EA Forums - Banner

This game turned me off all video games

Prev1
I've been enjoying video games for at least 20 years. I enjoy all genres and play whatever I'm in the mood for. So when a game sucks I move on and mix it up and maybe try a new genre to keep things fresh. This game however has opened my eyes to how bad the current state of video games is. It's really disgusting to be honest. The industry that is. Release after release with the game being released before it is finished and then constant software updates. Does the industry have that little respect that maybe I don't want to play a broken game then try it again after an attempt at fixing it? Then there is the dumbing down of games to appeal to a wider audience. There is a problem too I realize sales are important to a business' health but a game built for everybody is a game built for nobody. Then there is the money grab. On top of the two issues I just mentioned there is corporate greed trying to make extra income for their shareholders. Pay to play and other added content which also changes an already set game so now noobs or entry gamers can have an advantage. From my standpoint this is called a cheat and further decreases my appeal.

So here we are at NHL. You would think a game like this could be in your own control right? You would think fine if I put in the time I could get better and be in control. You would think the player cards would be given out with careful attention to rarity and with matchmaking you would have a winning formula. Nope, wrong. So many casual games people don't even notice that their ai plays really has little to do with their cards but the offset in the AI fairness adjustments between the competing players overalls or ranks or a combination adjustment of both.People think this is lag and can't explain why it's in offline mode as well. Hello, it's fairness adjustment and exists in offline mode as well. Who would ever think to go back and try a worse team and see what happens? Answer: me. Wasn't born yesterday. The goal of the software company is to increase the player pool thus increasing all the other add on sales like player pack sales. You are nothing more than a person they need in the player pool to keep the game going to keep matchmaking quick. As long as the player pool remains within range and the sales keep coming the game is a success from a sales or product offering standpoint. And that's why nothing gets fixed and this is a forum of unaddressed complaints. Of course video games are ripe for this. Being taken advantage of. Adults don't have time to closely screen this area we are busy working ect.

What shocks me is the hidden cover up and lack of integrity to make these extra sales. There is no tilt. Haha. Sorry I'm an adult I have defined all the features of this program going back 5 years. It has been morphed and changed and tweaked every year but it's still a large part of this game and manipulates you to buy more cards and try new players. What are prime time cards nothing but a way to cover up tilt so you can now field a group of 83 players which will play strong and you think it's cuz they are prime time. No, they are low overall and help with fairness adjustments just like any other form of fairness adjustment. The disgusting part is how the software company is trying to dupe new people into thinking this is added content or new cool cards when really it is a brilliant way to fool people into further believing there is no levelling of play fields so yet again you buy into the belief of trying new cards and the game maybe isn't rigged with fairness. Wrong.

What really turns me off is the developers next going into a rant how the brain is so interesting how you perceive things. Wow, they would even go down the brainwashing route?

Sorry I'm an adult and there is loss of control and more random mess and worse ai positioning and it is consistently applied. I have played enough games and taken a large enough sampling of the game each year. I'm not a little kid and detest the sway that video game companies are abusing their clients, younger and vulnerable cash cows.

This Isn't the first game to start the turnoff but after sticking around two months this game I think has inspired a detest of my beloved hobby of more than 20 years. Rather than flip by bad side off to everyone I think is wise to take my ball and go home and start selling off my collection of games.

Thanks for the inspiration EA, cheers.



Replies

  • deathaddersHUT
    62 posts Member
    edited November 2019
    For me, it did the opposite. I cancelled my EA Access and got a refund and I've been playing games by other companies. Companies who don't use abusive game mechanics and then lie about them. Companies who support their games. Companies who don't censor discussion on their boards.

    I've been having a lot of fun with non-EA games like The Outer Worlds, Bloodstained, Cities Skylines, Halo. Lots of good stuff on Xbox Game Pass.

    I've been getting my "put the ball/puck in the area" fix through Rocket League. A game with actual physics that doesn't slow me down when I'm not supposed to win.

    "Loss of control" as you put it is exactly why I'm playing other non-EA games. Those companies don't have "loss of control" in their games. EA does.

