84 days since release...
And we still have all of these issues that seem to just go unfixed:
Still can't consistently find a drop in game
Tuners ruined the game since Beta
Rosters not updated
Still have Fatman lag
Games still not counting
Short side cheese back
Rebound cheese still there
Missing items in hockey bags
Skating too slow
Menus still take forever to load
AI is OP for 1 team EASHL
"Failed to find an opponet"
but don't worry, HUT is up and running and has 93 different special card sets to buy.
Still can't consistently find a drop in game
Tuners ruined the game since Beta
Rosters not updated
Still have Fatman lag
Games still not counting
Short side cheese back
Rebound cheese still there
Missing items in hockey bags
Skating too slow
Menus still take forever to load
AI is OP for 1 team EASHL
"Failed to find an opponet"
but don't worry, HUT is up and running and has 93 different special card sets to buy.
12
Howdy, Stranger!
Replies
This series needs a whole new team of devs
I don't think that would be wise, just based on the fact that the game is decent. I think if anything it needs to add to the team because they are one of the more shorthanded staffs in sports gaming. I see potential for this series, I really do. The dev team just needs to execute on their ideas.
- Champions Hockey league wrong opponents in groups....not fixed
- Reported jersey errors...not fixed
still hope that next patch will fix it....and all above mentioned issues too
You’ll be surprised to know that the new patch fixed none of these issues.
First off this dev team takes on more than they can chew every single year. They simply don't have the manpower to handle everything they do every year. More is less in this case cause there are too many things in this game that feel sloppy, or issues that have been around for multiple releases.
As for executing their ideas, I saw what happens to that. This year the game was fun, Almost every review said it was fun and refreshing and promising. Couple tuners later, we are stuck with the same garbage that reviews have been saying for years: It feels stale.
That's an easy one. The skill gap has increased since the beta and players who can't (or refuse to) adapt are suffering the consequences.
EA Sports set out to make a game that was esports ready. Despite the claims otherwise, the increasing skill gap online laments home the fact that their approach is working; the players who have great twitch skill in both reading plays, reacting to plays and setting up their own plays are the ones who are seeing success in this series online.
Yes, some goals that seem to 'always' go in are annoying to see - but that's the current meta. All esports games suffer from these metas and I think that the prevelence of the meta is proof that although the game may not be esports ready in the eyes of those searching for a 'sim' experience, it's already dividing the player-base as if it's a game designed for esports - a competitive gameplay experience that has it's meta, but also stays true to the sport.
UFC is similar - there's tons of people on their forums/reddit/social media that claim all kinds of 'spam' and such - but the reality is that on the esports side of things - those guys know that meta and it's really something to see when two high level players adapt their playing style to compete against someone who's an expert at the meta. Oddly enough, you see the meta disappear in to a fight that feels realistic.
NHL can do the same thing - when playing against a player who knows the meta well, you see games get tighter. I think Ben referred to them as 'sweaty' games and I absolutely 100% agree with him. Those games get your palms drenched. But if you take notice, they also tend to stray away from the meta as a means to catch your opponent off guard.
Funny though how this "skill gap" coincides with the return of player bubbles in tuner 1.03
I see your point Kidshowtime, but please at least admit the gameplay from the beta to now is very different. Elite players all of a sudden became "elite" within a couple of days of the 1.03 tuner. Yet, these same "elite" players were crying that scoring was too hard before 1.03. Top streamers were complaining prior to 1.03.
I do agree to an extent about players adapting and whatnot, but 1.03 is the single most biggest factor in this "skill gap" people are talking about.
I don't believe the 'skill gap' coincides with any tuner. It's a natural progression of competition. Sure, things have been adjusted in the tuners - but the fundamental aspects of the new skating engine haven't been altered from the beta, regardless of what some people claim.
