The poke checks in 25 were good as well as the stick lifts but this year they are absolutely brutal, this happens way way to much and as for the stick lifts I shouldn't have to spam stick lifts to get it to work properly
https://www.xbox.com/play/media/UQjdWTDcPg
I still believe that both poke checks and stick lifts have been nerfed to make their shiny new xfactors work ,have to remember what kind of company you're dealing with
Poke checks that work will be a new feature for NHL 27
MostlyHubris I was part of the invited for NBA LIVE 18 EA Play when traits were introduced "now called X-factors" so I know exactly where you are coming from, and I had to watch that game die because of similar reason. the only saving grace EA has in NHL is that there isn't a competitor, so they are literally making the same mistakes they made with LIVE but without concern for competition. From my standpoint they are making a game to cater to clicks, views and clips (marketing led probably), instead of the fundamentals of the sport and focus on gimmicks.
it should always be:
- Attributes first
- Tendencies second (AI)
- Technical strategy (Coach AI or Team AI)
- Boost (never)
as for Online play:
- Attributes should always matter first
- Boost (never)- as the player is the boost always learning and attempting to exploit opportunity
- the players will do the rest
If they are going to implement boost they should be like 1% to 2% as combo of attributes example truculence tier 1 badge for a player that has 85 strength and 85 checking (not aggression as that is an AI stat) to differentiate proficiency. Then said player has a .5% increase to hit power for tier. 1% for tier 2 (90 strength and 90 checking) and finally 2% for tier 3 (95 strength and 95 checking) this will make the players be more cautious about dumping stats for specific builds. Not this 60% or 100% these are stupid MOBA like numbers wild stuff.
as for the discussion back to Stick lift/poke check and defense; because defense is good the offensive counter will be more rewarding when you break someone off. whereas now it is just expected because offense is so overpowered it makes the game look gimmicky.
sorry for long explanation I get passionate lol
Very true, no game testing that they release to us, how can you have a hockey where there are no cpu stick penalties, trip hook or slash in offline play, im never going to buy another easports nhl game , I'd rather play a text game like FH manager 11 and make do with a 2d engine.
How can you just be investigating that now did you guys not play the game? This is such bull crap for how much money we have spent. for you guys to not have picked this up before launch is disgraceful. I am getting on every chat and every discord to talk about how bad this game is at launch .you guys do not care about this franchise at all
I have to admit that was a source of frustration for me back in the day. Back then it was the "glitch goal", when the toe drag wrister had a 100% chance to go in in the high slot and they absolutely refused to patch it. Also at that time the momentum engine was out of control and started the unfortunate trend of trying to program intangible things like energy and emotion, and they just wouldn't hear otherwise at the time. I was pretty relentless on the forum about it, and it actually led to them offering to fly me out for community day in 2012. The community manager at the time wanted a "naysayer" there, and it was probably the only time in my life it paid off to be a loudmouth.
They were pretty cool guys, honestly, the dev team and the Gamechangers that went along. Really shattered the illusion that they were a faceless conglomeration trying to ruin the game of hockey.
That said... my concerns then WERE the same as they are now. Nothing works ALL THE TIME in hockey. When something is too effective, it becomes a game within a game of just doing that same thing, every single time, whether it's forcing the cross-crease (still a thing that is effective enough to win a game, even if you stop it 40 times, it will still get through a handful of times) or getting behind the AI D to tap for a breakaway (still a thing that works every time), and when you get on that breakaway you've got a guaranteed goal because the same move also works every time. It just becomes about doing that one thing until the game doesn't even really resemble hockey at all anymore. I feel like that's where we're at with wheels and truculence.
they should know from community engagement. I said this in NBA LIVE, and I'll say it again. MAKE a game that is defensive first and then you can ALWAYS go from there. Exactly for the reasons you stated:
sweaty neckbeards who are looking to exploit any and every bit of programming to find an equally miserable way to score every time, and then do it, every time, without variation, just genuine obsessive compulsive mental illness behavior.
THE USER WILL ALWAYS FIND EXPLOITS (all caps for effect lol). Developers should and I believe do play the game, but the execution for some reason always leads them to hyperbolic representation of offense. No matter if its NHL, NCAA, NFL, OR NBA the user will always find a workaround defense. Finding ways to exploit defense is always harder. WHY!? I'm glad you asked because defense is a reactionary mostly, preemptive hopeful situation. The key attributes for most defenses in all sports are ANTICIPATION, POSITIONING, and TIMING. Which by the way they are also always in favor of the offensive player because they know where they want to go and do. So, I never understood why this can't be understood in development of team sports games.
Also, the feedback process that they take prior to development I believe is flawed because there is no way you can make the same mistakes from the feedback we see in the forums for the last 5-10 years. Maybe the intake of said feedback of GAMEPLAY has to be reevaluated, because every year we are here with the same complaints.
It's been a long time, but I met some of the team back in the day. No guarantees any of them are still there, but at least back then, they were just regular guys who liked hockey and wanted to make a cool hockey game.
That said, my concern back then, and to this day, is that budding up and playing hockey with your pals is a lot different, a LOT different, than playing against some miserable, sweaty neckbeards who are looking to exploit any and every bit of programming to find an equally miserable way to score every time, and then do it, every time, without variation, just genuine obsessive compulsive mental illness behavior. I feel like the development process involves a lot of the former, and none of the latter, because how could they know?
This is genuinely a concern for me every time. It has to be someone in marketing or a lack of oversight in the development of the game. you can't continue to have the same mistakes over and over again. it's disrespectful to the customer. I am sure the developers want to make a great game. I can't imagine anyone going in to make this game saying, "Oh I want to mess up defense" or " I want to make the same mistakes as last year", surely. Yet. it is consistent negligence or lack of experience (turnover) every year it seems. The complaint is never "we don't have enough tools on offense" yet every year they start out overpowered to a great degree.
Community Manager