    Also I've been working out a lot more in real life thanks to the time I'm saving by not playing EA NHL or any EA game. Same reason. I have control there. No artificial loss of control. That's an EA thing and it's what's driving us off.
  • concerning all off this “ai fairness adjustment” stuff if that is the case then why are tons of guys with great records and a ton that have horrible records. Wouldn’t the “ai fairness adjustment” balance things out a little so everyone would be close to .500? Just thinking out loud. Myself I usually beat the scrub teams and lose to the good teams/players
  • Its the action and hinderance of your team behaving as it should. This is like playing with a broken controller and 1990 internet technology its not enjoyable gameplay. Nowhere did i mention it was about winning or losing. Its more about saving coins for two weeks to buy lafleur For example only to find out he will not behave better as expected, unless you are matched up to a player with a near identical team in the same ranking bracket. Those are the only games where fairness has no adjustment and the game action is good. Unfortunately most good players know this and play a lower team negating the matchups quite a bit so these games are hard to come by. An experienced player will wipe you off the board using a high checking fairness team playing neutral zone trap. They get the ai strength and intelligence and you are helpless to do anything whatsoever against a decent player and the ai adjustments. Fairness teams get freebie gosls thise random shots so even in a game where you are coning against this problem it will usually end a low scoring win fir the ither player by some random play or potshot. But altogether its a frustrating game with lack of control and thats not what the high overalls are advertised as. There should be zero fairness adjustment especially in rivals where you waste 5 games getting ranked. Guess what you are still matched against other divisions and the ai is adjusted. That is my whole complaint better matchmaking is the answer not duping us all of our AI intelligence.
  • reengerg wrote: »
    concerning all off this “ai fairness adjustment” stuff if that is the case then why are tons of guys with great records and a ton that have horrible records. Wouldn’t the “ai fairness adjustment” balance things out a little so everyone would be close to .500? Just thinking out loud. Myself I usually beat the scrub teams and lose to the good teams/players[/quot. see you are experienced and havent noticed yet you are getting owned by fairness teams. You are beating better teams because their ai is hindered to an unplayable level
  • No I’m beating scrub teams and losing to good teams/players. About what I expect. I never see any kind of boost when I’m playing high rated teams and don’t see scrub teams getting any kind of boost against me. Also my better players ALWAYS perform better than my lesser players regardless of the caliber of my opponent. My 91 Mario totally blows away everyone else in my lineup. What I consistently see doesn’t matchup with these “ai fairness” complaints. 🤷🏼‍♂️ Not looking for a fight here. Just saying what I see
  • reengerg wrote: »
    concerning all off this “ai fairness adjustment” stuff if that is the case then why are tons of guys with great records and a ton that have horrible records. Wouldn’t the “ai fairness adjustment” balance things out a little so everyone would be close to .500? Just thinking out loud. Myself I usually beat the scrub teams and lose to the good teams/players

    I win a large percentage of the games that are tilted against me. It doesn't mean I'm having fun doing it. Winning is not always fun. This game especially makes winning not fun. It's about fun. The not fun part is what's frustrating.

