Spent some time away..

Yes totally agree. @EA_Aljo 

@rsandersr47 

The flashing issue in drop-in games is one we're aware of. I've said that many times.

Threads get locked when either the rules are broken or there's another thread with the same discussion. In most cases, the threads will be merged. I always leave a message saying why the thread was locked.

If a post doesn't get an answer, it's probably because it's borderline trolling so I'm not going to promote that kind of behavior by responding. That or I just don't know the answer. As is the case for a lot of offline mode questions. 

Thanks for the feedback.

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

This game has so many bugs and errors that compiling a list would be daunting let alone fixing them. They've piled up for years and have gone years without even acknowledging them let alone fixing them.  

---

I dunno man, Aljo has done a great job acknowledging a lot of things in this game that they don't like and has also done a fantastic job ensuring when people post a real issue here, they get a response that either explains why something happened the way it did, or that the info will be passed onto the dev team.

Do you expect Aljo or anyone to respond to every single 'issue' someone has with "yes, this will be fixed"? What if there's nothing to be fixed and the 'issue' proposed is simply a skill issue? I'm not saying all issues are skill issues (before i'm told I'm saying that) - it's just that in the event there's a skill issue, there's nothing that can be said to appease most people here. In the event there is a real issue (and there have been a lot posted here) Aljo is always quick to point out that they agree and that the issue will be given to the devs. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote: We always see "we're not aware of this problem and no one has reported it" meanwhile it's in the forums from 3 years ago.. 

---

We literally never see that. If you can cite an example to shut me up, please do. There are genuine problems that arise that may be unique in EA's perspective. Often times, a bug being reported on the forums is actually just a rage post about how terrible the developers are and how they "don't know hockey".  Not much can be gleaned from posts like that. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

the flashed of color in ODR's that have been seen for years and have had NUMEROUS posts about for years.. yet they still suggest HDMI cable or redownloading the game.. it's just not even acceptable at this point.  

---

Sometimes, re-downloading the game does fix texture pop issues. Other times it doesn't. An HDMI cable can absolutely be the culprit in a problem presented as "flashing on my screen". The process of troubleshooting issues like will be repetitive and involve steps that appear cumbersome and tedious.  Have you noticed that the flashing color in ODR's doesn't happen to everybody? Do you understand just how difficult it is to fix an intermittent problem that doesn't plague every installation of the game? 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

"We hear you" alright, but you're not doing anything we're asking for... lets look at the last few titles..

---

Hold on a second here.. is it "we hear you" or is it:

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

They've piled up for years and have gone years without even acknowledging them let alone fixing them.  

---

??

Furthermore, there are release notes for every single patch/tuner released so far. They've addressed and acknowledged a lot of issues brought up on these forums and elsewhere, and have implemented some fixes that can be resolved by a simple patch. Some issues require fundamental changes to the engine which take more time and generally get tagged as a next-release fix. I know this is frustrating from the perspective of someone who doesn't have experience with game development, but it's quite a normal process especially considering the size of the dev team.

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 19

"RPM Tech combines with brand new physics collision technology that makes jaw-dropping hits more life-like, varied, and satisfying."

....right.... this sounds familiar..

"Hockey returns to its roots by taking the game back to ponds"

We've had flashing colors on this game for 5 years.. and EA isn't even aware.. 

---

RPM was new in '19. Compared to '18, the hits were different. The flashing colors were not there since the inception of outdoor rinks. The flashing arose during the transition to Frostbite. It's clearly a minor graphical glitch that needs addressing in the underlying engine. 

And what is this about EA not being aware? There was one topic posted this week about it and EA_Barry asked about HDMI cables. One topic. Just in the last week. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 20..

"new goaltender A.I. includes full offensive threat analysis, allowing goalies to read the positioning and threat level of every attack before actively controlling rebounds and redirecting pucks away from danger."

Goalies have 0 idea where threats are or coming from. They react only to where the puck is. This never worked. 

---

This is incorrect. Goalies will cheat when there are threats in front of the net. They will adjust to threats in front of the net as well. will they screw up sometimes? Yea. Videogames aren't perfect. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote: if you heard us where did we ask for any of this (except for the goalie AI which was NOT addressed)  

---

God forbid EA try to add some new modes to entice people to play the game. Why are you so upset about EA adding modes that you don't play? 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 21

"The biggest innovation in NHL 21 is a new Be A Pro experience, which allows you to go from NHL prospect to game-changing superstar."

How many posts asked for this? How many have since asked to play in CHL since this? How many problems has there been with this? Goalies experience still haven't been fixed.. this was an absolute disaster of an update.  

---

The decision to add game features does not rest solely on the number of forum posts about said feature. Often times there's a vision from the team in charge of that mode and they try to execute the best version of their ideas in the development time possible. It's not perfect and BAP has never really lived up to the expectations of the hardcore users who live vicariously through these types of modes. But for your average person just wanting a neat gaming experience geared toward developing a player and having an NHL career, it does a decent job. 

Those hardcore role-players who demand everything in the mode be perfect will never be satisfied. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

"Score with Style in HUT Rush

Creativity takes center stage in the new Hockey Ultimate Team mode, HUT Rush. "

Another swing... and another miss. Who asked for this one?

---

It's literally one of the most popular HUT modes lol

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 22

"Revamped World of Chel Hub

Quickly access game modes, player customization, clubs, rewards, challenges, and stats in a completely new and redesigned hub. We know you love World of Chel, so we made it even better."

