NHL 20 Feedback Discussion
Literally one of the worst nhl games you ever made. Where do i start when you play HUT you just see how unfair the game is even if you have manual aim you will still hit in the middle of the goal, ev...
Forum Discussion
@EA_Aljo
I find 30 shots to be a nice average for a 60-minute game; It's not a perfect science but more humans should equate to better D overall ( of course, you should be seeing lower scoring games the larger that number is)
Computer defenders don't defend the cheese goals properly, that's why they always go in - if the D does their classic horrible blueline cross pass that gets picked off in the offensive zone and that leads to their humans having all the room in the world to get their goals, well, that's not on us.
You mentioned AI learning potentially being manipulated but it's already happening - I think it would actually take longer to adjust and manipulate them with a higher awareness.
"Just throw humans on D and focus on that" is a viable retort no doubt but I think that would only be forcing more meta playstyles *shrug*. Teams need a balance of offense and defense but there doesn't seem to be as much of a flow between the two (for us at least)
4. There should be just as much of a percentage going inside out as outside in. Also, my stick, even though it wasn't a sweep (because why should I think it needs to be), still went through his legs from the inside out. I see your point though.
Nothing may be built specifically to do it, but by fixing one side and not the other, it's effectively the same thing. Shots from the left react how they should - ie, they just keep flying right off the pads with a lot of momentum, but when you shoot from the right it has an extremely high chance to lose all its momentum and rebound right in front to 3 prime spots for easy tap-ins - If the ai defender doesn't stand in the attackers way it's pretty much a guaranteed goal.
You can't honestly expect to stop every single shot in the game though, all they need is that one shot and they know it - to people who only care about wins at any cost, what does an extra 20 shots matter? humans going to cover those shots also mess with ai positions.
When you're already down low, yes the dive works head up but the meta for low count teams is normally to just cover the other guy so they don't do a cross-over.
Yup, it's the foot first dive I'm talking about; it doesn't happen every time but enough to raise a few eyebrows.
Mm it's quite the opposite, really - the AI has proven time and time again they can't be trusted which forces us to do extra work, cover more plays, which causes all these problems. Playing with more humans will work but is just a band-aid and does nothing to solve the root of the problem. Sure you can just both play human D and let the computers run wild but not only is that super boring, if they can't score you're absolutely screwed. It's our bad for expecting the ai to understand human behaviour in certain situations, but they should know when to deviate from the script.
In other news - My friend and I recently got #3 in the Plays of the Month but when I logged into the game today I noticed the prize jerseys were only for HUT and the Chel jerseys were still locked - is that a bug or do those just come from regular bags?
EA_Aljo
Community Manager
Community ManagerI agree that human defenders aren't as good about being in position for rebounds. If I have AI defenders, it's because I'm playing center. In that case, I drop back and watch for those shots if playing a team that likes to use them. The idea of AI learning is a good one and I know it's something the dev team is aware of. Hopefully, we'll see this improve over time.
There's always a counter to meta playstyles. Teams that rely on them are going to be at a disadvantage if they go up against a team that knows how to defend them. The teams that are most difficult, in my experience at least, are the ones that control the puck really well. They're good at creating space which generate good scoring chances. It requires defense to have patience and play a bit of a slower game where you're cutting off their options. Many teams play overly aggressive which often ends up putting defenders out of position. So, while there may be meta playstyles, a team that gets creative and controls the puck is probably going to be more deadly than one relying on rebounds and short side wristers.
4. I understand what you're saying, but this is also a balance issue. If your stick is between their legs, it's a lot more of a dangerous situation than making contact from the outside. Tripping is already a sensitive subject for a lot of people. The way it is now though, you still need to be really careful as they are easy to cause, but you're also kind of rewarded for using more controlled pokes with DSS.
