KlariskraysNHL wrote:But there are presentation improvements.
Jarring and predictable camera cuts to the coach were the only presentation elements I saw changed in this full gameplay video that was put on YouTube today. Although, the score clock no longer eating up so much real estate and being moved to its proper home in the top left is a nice change.
KlariskraysNHL wrote:We saw it in the form of more detailed players and Franchise presentation menus getting improved.
The new player models seem to have negated what the previous models accomplished in terms of player differentiation. It seems they all have the same skating stride now and appear to all look the same.
The Franchise menu, while seemingly a nice upgrade, has nothing to do with the 'Presentation' that the community has been clamouring for.
KlariskraysNHL wrote: They didn't promise full presentation would return but simply understand they know it's wanted
True, nothing is ever promised when it comes to this game though. We're all left in the dark about potential changes during the year and during this release cycle, we literally got our first true gameplay video a few days prior to early access.
Do they know it's wanted? I know they say they know, but do they truly know? Because the public consensus is that people want an experience that they can immerse themselves in and EA seems to believe that means Fortnite dances, pond hockey and single player celebrations that don't accurately convey the celebratory nature of this team sport.
Based on what we know about '25, we're still going to be forced into pond-hockey environments for EASHL drop-ins while still being forced to see players wearing full body suits that may or may not be a werewolf. Still going to likely continue the trend of having to rename our clubs after a salty opponent takes a loss and weaponizes EA's algorithmic censorship system. Chances are, we're still going to be stuck in 2009 when 1 player out of 12 can pause the game for everyone. Still going to be stuck with senseless 30-second delays in-between periods.
EASHL has dedicated servers, so it begs the question as to why we still don't have a lobby system where we can coordinate pickup games without having to use outside websites.
Griefers will still dominate the landscape in HUT, OVP and EASHL. I was playing MLB The Show the other day and after taking the lead against my opponent, he decided to begin hitting all of my batters. After the 4th straight bean in the 5th inning, the game literally just ended. Went right to the end-of-game highlights with the commentators thanking everyone for watching. I got the Win and was able to move right into another game.
In EASHL HUT or OVP - players are able to use the mechanics to play keep away, rag the puck and otherwise be a disturbance with almost no repercussions.
Seeing these quality-of-life issues continue to be ignored year after year while the representatives continue to say "we're aware of that" is starting to reinforce the notion that maybe they don't actually know what's wanted and are instead having their efforts go into following trends rather than shoring up a hardcore base of users.