This game has perhaps the slowest and worst menu system of ANY game I've ever played since PS2. I have NO idea what you guys are doing but just do the opposite of that.. there is no way you could make any of thise worse... I don't think.. maybe you'll prove me wrong.. 

---

I actually agree with you here. The vision for the HUB is great, albeit simply falling in line with current multiplayer trends. However, the underlying infrastructure is just not there to make it a good experience. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 23 (the new dev team things DO get worse..)

Pre game presentation.. an absolute fumble and removed.. 

---

This was a complete overreaction by EA to the social media hivemind. So what every single team didn't have lasers and fancy light shows and some of the new presentation was limited to only a certain number of teams. I never understood the complete outrage people expressed over such a meaningless design choice that was simply made to add some type of realistic presentation, which it did. But because it didn't please 100% of the community, the community raged and whined until the whole idea was scrapped.

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

Also a fumble as the two systems don't seem to play the same. Cool. They also only allowed teams to play against other systems and not with them unless you tricked the system.. which is why they were always ABLE to allow mixed teams but how would they get you to buy 24??? 

---

Crossplay was still being implemented at this stage across EA titles. Again, you likely don't understand the complexities in making something like that work. I'm not about to act like I do either, however, I DO have a firm grasp on game development and console architecture and getting these consoles to talk to each other can be a difficult feature to shoe-horn into a mature game engine.

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

Oh and women in HUT. Okay..

---

Not sure why this is a point of grievance for you, but I and many others welcomed the inclusivity of women. It gives them a platform for exposure and I could see the PWHL being included in future games as well, although I'm sure that relies on the NHL and PWHL coming to some kind of licensing agreement.

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 24

Full pressure..

It's basically been taken out just like the pre game presentation from last year. This was awful. Who asked for it? Nobody knows but EA.

---

Again, this is incorrect. 

It wasn't taken out. It was adjusted, based on feedback presented on these very forums, to not be such a determining factor in the outcome of games unless a team was particulalrly dominant. 

I've been adamantly opposed to the pressure system from day-1 but even I can acknowledge the changes have all been positive. It feels more rewarding to obtain full pressure, and it feels good on defence knowing I just need a good zone clear to alleviate it. I'm still on the fence about the mode and still leaning towards its' actual removal, but you have to acknowledge that this is one particular area that EA has addressed numerous times throughout this year already. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

"There's always a loud cry for gameplay to be different, refreshed and new. But the game has a good foundation,"

A good foundation??? What version are you playing? 

---

It does have a food foundation. Lots of us are enjoying it and having success in competitive modes. There's a reason many of us buy it every year. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

Inglehart said the game makers were careful not to make NHL 24 just a "sustained pressure game" by ensuring the system didn't create an insurmountable advantage.

"The boost is there and you can feel it, but it doesn't tip the scales. It's not something that can't be defended," he said.

No comment needed I don't think..

---

It can be defended though. It requires some additional skill and foresight while controlling the puck in the D-Zone. You can no longer rely on just blindly smashing the pass button in an effort to clear your own zone. You need to actually think and make good hockey plays. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

New hitting.. 

It's 0 or 100 I guess and because the other defensive tools have been so nerfed all defenders ask for 100 and all forwards ask for 0. I'd actually argue it MAY be an improvement from the hitting before as at least forwards can't turn their body to avoid contact.. idk.. it's not good.

---

It is a much better improvement over '23. Those who despise it just aren't taking the time to master it. Not EA's fault. Many of us have adjusted and are able to lay hits against opponents who present those opportunities. 

Defensive tools haven't been nerfed. They've added so many over the years (DSS, Stick lifts, tie-ups, shoves, improved back skating speed/agility) that there's more responsibilities on defence. Many of the button mashers hate the added responsibility because it generally requires acquiring some new skills.

Look at the constant cries for the return of NHL 94 controls. That tells me right there that there's still a LARGE portion of the community that can't even handle a Skill Stick that was introduced in 2006. So it's no wonder this same crowd is furiously opposed to any new responsibilities in terms of control. These players want the game to do the heavy lifting for them while all they need to do is hit shoot/pass/hit. 

There's nothing wrong with that, but when trying to compete in an environment like HUT or OVP where 90% of your opponents have mastered all the new controls and nuance - you're going to be constantly dominated and wondering "why is my opponent getting all the bounces and able to speed around my players?". Well, it's because they know how to properly use hustle to get the most out of it. They know how to hold the puck backhand/forehand to expose an overzealous D-man. They know to use DSS to force a puck carrier into a bad shooting/passiing position. 

All of those things are out-of-reach for players using '94 controls. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

The worst part of all of this is the lies though.. the presentation lie of last year and the discord lie of this year.. this new dev team is just not it. Super bad start.. already in need of a new team lead. These forums are also filled with issues. Also threads being locked for no reason questions not being answered. This has just become an absolute dumpster fire of a franchise. $70 for mobile game designers to spend 2 months implementing things no one asked for.. what is even happening? 

---

They didn't lie about presentation. They never said there were new pre-game presentations for every team. It was the rage-baiting tweets and posts over social media that generated faux "backlash" and "outrage". Over what? A friggin 5-second graphical sequence that literally had ZERO impact on the gameplay whatsoever. 

