Full story here:

http://www.sigames.com/news.php?type=view&article_id=1121

Key points:

Release date: May 27th 2005

New licensed leagues include: AHL, ECHL, DEL

http://community.sigames.com/eve/ubb.x/a/tpc/f/6461934525/m/1742018721

Oh, and while I'm at it, please check the latest issue of The Hockey News if you can as well :D
http://www.sigames.com/news.php?type=view&article_id=1122

Someone want to buy this for my birthday (which is 2 days after release)?

From your thread listed above, from Marc Duffy...


Licensed Leagues

National Hockey League
American Hockey League
ECHL
Ontario Hockey League
Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
Western Hockey League
Austrian Erste Bank Eishockey Liga
Czech Tipsport Extraliga
Deutsche Eishockey Liga
Elite Ice Hockey League
British National League
ST Extraliga
Slovenian Elite League
Swedish Elitserien
Swedish Allsvenskantell me, does "licensed league" means "playable league"? I mean, could I manage a QMJHL team, say the Quebec Remparts?

FM

From your thread listed above, from Marc Duffy...

tell me, does "licensed league" means "playable league"? I mean, could I manage a QMJHL team, say the Quebec Remparts?

FM

Licensed means playable :D

Playable on the other hand does not necessarily mean licensed though. We have a few leagues in that had to go in with some varying degree of fake names because we could not get full licenses for them.

And yes, QMJHL is playable and has been playable already in the first game we did last year. Full entry draft and import draft as well.

Congrats, Riz.

That is my birthday, so you guys know what to get me.

Licensed means playable :D

Playable on the other hand does not necessarily mean licensed though. We have a few leagues in that had to go in with some varying degree of fake names because we could not get full licenses for them.

And yes, QMJHL is playable and has been playable already in the first game we did last year. Full entry draft and import draft as well.
oh, it was? I was under the impression it wasn't, my bad. Sadly, I'm still too addicted to that other game from your parent company to even think about investing some time in a new game :p

You're getting there, some day, you'll be the one responsible for getting me back into caring about hockey, don't give up :D

FM

oh, it was? I was under the impression it wasn't, my bad. Sadly, I'm still too addicted to that other game from your parent company to even think about investing some time in a new game :p

You're getting there, some day, you'll be the one responsible for getting me back into caring about hockey, don't give up :D

FM

You call yourself a canadian ? Preferring soccer over hockey ?? :eek: I thought people had been lynched for less than that over there in the hockey country :D

You call yourself a canadian ? Preferring soccer over hockey ?? :eek: I thought people had been lynched for less than that over there in the hockey country :D
Don't worry, the appropriate people have been notified...

Congrats, Riz.

That is my birthday, so you guys know what to get me.
riz will get you EHM 2k5 and you can give him TCY 2. :D

I will be getting this one riz, thanks! In fact, this will become my FM. :)



Todd

I confess that I'm unaware of any other movement in the league, so I apologize for the narrowmindedness of this question, but will the AHL still feature the St. John's Maple Leafs, or did you have time to get the Marlies in the game?

I confess that I'm unaware of any other movement in the league, so I apologize for the narrowmindedness of this question, but will the AHL still feature the St. John's Maple Leafs, or did you have time to get the Marlies in the game?

All the leagues are based on the 2004/05 season, so any league changes for 05/06 and onwards will not feature in the game in most cases. There are some 3rd party editors in the works though, which will give you the chance of changing stuff in the future.

You call yourself a canadian ? Preferring soccer over hockey ?? :eek: I thought people had been lynched for less than that over there in the hockey country :D
You must not know how hard it is to see your team leave town and win the Stanley Cup the very following season in their new town (in this case, Colorado). My heart still aches... :(

I had been a Nords fan since I was about five, when they were in the WHA. I remember going to see them play the New England Whalers, with which the great Gordie Howe used to play. Me and my sister used to call him "papa Howe" :) Then there were the Habs/Nords confrontations, so many friendships and even families fought because of those games, you wouldn't believe. Since the Nords have moved out of town, hockey has never been the same to me. Went to see a couple Remparts games this Winter, had fun, but it's not the same anymore...

They are talking about possibly putting together a group, build a new arena, a bit like Winnipeg did, and try to bring back real professional hockey to Quebec City. One can dream, maybe then I'll rediscover hockey, unless your game has succeeded before that ;)

Thanks for listeing to my whining...

FM

Excellent news!!!! Getting the licensing for the AHL will be an AMAZING improvement. Be able to have a little more control over your up and coming prospects development is great. I can't wait.

Excellent news!!!! Getting the licensing for the AHL will be an AMAZING improvement. Be able to have a little more control over your up and coming prospects development is great. I can't wait.

Wait until you actually play just as an AHL GM. I've made through a season and a half almost, with Hartford and it has been a blast. Trying to win while the Rangers keep calling guys up every once in a while to fill in for injuries and such can piss you off but then again, they can also sign some young guys and send them down to give you a boost :D

Wait until you actually play just as an AHL GM. I've made through a season and a half almost, with Hartford and it has been a blast. Trying to win while the Rangers keep calling guys up every once in a while to fill in for injuries and such can piss you off but then again, they can also sign some young guys and send them down to give you a boost :D

Now that sounds fun. I really wasn't interested in this game until reading this statement (I had thought the game was just a NHL game with a couple European leagues thown in). Not a big hockey fan, but this is the type of management challenge I think I would really enjoy. You just sold another copy riz! :D

Now that sounds fun. I really wasn't interested in this game until reading this statement (I had thought the game was just a NHL game with a couple European leagues thown in). Not a big hockey fan, but this is the type of management challenge I think I would really enjoy. You just sold another copy riz! :D

Plus, you've got the added challenge of trying to claim enough glory and reputation to someday capture a job in the NHL :D

You can basically start out in the game by managing in the Major Juniors (WHL, OHL, QMJHL) honing the future NHLers and then try and capture a job in the AHL or ECHL and later on in the NHL.

What I found fun with my AHL career was the decision making in the first offseason. Should I try and sign a few veterans of my own to bolster my AHL team or just wait and see if the Rangers sign some good kids that they possibly send down ? Because if I sign my own guys and then get tons of good ones sent to me, I'll have to either release my guys or try and fit them to ECHL below (which might already be full, since they have their own plans to run) or try and loan the guys out for some time. My secondary mission with my AHL career is to try and sign a few of the prospects Rangers do not sign and try and develope them good enough for the Rags (or some other NHL team) to sign.

