I don't have the stats in front of me but I'm going to assume that most people who buy and play NHL games are not under 15 years of age and most of your demographic for this game is somewhere between 20-40 years of age who are hard core players of this game and they don't care about dressing up their players in barbie clothes.
If most people aren't interested in the customization options, why are there so very few that don't change their player's appearance?
Exactly I agree, so get rid of it! Just let us pick HOCKEY uniforms for our players and teams.
I think you may have read that wrong. He is making the counter-argument that people are in fact interested in customization because so few people do not leave their character with the default clothing. An argument which as far as I can tell is also based on anecdotal evidence and not EA data, and therefore has at best no more credibility than anything else being said.
Unrelated to the game itself but on these forums we see a significant amount of people viewing these forums but don't respond. Not sure why they don't want to engage in the conversations here, maybe they're looking for information they're seeking and moving on, but compared to the amount people actually chatting on these boards shows there are a lot of quiet people out there that don't want to voice their opinions. It doesn't mean every quiet voice means they agree with @EA_Aljo, but just a statistical fact where you have to consider that what is being said publicly is not really what the whole community agrees with.
NHL engagement is up 13% year over year, per the latest quarterly call. Grateful to hear the NHL community is getting bigger and hope the momentum keeps up. The more players the more likely budgets get bigger which translates to quicker updates and investments in more modes. As someone who is well aware of the impact live content can have on keeping players engaged into a game weekly, I personally believe the gear the team is putting into the game is attractive to wear for those looking to equip it. It's working. Are they equipping them by so they don't look like Joe NHL by default, maybe, that's a great question I suppose would be answered from data/in-game poll if they really wanted to go that route.
I do like the idea of having some NHL uniforms to equip in outdoor games (non-club) as an option. The outdoor games always struct me as a casual area where you scrimmage your friends on a Saturday afternoon for a pick-up game, while clubs are reserved for organized leagues for those wanting to look the part of being a professional hockey player. I know a lot of you would love to see an easier way to organize club games on a regular basis ("bring lobbies back"). @EA_Aljo and I will continue to do our part in letting the team know weekly what you're all requesting. We always appreciate the deep discussions that take place here.
Honestly 95% of the feedback I've heard in game chat and forums concerning outdoors rinks and chinese new year neck warmers has been negative.
I don't see any downside to giving drop in players the option to choose indoors games with real jerseys and crowds. Playing club takes way too much time and dedication, all I want is to have an immersive hockey experience after work, not coffee truck cinematics and 30 people crowds. It removes any interest I have in that game and frankly I don't think I will buy it next year (I've bought every NHL games since 2002).
I think EA should include *very* specific questions about casual gear/rinks in the various specific modes (not just an in general "do you like outdoor rinks/custom gear?") on their annual survey and put this to bed once and for all one way or the other instead of everyone talking in vague anecdotal opinions on the matter of how popular we all think this is.
Or alternately simply admit they have zero appetite for changing this and we just have to put up or shut up as any discussion on the matter is academic.
Nowadays, such big game publishers as EA just don't care about the opinion of their players. At least when playing Apex and Battlefield, I realized for sure that all updates and innovations are aimed mainly at the player spending as much money as possible in the game, while the games almost do not improve in any way. Apex is still too demanding on the characteristics of the computer, there are a lot of cheaters, servers lag. As long as we continue to give money to such companies, nothing will change.
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Honestly 95% of the feedback I've heard in game chat and forums concerning outdoors rinks and chinese new year neck warmers has been negative.
I don't see any downside to giving drop in players the option to choose indoors games with real jerseys and crowds. Playing club takes way too much time and dedication, all I want is to have an immersive hockey experience after work, not coffee truck cinematics and 30 people crowds. It removes any interest I have in that game and frankly I don't think I will buy it next year (I've bought every NHL games since 2002).
Or alternately simply admit they have zero appetite for changing this and we just have to put up or shut up as any discussion on the matter is academic.