The discord would be a disaster. There are too many people who just want to hate hate hate. Why give the haters another platform to spew their nonsense? All these people do is commiserate in their echo-chambers about their latest sweaty HUT Loss. They try to get people to 'like' their posts and agree with them in some effort to prove to the world that they're right about their hatred for a bloody videogame.  Anyone who disagrees or provides a counterargument is cast away as a 'shill', thus reinforcing the echo chamber that tells them "You're not bad at the game, it's the game that's bad"

You have great passion for this game and I dig that. But you make very hyperbolic and vague claims, some of which aren't true at all. It would be awesome if you sunk this passion into capturing clips that demonstrate your specific issues. You're clearly VERY adept at this game, so having video clips from someone such as yourself would be AMAZING for the bugs you encounter. 

Rage-baiting posts do nothing but likely take the wind out of the sails of software devs who take a lot of pride in the experience they've developed over the years. They know it's not perfect, but when they see people so obviously misrepresent their intentions and subsequent support of those features, it likely has an impact on the passion they want to put forth.

I'd like to see more constructive posts from you. If you REALLY wanted this game to be better, you'd be explaining in great detail the issues you have without an expectation that it be fixed in the next patch. Like I said, videos and clips from a player such as yourself with the passion you bring to this game would go such a long way compared to a wall of text and an airing of grievances. 

---

@KidShowtime1867 wrote:

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

This game has so many bugs and errors that compiling a list would be daunting let alone fixing them. They've piled up for years and have gone years without even acknowledging them let alone fixing them.  

---

I dunno man, Aljo has done a great job acknowledging a lot of things in this game that they don't like and has also done a fantastic job ensuring when people post a real issue here, they get a response that either explains why something happened the way it did, or that the info will be passed onto the dev team.

Do you expect Aljo or anyone to respond to every single 'issue' someone has with "yes, this will be fixed"? What if there's nothing to be fixed and the 'issue' proposed is simply a skill issue? I'm not saying all issues are skill issues (before i'm told I'm saying that) - it's just that in the event there's a skill issue, there's nothing that can be said to appease most people here. In the event there is a real issue (and there have been a lot posted here) Aljo is always quick to point out that they agree and that the issue will be given to the devs. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote: We always see "we're not aware of this problem and no one has reported it" meanwhile it's in the forums from 3 years ago.. 

---

We literally never see that. If you can cite an example to shut me up, please do. There are genuine problems that arise that may be unique in EA's perspective. Often times, a bug being reported on the forums is actually just a rage post about how terrible the developers are and how they "don't know hockey".  Not much can be gleaned from posts like that. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

the flashed of color in ODR's that have been seen for years and have had NUMEROUS posts about for years.. yet they still suggest HDMI cable or redownloading the game.. it's just not even acceptable at this point.  

---

Sometimes, re-downloading the game does fix texture pop issues. Other times it doesn't. An HDMI cable can absolutely be the culprit in a problem presented as "flashing on my screen". The process of troubleshooting issues like will be repetitive and involve steps that appear cumbersome and tedious.  Have you noticed that the flashing color in ODR's doesn't happen to everybody? Do you understand just how difficult it is to fix an intermittent problem that doesn't plague every installation of the game? 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

"We hear you" alright, but you're not doing anything we're asking for... lets look at the last few titles..

---

Hold on a second here.. is it "we hear you" or is it:

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

They've piled up for years and have gone years without even acknowledging them let alone fixing them.  

---

??

Furthermore, there are release notes for every single patch/tuner released so far. They've addressed and acknowledged a lot of issues brought up on these forums and elsewhere, and have implemented some fixes that can be resolved by a simple patch. Some issues require fundamental changes to the engine which take more time and generally get tagged as a next-release fix. I know this is frustrating from the perspective of someone who doesn't have experience with game development, but it's quite a normal process especially considering the size of the dev team.

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 19

"RPM Tech combines with brand new physics collision technology that makes jaw-dropping hits more life-like, varied, and satisfying."

....right.... this sounds familiar..

"Hockey returns to its roots by taking the game back to ponds"

We've had flashing colors on this game for 5 years.. and EA isn't even aware.. 

---

RPM was new in '19. Compared to '18, the hits were different. The flashing colors were not there since the inception of outdoor rinks. The flashing arose during the transition to Frostbite. It's clearly a minor graphical glitch that needs addressing in the underlying engine. 

And what is this about EA not being aware? There was one topic posted this week about it and EA_Barry asked about HDMI cables. One topic. Just in the last week. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 20..

"new goaltender A.I. includes full offensive threat analysis, allowing goalies to read the positioning and threat level of every attack before actively controlling rebounds and redirecting pucks away from danger."

Goalies have 0 idea where threats are or coming from. They react only to where the puck is. This never worked. 

---

This is incorrect. Goalies will cheat when there are threats in front of the net. They will adjust to threats in front of the net as well. will they screw up sometimes? Yea. Videogames aren't perfect. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote: if you heard us where did we ask for any of this (except for the goalie AI which was NOT addressed)  

---

God forbid EA try to add some new modes to entice people to play the game. Why are you so upset about EA adding modes that you don't play? 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 21

"The biggest innovation in NHL 21 is a new Be A Pro experience, which allows you to go from NHL prospect to game-changing superstar."

How many posts asked for this? How many have since asked to play in CHL since this? How many problems has there been with this? Goalies experience still haven't been fixed.. this was an absolute disaster of an update.  

---

The decision to add game features does not rest solely on the number of forum posts about said feature. Often times there's a vision from the team in charge of that mode and they try to execute the best version of their ideas in the development time possible. It's not perfect and BAP has never really lived up to the expectations of the hardcore users who live vicariously through these types of modes. But for your average person just wanting a neat gaming experience geared toward developing a player and having an NHL career, it does a decent job. 