No Spanish league? i think we have 2 or 3 teams that play betwen them a few times per year :D

It's weird that we don't play ice hockey here when we have been the European and World champions of Roller Hockey, also bronze in the olimpic games etc. It's said because we have high temperatures but so does Tampa etc in the USA.

About the game, looking forward to buy it, just a question, are farm teams related to the NHL ones in the game or can you manage them separately?

EDITED: i see you just answered above to my question.

I'm ready for the game NOW! :)

We had an ECHL team here in New Orleans for five years, so I used to follow the league fairly closely. Does the game model the "veteran rule" in the ECHL? I know back when we had the New Orleans Brass, teams were limited to four "veterans" on the roster. A player's veteran status was based on the number of years and number of professional games he'd played. I'm not going to hurt if the veteran rule isn't in the game. I'm just curious.

Riz

the game sounds great.

beside the real teams, can you create a fictional league too? if so will it be random and different each time you create a new league?

thanks

Riz

the game sounds great.

beside the real teams, can you create a fictional league too? if so will it be random and different each time you create a new league?

thanks

You cannot create fully customizable leagues, as in league structures and rules etc. However, you can start the game with fictional players, which randomizes all players and staff in the universe but the leagues are still the same.

Release date: May 27th 2005


I just wanted to say that's a great release date. Everyone should release games on Friday IMO. :D

I'm ready for the game NOW! :)

We had an ECHL team here in New Orleans for five years, so I used to follow the league fairly closely. Does the game model the "veteran rule" in the ECHL? I know back when we had the New Orleans Brass, teams were limited to four "veterans" on the roster. A player's veteran status was based on the number of years and number of professional games he'd played. I'm not going to hurt if the veteran rule isn't in the game. I'm just curious.

Veteran and developmental player rules are in the game for AHL and ECHL and any other leagues where they use such things (DEL in Germany has a rule where the teams must have atleast 3 native 23 years old or younger players on roster...).

However, some little things like the injured reserves for the lower leagues are modelled in a simplified way (just a 7-day IR) this year and also the waivers for ECHL are not modelled. I'm hoping to add these in the future though :)

How do affiliations work in hockey? Are the lower league teams owned by the NHL teams or are they contracted like baseball? If they are contracted, can lower league teams change affiliations? Are there teams without affiliations to NHL teams? I guess I'll need to do some research on hockey before May 27th...hehe.

Riz

how is the game manual?

i am new to Hockey, so i dont know all the rules per league, etc.


will the Manual be detail in how to play even if you never play last year version?

thanks

You must not know how hard it is to see your team leave town and win the Stanley Cup the very following season in their new town (in this case, Colorado). My heart still aches... :(

They are talking about possibly putting together a group, build a new arena, a bit like Winnipeg did, and try to bring back real professional hockey to Quebec City. One can dream, maybe then I'll rediscover hockey, unless your game has succeeded before that ;)

Thanks for listeing to my whining...

FM

Sorry to hear that. But hey, we have a huge LNAH (yeah, that Quebec semi-pro league) fan with us in the dev team currently so don't rule out the possibility of that league being added in some day to provide some playable mens teams in the Quebec region :)

How do affiliations work in hockey? Are the lower league teams owned by the NHL teams or are they contracted like baseball? If they are contracted, can lower league teams change affiliations? Are there teams without affiliations to NHL teams? I guess I'll need to do some research on hockey before May 27th...hehe.

The affiliations in NHL EHM 2005 are fixed, so they won't expire/change during the gameplay. Possibly something to look at some time long in the future.

The game manual should be pretty comprehensive on the basic things around the gameplay and we've included a new screen into the game called "League Info" that will display the general rules of the league in question, so you won't be totally lost when you pick a new league to manage in.

EDIT: Here's a link to a screenshot of one of the "League Info" screens:
http://www.sigames.com/graphics/images/1034.jpg

Riz, is this the release date for North America as well?

ECHL? I can take over Atlantic City? Dam, I was going to try to keep from picking up any new games for a little while to save some money. I think I'll have to make this one little exception.

Riz, is this the release date for North America as well?


according to SI web page it says

" This year’s iteration is vastly improved, and set to release for both PC and Mac on Friday May 27th across Europe"

Doesnt sound like it.

We haven't confirmed the North American release date yet. However, we will definately be offering a try&buy digital download option like last year (system to be used for the digital distribution has not been confirmed yet) at the same time as the European release date.

North American retail markets are a bit hard to crack with a text-sims but we are hoping to improve from last year's release which did not quite go to plan.

We haven't confirmed the North American release date yet. However, we will definately be offering a try&buy digital download option like last year (system to be used for the digital distribution has not been confirmed yet) at the same time as the European release date.

North American retail markets are a bit hard to crack with a text-sims but we are hoping to improve from last year's release which did not quite go to plan.


i really hope so. it was so hard to find last year version in the States

popular stores here in the states did not have the game. Best Buy, CompUsa, Circuit City, Fry's. etc

i hope this year version are in the store shelves in the states.

if text-sim games hit the shelves in the States. believe me, once they buy it there going to get hook on it.

thanks

Sorry to hear that. But hey, we have a huge LNAH (yeah, that Quebec semi-pro league) fan with us in the dev team currently so don't rule out the possibility of that league being added in some day to provide some playable mens teams in the Quebec region :)
HAHAHAHAHA :D :D :D That is hugely cool! Would be very funny to manager the Quebec Radio X :)

Not asking for his name, but is that guy from the Quebec City area or elsewhere in the province? As you must know if you've spoken with him a bit, there are quite a few fights in that league. That would need to be coded accordingly, but since you've included the ECHL, I'd have to assume it's already covered ;)

FM

We haven't confirmed the North American release date yet. However, we will definately be offering a try&buy digital download option like last year (system to be used for the digital distribution has not been confirmed yet) at the same time as the European release date.

North American retail markets are a bit hard to crack with a text-sims but we are hoping to improve from last year's release which did not quite go to plan.

I'm not sure if you can really speculate on this... but if one was nailed down what's the earliest we could expect it on store shelves? A week later? A month later?

Because if it's going to be anything more than a month I might just order the CD from Europe.