    Winning isn't the problem.
  • I will strongly echo that winning is not the problem. Since I've started playing rivals I'm 38-22-9. The problem is the gameplay. I don't mind if potshots go in but it should be about 50:50. They aren't they are 95:5 for the lower team. I don't mind fumbled passes but they should reflect the stats of the players. They don't. I mind that I spent two weeks saving coins for Lafleur, 90 overall and the minute he gets the pass he immediately dishes it off without any user input. Or he gets it and it just falls off his stick. He is unusable against lower teams. I mind what I'm witnessing and that is unfair penalty of having a better team. All this doesn't need to be. I spent 5 games getting ranked in rivals that's almost 2 hrs of my time in the pursuit of being matched fairly so I don't have to antagonize suffering fairness AI adjustments. Then you can tell you are playing a lower division rival cuz they hardly know how to use the controller and skill zone the whole game and get the wide open 2-0s and stupid potshots that dribble in. Legitimate crash net goals are waved back, all that kind of stuff. Then worse yet is really skilled players taking advantage of lower teams. Those are the worse games cuz your AI is not working and it's so lobsided as I mentioned if you can play those games tight nonetheless they will usually end with a freebie goal. You can tell freebie goals by watching replays after the game. You can toggle "hide" off to see the players skill stick inputs and see if they even aimed the shot or not. Many games are one to two free goals with no user input for shots. All in all though the games are unenjoyable fighting off your aid lack of performance and positioning. It's as I mentioned like having a broken controller and outdated internet capabilities. It's the terrible game play I have to play thru not the winning or losing. I don't know if people are not noticing fairness then maybe they are not high enough division. The fairness stacks. If you have a higher team that's the first stack. If you are div 8 and get quick matched to a div 9 player now you have another stack. These are the games which are virtually unplayable and they are frequent. Maybe to an innocent casual this is not really noticeable likely cuz your team is getting better positioning ect this is the intention of the adjustments to make the lesser player feel they are closer in skill but the opposing player knows how bad they are getting the shaft. And it all stems from money greed as per my initial post. Not a great way to treat long term players it's demotivating. But I get the last laugh as for every new person they may casually welcome they are losing a person like me so put off I'm taking my money out of the industry going forward. Go ahead and the the Tim Hortons approach it will work for a while then collapse.
  • I have I video in which the puck is sliding across the ice and as soon as my player attempts to possess it, the puck jumps over the stick. This sort of thing can be programmed into the game.
    Also, the argument as to why the top players have dominant records is because they have mastered the exploits.
  • Either EA can't fix the exploits that this game has or won't fix them , because they're abused all the time by most top players
  • prack7
    145 posts Member
    edited November 2019
    EA won’t fix them because it’s a cash cow. That’s all they care about.

    [Socair - edited for profanity short hand]
    Post edited by Socair on
  • FrankiePuxU
    107 posts Member
    edited November 2019
    prack7 wrote: »
    EA won’t fix them because it’s a cash cow. That’s all they care about.
    [Socair - edited quote]

    EA wont even admit there is a problem. They are so dishonest and out of touch with the real gamers. That is why they are losing many players.
    Post edited by Socair on
  • prack7 wrote: »
    EA won’t fix them because it’s a cash cow. That’s all they care about.
    [Socair - edited quote]

    EA wont even admit there is a problem. They are so dishonest and out of touch with the real gamers. That is why they are losing many players.
    Have to agree. They’ve lost me and my 4 kids this year. Year after year same problems.
  • You know what the real deal is? The game is a money maker and it will never be fixed. New players get the ai advantage and it's digital crack. They have no clue that the card overalls don't matter. So they buy cards and spend it up. And us veterans are hesitant to give up our hope. We are being used as AI bots to give noobs a better ai experience further drawing more people in. This is how this game is making money. It's win win for EA and noobs and a huge disrespect to loyal players unless you are willing to exploit with a lower overall team, which is not my style. Only thing I can do is not put any money into this game or software publisher for that matter if that is how they treat me as a loyal customer. It ends this year for me.

    The game is not broke whatsoever from a company perspective the duping works. From a player perspective it's different depending if you are new(er) or not. Misery handling is your reward but EA figures this adds challenge to experienced players. So never expect the game fixed it will always include all that AI mess cuz it helps grow the game as I've outlined above.
  • The statement “card overalls don’t matter” is ridiculous. I have the 91 Mario. He totally and completely outperforms the rest of my team (all 82-85) pretty much every game. As for the “AI boost” I usually have no problem beating bad lineups. I do t see them getting any boost. And the other side of that I usually lose to better lineups/players. Where is MY ai boost? LOL
  • Treatmentworke66
    977 posts Member
    edited November 2019
    IWDTCG wrote: »
    You know what the real deal is? The game is a money maker and it will never be fixed. New players get the ai advantage and it's digital crack. They have no clue that the card overalls don't matter. So they buy cards and spend it up. And us veterans are hesitant to give up our hope. We are being used as AI bots to give noobs a better ai experience further drawing more people in. This is how this game is making money. It's win win for EA and noobs and a huge disrespect to loyal players unless you are willing to exploit with a lower overall team, which is not my style. Only thing I can do is not put any money into this game or software publisher for that matter if that is how they treat me as a loyal customer. It ends this year for me.