Those hardcore role-players who demand everything in the mode be perfect will never be satisfied. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

"Score with Style in HUT Rush

Creativity takes center stage in the new Hockey Ultimate Team mode, HUT Rush. "

Another swing... and another miss. Who asked for this one?

---

It's literally one of the most popular HUT modes lol

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 22

"Revamped World of Chel Hub

Quickly access game modes, player customization, clubs, rewards, challenges, and stats in a completely new and redesigned hub. We know you love World of Chel, so we made it even better."

This game has perhaps the slowest and worst menu system of ANY game I've ever played since PS2. I have NO idea what you guys are doing but just do the opposite of that.. there is no way you could make any of thise worse... I don't think.. maybe you'll prove me wrong.. 

---

I actually agree with you here. The vision for the HUB is great, albeit simply falling in line with current multiplayer trends. However, the underlying infrastructure is just not there to make it a good experience. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 23 (the new dev team things DO get worse..)

Pre game presentation.. an absolute fumble and removed.. 

---

This was a complete overreaction by EA to the social media hivemind. So what every single team didn't have lasers and fancy light shows and some of the new presentation was limited to only a certain number of teams. I never understood the complete outrage people expressed over such a meaningless design choice that was simply made to add some type of realistic presentation, which it did. But because it didn't please 100% of the community, the community raged and whined until the whole idea was scrapped.

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

Also a fumble as the two systems don't seem to play the same. Cool. They also only allowed teams to play against other systems and not with them unless you tricked the system.. which is why they were always ABLE to allow mixed teams but how would they get you to buy 24??? 

---

Crossplay was still being implemented at this stage across EA titles. Again, you likely don't understand the complexities in making something like that work. I'm not about to act like I do either, however, I DO have a firm grasp on game development and console architecture and getting these consoles to talk to each other can be a difficult feature to shoe-horn into a mature game engine.

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

Oh and women in HUT. Okay..

---

Not sure why this is a point of grievance for you, but I and many others welcomed the inclusivity of women. It gives them a platform for exposure and I could see the PWHL being included in future games as well, although I'm sure that relies on the NHL and PWHL coming to some kind of licensing agreement.

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

NHL 24

Full pressure..

It's basically been taken out just like the pre game presentation from last year. This was awful. Who asked for it? Nobody knows but EA.

---

Again, this is incorrect. 

It wasn't taken out. It was adjusted, based on feedback presented on these very forums, to not be such a determining factor in the outcome of games unless a team was particulalrly dominant. 

I've been adamantly opposed to the pressure system from day-1 but even I can acknowledge the changes have all been positive. It feels more rewarding to obtain full pressure, and it feels good on defence knowing I just need a good zone clear to alleviate it. I'm still on the fence about the mode and still leaning towards its' actual removal, but you have to acknowledge that this is one particular area that EA has addressed numerous times throughout this year already. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

"There's always a loud cry for gameplay to be different, refreshed and new. But the game has a good foundation,"

A good foundation??? What version are you playing? 

---

It does have a food foundation. Lots of us are enjoying it and having success in competitive modes. There's a reason many of us buy it every year. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

Inglehart said the game makers were careful not to make NHL 24 just a "sustained pressure game" by ensuring the system didn't create an insurmountable advantage.

"The boost is there and you can feel it, but it doesn't tip the scales. It's not something that can't be defended," he said.

No comment needed I don't think..

---

It can be defended though. It requires some additional skill and foresight while controlling the puck in the D-Zone. You can no longer rely on just blindly smashing the pass button in an effort to clear your own zone. You need to actually think and make good hockey plays. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

New hitting.. 

It's 0 or 100 I guess and because the other defensive tools have been so nerfed all defenders ask for 100 and all forwards ask for 0. I'd actually argue it MAY be an improvement from the hitting before as at least forwards can't turn their body to avoid contact.. idk.. it's not good.

---

It is a much better improvement over '23. Those who despise it just aren't taking the time to master it. Not EA's fault. Many of us have adjusted and are able to lay hits against opponents who present those opportunities. 

Defensive tools haven't been nerfed. They've added so many over the years (DSS, Stick lifts, tie-ups, shoves, improved back skating speed/agility) that there's more responsibilities on defence. Many of the button mashers hate the added responsibility because it generally requires acquiring some new skills.

Look at the constant cries for the return of NHL 94 controls. That tells me right there that there's still a LARGE portion of the community that can't even handle a Skill Stick that was introduced in 2006. So it's no wonder this same crowd is furiously opposed to any new responsibilities in terms of control. These players want the game to do the heavy lifting for them while all they need to do is hit shoot/pass/hit. 

There's nothing wrong with that, but when trying to compete in an environment like HUT or OVP where 90% of your opponents have mastered all the new controls and nuance - you're going to be constantly dominated and wondering "why is my opponent getting all the bounces and able to speed around my players?". Well, it's because they know how to properly use hustle to get the most out of it. They know how to hold the puck backhand/forehand to expose an overzealous D-man. They know to use DSS to force a puck carrier into a bad shooting/passiing position. 

All of those things are out-of-reach for players using '94 controls. 

---

@rsandersr47 wrote:

The worst part of all of this is the lies though.. the presentation lie of last year and the discord lie of this year.. this new dev team is just not it. Super bad start.. already in need of a new team lead. These forums are also filled with issues. Also threads being locked for no reason questions not being answered. This has just become an absolute dumpster fire of a franchise. $70 for mobile game designers to spend 2 months implementing things no one asked for.. what is even happening? 