HAHAHAHAHA :D :D :D That is hugely cool! Would be very funny to manager the Quebec Radio X :)

Not asking for his name, but is that guy from the Quebec City area or elsewhere in the province? As you must know if you've spoken with him a bit, there are quite a few fights in that league. That would need to be coded accordingly, but since you've included the ECHL, I'd have to assume it's already covered ;)

FM

He is actually from Finland and is working on the dev team doing his job experience course for uni studies. He is a big fan of hockey fights and has done the research for our database of the LNAH teams and players with some people he knows from the Quebec area :)

And yes, it is well and truly possibly to code certain leagues to sign more goons ;)

i really hope so. it was so hard to find last year version in the States

popular stores here in the states did not have the game. Best Buy, CompUsa, Circuit City, Fry's. etc

i hope this year version are in the store shelves in the states.

if text-sim games hit the shelves in the States. believe me, once they buy it there going to get hook on it.

thanks

I found it rather easily at EB Games here in St. John's... I think they only got two copies and I preordered one of them

He is actually from Finland and is working on the dev team doing his job experience course for uni studies. He is a big fan of hockey fights and has done the research for our database of the LNAH teams and players with some people he knows from the Quebec area :)

And yes, it is well and truly possibly to code certain leagues to sign more goons ;)
This internet thing really does make the planet smaller every day :D

Pretty cool stuff though. I told you, keep working, you'll have me back on the dark side someday ;)

FM

dola, speaking of the LNAH, our local team, the RadioX is currently playing the final series for the Futura Cup. They got tied 2-2 in the best of seven series yesterday night...

fwiw, the RadioX plays in the Colisée, former home of the Nords, and in the playoff, they've been getting crowds of upward of 8000 people. For a semipro league, I'd say it's not too shabby...

FM

Congrats. See you at E3!

:eek: nooooo....too....manyyyyy....gamessss!!!!so should i just sign my life over to SI now in the hopes that Jim will be onboard soon and they can control all of my computer gaming??

Plus, you've got the added challenge of trying to claim enough glory and reputation to someday capture a job in the NHL :D

You can basically start out in the game by managing in the Major Juniors (WHL, OHL, QMJHL) honing the future NHLers and then try and capture a job in the AHL or ECHL and later on in the NHL.

What I found fun with my AHL career was the decision making in the first offseason. Should I try and sign a few veterans of my own to bolster my AHL team or just wait and see if the Rangers sign some good kids that they possibly send down ? Because if I sign my own guys and then get tons of good ones sent to me, I'll have to either release my guys or try and fit them to ECHL below (which might already be full, since they have their own plans to run) or try and loan the guys out for some time. My secondary mission with my AHL career is to try and sign a few of the prospects Rangers do not sign and try and develope them good enough for the Rags (or some other NHL team) to sign.
Quite a dilemma I have. I really want to take the Blues to their first Stanley Cup win, but then again maybe I need to prove myself in the minors first.. maybe the Icecats?


Todd

Good thing the El Paso Buzzards folded a few years back or else I would be forced to buy this game... ;)

You call yourself a canadian ? Preferring soccer over hockey ?? :eek: I thought people had been lynched for less than that over there in the hockey country :D

He's not Canadian.....He's from Quebec:D

So he is actually CanadiEn ;)

Good thing the El Paso Buzzards folded a few years back or else I would be forced to buy this game... ;)

Sounds like something they serve at Olive Garden:D

I was really hoping the NCAA's would be playable. I'll likely buy anyway since Riz's products have been unbefuckingbelivamazingbly good in the past. Plus I love hockey with all my heart... hockey hangs the moon in my eyes.

I was really hoping the NCAA's would be playable. I'll likely buy anyway since Riz's products have been unbefuckingbelivamazingbly good in the past. Plus I love hockey with all my heart... hockey hangs the moon in my eyes.

I'm hoping to take a look at some college hockey stuff sometime in the distant future. But then again, since the player names cannot be licensed and the NCAA league/team licenses are prolly quite costly, I would not have your hopes too high on this issue. But you can always wish for it :D

I'm hoping to take a look at some college hockey stuff sometime in the distant future. But then again, since the player names cannot be licensed and the NCAA league/team licenses are prolly quite costly, I would not have your hopes too high on this issue. But you can always wish for it :D

I don't care about player names. It seems plausible that somebody would/could come up with a roster set, but even without that, it wouldn't be a big deal. TCY and FBCB are loads of fun, and don't use real names.

I don't care about player names. It seems plausible that somebody would/could come up with a roster set, but even without that, it wouldn't be a big deal. TCY and FBCB are loads of fun, and don't use real names.

Yeah, that is not a big issue really, the names. It's more of an issue with me allocating my time to different areas of the game to develope. It probably won't sell well with Miles and the rest of the decision makers if I decide to put a lot of time and effort into an area of the game (which would require a lot of new code and ways to handle the team management) we cannot be sure we can even put in (due to the licensing issues).

ECHL? I can take over Atlantic City? Dam, I was going to try to keep from picking up any new games for a little while to save some money. I think I'll have to make this one little exception.
Lucky for you that they're modeling this season, considering that the Boardwalk Bullies will be in Stockton, California, next year. :D

Sounds great. I'll be pimping again on other forums. The addition of real AHL and ECHL is HUGE.

Unfortunately, I simply haven't been able to get into FM. I've been playing EHM solidly until this past month and now am looking forward to starting a new career.

Will be a downloadable version released the same day? if so, please, tell me elicense will handle it, not the other company you used past year :)

Will be a downloadable version released the same day? if so, please, tell me elicense will handle it, not the other company you used past year :)

We've got Grant at the office looking into various systems to see which one we think offers the best service to the customer and makes financial sense for us.

EDIT: and yes, it should be out around the same day.

Some elaboration on the North American release/download option situation, from SI's Miles Davidson over on their forums: (I'm assuming Riz has fallen asleep, or he'd have posted it already. ;) )

Right. EHM & North America/Canada.

Sega US have a new "no.1" and "no.2" who started a few months ago. The new "no.1" is also the boss of Sega Europe, and therefore the guy who signed us. The new "no.2", Simon, is someone that we know, and is very much behind Sports Interactive and our games, and is as determined as we are to "crack" America.

The issue that we have in the America's (and whilst I know it's an insult to some, by that I mean the whole market, so that includes North America, Canada, and some areas of Central and Southern America) is that our games, and the whole genre that we are involved with, is very much unproven in teh America's. Because of that, we are in a "chicken and egg" situation, in that some major retailer want the titles to have good sales behind them before they stock them, but without said retailers behind the titles, we aren't going to be able to get the sales that they need for them to stock them!

Sega US are working hard to try and sort out the situation, and there is lots of stuff that I can't talk about at the moment that we're discussing with Sega US on how to improve everything.

