NHL 26 Gameplay Deep Dive Trailer and Blog

The section about community feedback tuning applies to online modes. Will the changes also impact offline modes? That is taking some of the fun away from offline modes unless you are able to tune both modes separately. Thanks.

What if some of the changes didn't happen until recently after?  They are still working on the game even a month before.  Things change and you don't want to show even less things because you don't want to show unfinished things. 

Look at how some games have shown off trailers for games 2 years in the past then when the final product comes out it feels like a downgrade in terms of graphics and other things.  It's better to show what the game will all have is what I am getting at.

If you are referring to the LT-ing, reverse hitting, and hipchecks then expect those to be across the board.

I get hat you all want more details. I don't have a timeline though. The best I can say is to keep an eye on our official channels. More news will be coming.

I get changes happen throughout the year. The problem is in the marketing strategy itself. When very little is shown about the game prior to release, there is 0 hype or excitement. Its why the yearly release model does not work for games anymore. Releasing a new game every four-five years is smarter. You focus your attention on the updates/upgrades, releasing them often. No wasted energy on launching a whole new product (that is pretty much the same, with a few minor tweaks), energy and time goes into improvements. Do videos on those updates. Sell a season's pass for updates and upgrades. That way, there is always a buzz around the game. As a company you are releasing videos at least every month. Devs speaking about the changes, and what to look forward to, addressing fans, both concerns and requests. These days, marketing in the video game industry is all about communication and making sure that your game continues to be talked about. If you barely release any information, it shows a disconnect. A short video every week for a month before launch, that is not a marketing strategy, that is video game destruction. I have a experience with this stuff, I have also been a gamer, streamer, and Youtuber, for a long time. I only gave it up as my health went south, and my focus shifted to enjoying more time with my family. If EA wants a successful product launch and good reviews, they need to fix their marketing, and change with the industry. Video gaming is a fickle industry, you move with it, or get left behind. Its not meant to be completely negative, it just trying to see a game that I loved back from Sega Genesis days through to the present, not continue to falter and lose sales. 

It's frustrating when we see these deep dives and it is all things that quite literally could have been pushed through on a gameplay update. 

It's not a new engine. It's just some new coding. It's embarrassing 

All of their sports titles pretty much don't start showcasing the upcoming game until a month or so before launch.  It's not just an NHL thing it's an EA Sports thing.  May 29th is when College Football 26 was shown.   It launched officially on July 10th.   

Fun fact is that NHL used to promote the upcoming game almost 2 months ahead of the release and then guess what happened?  People got bored they had to wait after having the information.  So there really is no point in announcing it more than a month early with some deep dives to keep things going.   Anyone who has followed their sports games knows the routine by now.

Honestly people just want a video telling them that full presentation is coming back, GMC is coming back, authentic hockey is going to become more of a thing, and that PC is getting a launch.  But they don't appear to be getting those things so they aren't going to be happy this year.  You pretty much know when you see the reveal trailer what all is gonna be different.  The deep dives just further go into detail about the changes that are made.  Some people will be happy with what is given and others not so much.   I've passed on many of your concerns you have had for the future of the series, but it's not up to me if things get added/changed/or whatever.

Me personally from the news today I'm super happy that hipchecks and LT-ing has been addressed.  

KlariskraysNHL wrote:

Me personally from the news today I'm super happy that hipchecks and LT-ing has been addressed.

That's the best news of the day for me too.  Strange that it wasn't part of the video though.  I didn't even find out about it until just now.   

Noticed Luke Schenn still has the wrong number on the Winnipeg Jets.

That is all that I can ask for. I just feel that EA could use some help in ways to generate hype and make people feel heard and listened to. As a fan, its my hard earned money going into the game. If the devs/EA don't want to implement changes that people have been requesting for many years, it shows some disconnect. Disconnect leads to sales dropping. I don't want to wind up with the only NHL game, disappearing. Especially when it is so preventable. I also, won't sink my money into something that feels almost identical to the previous years, when I have done that far too long. Hoping, that this year will be different.

Thank you for passing it along. I also am happy about the hipchecks and LT issues being addressed. I only play offline, but I like that to feel as realistic as possible.