---

They didn't lie about presentation. They never said there were new pre-game presentations for every team. It was the rage-baiting tweets and posts over social media that generated faux "backlash" and "outrage". Over what? A friggin 5-second graphical sequence that literally had ZERO impact on the gameplay whatsoever. 

The discord would be a disaster. There are too many people who just want to hate hate hate. Why give the haters another platform to spew their nonsense? All these people do is commiserate in their echo-chambers about their latest sweaty HUT Loss. They try to get people to 'like' their posts and agree with them in some effort to prove to the world that they're right about their hatred for a bloody videogame.  Anyone who disagrees or provides a counterargument is cast away as a 'shill', thus reinforcing the echo chamber that tells them "You're not bad at the game, it's the game that's bad"

You have great passion for this game and I dig that. But you make very hyperbolic and vague claims, some of which aren't true at all. It would be awesome if you sunk this passion into capturing clips that demonstrate your specific issues. You're clearly VERY adept at this game, so having video clips from someone such as yourself would be AMAZING for the bugs you encounter. 

Rage-baiting posts do nothing but likely take the wind out of the sails of software devs who take a lot of pride in the experience they've developed over the years. They know it's not perfect, but when they see people so obviously misrepresent their intentions and subsequent support of those features, it likely has an impact on the passion they want to put forth.

I'd like to see more constructive posts from you. If you REALLY wanted this game to be better, you'd be explaining in great detail the issues you have without an expectation that it be fixed in the next patch. Like I said, videos and clips from a player such as yourself with the passion you bring to this game would go such a long way compared to a wall of text and an airing of grievances. 

An example of the last time the above happened? When I made a post about the flashing on the ice a couple months ago.. 

"Hold on a second here.. is it "we hear you" or is it:"

This is my question too. When they say they hear us they don't do anything we've asked for. They do weird things like fly a whole bunch of people out to film them doing celebrations instead of working on something mist of the community has begged for.. online franchise? 

We still do NOT have RPM. We can call the canned animations RPM it doesn't make it any more of a physics system. It's probably just some trademarked name for whatever their technology is. 

Lmao bro... goalies do not have any idea.. saying it's "incorrect" is WILDLY disingenuous. Go to practice 1v1 with goalie. Drop the puck in front of the goalie. Skate across the goal, pick it up and shoot far side. Ask yourself why that goalie didn't see that coming.. You're literally the ONLY threat on the ice and there wasnt any other option to create a scoring chance upon picking it up. He has 0 awareness. How many rebounds can they not track? Have you seen how they defend a lacrosse goal? I don't know how to help you see this any better. The goalie sees where the puck is and moves as it moves. This is why specific glitch goals work so easily. They have strict tracking rules and don't deviate from the algorythm. This is why I've made posts for 3 years that goalies need deviation. Either random diviation amounts or give the players some tendency values to work with. Otherwise you will see the same goals EVERY game. 

Overreaction or not the game was sold with this being a big feature in the game. I would not add pre game stuff for a few teams and make it seem like a big feature on a $70 game.. it's almost like they deliberately tried to be vague? To sell copies? Nah, not EA!

Crossplay.. LOTS of development teams have been able to do this. I don't understand it but I understand that a small company has been able to do it YEARS ago and have little to no trouble. 

I have no issue with women in the game.. just not exactly a big change that should have taken the team long to implement or hang they hat on. It's a relatively small change.

"Defensive tools haven't been nerfed"

Hahahhahahahahhahahahhahahahahahahha wait.. hahahahahhahahahahahahhahahahhahaha

Buddy.. no.. lmao! Then you cite all the things they've added.. which of those have been added since NHL 18??? I'll wait..

We have decreased player speed when poking, We have increased trips, we have added a stick tracking algorithm that goes where the puck was, we have now made hits needing to be aimed.

On offense we have given a TON of dekes since NHL 18. We have added touch passes, 1 button dekes, reverse hits, icon passing,  I'm sure I could go on.. 

To even believe for a second that defense has gotten even close to the same treatment as offense in the last 5 years is just a head in the sand type of comment. Unreal.. 

Simply don't say there will be a discord if you're not going to.. why say it? Why not say he's now not doing it? Has he said ANYTHING to the community since the game released? Maybe he did and I've missed it. I'm genuinely curious. There is absolutely 0 communication. Like I said Ubisoft is doing SO much to engage with the community.. it seems like they actually care about their product and want it to be enjoyed. Even if EA only had 1 way communication it would be an improvement. This game is NOT in a good place. No communication while the game is THIS bad tells me one thing.. maybe you're okay with that. I know you enjoy the game.

What sails?? This game is going backwards, I'd argue taking the sails down is the best thing we can do. I wish we can just restart at NHL 18. I beleive 18 is the last year the defense got a tool with the DSS. Every game since then has given more of an advantage to the offense. The people who still enjoy playing this game are the people who take advantage of the game. For a while I was the same. Just lost interest, it's sweaty and the better you get the less you play "real" Hockey. If I want to win at a high level I gotta use the same few ways to score over and over while trying to prevent those few ways over and over.

I'm curious if you find this game to be an improvement over the last game. Also, if you can make sense of the $70 price tag. How much of that $70 do you believe is going toward improving the game? How much has this game made in the last 5 years and how much have they actually improved the game in that time? I mean I listed almost all the changes they have implemented from 19 on.. this game might not make a ton from year to year but after 5-10 years? 

Constructive posts? Let's see what are the most asked for features ALL over the board? Let's start there..