There are currently no firm plans in place. I'll be out in the US (as will Riz, Duffy & Phillip (aka Profiled)) in just over a week, and I'll be having lots of meetings with Sega US when I am over there to try and put a full plan together.

At the moment, my ideal plan (and this is just a plan - I have no idea if it is going to happen or not) is to release NHL:EHM as a digitial download for the America's market around the same date that the game will be out in Europe. Then, in September, we would release a boxed copy of the game in the America's which would have updated data & league rules through certain retailers (likely to be indies and certain chains), and then have a digital download version at a very cheap price for those who have already purchased the NHL:EHM2005 as a digi download. This update would also be made available for European's who have bought the game at the same cheap price.

The game would then be released each September, to tie in with the start of the America's Hockey season.

As I said, this is currently my ideal plan. It is far from set in stone and, whilst I'm sorry about this, the America's situation is going to be very last minute.

Whilst it's frustrating for you guys, I hope you can understand that it's even more frustrating for us! The America's members of the SI community are VERY VERY VERY important to us - you are the guys who are going to help prove to retail that there is a market for our games out there. And we will do everything to ensure that you get our games when you want, without any hassles. But it IS going to take time. We will keep you as informed as we possibly can and hope that you bear with us throughout - it will be worth it in the end, I promise...

I'm not a humble programmer like Riz, but a humble MD/CEO ;) I would love to explain all the delicate details of the computer games business world, but I hope you understand that there are some things that I can't talk about, as it can effect business relationships in a serious way. But both SI and Sega are very serious about the America's and we are doing everything we can to sort out the situation. Please be patient, and you will be rewarded.

Lucky for you that they're modeling this season, considering that the Boardwalk Bullies will be in Stockton, California, next year. :D

Yeah, AC just doesn't have the fan base to support an off-season sport.

I'll say this again. The demo has been like hockey crack. I'm still getting used to the interface and just basically messing around and learning things, but I'm really impressed on how much fun this demo has been for me.

Hopefully by May 27th, I will have learned some of the deeper workings of hockey so I can start a dynasty thread with the Blues. I'm determined to get a Stanley Cup here in St. Louis. :) I love the 2d portion of the program.. very exciting to watch my players skate around.

I'm really looking forward to this game.. I'm hoping this will really get my dynasty juices flowing once again. Ohhh Baby!


Todd

Can't wait to get my Moose Jaw dynasty up and running again (from scratch). It's not May6th where I am....21 days to go.

That's excellent news about the AHL and ECHL. Being able to take the Toledo Storm to the ECHL title is probably going to be enough to make this a must-buy for me.

Ok, now that the Gold demo is out.

Can we start a serious career? Meaning, if I start a career now, when the game is released, can we contimue on? ..and what's the difference from starting a demo quick start and starting from scratch when the full version is released?

..and what is the difference is the fast starts? is NHL much different than NHL&AHL&ECHL? I just want the full NHL boat with minors and foreign teams, all of it. I guess I'm kind of lost already.. hahaha!!

Thanks,

Todd

Ok, now that the Gold demo is out.

Can we start a serious career? Meaning, if I start a career now, when the game is released, can we contimue on? ..and what's the difference from starting a demo quick start and starting from scratch when the full version is released?

..and what is the difference is the fast starts? is NHL much different than NHL&AHL&ECHL? I just want the full NHL boat with minors and foreign teams, all of it. I guess I'm kind of lost already.. hahaha!!

Thanks,

Todd
A fast start, or quickstart, is a game that was created with only some specific leagues. At least that's what I remeber them to be with CM/FM. If you want the NHL with its minor leagues, and you want to start with the demo and continue afterward, then you're better off with the NHL&AHL&ECHL fast start. But this means you won't be allowed to manage teams in Europe if you wanted to at some point.

I also don't know what database size was used to create these fast starts. This could have an impact on your game when you get many seasons in the future...

FM

Thanks FM, that's what I did. If I have to restart, no biggie I guess. I just find my players in this game VERY attachable. I really need to take a break though. :)


Todd

Ok, now that the Gold demo is out.

Can we start a serious career? Meaning, if I start a career now, when the game is released, can we contimue on? ..and what's the difference from starting a demo quick start and starting from scratch when the full version is released?

..and what is the difference is the fast starts? is NHL much different than NHL&AHL&ECHL? I just want the full NHL boat with minors and foreign teams, all of it. I guess I'm kind of lost already.. hahaha!!

Thanks,

Todd


You can continue your Gold Demo career in the final game, however as has been indicated elsewhere you don't have the benefit of the 'full' database with the demo .... your call entirely ...

You can continue your Gold Demo career in the final game, however as has been indicated elsewhere you don't have the benefit of the 'full' database with the demo .... your call entirely ...
That's what I thought.. although I think with the NHL and minor leagues.. most if not all of what I want is right there.

May 27th can't get here soon enough. ;)


Todd

Just for kicks I took over the Avs. Resigned Forsberg. Second exhibition game he tears his ACL. Out for four months.

Good to see it has some realism. :)

Two Questions:

1. In the full version, what will be the lowest league level you can control in the US?

2. Is there a guide around someplace (similar to Marc's for CM)? If not, will there be one?
Edit: My interest in the guide would be based around becoming familiar with different desired skills for different positions. Which skills are really key for different styles of play for example.

Marc Vaughan and Riz

there some people who think you going to charge the customers for roster updates? is this true? is this same for FM 2006? and ootp 7?

here the discussion
http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/showthread.php?p=1194259#post1194259

Marc Vaughan and Riz

there some people who think you going to charge the customers for roster updates? is this true? is this same for FM 2006? and ootp 7?

here the discussion
http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/showthread.php?p=1194259#post1194259

If it isn't true they really need to re-word this part of the PR:

At the moment, my ideal plan (and this is just a plan - I have no idea if it is going to happen or not) is to release NHL:EHM as a digitial download for the America's market around the same date that the game will be out in Europe. Then, in September, we would release a boxed copy of the game in the America's which would have updated data & league rules through certain retailers (likely to be indies and certain chains), and then have a digital download version at a very cheap price for those who have already purchased the NHL:EHM2005 as a digi download. This update would also be made available for European's who have bought the game at the same cheap price.

No people won't be charged for 'roster updates' (if you mean downloading a data update or a patch) and won't be considering doing this for our other games either.

The America release of EHM will contain updated rules and other code changes as well as a roster update, its being released considerably after the release of the European game so is really an EHM2.25 or something silly (basically if we've done improvements it doesn't make sense not to include them if we're doing a new game release in America) - hence that version will be charged for (at a lesser amount) if people who have the digital version of EHM2 want to upgrade.

