a survey, you have to take in the level of understanding of your customer base. They are NOT well informed. Many are so bias or straight up misinformed. Some will fight the fact that CHEL is Arcade... because they like this game mode and they think it is simulation. In other words, if they like it, how can it not be a simulation game mode. 


This speaks to a deeper problem, but EA has to figure it out or they'll perish! And, palm trees and roller blade... I wasn't expecting a lot of good out of it to start with.

If you make a Hockey game to please the casuals and mr. Everybody, that’s where you go wrong IMO…

Because the casuals are gonna play 4-5 games and be done with it. It’s the hardcore base that needs to fall in love with the game and play day after day, after day… They will spend money on Pack, HUT and whatnot.. And at the same time it will bring more people (the casuals or people new to the game) because everyone will rave about this game…. Now what you have is a disgruntled community, a hardcore hockey player base that are leaving the game in masses… What will be left ?

Yes the casuals that don’t know anything about hockey and will leave after 2 weeks of playing it.

Not a HUGE baseball fan, but fell in love with THE SHOW, because I could customize it the way I wanted and wanted the real experience of batter vs pitcher, so started to play on LEGEND difficulty where a 100 MPH fastball looked like one. That’s how you learn to love a simulation, a sport in the process…

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@Stud44qc wrote:

I will not buy 2024 if we have arcade game mode as the only option for playing with my friends. Isn't that the major goal of online gaming, playing with your friends?

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@Stud44qc 

Very interesting read there buddy… But I kept the part where it rang so true to me, hope you don’t mind ?

I've talked about this in a couple of thread, but you can have a look at this one if you want…

NHL-23-best-Gameplay-of-all-time-with-the-right-setup 

Im finalizing a full 60 minutes set and it plays and smells like the real thing 😳 I’ve put about 500 hours of tweaking and testing and even myself I never thought we could do a full 60 with all the limitations we have on our side… But I found a few things and it clicked 😀

Imagine playing with your buddies in that environment ??? Each taking a position. Let’s say you control all the LW on a team, one of your friend takes all the RD and so on…. making line changes and stuff…

You could play 2 vs 2, 3 vs 3, 5 vs 5 and the rest of the remaining spots could be filled by AI like when I play position lock offline 😀 Yes it would be a dream come true for me and my bros/friends…

@rsandersr47 

Yes exactly, give them the tools and have new players and keep them, I’m all for this…

At the same time, you learn by playing the best, against or with them. By default, why not play a somewhat real replication of the sport. That’s where I fell in love with it when I was a kid, watching games, playing outside with friends and eventually be part of a team on the ice 😀

@rsandersr47 

Since I never play online, could you enlighten me what is 6's, lol ! Thanks 😊 

@KlariskraysNHL 

Thanks !

But I guess it’s 6 vs 6… Your player is always on the ice ? No fatigue ? Or you are playing a position with a full team of 19 players ? Is it only your created online player ?

Sorry if my questions seems dumb, lol !

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@KlariskraysNHL wrote:
@PernellKarl027Always on the ice with your created player. There is fatigue but it regens coasting. No full teams and the 6s community isn't fond of wanting line changes anyway for various reasons. Can't even track your stats when goalies pulled using your player. So chances are super slim line changes would work properly on stat tracking.

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Would be nice to have 'line changes' in the sense that you can skate to the bench and swap to a different loadout and/or swap loadouts in-between whistles. 

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@KlariskraysNHL wrote:
@KidShowtime1867Could you imagine the trolling that would happen in drop-ins? But it took them forever to get stats not resetting when you pulled a goalie and getting a human skater I dread to think how hard it would be to keep track of stats.

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Oh for sure. Obviously, swapping loadouts during a game should be club only. 

The cesspool that is Drop-Ins will never be a friendly experience until they adopt my idea of Clubs being able to pull from the drop-in pool of players looking for a game to supplement any missing positions. This results in more 6v6, allows teams to scout prospects and gives solitary drop-in players who don't normally play on clubs, that club experience.

Hut and packs are what ruined this series to begin with so your point is invalid. 

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@KidShowtime1867 wrote:

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@KlariskraysNHL wrote:
@PernellKarl027Always on the ice with your created player. There is fatigue but it regens coasting. No full teams and the 6s community isn't fond of wanting line changes anyway for various reasons. Can't even track your stats when goalies pulled using your player. So chances are super slim line changes would work properly on stat tracking.

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Would be nice to have 'line changes' in the sense that you can skate to the bench and swap to a different loadout and/or swap loadouts in-between whistles. 

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I would be super happy if line chances added to the NHL 24. Follisimo is right that stat tracking could be one big issue to be solved. But something in that line change feature fascinates me really. It just makes sence to me, I mean the current stamina meter would fit nicely with swapping between players.

A couple of things concerns me though.

1) Is it enough to have line changes working only with player loadouts? In that case the basic info (name, jersey number, etc.) of both players would be the same and they look like the same as well but line changes would work at least. In my opinion that is not enough. It would be better to have two created player profiles with different info you know.

2) How to get AI players to go to the bench during the game smoothly. How to implement line changes working with AI players? 

3) Stat tracking that mentioned before? 

Maybe that feature could be implemented differently, im not a developer so. Maybe i am thinking too much ahead but overall I like the idea a lot and i think it deserves much more attention. Line changes would give a completely new element to the gameplay. All I can do is hope right now. 

@rsandersr47Thanks for reading my mind. I almost posted this last night but decided to just go to bed. It would 100% promote ragging.

@FrOhl2011  There is no actual cheating in the game. What you label cheese is on you not the people understanding how the mechanics of the game works whether it is realistic or not. There is only 1 thing I despise in this game and that is ragging the puck even if the game allows it. But I also play 6s humans only so it is slightly harder.

3v3 is there and isn't going anywhere. You don't have to play it. It's just another option and if you think forcing people to try and play 6s with AIs is good idea then ouch because we all know AI is nothing more than weak link.