Online franchise. Madden has been doing this for over a decade, I think? Madden is made by EA. There is no excuse for why it has taken so long for NHL to add this. Inexcusable. The code is already available, it may need some work but how many years have we been waiting?

I mean I know you're gonna defend EA in every post and every chance you get. You will also use "incorrect" or speak in absolutes when giving your oppinion to seem correct. It's fine. I'm just not giving them the pass anymore. I'm done giving them money. I'm done giving them my time. I can't even get my friends to buy this when it goes on sale. They've all lost interest suggesting it's gotten too easy to score, too long to load in, too many bugs. I can't defend it. They're right. The game is just not fun, we spend more time irritated by poor mechanics and menus than we do having fun and getting excited. There is no way this game has the same player base it had 5 years ago. I wish I could see the title sales. Both to see how much money they have made off of this game with the small development and to see just how much smaller the player base has gotten. I honestly beleive it's gonna shrink a lot more next year, this game was EXTRA bad. 

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@rsandersr47 wrote:

I mean I know you're gonna defend EA in every post and every chance you get. 

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I mean, I know you're just gonna say I defend EA in every post every chance you get - so it goes both way my dude 🙂

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@rsandersr47 wrote: They've all lost interest suggesting it's gotten too easy to score

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@rsandersr47 wrote:  There is absolutely 0 communication.

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Aljo has constantly been in communication. EA Barry posts here often as well. Lots of Heroes and Champions also help out around here. Maybe pay closer attention to other threads. 

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@BigCastle00 wrote:

I’ve reached my breaking point with this absolute * pile of a video game. 35 - 5 outshooting opponent and lose 2-1. Players not responding to passes, shots, switching guys. Players ramming into one another constantly. People blocking passes by laying down, on one knee like they’re blocking a shot. This game has gone from ok to complete *. The people who made this game should no longer have jobs. It’s a reflection of how our society as gone to waste as a whole.

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Post some video clips to show us "Players not responding to passes, shots, switching guys"

Here's a super simple thread on how to capture video!

@KidShowtime1867I am not going to touch on all of the issues but there are a ton of franchise mode glitches that are still in the game spanning back years (AI teams unable to handle the salary cap and their own RFA's/also contracts per team which they said was fixed in this years dive into franchise mode but is clearly not (21 out of 50 is wrong), AI teams not being able to call up players after injuries and having forwards play dman (I flagged this issue), injured players in the Stanley Cup celebration even though they left the game.

But when it comes to presentation, yes there is a fault and a reason to put it on them, if you looked at the marketing they said "new and improved for NHL 23 but in turn, it was a removal of most of the in-game presentation", when they added 6 teams to light shows on launch, the rest just had the national anthem (yes, they did add a cookie cutter one after the backlash). Even a year later they added another 5 or 6.. so how long will it take for the whole NHL to have their own unique one?

For proof of this, we just need to look back at their own games to see that it's not improved. Here is my example:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohGZ1PKuB7c&t=478s

If you dive into this it has a full opening, including the dimming of the lights, the fans booing the opposing team, the home team walking from the hallway and bench, the light in the arena, the announcer introducing the team, an announcer intro into the game, goalie introductions. It also has full replays and between faceoff time (which they marginally added replays back in but still lacking in the in-between faceoff time)

This can be looked at as the same for each team but overall presentation there is more offered (in value and time showing). 

I'm cool if they wanted to make an arcade-style game, that is fast-paced and puts you in the action but not marketing it as a realistic game experience when it is not (if you go to a game the intro lasts more than 5-7 seconds). 

So if you look at all of this as a whole and minus the engine update, the new format can't be defined as upgraded when it's in reality a downgrade to what they had in the game already and done better.

Seeing this gameplay is from NHL 14 which was released on September 10, 2013, that is over 10 years ago.

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@MasterB89 wrote:

@KidShowtime1867I am not going to touch on all of the issues but there are a ton of franchise mode glitches that are still in the game spanning back years (AI teams unable to handle the salary cap and their own RFA's/also contracts per team which they said was fixed in this years dive into franchise mode but is clearly not (21 out of 50 is wrong), AI teams not being able to call up players after injuries and having forwards play dman (I flagged this issue), injured players in the Stanley Cup celebration even though they left the game.

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I'm not an offline guy, but I get that there are elements of those modes that have issues dating back years. It's a bummer for offline guys for sure. 

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@MasterB89 wrote:

But when it comes to presentation, yes there is a fault and a reason to put it on them, if you looked at the marketing they said "new and improved for NHL 23 but in turn, it was a removal of most of the in-game presentation", when they added 6 teams to light shows on launch, the rest just had the national anthem (yes, they did add a cookie cutter one after the backlash). Even a year later they added another 5 or 6.. so how long will it take for the whole NHL to have their own unique one?

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NHl 22 intro was generic and exactly the same for all teams:

Notes: Generic music. Same exact skating pattern for every team. Same exact camera cuts. This intro was used in every single game for NHL 22.

For NHL 23, they did improve the pre-game presentations. Firstly, they added on-ice projections for a certain number of teams, and then they added national anthems. Additionally, they eventually adjusted the frequency of those intros so that you wouldn't get the same intro (projection/anthem/generic) all the time. They wanted every game to feel fresh, so they made on-ice projections happen 40% of the time for teams who had it, then they had an anthem intro for 40% of the time while the remaining 20% of game intros were done using the generic intro that was used in NHL 22.

Now of course, there was all this "backlash" over the semantics. EA never once said "all new on-ice projections for all teams". It was falsely claimed here, on Reddit and other social media cesspools that EA "promised new ice-projections for every team and lied about it" and then there were complaints that people weren't seeing the new intros as often as they liked.