This has basically come about because of the delay in the American release, hopefully for the year after we can sync all releases to the same timeline (as we do with our football game) and avoid this problem.

Hope this helps,

Marc

Two Questions:

1. In the full version, what will be the lowest league level you can control in the US?

2. Is there a guide around someplace (similar to Marc's for CM)? If not, will there be one?
Edit: My interest in the guide would be based around becoming familiar with different desired skills for different positions. Which skills are really key for different styles of play for example.There is a set of walkthrough's here: http://www.sortitoutsi.net/forums/index.php?showforum=45

Which is now up to part 3. Some very good info in these posts!!

In fact, if you look around.. there are some nice logos, ice rinks with logos, facepacks, etc.. for the demo.


Todd

The America release of EHM will contain updated rules and other code changes as well as a roster update, its being released considerably after the release of the European game so is really an EHM2.25 or something silly (basically if we've done improvements it doesn't make sense not to include them if we're doing a new game release in America) - hence that version will be charged for (at a lesser amount) if people who have the digital version of EHM2 want to upgrade.

I'm really slow, cause I'm still a bit confused about this... What exactly will the Europeans and Downloaders be paying for, since I'm assuming they'll be able to download the regular patches for free?

The America release of EHM will contain updated rules and other code changes

That's what you are paying for, not the roster updates.

PS> If you haven't got it already then amazon.co.uk (and can get delivery to you) is charging a whopping £8.96 for the original version of EHM now that the new ones about to come out ...

(I'm afraid amazon.com don't have it discounted in the same manner, sorry)

PS> If you haven't got it already then amazon.co.uk (and can get delivery to you) is charging a whopping £8.96 for the original version of EHM now that the new ones about to come out ...

(I'm afraid amazon.com don't have it discounted in the same manner, sorry)

why would anyone want the old version, when the new one is around the corner and its much better. :)

Marc

thanks

i am also confused.

for us americans living in the states

if i download the new EHM2 when it comes out in may release day, will i get the free updates, patch, roster update for free in the future? if it a reduced price for future upgrade if you got the download EHM 2, then i guess it wont make sense to get it. why be charge for a reduced price?

but why european can download the new release when it comes out and get free upgrades, patches, roster updates in the future?

If so i will wait for the american release to come out in the united states and buy EHM2 here. i just hope it comes to the stores. it was so hard to find it at best Buy, circuit city, fry's, etc last year.

thanks

No people won't be charged for 'roster updates' (if you mean downloading a data update or a patch) and won't be considering doing this for our other games either.

The America release of EHM will contain updated rules and other code changes as well as a roster update, its being released considerably after the release of the European game so is really an EHM2.25 or something silly (basically if we've done improvements it doesn't make sense not to include them if we're doing a new game release in America) - hence that version will be charged for (at a lesser amount) if people who have the digital version of EHM2 want to upgrade.

This has basically come about because of the delay in the American release, hopefully for the year after we can sync all releases to the same timeline (as we do with our football game) and avoid this problem.

Hope this helps,

Marc

I'm sorry Marc but still don't underestand it, so if me being Spanish, buy the downloadable version (lt's say 2.0), when later you will release (let's say 2.25) for the USA, do i need to pay again for the upgrade? it hasn't ever be the case and i think it would be a big mistake from SI to charge for that update. Also what about after (let's say 2.25) if we find bugs and you fix them, who will pay for that update as wont' be the same for usa and euro... i think you shouldn't charge again us europeans for the game update when it's released in USA but to let us upgrade for free for every 2.xxx patch as you have always done it. I
'm sorry as maybe it's me who doesn't underestand this.

The America release of EHM will contain updated rules and other code changes as well as a roster update

Just to clarify that a bit so people don't think that means SI would charge for shuffling a few players around and fixing some bugs:

"Updated rules" doesn't just mean a couple of leagues switching to no-touch icing - it'd encompass something like a new NHL CBA, if one is reached during the summer. That'll obviously require some significant code changes, particularly if it involves, as looks likely, some sort of tortured compromise with a luxury tax and a salary floor/ceiling tied to league revenues. Other leagues - the British ones come to mind - will also be undergoing some significant changes for next year that would have to be reflected.

"Roster update" wouldn't be just moving players from one team to another. It'd include, among other things, new teams, affiliation changes, updated statistics, additional players, rerating of existing players, and updating of the start dates to the 2005-06 season. The research team wouldn't be doing that for free, either, so that's going to cost SI some money to do.

I've also suggested some other things to Riz and Marc Duffy that could be included so people get plenty of value for their upgrade money.

Disclaimer: I don't speak for SI, can't promise anything officially, none of this is final yet, etc., etc. But if I thought the guys were trying to pull something shady, I wouldn't be helping them with it.

Just to clarify that a bit so people don't think that means SI would charge for shuffling a few players around and fixing some bugs:

"Updated rules" doesn't just mean a couple of leagues switching to no-touch icing - it'd encompass something like a new NHL CBA, if one is reached during the summer. That'll obviously require some significant code changes, particularly if it involves, as looks likely, some sort of tortured compromise with a luxury tax and a salary floor/ceiling tied to league revenues. Other leagues - the British ones come to mind - will also be undergoing some significant changes for next year that would have to be reflected.

"Roster update" wouldn't be just moving players from one team to another. It'd include, among other things, new teams, affiliation changes, updated statistics, additional players, rerating of existing players, and updating of the start dates to the 2005-06 season. The research team wouldn't be doing that for free, either, so that's going to cost SI some money to do.

I've also suggested some other things to Riz and Marc Duffy that could be included so people get plenty of value for their upgrade money.

Disclaimer: I don't speak for SI, can't promise anything officially, none of this is final yet, etc., etc. But if I thought the guys were trying to pull something shady, I wouldn't be helping them with it.
I guess the logical question is whether this EHM 2.25 including all these "Updated Rules" and "Roster Updates" and the like will be available to European customers who bought the initial downloadable or box version (and US customers who bought the initial download version) via downloadable patches? Or will the only way to get these "updates" be by buying the US EHM 2.25 game?

I think that's the real question.

I guess the logical question is whether this EHM 2.25 including all these "Updated Rules" and "Roster Updates" and the like will be available to European customers who bought the initial downloadable or box version (and US customers who bought the initial download version) via downloadable patches? Or will the only way to get these "updates" be by buying the US EHM 2.25 game?