    The game is not broke whatsoever from a company perspective the duping works. From a player perspective it's different depending if you are new(er) or not. Misery handling is your reward but EA figures this adds challenge to experienced players. So never expect the game fixed it will always include all that AI mess cuz it helps grow the game as I've outlined above.

    Agree,I play teams with a less over and my guys can pick up the puck ai just goes out off position ,my goalie lets in flick shots from the point without even being screened and most frustrating of all my guys feel like they're in mud ,and my connection is great
    Post edited by Treatmentworke66 on
  • reengerg wrote: »
    The statement “card overalls don’t matter” is ridiculous. I have the 91 Mario. He totally and completely outperforms the rest of my team (all 82-85) pretty much every game. As for the “AI boost” I usually have no problem beating bad lineups. I do t see them getting any boost. And the other side of that I usually lose to better lineups/players. Where is MY ai boost? LOL

    All my higher attribute players have higher ppg totals, even when shifting them down a line. Definitely notice the elite cards like msp and higher end totw or pt cards.

    The only time I don't notice, is when I'm playing online, but matched with someone nowhere near me. Latency ruins any feeling of a better card.
  • Z0mbieBabyJesus
    1539 posts Member
    edited November 2019
    IWDTCG wrote: »
    You know what the real deal is? The game is a money maker and it will never be fixed. New players get the ai advantage and it's digital crack. They have no clue that the card overalls don't matter. So they buy cards and spend it up. And us veterans are hesitant to give up our hope. We are being used as AI bots to give noobs a better ai experience further drawing more people in. This is how this game is making money. It's win win for EA and noobs and a huge disrespect to loyal players unless you are willing to exploit with a lower overall team, which is not my style. Only thing I can do is not put any money into this game or software publisher for that matter if that is how they treat me as a loyal customer. It ends this year for me.

    The game is not broke whatsoever from a company perspective the duping works. From a player perspective it's different depending if you are new(er) or not. Misery handling is your reward but EA figures this adds challenge to experienced players. So never expect the game fixed it will always include all that AI mess cuz it helps grow the game as I've outlined above.

    Agree,I play teams with a less over and my guys can pick up the puck ai just goes out off position ,my goalie lets in flick shots from the point without even being screened and most frustrating of all my guys feel like they're in mud ,and my connection is great

    See my thread "matchmaking is useless" in the general discussion forum. That is why you can have a great ping according to the latency checker, but still feel slow and useless. And is also why your better players don't perform as they should.

    You're on the right server, you connection to the server is good, but your opponent is either awful connection or very far away. Basically the game is doing something similar to lag compensation that was heavily complained about in call of duty games. Where you'd get shot after you turned a corner. Or you'd empty 20 rounds into your opponent, but they shoot once and you're dead.

  • reengerg wrote: »
    The statement “card overalls don’t matter” is ridiculous. I have the 91 Mario. He totally and completely outperforms the rest of my team (all 82-85) pretty much every game. As for the “AI boost” I usually have no problem beating bad lineups. I do t see them getting any boost. And the other side of that I usually lose to better lineups/players. Where is MY ai boost? LOL