So - it wasn't that EA lied - it was that the frequency in which EA decided to rotate the anthem/generic intros for teams without on-ice projections were just not up to par with what the community wanted. Furthermore, teams that people "felt" should have on-ice projections that didn't were, for some reason, a basis to claim EA lied about everything. 

It may have been a poor marketing decision to promote presentation as "all-new" when fans would still see the generic intro from NHL 22 around 20-40% of the time (depending on the team) - but the reality is that the anthem intro WAS all-new for all teams, and the on-ice projections WAS all-new for a select few teams. So there WAS all-new presentation elements added to the game but the contrarians who flood social media with their disdain for anything EA ever does convinced an entire community that EA lied about it - and that's just not true. 

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@MasterB89 wrote:For proof of this, we just need to look back at their own games to see that it's not improved. Here is my example:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohGZ1PKuB7c&t=478s

If you dive into this it has a full opening, including the dimming of the lights, the fans booing the opposing team, the home team walking from the hallway and bench, the light in the arena, the announcer introducing the team, an announcer intro into the game, goalie introductions. It also has full replays and between faceoff time (which they marginally added replays back in but still lacking in the in-between faceoff time)

This can be looked at as the same for each team but overall presentation there is more offered (in value and time showing). 

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It's not that "this can be looked at as the same for each team" - it is literally the exact same introduction for every single team, regardless of context. 

You're right - there are parts of this generic introduction that lend itself to a much better broadcast experience and I absolutely prefer the presentation from NHL 14 over what we have today.

That being said - there have been a LOT of changes since NHL 14 including two separate console generations. I understand everyone expects things to just always improve all the time no matter what, but when you're having to move a game engine to different architecture, you need to focus your efforts in more efficient ways. Some of that may have included scrapping some presentation elements for now with an eye to the future to re-introduce them, which they did - but a hyper-critical community already primed with hatred from being told they were lied to by people who have some weird vendetta against the NHL development team will continue to tow the line "EA is always taking things out and adding them back in as 'new' "

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@MasterB89 wrote:

I'm cool if they wanted to make an arcade-style game, that is fast-paced and puts you in the action but not marketing it as a realistic game experience when it is not (if you go to a game the intro lasts more than 5-7 seconds). 

So if you look at all of this as a whole and minus the engine update, the new format can't be defined as upgraded when it's in reality a downgrade to what they had in the game already and done better.

Seeing this gameplay is from NHL 14 which was released on September 10, 2013, that is over 10 years ago.

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The game intros were designed with online play in mind. I understand for offline guys that it's annoying when certain things like presentation are adjusted to improve online game flow and they affect the offline side of things too, but that's just the nature of the beast. The enjoyment of these intros is subjective. Some people just want to get into a game, some people want to bathe in immersion. I get it. But claiming EA lied because your specific enjoyment (and people who agree with you on social media) is affected is not really accurate.

@KidShowtime1867First off, I do appreciate your perspective on each topic, so thank you for that. I will agree to disagree, seeing that if you want to delve deep into it, EA on a whole was built by the offline player base (buying yearly games when there was no online feature). So I think the fact that there is little effort to fix the glitches, let alone the complete disregard to "be a pro" since its inception, there is reason for the offline player base to be upset/ on top of also losing presentation to the other part of the player base - this isn't complaining just to complain. It's real merit as we are also paying customers, so why are we just supposed to just accept it and praise them for not doing any real additions even fixing what has been broken, or even bringing back glitches that were fixed in prior games (created team flag in win celebration was fixed in NHL 21 but broken again in NHL 22 and up)  Ultimately, EA is the cause and effect of why the offline player base has dropped and even some offline mode content creators either stopped completely or are creating content for older games (NHL 09 and up)

When it comes to the intro, you can easily use an older game as a reference seeing it is part of their library, just cause it's older and a few console generations back doesn't mean it's now null and void.. Isn't the basis to build on what you had and to strive to be better?

When it comes to the presentation, this was the marketing for NHL 23, and to be clear National anthems are not "New" seeing they were in prior EA NHL titles as well and were longer as well. I am not able to add the picture I have from marketing on the quick reply but let me state what it says " See all new ice projections for game intros, authentic projections from NHL teams in offline mode, 11 customizable intros for EASHL and offline modes, and 11 new national anthems in international modes"

If you look at this specifically, they did not state it was only a percentage of when it will show and also for the 5-6 teams. Now it is very subjective but using the words all new is the definition of adding something different and new to the game which is not the case.

When it comes to the intros, as I said, I am fine if they want to focus solely on online play but market it that way, so you deter the offline player base from buying the game. Also, look into every other sporting/ sports entertainment franchise, do we see any of them diminishing the presentation for the online experience? Even FC Soccer which did remove a bit of the presentation still has 100% more than NHL, not to mention, madden, UFC, and PGA tour (just to name the EA titles). So I am not sure why NHL would be different on this matter or the nature of the beast as you put it. 

I have been an NHL EA fan since NHL 94 on Super NES and still own most of those games in my NHL physical game collection. I feel like there is fun to be had with this game if you look at it as an arcade experience but its easily a game or 2 a month now seeing other sports are willing to offer a full-priced AAA experience.