The idea, as Miles set it out, would be to have the big update available to European and download customers for a nominal price.

And there'll be bug-fixing patches between the release version of the game and that "2.25" update. No one is going to have to pay for a critical bug, if there are any, to be fixed.

I guess the logical question is whether this EHM 2.25 including all these "Updated Rules" and "Roster Updates" and the like will be available to European customers who bought the initial downloadable or box version (and US customers who bought the initial download version) via downloadable patches? Or will the only way to get these "updates" be by buying the US EHM 2.25 game?

I think that's the real question.

if you download it, and there going to charge for a reduce price for updates rule and roster update. then i am not sure if i will purchase the game by downloading it.

i just wait for it to hit the US stores. and i hope after i purchase the game in the US store, that any future patches, update roster and update rules, we dont get charge for a reduced price to download it.

it makes no sense for them to charge customers for a reduced price for updates rule, patches, roster updates, etc.

My guess (just a guess) would be that you would be paying a small price to have a hard copy (a CD) of the game in its most recent form (A CD that has version 2.25 (or whatever) on it).

The idea, as Miles set it out, would be to have the big update available to European and download customers for a nominal price.

And there'll be bug-fixing patches between the release version of the game and that "2.25" update. No one is going to have to pay for a critical bug, if there are any, to be fixed.
Thanks, Jeff. Sounds reasonable enough.

The idea, as Miles set it out, would be to have the big update available to European and download customers for a nominal price.

And there'll be bug-fixing patches between the release version of the game and that "2.25" update. No one is going to have to pay for a critical bug, if there are any, to be fixed.

so if you want to save money, best to wait and get the US version that hits the store later on.

compare to paying and getting the download version and then pay again at a reduce price to get the 2.25 update.

so if you want to save money, best to wait and get the US version that hits the store later on.

compare to paying and getting the download version and then pay again at a reduce price to get the 2.25 update.
I reckon you'd save a little bit of money, but you'd have to wait until September or so to play the game. I guess, like all games really, you just have to figure out whether you feel like paying extra to play now or waiting a while for the "price to go down" as it were.

so if you want to save money, best to wait and get the US version that hits the store later on.

compare to paying and getting the download version and then pay again at a reduce price to get the 2.25 update.

I've got no say at all in it, but if it was me making the pricing decision I'd set the upgrade price to be comparable to the difference between whatever the download version costs and the suggested retail price of the North American release.

It's definitely not as if they're going to charge another thirty bucks for the upgrade - the phrase Miles used was "very cheap", which to me implies a small fraction of the price of the complete game.

I'd really like to know what this "nominal price" will be so that I can make a better judgement about what to do. If it's going to be like $10-$20 then fine I'll get the downloadable version and pay for the update... but if it's going to be more than that I'll probably wait.

Okay, its a bit late here and I'm tired so I won't go into a too long of a post, plus I'm just a humble developer and know not too much about the fine details of the publishing plans and business models... But to keep it simple:

You won't be paying anything for normal patches as they appear after the release. Everything is like before and we continue to support the game post-release as per usual free of charge. So I'm not sure where this idea came from ?

What Miles is talking about is that in case we don't get the boxed version of NHL EHM 2005 (the version based on 2004/05 season and released in Europe this month) into retail in NA at the same time as Europe, then it will still be available as a digital download version. Then, we'd continue supporting the current version over the summer as usual with above mentioned free patches made available as deemed necessary. But also, aside from just supporting the 2004/05 version, we'd work with our research team over the summer months to update the game and the database based on the upcoming 2005/06 season rules/structures and rosters as well as naturally making the new game start from the new season and maybe chipping in with a few new features as well. So in a way it would be a "season update" in relation to the current NHL EHM 2005 we have just completed. For North American retail, it would be the next full boxed version of NHL EHM since the first one, hence a normal price tag. For digital download customers, it would just be a cheap season update and the same for owners of the european boxed version. Now as Miles said, these are only plans and nothing has been set in stone about when the NA release will happen yet. I believe there will be some meetings about this during E3 next week so we'll know more about this after that.

And again, after this release the game would enjoy the usual post-release support with patches/updates free of charge as per norm.

As for this bit:
and i hope after i purchase the game in the US store, that any future patches, update roster and update rules, we dont get charge for a reduced price to download it.

Patches are always free as per usual. Roster updates are a possibility during the season featured in the game, but I cannot make any promises on those. But updating league rules for free ? As nice and exciting as it sounds to a text-sim player to have a game where you'd just buy it once and get league rules and rosters updated every new season for free, it just ain't going to happen with a commercial game. The development is not just about coding new features into the game but also maintaining and updating all the league rules. It may be different when a game features just one league like the NHL and the rules stay 99% the same for most of the time from season to season. But just look at even leagues like the AHL or ECHL not to mention a host of European leagues. The league formats and rules change almost yearly and changing them is in most cases not just a one-line change but might require new code and as usual some extensive testing as well. And it all takes time to do and time costs money as they say. So updating all the leagues in the game to the new season as well as doing the additional research to update the database means spending time and money on development. Which in turn means that providing an update like that would have to have a small price tag on it to cover the costs. Just because a game goes out of sync with real life league rules after a certain time when the next real life season starts, does not mean it then somehow becomes a bug that the game has different rules. And it certainly does not mean that the developers then need to fix this "bug" by updating the game with the new league rules and basically giving out a free new version of the game.

Hope this clears it up a bit as well :D

Riz

the gold demo is great.is there a manaul to download. i very new to EHM and SI games, so i been mainly lost, just clicking on a lot of things.

i hope when final release is out, there a very detailed manual out. it will be very helpful for us newbies.

thanks

There will be a very good (imho) manual distributed with the game - but we haven't distributed one with the demo I'm afraid.

Hmm.. wouldn't the most reasonable thing (to loyal customers) be to release the 2.25 as a downloadable patch in case you've already bought the game, while the version in the stores in the US will be 2.25 "on disc"..

It feels a bit weird to buy version 2.0 in may, and then have to pay for the upgrade (no matter how small a fee) in September/October.

Edit: read through Riz post more thoroughly.. well I would probably consider not buying version 2.0 and wait for 2.25 rather than pay lets say, €40 for 2.0 then $19.95 (or whatever) for the upgrade, instead of "just" €40 for a game a few months later.

Riz

viewing the game part is great. i have it on very slow for commentary and clock. and it seems the text is a little too fast still

any way you guys can make it more slower when you have it set very low when final release comes.

thanks

Hmm.. wouldn't the most reasonable thing (to loyal customers) be to release the 2.25 as a downloadable patch in case you've already bought the game, while the version in the stores in the US will be 2.25 "on disc"..
Our policy has always been to support our games to the best of our abilities and to release any patches etc. free of charge.

