Initial Thoughts on NHL 25

Alright as promised my intial thoughts. Its early so I have not played around with creation or Franchise yet, will post thoughts on that at a later date. 

I like the look of the new main menu, as well as in the in-game menu. They look clean. I can say the same for the in-game scoreclock, looks good, we had talked about team logos looking good on there, but this is a big improvement from previous years. I like that after a goal the goal-scorers headshot appears on the score clock, nice addition. The soundtrack, once again, leaves a lot to be desired, but that is easy enough to turn off. A bug that was super annoying from 24 has carried over into 25, and that is that you save settings, but before every single game you have to move off of the saved setting, then back onto it in order for it to use your settings that you saved. Super annoying, especially if you forget to change it. EA_Aljo can we get this fixed please?

Alright in-game focus now. Already discovered 2 easy goals, but will let you all find those, and going to find those in every edition of the game. AI seems a bit better, but are still fairly slow to adjust and figure out proper positioning. Goalies are also a bit better, but still could use a bit of work to make them better, I might just up their game in the settings though. Hitting is definitely way better than last year, so huge W there, thanks for that. I also feel that the graphics improved. Still no extended pre-game intro, which we knew about, but its still a disappointment worth mentioning, as it impacts the overall immersive experience, so Big L there. After goal celebrations are still the same terrible ones from last year. Love the goal replays though, a lot more angles it covers and looks really good, big W there. Announcers, oh announcers how we love to hate upon you. Okay so Pounder still sucks and should be removed as an announcer, no question, she is extremely annoying. The other announcers use the same lines as the past several years, which is lazy, on a positive note though, the announcers do sound a lot more excited and engaged in the game, with the exception of Pounder of course, nuff said on that front. I actual like the One-Timer set up system, won't take me long to master that and utilize the heck out of that. The pressure meter bothers some people I know, but I have never really cared about it, I zone it out. For those who hate it though, would have been nice to see some changes in that regard. I also notice dthe skating did seem a bit smoother, still room for improvement, but will look for more on that front with updates. 

I should add that you can turn off the pressure meter in settings, FYI

So as promised I am now going to speak on Creation/Roster Editing. Franchise Mode will come after I have actually gotten around to starting a Franchise. I did create a team. Little disappointed that nothing changed, with 1 exception. The new item they added was the ability to set the taxes and tax status on the team you create, which is nice to have now that this is becoming a bigger issue within the NHL. Other than that though, same logos, same names, nothing really to get excited about. I would have liked if this had been changed up a bit, with new names and logos. I was also disappointed that they did not add in any new leagues at all, which still leaves a wide swath of the Hockey world unaccounted for, including many great prospects who are in college, this is ridiculous, and before I get the licensing comment again, these licenses could easily have been acquired by EA had they put any effort into that at all, so once again, the large fan base who wants these leagues are ignored. Guess I will await Vasy's roster updates for the prospects. On the roster front, this also did not change at all. You still cannot really do much for players. players under 18 still cannot be moved where you want them, which becomes a huge deal after the draft happens, as you can't place the drafted players onto proper teams, as well many will be missing due to EA not including many leagues that contain top prospects. You also can still not edit player's ages, which is annoying when this would be a workaround for not being able to move prospects onto their proper teams, without having to create the player yourself, which then runs into the problem of the player you created still being  in the game as their own age at game release date. Moving these players around is a must, big let down on that front. 

As for player editing, I like the extra options for contracts, Big W on that one, though it would be nice to be able to have different contract amounts for different years, as that is how these contracts actually work. Would also be nice to have LTIR options, so you can edit players into LTIR if they end up there, rather than having to hide them in international teams to avoid these players being used. LTIR is something we have been asking for for quite awhile now. I know easier said than done to implement, but for realism it is necessary and an absolute must. 

Truly wish we had seen more changes on this front. When I get into Frnachise Mode, I will provide an update with my thoughts on that. 

What is everyone else's thoughts on these aspects of the game so far?

Loving it in WOC. New skating is great, absolutely changed the game. Smooth, realistic, and my club is having fun for the first time in a long time. Wanted to actually say my first THANK YOU to the EA chel devs… you did well with these new things. We’re loving the game tonight. 😊

I posted a Day One review on here if you want. I’m in between for now as if I go back to NHL24 or get over stuff. I’m a retro roster creator and to see 5-6 new alumni while losing about 30 last year + others years prior is tough. I like the many new face scans and this new set of hairstyles, beards. But then again, we lost 2 beards style for nothing. Season mode, playoffs mode, Threes, Ones, BAP didn’t change one single bit. Which is really disappointing. No PWHL is brutal. 

I would love the options of custom league within season mode. I can’t understand why this is not a thing already. Just to do a season where you choose number of teams, playoffs format, salary cap, etc. 

Not really big improvements all around and I hate how every player looks so skinny, curved back, long neck, no shoulder pads, etc. 

In my opinion, something can't do right with the endurance in CHEL. I have now set the endurance to 91 and my beam is still red almost the whole game. That can't be so intentional, can it?