WISHLIST
Here’s basically a copy and past of prior years with new stuff.
Overall changes :
- Full presentation back, removed in NHL23
- Better comments during gameplay. I played NHL10, they speak about point streaks, how important this player would be for a serie. So many stuff are being told just like real life. In older games that spoke about Game 1, Game 2 saying who’s leading 1-0 or 2-0 or if the series is tied. Game 7 were special even in round one. Stanley Cup final was hyped and felt like it was more important and big.
- Being able to CONTROL EVERY TEAM in Custom League. Being able to change playoff format, number of teams, division names is all pretty good ideas, but not being able to play with every team and have Full roster control would change everything.
- Custom music…!!! I get copyrights and licensing is expensive. But having the possibility to import music in the game or at least link Apple Music or Spotify to the game would mean the world to a lot of us. Having finally the actual goal songs for every team, winning songs, retro goal songs, etc.
- Franchise mode upgrades are nice! But when will have updates in owner mode. I swear if I see two, three more years of Bathroom maintenance I’ll break.
- Add back the « Stanley Cup playoffs » text on the ice when it’s playoffs. I know it’s not a thing anymore besides few times I saw the text written generated by computer on TV, but it really gives a sense of something different. You guys still have that for Rivals and other online modes.
- Three stars animation at the end of the game.
- Players and goaltenders names chants! Playing older games you can hear Fleury, Fleury, Fleury chants when he just made a big save or multiple saves. Definitively needs to come back. Not only that but to hear boos from opponent team when a good player has the puck. MVP chants also need to be back. It amplifies the feeling of interactivity with the crowd.
- Winter Classic mode a generic one in the worst case, but having accurate past years like in NHL14. Add the actual Winter Classic for play now and for the 2 teams playing it in that season in season/franchise mode. + two team for future years are chosen randomly every season within Season, Franchise/Custom league.
- ALL STAR GAME during Franchise and Season mode. Like back in the days, with generated lineups depending on sim.
- Return of Stanley Cup banner rising in Franchise and Season mode.
- Hat trick recap like older games.
- Playoffs mode has been a mess for years! No edit lines, edit players, strategies. Please let us compete for different trophies too. Memorial Cup, Spengler Cup, etc.
- Edit team : Let us edit gloves colours, replace glow sticks by towels, let us choose the colour of the tshirt in the crowd, let us choose default jersey, goal horn and goal song.
- I think a huge thing would actually be able to import pictures/logos for arena on ice visuals center logo, smaller logos, font around the circle, etc, boards ads, Stanley Cup playoffs, Face off logos on the ice that you could set easily, for goalie masks and jerseys.
This way, we could finally create our own goalie mask, use actually true goalie mask without being an issue of copyrights.
Revamp of Ones and Threes is much needed.
Threes could be MySquads or something else where you can create male or female, 3 v 3 + a goaler indoor, outdoor. On ice, in small arenas, outside with mountains or other stuff in the background or even roller hockey outside in California. You pick where you want to start, you customize your player. Choose a jersey or create one and you play offline or online against other squads. The goal is to beat other squads, within the offline mode you do a circuit around North America, Europe and everytime you beat a team you can pick a player from that team, just like NBA Streets vol. 2 and in the end you compete against legends teams. Once you’ve completed it, the reward is getting HUT cards of all players you unlocked. That mode alone would probably be a 30h gameplay.
Ones, could be a Free 4 All just like NHL04 where you play anywhere, no comments, music only, more arcade, the goal leader has a golden helmet. The mode could benefit having the best 200 current players, while playing offline or online you unlock other locked players by winning 10, 25, 40 games and some by scoring a specific amount of goals. The reward are legends and prime or special versions of players. Score 50 goals, you unlock Teemu Selanne, win 30 games you unlock Steve Yzerman. The further you go, further you unlock crazy stuff. Scoring 150 goals unlocks 2007-08 Alex Ovechkin with a different hairstyle, gear at 96 overall rating, another milestone unlocks a 2010-11 Crosby, a 1989 Mario Lemieux will longer hair, Jofa helmet, younger version of Jaromir Jagr with the mullet. Even go crazier and have a huge Gordie Howe or a Wayne Gretzky made of gold. I don’t know something fun with a nice reward.
Creation :
- Edit players appearance, overall ratings once Franchise, Season mode has started.
- Player salary, being able to write down like a name instead of having to scroll for a 7M$ contract.
- Add new attributes such as Backhand power, accuracy, we have speed, we need speed with the puck. Hand eye and deflection should be two things. Endurance doesn’t seem to mean anything and I remember Mike speaking with Sleeveless last year saying that basically endurance is useless as of right now. Better and more attributes would lead us back to no X-Factors.
- Add mentality attributes for Franchise purposes such as loyalty, money interest and winning meter. Depending on the meters, players choose to re-sign for much less to win. To be able to sign a good player for 1M$ on a good team.
- Add/remove injury to a players for example Evander Kane being injured for 5 months starting the year. Going into player details and add shoulder injury, the duration, if it’s playable or not. I see this being implemented and updated in roster updates. Instead of having player 70 overall or just removed from line combos that would be more accurate. Having specific body parts head, shoulders, back, knees, ankles, elbows, fingers. Concussion, torn ACL, etc.
Goalie masks
- 1950 Jacques Plante, early years
- 1970-1980 Dryden, Wregget, Cheevers
- 1950-1970-1980-1990-2000’s models of masks, added to standard masks.
Make them blank, so we can edit colours for straps, grid and the rest of the mask with the colour wheel.
I’d really like to see 3 models for all NHL teams + at least one iconic/retro modern goalie mask!
- Add vintage gear such as CCM HT1 helmet, Jofa 390 helmet, more wooden hockey stick, leather gloves for 50-60’s hockey, option to remove shoulder pads, classic black and white ccm skates like in 90’s hockey to match more the idea of the custom league!
The CCM Fit Lite 80/5K isn’t in the game since NHL11. About 400 players wore the 5K from 2006 through 2013. Sidney Crosby, of all people! Sedin, Datsyuk, Pronger, Bergeron, and so many others.
Other key models I wish there were in the game :
- CCM HT1, almost every players in the 90’s
- CCM HT2, Kovalev, Ryan Smyth
- Jofa 390, Lemieux, Jagr, Selanne
- Jofa 366, Selanne
- Bauer 9500, Staal, Kesler, Kane
- Bauer 8500, Perry, Backstrom rookie
- Bauer 7500, Letang, Kessel
Bauer 5000, Lindros
New suggestions :
Add presets in Custom League. Such as 1950, 1960, 1970, 1990, 2000’s. Within those presets would have rules, gameplay sliders, number of teams, salary cap, etc. NBA 2K did this in NBA2K23 and it’s genius.
Edit existing arena, from seat colors, to the name or even change venue size.
Being able to change age, switching between custom age or real birthdate in roster or in season/custom league mode, so your player is not 48 years old.
Retired numbers for franchise/custom league/BAP with an actual animation of the jersey being lifted and players looking at it. The player in suit waving. Something exciting.
Milestones should be more rewarding! If you score 500, 1000 points, etc, there are animation right now, but it’s not exciting enough.
Playoffs atmosphere should be really increase. Comments, crowd chant and noises. I can’t believe for 2 games now NHL24 and NHL25 we have opponent team chants
Authentic fabrics/jerseys material with accurate font, numbers, colours. Helmet colours. 2007-08, 2015-16 Penguins gloves colours are wrong. The C of Captain is the retail one and not the actual real C for example.