Any seasonal updates (ie. changes in start season) have always been a new version and thus charged for.

The American release will update the start year and incorporate any rule changes which have happened, contain a data update and other improvements - as such we will be charging a reduced amount for people who've already purchased the European release version via. digital download.

The reason for this happening as a 'once off' is that the American and European version releases are 'out of sync' and we don't simply want to release an 'out of date' game when its released in America.

This sync problem is something we'll be rectifying for future years releases.

The reason that a price hasn't been released for the 'upgrade' is simply that the bods in business suits haven't thrashed that side of things out - I'd expect it to be a fairly low price and obviously when it is finalised we'll let everyone know.

Just received the following e-mail from Gameplay:

Dear Honolulu_Blue,

We are pleased to inform you that your order for has been dispatched by our team in Leeds.

Thank you very much for ordering from us here at gameplay, you should receive your package in None. The release date for Eastside Hockey Manager 2005 is 27/05/2005.

This dispatch contains the following:

Eastside Hockey Manager 2005


Good times!

i want a dynasty! at least until the download is ready

wont be picking it up....the whole pay twice thing, rubbed me the wrong way...havent even tried the demo.......just not really impressed with what ive read i guess

wont be picking it up....the whole pay twice thing, rubbed me the wrong way...havent even tried the demo.......just not really impressed with what ive read i guess

That's a shame :(

Especially since there has never been anything coming from us indicating that someone would have to pay twice for the same game. As a fairly normal PC/Mac game, NHL EHM 2005 is priced in european retail pretty much like any other title, usually even a bit cheaper. Digital download is in the plans and we are aiming to get the system finished within a week or two of the european retail release so we can have the game available for purchase online. As for the NA retail release, it will be later in the year with prices etc. most likely in line with the european style, ie. a bit cheaper than your average PC game. So I'm not sure where this big issue of somehow having to pay twice actually comes from.

And I'd encourage you to try the demo to give it a whirl rather than listening to rumors and rantings on messageboards about issues that are not even connected to the actual gameplay and content of the game ;)

Then on to some brighter news, the official ECHL website has also run a story of the new game with some nice comments from the bigshots over at ECHL and PHPA:

http://www.echl.com/cgi-bin/mpublic.cgi?action=show_news&cat=1&id=4765

Enjoy :D

So far from what I've seen of the demo, this game is an improvement over EHM.

I also might have agreed with your stand on "charging twice", but only if you think of the 2.25 version as a patch. In reality, it's an expansion, which I would expect to pay for.

Will I wait? Probably, but not because of the expansion. It's because I like having a CD in case my computer goes kaput.
That's why I'm ordering it from gameplay. Get it early and get a CD!

wont be picking it up....the whole pay twice thing, rubbed me the wrong way...havent even tried the demo.......just not really impressed with what ive read i guess


So far from what I've seen of the demo, this game is an improvement over EHM.

I also might have agreed with your stand on "charging twice", but only if you think of the 2.25 version as a patch. In reality, it's an expansion, which I would expect to pay for.

Will I wait? Probably, but not because of the expansion. It's because I like having a CD in case my computer goes kaput.

So I'm not sure where this big issue of somehow having to pay twice actually comes from. Come on, riz. You know what he's talking about.

EDIT: And I'm anxiously awaiting the download option for the game.

I'm with HB. Just got my shipping confirmation. I want it on CD and I want it so I can play over the summer.

I would try the demo, but i really have no interest in trying it.....Right now, I dont really care if it is an improvement.....I dont own that many games though, and for the most part, if i buy a game one year, i probably wont buy the next version of it......I also felt I made a mistake buying last years version....It was ok, but it got too easy, to quickly...what I mean buy that is playing with the leafs, i could pretty much get any player via free agency i wanted, and eventually, had too much damn talent....when that happens, its not fun for me.......im also not in the mood to pay 50 bucks canadian for any computer game(probably why i dont have many)....expansion or not.....(I would not pay for an expansion of any game)

At one point, ya, i may decided i want to take a look at it.....I know im a hockey guy, and im exactly the type of customer SI needs and wants to buy the game in north america, but nothing makes me want to even try it at this point......

To be honest, the original EHM still is more fun then last years version

Well, I'll be buying the download version if it's available on Friday. I'm not a hockey fan like Johnny93g is, but I actually did try the demo and found it to be loads of fun. Of course, I probably have spent more money on games in the last 2 weeks than Johnny did in the last 2 years from the sounds of it. :D

riz,

Great job and I hope you become a rich man from the release (but not too rich so we get a version next year! ;))

B

Sorry guys. I will have to wait until September and a new computer to buy your game.

I WANT IT NOW. :D

I don't buy many games either Johnny. It's expensive. Including shipping from the UK, EHM 2005 costs $69.35 CDN. When it gets here, I'll probably have to also pay $7-$10 in customs fees. That is one of the main reasons why I didn't purchase FM.

The only difference between you and me is that I really like what I'm seeing from EHM.

I'm not too pleased with the staggered release but there's not much you can do. It's very unlikely I'll be purchasing the September version unless there are major bugs in the May version that aren't address and/or the new CBA is done and implemented in the September version. It will still have to be much less that what I'm paying now.

I don't buy many games either Johnny. It's expensive. Including shipping from the UK, EHM 2005 costs $69.35 CDN. When it gets here, I'll probably have to also pay $7-$10 in customs fees. That is one of the main reasons why I didn't purchase FM.

The only difference between you and me is that I really like what I'm seeing from EHM.

I'm not too pleased with the staggered release but there's not much you can do. It's very unlikely I'll be purchasing the September version unless there are major bugs in the May version that aren't address and/or the new CBA is done and implemented in the September version. It will still have to be much less that what I'm paying now.