**updated. I was able to add the photo of the presentation promotion that was used on their official website**

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@MasterB89 wrote:

 I will agree to disagree, seeing that if you want to delve deep into it, EA on a whole was built by the offline player base (buying yearly games when there was no online feature). So I think the fact that there is little effort to fix the glitches, let alone the complete disregard to "be a pro" since its inception, there is reason for the offline player base to be upset/ on top of also losing presentation to the other part of the player base - this isn't complaining just to complain. It's real merit as we are also paying customers, so why are we just supposed to just accept it and praise them for not doing any real additions even fixing what has been broken, or even bringing back glitches that were fixed in prior games (created team flag in win celebration was fixed in NHL 21 but broken again in NHL 22 and up)  Ultimately, EA is the cause and effect of why the offline player base has dropped and even some offline mode content creators either stopped completely or are creating content for older games (NHL 09 and up)

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I agree. I've played this game since NHLPA Hockey on the Sega. I used to be a HUGE offline guy. To the point where I'd be making daily visits to NHLDepot.net and TheBreakAway.net to download the latest community made mods like new jerseys, ice graphics, scoreboards from TSN, CBC, NBC, etc. My most obsessive offline habits were meticulously creating ditties for each team. Custom music, custom goal songs, adding my own crowd noise, editing the songs so they played the beefy parts (chorus, catchy intro) between whistles. Finding the perfect song for a fight or penalty. Curating playlists from around the league. IMO, the move from PC to console likely killed off a lot of the offline community. Being able to mod the game was huge.

Nowadays, with no PC version and the sealed environment of a console, you're forced to digest whatever EA puts out with no ability to improve or mod anything and honestly that killed my offline era. Playing against the A.I. also became cumbersome. Not necessarily because of bad gameplay or programming, although that's part of it - but because once online gaming made its way into my life - playing against a CPU opponent was just not satisfying. And I don't think I'm alone in that feeling by a long shot - and I think this is why EA puts so much focus on online modes because they're the most accessed and used mode in the game by far. It sucks for those who still enjoy the offline immersion. I agree with that. I wish both offline and online players could see substantive changes every year but considering the timeframe between releases and the relatively small development team, it's just not realistic. 

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@MasterB89 wrote: When it comes to the intro, you can easily use an older game as a reference seeing it is part of their library, just cause it's older and a few console generations back doesn't mean it's now null and void.. Isn't the basis to build on what you had and to strive to be better?

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I agree and I often wonder why animations used in pre-game intros from years back aren't recycled & re-polished for the newer games, saving much time and effort. I'm sure there are technical reasons; some of those elements may just be obsolete/incompatible in terms of their injection into the newer game engine. But for your average consumer who doesn't pay too much attention to that stuff, it's no surprise that they would look back at the intro/presentation from NHL 14 or earlier when they had the NBC package and think; 'why has presentation gotten worse rather than better?". I can't disagree with that and although I'm familiar with the underlying technical reasons why that might be, it's not reasonable to expect everyone else to get that.

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@MasterB89 wrote:

When it comes to the presentation, this was the marketing for NHL 23, and to be clear National anthems are not "New" seeing they were in prior EA NHL titles as well and were longer as well. 

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You're right in that previous years did have national anthems. Heck, even NHL 98 had them:

However, when EA says something is 'New' - it doesn't necessarily mean that it's new in terms of never having ever been included in the series before. I know EA gets a lot of flack for 'adding things that have been in the game before' but this statement fails to recognize the deep changes that get made year-over-year. Sometimes things like pre-game national anthems took a back seat to more pressing things like introducing the skill stick, injecting new lighting techniques into the engine, fixing the underlying engine to run on newer consoles, etc etc. 

So when it comes to the "new" National Anthem pre-game animation, it is new in the sense that the anthems are something that had not been seen in this generation of the game. 

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@MasterB89 wrote: " See all new ice projections for game intros, authentic projections from NHL teams in offline mode, 11 customizable intros for EASHL and offline modes, and 11 new national anthems in international modes"

If you look at this specifically, they did not state it was only a percentage of when it will show and also for the 5-6 teams. Now it is very subjective but using the words all new is the definition of adding something different and new to the game which is not the case.

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But they also didn't state this was for all teams. It goes both ways. In addition to what I said above about the anthems, you have to remember that adding the anthems into the game would require all new animations. I understand a national anthem at a hockey game hasn't changed since NHL 98 - players still stand at the blue line, etc. But those animations all have to be recreated. Those are all new animations (in spite of not being a new 'feature') so it is technically new. 

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@MasterB89 wrote: When it comes to the intros, as I said, I am fine if they want to focus solely on online play but market it that way, so you deter the offline player base from buying the game.

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You make it seem like they completely ignore the offline modes every year. I don't think that's fair. Sure, they could get more love and attention, but there ARE offline additions made every year based on feedback from the offline community. It sucks that EA adopted the current Be a Pro role-playing type of mode because without consistent additions, it gets stale quickly. I think they were under pressure to produce a mode like that based on what FIFA and Madden were doing. I feel they should break away from the role-playing elements like conversations with the coach, deciding to go out with players and such and bring the focus back to players acquiring attributes for executing certain tasks, improving in-game presentation, allowing some online integration, etc. 

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@MasterB89 wrote: Also, look into every other sporting/ sports entertainment franchise, do we see any of them diminishing the presentation for the online experience?

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Yes. UFC 5 removed fighter introductions from online play in favor of character selection screen emotes. Full fighter introductions are only available in offline modes, and even then it's been watered down considerably. You used to have the entire Bruce Buffer flow including every detail, right down to introducing the referee who will be officiating the fight. Now, Bruce doesn't even announce the fighter's height/weight, record, etc. For offline immersion, it sucks. But online, it speeds everything up.