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Re: Offline AI is awful, makes offline modes unplayable from a hockey perspective

The problem with @PernellKarl027 sliders is that they just nerf skating ability without making any actual changes to AI (because you CAN'T affect AI tendencies with EA NHL's slider offerings). So yeah, your players will skate slower and be much less agile but then you're missing out on the speed of the game. Also, playing "player lock" isn't always fun.

Having a guy bobble a puck because he tried to skate with it isn't "fun." 


All of this said, I haven't found the offline to be as bad as what was shown in the clips OP posted. I've been playing on All-Star with OVP settings and while they definitely let you gain their zone too often, I've found the games to be competitive still. Maybe I'm just not good at this game yet? I'm usually a pretty high-ranked versus player so idk. Time will tell. 

What I CAN say is that the clips shown by OP are egregious... that's for sure. I know that programming AI in such a dynamic setting as hockey is INCREDIBLY hard from a sheer algorithmic approach but you'd think EA Sports would have a better foundation down after all of this time. 

12 Replies

  • PernellKarl027's avatar
    PernellKarl027
    2 years ago

    @NeonSkyline21 

    Man, when you talk about my setup, at least have the decency to see what the setup is all about….

    The problem with @PernellKarl027 sliders is that they just nerf skating ability without making any actual changes to AI (because you CAN'T affect AI tendencies with EA NHL's slider offerings).

    - First of all, every players in the NHL have been edited from almost head to toe. This is why, I work on the X version and GetThePuckOut works on the PS5 side of things. The players react and play differently. Again, it’s not just a slider set. And YES you CAN affect AI tendencies a bunch. We’ve tested this through and through in numerous Settings…

    At the moment we are still editing ALL forwards just so that they can be a tad more creative and miss the net on occasions when they deflect the puck. Not a SURE thing like the game is setup to be. We are aiming at a 100% ORGANIC gameplay.

    That goes to show you that every little details is taken into account. If you only knew how tedious and how long it takes to edit just one player… Imagine 600 or so…

    So yeah, your players will skate slower and be much less agile but then you're missing out on the speed of the game.

    - Second of all, players have been clocked with having real NHL speed. We’ve done some test with McDavid and a few other players, and they achieve the same speed as in real life. Heck, our skating speed is at 100 and the Puck Carrying speed is at 90% ! That’s the first thing I wanted was to have the speed of the real game to a Tee.

    Also, playing "player lock" isn't always fun.

    - I suggest playing Player Lock for different reasons, but I sometimes play as the whole team and plenty of guys using the Setup also and the game plays the same… I never forced anyone to play PL…


    Having a guy bobble a puck because he tried to skate with it isn't "fun." 

    - I don’t know what you did or what Settings you used but this statement is so wrong 😑 You can look at all my videos and this is not true at all. Stop making false claims or assumptions… The only times guys will sometimes bobble the puck is when the puck is bouncing, like in real hockey you know…

    Peace ✌️

  • Sega82mega's avatar
    Sega82mega
    2 years ago

    @PernellKarl027

    Hehe you see how hard it is to make a hockey game that people handle correct to get the most out of it.

    Theres a big difference if you work with the game or against the game.

    Two diffrent storys.

    There is diffrent ways to 'paint hockey', not everyone is going to see the same picture as everyone else.

    But by the look of the reactions you get from people that test your crews sliders, it seems to be a good option for thoose that like it sim and realistic.

    Even though that could mean something diffrent, depending who you asking.

    Intentions, purpose, skill and your own definition of hockey and the ability to cooperate with the AI could make a huge diffrent on how the game is experience by 'you'. 

  • coolestgameon's avatar
    coolestgameon
    Seasoned Scout
    2 years ago

    @NeonSkyline21 

    WTH.... 

    There is a good reason why you should NOT play the slider without the associated roster! And if you want to play sim hockey, you should go out of the comfort zone and test the setup, even with player lock ect....

