Lack of Direction - What is the EA NHL series?
This is not intended to be a rant or complaint thread, though there may be some examples which feel that way.
The direction and design simply isn't being made clear to the consumer base.
What is this game supposed to be?
According to the branding and marketing, it is an "NHL" game.
The connotation of "NHL" on the cover, is "a gaming experience which mirrors hockey in a form that is representative of the NHL".
What are some reasonable expectations given that context?
1. Presentation: NHL uniforms, NHL equipment, NHL players, NHL arenas, etc.
In game (primarily in CHEL), those aspects are often completely ignored. Purposefully.
- Uniforms are discarded in favor of everything from hoodies to pajamas (or worse)
- Equipment gets the same treatment ignoring helmets/visors and including gloves, skates, and sticks with often silly designs
- Rinks that are a step below amateur in outdoor venues with none of the quality or atmosphere of an NHL arena
This isn't counting the alternate game modes which take some of these aspects even further.
2. Game Modes: NHL hockey is at it's core 6v6 on the ice, 5 skaters and 1 goaltender, with specific rules designed for the sport.
EA has introduced ones and threes "arcade" modes as well as the 3v3 watered-down version of NHL OT with its own set of rules.
These are secondary (or even inconsequential) to what is expected from an NHL series, which is 6v6 on-ice play with NHL rules, but they are given attention and dilute the userbase for what "should" be the primary focus. A robust and accurate representation of 6v6 NHL gameplay.
3. Gameplay: NHL rules, physics, and player ability should be accurately represented.
The rules are more or less as expected in 6v6 (ignoring other game modes because the rules are often just made up or non-existent). There's room for improvement in the application of those rules (rather than just random chance when x and y occur). Perhaps we are not yet at a point technically where rules can be applied through an analysis of the physical interactions alone.
The physics themselves, as applied in game, create too many unrealistic situations. Solid objects passing through each other and pucks magnetized or otherwise influenced to remain in play are among the most egregious. Perhaps there are technical limitations involved here as well, but at the very least stick blades and pucks should be solid and have realistic interactions. "Pong" achieved that in 1972. There's no reason we can't have it in 2023.
With the stick and puck interactions resolved, other elements related to player abilities should be able to be resolved incrementally.
- Hitting interactions have been ramped up to market the game, but NHL players are more elusive and resilient than EA gives them credit for. They don't get rag dolled on legal body checks frequently and they don't stay down for more than a few seconds unless injured.
- Lacrosses and Hipchecks have been brought up continuously already and EA took some action, but it simply doesn't go far enough. You might see a hipcheck once a game (if that) and it's done with momentum against speed up the boards. Hitting is a skill and hip checks involve the most skill to pull off while requiring certain conditions to be present. The Lacrosse move has been successful maybe a handful of times and attempted maybe a few times a year. It also takes skill and a certain set of conditions, chief among those is an unaware goaltender and AI goaltenders should not be unaware unless those conditions are met. Having both of these as "one-touch" buttons completely ignores the skill aspect. They don't even require accurate setup or positioning.
- Generally speaking, every "flashy" but mostly realistic thing implemented in the game happens with exaggerated impact and/or frequency. While mundane things that very frequently happen in real life occur with less frequency. A player catching/intercepting a slapshot is rare (especially the catching part) and never as clean as the game represents. The puck deflecting over the glass on a shot happens a lot, but it slows down the game with more faceoffs, so it rarely happens.
I believe I've gone far enough with explaining the difference between this game and expectations, though we all know there is more to cover. This isn't about bugs or little items that get overlooked. My intention is to get everyone to step back and ask themselves "What are we doing? Why are we doing it? Who are we doing it for? How can we do it better?".
My personal view is that I want a game that at least attempts to look and feel like the NHL.
My feeling is that those are not priorities for EA.
I am seeing increasing numbers of players that share my perspective (though not necessarily to the same extent, I don't presume to speak for everyone) being driven away or becoming disenchanted with the franchise in the face of so many design decisions which appear to cater to an entirely different group of players.
Perhaps I'm no longer the target audience and the majority wants 3v3 with superpowers and character skins.
If that's the case I will simply accept it and move on. I can find something else to do with my time.
EA hasn't made it clear, at least to me, what exactly this game is supposed to be and who it is supposed to be for. Perhaps they don't even know themselves.
I'd appreciate it if they would present a clear direction, at least for next year if they can't now. I'm no longer going to dive into the current product blindly.