    I mean cards overalls have some determining features but their behaviour is not consistent with their overalls. The key word I want you to understand is consistent. For example my team is 87 overall. I just played a team I suspect was 93 and lost 8-4. Truly determined by our players and skill? No. With his team so stacked his shots were probably at 95 percent for most of them. Two goals by deflection pot shots. Not unexpected against my 87 team cuz the offsets in out overalls weren't bad. Perhaps he was lower division and was fairness offset both down for higher team but maybe as well up if he wasn't as high a skill ranking. So his team behaved as well as it should. Now let's say I had an 84 overall team, my guess is those deflection goals don't happen and maybe I cheese another goal I wouldn't normally and the game would end somewhere around 5 each. As to your comment about Lemieux, Yes high end players got more pts, and so did mine but the game was determined not really by skill, yes, somewhat but largely not. Having such a high team I could walk in around his super team because its defence was acting about 10-20 % fairness generous, so this guy just cheesed me as soon as I got in his zone he'd just trip me and I mean nonstop. That was his flavour. He knows his team will not defend so that's how he has to adapt to win. Trip. Trip. Trip. This is not by mistake. Still, I'm going in on a 93 team with him skillzoning and cheating tripping me and I still pot 4. If I had a 93 team as well it'd probably be pretty even in score as the higher the overalls the higher the mess and I'd have a bunch of pot shot deflection goals likely too. But he'd probably win since I don't resort to cheating by tripping relentlessly. So, was this game and outcome fun? No. Maybe new(er) to the game you would not notice this but I certainly do. This is what I'm talking about the fairness adjustments are controlling way too much. Had his team behaved 90 defence and mine 87 we should have been in a very low scoring positional play game. Instead we have cheating and a mess of goofball.
  • You’re not getting power plays when the guy “cheats”/trips?
  • IWDTCG wrote: »
    reengerg wrote: »
    The statement “card overalls don’t matter” is ridiculous. I have the 91 Mario. He totally and completely outperforms the rest of my team (all 82-85) pretty much every game. As for the “AI boost” I usually have no problem beating bad lineups. I do t see them getting any boost. And the other side of that I usually lose to better lineups/players. Where is MY ai boost? LOL

    I mean cards overalls have some determining features but their behaviour is not consistent with their overalls. The key word I want you to understand is consistent. For example my team is 87 overall. I just played a team I suspect was 93 and lost 8-4. Truly determined by our players and skill? No. With his team so stacked his shots were probably at 95 percent for most of them. Two goals by deflection pot shots. Not unexpected against my 87 team cuz the offsets in out overalls weren't bad. Perhaps he was lower division and was fairness offset both down for higher team but maybe as well up if he wasn't as high a skill ranking. So his team behaved as well as it should. Now let's say I had an 84 overall team, my guess is those deflection goals don't happen and maybe I cheese another goal I wouldn't normally and the game would end somewhere around 5 each. As to your comment about Lemieux, Yes high end players got more pts, and so did mine but the game was determined not really by skill, yes, somewhat but largely not. Having such a high team I could walk in around his super team because its defence was acting about 10-20 % fairness generous, so this guy just cheesed me as soon as I got in his zone he'd just trip me and I mean nonstop. That was his flavour. He knows his team will not defend so that's how he has to adapt to win. Trip. Trip. Trip. This is not by mistake. Still, I'm going in on a 93 team with him skillzoning and cheating tripping me and I still pot 4. If I had a 93 team as well it'd probably be pretty even in score as the higher the overalls the higher the mess and I'd have a bunch of pot shot deflection goals likely too. But he'd probably win since I don't resort to cheating by tripping relentlessly. So, was this game and outcome fun? No. Maybe new(er) to the game you would not notice this but I certainly do. This is what I'm talking about the fairness adjustments are controlling way too much. Had his team behaved 90 defence and mine 87 we should have been in a very low scoring positional play game. Instead we have cheating and a mess of goofball.

    What you're noticing, is the bad matchmaking, and correlating it with a fairness adjustment due to confirmation bias. What your ping to the server is, even if it shows an ideal number, isn't relevant. That's just one part.

    The opponent could be nowhere near the server, say they're getting 80+ ping. That means in order to keep the game synced, and both players seeing the same thing happening, you gotta be slowed down to their speed.

    For whatever reason, the advantage is going to them. Or maybe they're just more used to the slower play. Either way, that's what you're noticing. Not some sly underhanded fairness adjustment to make better teams play worse or higher cards perform worse.

    Nothing more, nothing less. Just really bad "net code", and it's ruining online game modes.

Sign In or Register to comment.

Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. Sign in or register to get started.