    I have played over 30 years always only 1 or 2 camera and always all players ... I could NEVER IN LIFE imagine playing on Action Cam with Player Lock...and now I never go back.


    This is by far the best, most realistic hockey you can play....

    Man, there are 800 - 1000 hours of work in it, it was edited so extremely much on the roster...and then there are still people who say oh that doesn't work at all....
    Again, who wants to play real sim hockey, must not only use PKs slider but ONLY WITH THE ROSTER! (And his recommendation)

    Try it, you won't regrad... Peace ✌️ 🙏

  • Beauts90's avatar
    Beauts90
    Seasoned Ace
    2 years ago

    The problem with @PernellKarl027 sliders is that they just nerf skating ability without making any actual changes to AI (because you CAN'T affect AI tendencies with EA NHL's slider offerings).

    - First of all, every players in the NHL have been edited from almost head to toe. This is why, I work on the X version and GetThePuckOut works on the PS5 side of things. The players react and play differently. Again, it’s not just a slider set. And YES you CAN affect AI tendencies a bunch. We’ve tested this through and through in numerous Settings…

    At the moment we are still editing ALL forwards just so that they can be a tad more creative and miss the net on occasions when they deflect the puck. Not a SURE thing like the game is setup to be. We are aiming at a 100% ORGANIC gameplay.

    That goes to show you that every little details is taken into account. If you only knew how tedious and how long it takes to edit just one player… Imagine 600 or so…



    Unfortunately, you can’t rely on player edits to make the game play better during franchise mode. Player ratings change during the mode and with new players being introduced every year with the draft, the custom roster makes it very difficult to use.

     

    With almost all changes to the game this year based on the online experience and online gameplay, I wonder how long it will be until we actually see any improvement to the AI.

     


  • @Sega82mega wrote:

    @PernellKarl027

    But by the look of the reactions you get from people that test your crews sliders, it seems to be a good option for thoose that like it sim and realistic.

    Even though that could mean something diffrent, depending who you asking.


    @Sega82mega 

    Exactly. The definition of SIMULATION is very different from one person to another. I saw posts by people claiming that 24 was playing SIM out of the box and EA shouldn’t change a thing 😳 If you play a game with 4 minutes periods and you get realistic stats, that should immediately raise a question or two, no ? 😉

    As far as people putting down the Setup without even playing with all the components, it’s kind of infuriating for someone like me that put more than 1000 hours to bring this to people. All of these are unpaid hours. Some people that work on and for the game are paid handsomely. I’m NOT.

    I could have done all of this and kept it to myself and called it a day… But I didn’t. The only reason I do this, is to bring people to enjoy the game in it’s purest form. Like I enjoy it and guys in "our lab" do and people using the Setup.

    For the LOVE of that beautiful Sport !

  • @Beauts90 

    I get what you are saying. In a perfect world, the AI would play perfectly out of the box. And in a perfect world you could edit your players in Franchise down the road when you are in your 8th season and so on….  

    But unfortunately this is not a perfect world, and I’m sure you kinda run into some of these problems too when you are FAR into Franchise mode. No ?

    Heck, Tougie stopped playing 24 Franchise after 2 days !!!  And he was invited by EA in Vancouver and stuff… That should tell you how much Franchise is doing great 😏

  • Beauts90's avatar
    Beauts90
    Seasoned Ace
    2 years ago

    @PernellKarl027 

    Tougies analysis of franchise mode have sounded like 5 star reviews compared to mine the last few years, so I’m actually glad to see he’s finally taking a stand against it. You and him have a lot in common as he puts 100’s of hours into roster editing and can’t justify putting in that time for NHL 24.

    I think introducing roster sharing helped satisfy him for a few years, but that along with custom leagues wasn’t something I was ever interested in.


    The amount of spreadsheets, data frames and other extra stuff I used to have to do to make the mode fun hasn’t been worth it the last few years, I keep turning it on throughout the year when I get the itch only to remember why I turn it off and end up back here to talk about improvements instead of playing the game.