I personally haven't noticed any difference with rebounds on both sides. I'm wondering how often you try both sides though. If you're a left-handed player, I can see rebounds being easier from the left side and vice versa for the right. I'm comfortable with both hands so I switch it up often. I go for rebounds on either side when the play dictates it and haven't seen any difference between the 2. I'm not saying I don't believe you. Just saying we may experience this differently if you're favoring the left side over the right side heavily as well as using different angles due to your handedness. You're going to get a stronger shot when shooting from the left side with a left-handed player than shooting from the right side with a left-handed player.
Of course, you're not going to stop every shot, but you can severely limit someone's ability to score if they attempt the same shot over and over again. I find those teams to be easier to play since they're so predictable. Like the guys that go for rebounds non-stop. I don't have to worry so much about defending anything else. I just plant myself to the right of the goalie and pick up the rebounds. However, as you know, AI defenders aren't as good at recognizing that. Regardless, my point is, the more skilled teams won't rely on one or 2 methods of scoring.
I feel like the foot first dive is the one that happens more often and what I'd rather have. Normally, if I dive, it's to cut off a cross-crease pass. I'm already back in my zone and the puck is in front of me. I get the headfirst dive if they're getting ahead of me. In most cases. Sometimes I get feet first if they're almost lined up with me. I'd rather have a headfirst dive then. It's definitely frustrating to dive in the direction you weren't intending though so I get that for sure.
I know the AI players can be frustrating. All I can tell you is that they're constantly being reviewed and adjusted. Which you don't see until updates or future games. For now, the best I can tell you is to use more human players. I know that's not always possible or you choose not to. We'll just have to wait and see what happens down the road.
I'll look into your jersey issue and get back to you on it. Thanks for letting me know.
A great team doesn't need to rely on meta (but of course you'd still take the easy goals when given the opportunity), but a less-skilled team can safely rely on this style since it's so effective, countered or not. Counters work like bullet proof glass - you can easily stop a few shots, even a dozen, but eventually something is going to be minutely different and cause one to squeak by.
I'm more concerned about situations out of human control (within a reasonable degree), that lead to easy setups for the other team. Just last night I won the faceoff in my end, the ai picked it up clean and just passed it right to an opposing ai who just flicked it in (to win in OT as well).
Regardless of handedness we can guarantee super tight chances when firing from the right but when firing from the left it's more hoping to get a random 5-hole or lucky defender own-goal.
In all the games we've played, right side rebound goals (left to right from defenders perspective looking north) outnumber left side attempts (let alone goals) 20 to 1, no joke.
If I were in your shoes I'd be skeptical too but I'm just reporting what I see.
I can record every rebound cheese attempt from both sides but will probably need a sample size and to make space (plus that could take a while)
I'm probably biased because I only really play EASHL and ONES, but it feels like there are already so many different modes - by combining some of them together I think we could have something great.
It would be a major amount of work but monthly leagues for a BaP/Franchise mashup with daily or weekly matchups would be fun and combining HUT with EASHL to create Ultimate Hockey League or something would open up more opportunities for streamers, mtx, and competitions
- EA_Aljo
Thanks for all the details. I'll have to keep an eye out for the rebounds issue you're talking about. I already use them somewhat regularly, but will try them even more. However, that's most often in HUT where goalie ratings may come into play.
Less-skilled teams definitely seem to go for rebounds more, but when defending them right, it severely limits their scoring chances. Yes, I agree that eventually, a shot will squeak by, but if they are truly less-skilled and you're defending rebounds as well as your team being higher-skilled, you shouldn't have much of a problem beating them.
I played a few games last night. 6v6 EASHL where there were just 3 of us. I played LD and never had a problem with the RD not covering his side. I've now seen multiple reports of this happening so I don't know what I need to do to get that to happen. However, one thing I didn't do was leave the strategies at default. I switch them up so D pressure is on high pressure along with my offensive zone bias at full forecheck and breakout on full attack. This might make a difference. I'll keep watching for this though.
A mashup of EASHL and HUT sounds interesting, but I have a feeling it would really rub a lot of people the wrong way. I feel like many in EASHL don't want it getting mixed up with HUT, but if it was done right and didn't truly affect standard HUT modes, it could be cool.
Community Highlights
- EA_Aljo2 months ago