As for the 'bubbles' - proper positioning and utilizing the tools at your disposal in creative ways are what the developers intended for you to do. I see no problem in a player being able to retain possession of the puck from a player who is incapable, unwilling or simply unaware of the myriad of ways you can knock a puck carrier from the puck. I explained in another thread how you can utilize DSS along with clicking Right Stick in order to have MUCH more control over the direction and the angle in which your poke check is directed. This little skill can add so much more depth to your defensive game - making the 'bubble' seem insignificant. Combined with being able to utilize incidental contact from releasing DSS - there's a lot of creative ways to get the puck carrier to hesitate with their decision making. Creating that hesitation and capitalizing on it is what separates the men from the boys, so to speak.
The thing about NHL19 that people love so much is also the same reason some people hate it so much; it's fundamentally new. They revamped skating from the ground up. So, while everyone loves the freshness it has brought to the franchise, there's another group who haven't been able to adapt to the changes, they continue to use the same methods 'that always worked' in previous years - and they're getting stumped.
This is the reason players praise the beta so much! There's nothing wrong with wanting the game to go back to the 'beta' - but what that entails is a large portion of the population simply forgetting the skating engine they just mastered (or are learning to master). Until EA does something to change the fundamentals of their skating engine, the skill gap will continue to grow and rightfully so.
I truly feel that if EA reverted their tuners back to 1.00 - just as the vocal group here is suggesting - you'd find the same issues being brought up. Rather; you'd likely hear conspiracy theories about how "EA didn't revert the tuners this is still the same garbage" because the skill gap would STILL exist.
No, I absolutely agree, though I thank God that I can still enjoy the game offline and don't have to be stuck with using tuners that I may, or may not like. I feel bad for online players because you are stuck using what EA gives you, and it seems like they made the game unplayable. Which is a shame because there used to be a fairly positive vibe about this game back in September and it was nice to see.
If a player wants to twirl in the corner waiting for an open man - how is that different from players cycling the puck int the zone, waiting for the open man?
Is it because one guy is just spinning in circles in the corner that makes the difference?
Because, in my opinion, if a guy is having an easy time circling away from you - allowing himself more time to wait for that open man - that's a defensive flaw.
Sure, it's not realistic - but asking your opponents to play realistic just isn't something that can happen. You need to defend what's being thrown at you, and despite a few missing pieces, I feel the tools for d-men are headed in the right direction. They require some skill and time to master - especially the little subtle defensive moves that can make someone 'twirling in the corner' a non-threat.
Kid, while there are some things here and there we seem to agree on, the general view of this game however we are worlds apart. We seem to agree on how defense should be played and that seems about it. That is fine, but neither of us will win in the war of trying to convince the other of his views. Again, I view this as a good thing. Different opinions yielding different results.
The skill gap is definitely lining up with tuner 1.03. Prior to that, is was extremely hard to hog the puck and goalies were playing smarter. So sure, the fundamentals of skating have not changed, except my players feels a bit more sluggish and I do get weird pivots ala "TPS" every now and then. Maybe it is server related or unwanted changes in a tuner, or whatever. Point is, skating felt a bit better in the beta. Is was snappier and more responsive.
As for player bubbles, they are invasive and unrealistic. I have seen at least 5 situations in different games where 2 of us check a carrier into the boards, yet he doesn't react and squeeks out with the puck. Curling sticks absolutely makes the collision detection go wonky. It was exactly the same in 14-18. You can so no all you want, won't change my view on it.
Yea the skating engine is new, yet plays the same way as 18. Same plays as 18 will work, same puck protect will work, etc. And the end of the day, it is irrelevant what is new if it is tuned to be the same as old. I have more control in front of my net as a D man compared to 18, and that is practically where the differences end.
Maybe people would still complain if we reverted back to 1.00. Who knows. One thing I can confirm though, yea sure there would probably still be a skill gap. But that skill gap suddenly emerged after 1.03, but you seem to disagree on that. First 2 months the game was generally fine and people were happy. All of a sudden 1.03 comes out and there is an explosion in "skill gap"...
Anyways, point is, to me at least, this game is incredibly similar to 18 to the point where they both make me pretty much as sick as either one to play. I am back to defending the same plays, and I mean the exact same plays as the last 5 years. Looks like 6th year is already here.