     

  • @Beauts90 It’s really sad when it’s more worth someone’s time to come here and suggest features, fixes, give good examples and explanations of why X isn’t right or working etc etc, than it is to play the game.

    Just pathetic on EA’s part tbh.
    If they aren’t going to fix AI, or fix any of the numerous bugs that have plagued the offline modes for years and years, just unlock the editing players portion.

    Oh wait… they still won’t do that after years of asking.

    And still no info as to why it was locked in the first place from @EA_Aljo
  • @Beauts90 

    I get that Franchise mode has been left to dry for too long and I feel your pain 😔 So many things they could do to that mode to make it shine…

    As far as why I enjoy 23 so much now, is that the gameplay has always been my no.1 priority. I mostly play seasons and play now. Lots of Franchise guys are also using our setup as they like to play many games or many periods during a season. For guys that prefer simming through entire seasons, custom roster are not ideal, but like I said before, even if it’s not custom, the same problems arises… Unfortunately 😫

  • Sega82mega's avatar
    Sega82mega
    2 years ago
    @PernellKarl027

    I hope you first of all do it for yourself and second of all for thoose you wanna share your experience with.

    It's like seeing a good movie, It's fun to share.

    And considering all the hate/disbelief this game got, historically speaking, It's not strange you wanna show the people the little sunshine you manage to sift out through your hard work with the game.

    I understand its kinda personal to talk bad about your sliders, It's your 'baby girl', and you want everyone else to feel exactly the same rush you feel when you play.

    The pressure system is something I like, ofc not the place where the meter is and not necessary the whole introduction of this 'big new thing'.

    It's more how I would like it to be without any meter or anything called pressure jada jada... Its more when you have your opponent under pressure, IRL, and that start to affect your enemy, that's also when big mistakes happen.

    So I want this physical aspect to be a part of the gameplay, but it shouldn't have to be such a big buzz around it, if you know what I mean.
  • @Sega82mega 

    I understand its kinda personal to talk bad about your sliders, It's your 'baby girl', and you want everyone else to feel exactly the same rush you feel when you play.

    I really don’t mind people talking bad about the game or my sliders. What bothers me, it’s when people make false claims or assumptions without having the whole setup. That’s what bothers me…. And if they talk bad about my two baby girls 😉😂

    It's more how I would like it to be without any meter or anything called pressure jada jada... Its more when you have your opponent under pressure, IRL, and that start to affect your enemy, that's also when big mistakes happen.

    The whole thing about the pressure system, it’s that this is forced. It nerfs players big time and it doesn’t happen naturally. That’s my biggest gripe with this.

    Look, I’ll put my money where my mouth is and I’ll show you something…. Action speaks louder than words they say 😉


    Context: I started recording at the beginning of the 3rd period of my game this afternoon….

    In the first section, I control 72 XHEKAJ and in the second section 8 MATHESON… I wasn’t really looking for these, but they just happened ORGANICALLY in these first 4 minutes of that said 3rd period….

    Also you will notice that the AI in the D zone are not standing like useless cones, they put quite a bit of pressure on the puck carriers all throughout 😀

  • Sega82mega's avatar
    Sega82mega
    2 years ago

    @PernellKarl027

    "He probebly feel that one tomorrow".. If I got a dime..

    Put my money where my mouth is.. Cool expression, I steal that one from you.

    Talk is cheap, action is the way..

    Nice gameplay, but thats also what I mean, I want the effect of a heavy pressure to come natural.

    Like if there was no pressure bar and no disco board, just a stamina drop that would effect the defending team, purhaps the nerf is too significant at the moment, but I like the idea that a game can switch in both pace and also which team that got the momentum/downwind.

    Thats intresting with hockey, how 1 minute one team can look totally disorganized and under the ice but the next minute come back and dominate the same team.

    Many faces!

    Today is a good day - NHL start fo real!

    Someone should create a poll if Tampa Bay will win, if no one already made that! 🤭😏

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