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One thing I've lately been fixated on is having a dynamic NHL arena experience. I feel like with the recent resurgence of EA College Football, the NHL games could take a page from their book and add in home ice effects/advantages or a more immersive, lifelike experience for each arena.
I really think about playoff hockey too, and how traveling on the road is no walk in the park. Think about being in Be A Pro and you draw the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs and you just know it's going to be a madhouse. Or, picture this; Your first round matchup is a rivalry series, like The Battle of Alberta, The Battle of Florida, The Battle of Pennsylvania, Montreal-Toronto, etc. and the fans are just absolutely riled up and you have an advantage since you're the home team. I feel like that would be so cool. Imagine if you score a goal and your crowd just gets behind you. Or, you score first on the road and kill momentum more so than what they already have generically put into the game. Imagine if they add in chanting the opposing goalie's name after he gets scored on, like fans do in the playoffs. I also think certain arenas in general should be harder to visit. It should nit the same difficulty visiting Boston (hard) as it would be visiting a team like Columbus (sorry Jackets fans) .
Going back to the crowds in general; imagine if they were just rowdier in general when your rivals came to town, regardless of playoffs or regular season. I think it would be fun to be smacking your opponents around, and your fans then chant that they suck, or maybe booing their best player anytime he touches the puck. I know they will boo when you hurt another player, but even beyond that, I think having more dynamic crowds would really add to this game. Hearing the same old "Let's go _____" is kind of bland. At least have authentic chants.
I know this part is trickier due to copyright laws, but have the fans actually sing along to their goal songs. Dallas immediately comes to mind for this. I know that the Islanders yes chant is in the game, but imagine if it sounded like the crowd actually chanted it rather than just some recording. Same with the Rangers goal song.
I know this would take a lot of work on EA's part, but I really think it could add something unique to the in game experience.
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- EA_Aljo4 months ago
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