Remember what some of the highlights that were advertised prior to 19's release? Here are the ones I remember:
"This year everyone is getting hit". Remember that with all the Subban highlights and how he even said everyone would get nailed this year? That definitely changed in 1.03
Goalie logic updated for short side goals. Poof, gone with 1.03 tuner.
1.03 is where this game lost me. Where my interest dies and likely for the next few years. EA's vision and version are clearly not what I want and honestly, I am sick of this perverted view of hockey.
Ya man. Despite all my bans and being a little harsh, I really do enjoy discussing these things with someone who is as 'in to' this game as I am. I definitely don't read your posts and think it's someone who doesn't know what they're talking about - you clearly do. I enjoy it.
I think the network issues are playing a role in terms of skating feeling sluggish. I do know that in some games, there's a latency that cannot be ignored. I try to adapt but sometimes you do feel 'behind' in a game that has that kind of latency. That said - I don't feel this happens too often but again, I play 6's maybe once per day so my sample size is smaller in that regard.
I hate to say this, but I'd really like to see some video of this scenario you've described above. Not saying it didn't happen, but as with most 'issues' presented in this game - NHL_DEV often can come in and desrcibe what's happening under the hood to make those things happen. More often than not, what's being shown in terms of animations makes things 'look' bad, but under the hood - things play out as they should.
In any case, I can't imagine a scenario where a puck carrier - being squeezed out in to the board by 2 players - comes out scott free with the puck. I think video for this would go a long way. I also think that when these types of scenarios are being claimed to be happening - it should require some video.
Again - many 'issues' are misinterpretations of how the mechanic works and/or a bad animation sequence, IMO. Not saying there are no real issues with this game - there definitely are. However, from what I've observed both in NHL DEv's responses and my own expeirence, there's a lot of gripes in these forums that could be fleshed out in a better, more accurate way with video rather than debating about the hyperbolic nature of how the issues are reported.
Hockey is hockey. If you play 5-10 games per night, the odds of you seeing the same 'plays' are only going to go up. I don't know how much you expect the actual sport to change from year to year, but it doesn't change that much.
Puck protect does what it's intended to do. Defending against puck protect is not about body checking or poke checking - it's about pressuring the puck carrier in to a precarious position where protect puck no longer is a viable option. And then using that moment (from puck protect to 'oh no, what now?') to jump on your opponent using the methods such as body checking, poke checking, DSS, incidental contact.. etc.
I don't think the skill gap 'suddenly' appeared like you claim. I think the general animosity towards the skating engine "differences" from the beta was already gaining steam. The 1.03 tuner came out and didn't resolve the problems of those at the lower end of the skill gap, so the narrative continued that the beta was better and the newest tuner "didn't do anything" or "allowed danglers to flourish"
Again - this is the same sport. Hockey plays will look identical no matter the engine you're playing on. I don't feel that "defending the same plays year after year" is a valid complaint.
Disagree. With proper timing, positioning and twitch skill - you can absolutely lay massive hits on players who make mistakes. No question about that.
The short side stuff I can't speak to. I will say that, in my opinion, if a player is left alone with a goalie - the odds are in favor of the shooter. That's hockey. Short-side doesn't work as much as the claims around here - and if it does, those players complaining that it happens "all the time" need to work on their defense.
Interesting debate. I will sit on this a bit and think about it. Try to "broaden my view" so to speak.
As for double teaming body checks, I will have to remember to record one when I see one. My explanation, without being a dev of course, is that the game, or engine can only detect 1 checker at a time. I could be wrong of course, but it's what seems logical to me. It's as if 1 checking animation has to play out before the 2nd animation can have an impact. By that time, the player is gone with the puck.
Yes you still can lay massive hits, however, try them on an angle. Like 45 degrees for example. North-south, boom, massive hits. East-west, can be pretty massive as well. On an angle? Barely nudge for the most part.
If you're getting baited in to attempting poor body checks, that's on you.
I'd like to see video of players 'roll(ing) off of checks'. Maybe there's more happening than what you think?
Nah, I'm the one doing it to people. And it's boring.
[Socair - edited profanity short hand]
Oh okay. Can you capture some video of you "rolling off of checks" with repeated succession?
[Socair - edited quote to reflect change]