There isnt a game in the world i would pay 70 bucks for.....but thats just me.....I dont own any consoles, i dont have many games for my comp....just the 2 ehm's, Fof 2004, Ootp6 which i paid the 19.99 for.....Madden 2005, and NHL 2004...Thats it......IT kind of bugs me that im not interested in this game......Im a hockey fan, well aware of the text sim genre, and blah......maybe its the lockout, as i type this, im loading up my rimouski career i had going in NHL EHM, which i got bored of after 2 seasons.....so maybe that will rekindle me...until then, im expecting a dynasty from you.....full with Leaf updates :p

edit: I forgot to mention i also have TDCB, and the original TPB, but they have been retired

There isnt a game in the world i would pay 70 bucks for.....but thats just me.....I dont own any consoles, i dont have many games for my comp....just the 2 ehm's, Fof 2004, Ootp6 which i paid the 19.99 for.....Madden 2005, and NHL 2004...Thats it......IT kind of bugs me that im not interested in this game......Im a hockey fan, well aware of the text sim genre, and blah......maybe its the lockout, as i type this, im loading up my rimouski career i had going in NHL EHM, which i got bored of after 2 seasons.....so maybe that will rekindle me...until then, im expecting a dynasty from you.....full with Leaf updates :p

edit: I forgot to mention i also have TDCB, and the original TPB, but they have been retired

You don't "have to" pay 70 bucks for a game. It's just a choice some people have made when they want to especially import it all the way over the Atlantic to get they european boxed copy. I'd face the same choice myself if I wanted to get something released earlier in NA, either pay extra to get it imported right now or wait it out until I can have it at my local store (or alternatively go for a digital download version). It's a sad fact for both our NA customers and ourselves that we could not get a worldwide retail release with a decent distribution over the NA at the same time as the euro-release but I simply cannot help it myself at this point :(

And as for the "pay twice for the same game" point being a something of an issue. There have only been some early plans that Miles has talked about and nothing has been set in stone about pricing etc. regarding future (NA) versions of the game. And even in his plans, it was never suggested that we'd ever make people pay twice for the same product or a simple roster update. Why would we ? We're not an evil empire of some sorts. All I can say is that at the end of the day once all the NA stuff has been sorted out, I'm not expecting people to be out to lynch us. Well, atleast I hope they won't :p

As for the digital download version, we are still finalizing the system to be used with this version, so it will most likely be available within one or two weeks of the european retail release. This is because of the feedback received last year and the need to try out different systems to find one that suits our needs and your needs in the best possible manner. But we'll get this one done as soon as we can as well.

I got my shipping notification from cdon.se yesterday.. packages usually only take one day to arrive.. mebbe mebbe mebbe I'll have it a day early.. mebbe mebbe I'll have to take tomorrow off.. mebbe..

Looking forward to the downloadable version...

fwiw, I paid what came to 68$ cdn for my copy of FM2005 and I've now logged 17 days and 5 hours of playing time on my one career. Let's say about 10% of that time is idle time when the game was loaded but I was attending to something else in the house, okay, that is still about 370 hours of playing time with that game. 68/370 = 18.4 cents per hour. I think it was a great buy. Especially if I compare to the less than 20 hours I spent with ITP, which I played $20 US, or say about 25 cdn, which looked like an amazing price at the time, but came out to over a buck per hour of play...

It's all about how much you want it and what you're getting in return. If you still like last year's version and feel like skipping a year, I'd say it's okay too :)

FM

I don't buy many games either Johnny. It's expensive. Including shipping from the UK, EHM 2005 costs $69.35 CDN. When it gets here, I'll probably have to also pay $7-$10 in customs fees. That is one of the main reasons why I didn't purchase FM.

Don't know why, but when my copy of FM2005 came in the mail last November, I didn't have to pay any customs fees, it simply came to the mailbox, nothing to sign. Had ordered it from gameplay.co.uk... Good luck with that, customs fees suck!

FM

Don't know why, but when my copy of FM2005 came in the mail last November, I didn't have to pay any customs fees, it simply came to the mailbox, nothing to sign. Had ordered it from gameplay.co.uk... Good luck with that, customs fees suck!

FM
Custom fees do suck. I had to pay a ton to get my 24 cans of Caffrey's into the US from UK exporter direct.....

Customs can be a pain sometimes. Especially if there is a strike of some sort. Last year there was a strike in Canada and some of the gameplay orders going to specific regions in Canada got stuck in customs for longer periods due to the strike.

Any word on when the downloadable version will be available? Any chance that it'll be before the weekend? Ideally, I'd like to spend most of my weekend playing this game. Just curious.

As for the digital download version, we are still finalizing the system to be used with this version, so it will most likely be available within one or two weeks of the european retail release. This is because of the feedback received last year and the need to try out different systems to find one that suits our needs and your needs in the best possible manner. But we'll get this one done as soon as we can as well.

This was posted this morning Pumpy. I doubt there will be anything updated beyond that until it's ready.

This was posted this morning Pumpy. I doubt there will be anything updated beyond that until it's ready.
Oops. Missed that. I guess I'll be ordering a boxed copy from Europe, then. Thanks!

I just ordered from Gameplay. I gather that I'll probably have it in a little over a week. I've never ordered from them before. I used the standard delivery since I'm not home during the day to sign for a package. Now I'll just have to wait patiently. :)

I just ordered from Gameplay. I gather that I'll probably have it in a little over a week. I've never ordered from them before. I used the standard delivery since I'm not home during the day to sign for a package. Now I'll just have to wait patiently. :)
fwiw, standard shipping took 13 days to get to me in Quebec City. Ordered on Nov 2, got to me on Nov 15. Gotta say November 15 is a Monday and we don't have Saturday delivery, so it could have been as early as 11 days... Good luck with your shipping! :)

FM

I've ordered CM/FM and last year's NHL:EHM from Gameplay. I'm not sure there is much difference between regular shipping and express shipping for us on this side of the Atlantic. Most of my packages from them took about 10-14 days to arrive here in Seattle. People on the east coast seemed to get their packages a day or two earlier.

All that being said, I think I'm going to wait a couple weeks and see if GoGamer puts it up on their site. I got a response back from them from my inquiry into whether they were going to have the game this year or not. They said that if they were going to have it, they would probably have it by the first week in June. I can get it from CA in about 2-3 days and it's the same game.

Oops. I could've just waited for the downloadable version, then. Well, no matter. I'll have it eventually. I just have to figure out what I'm going to play until it gets here.

By the way in case you all aren't aware SortitoutSI (http://www.sortitoutsi.net) who do skins and suchlike for Football Manager have now started supporting EHM and our other forthcoming products (ie. OOTP).

There are a host of face-packs, rink graphics and that kicking around on that site for the original version of EHM and also a fair few for the new one which people have made for the demo ..

Hope this helps,

Marc

My copy was on the doormat when I came home from work :)

Everything looks good, but I did encounter a weird bug. Crashed to desktop just before training camp, but I think it had to do with the screen where I set my "Team Needs".

I originally had it set that I was looking for a center and a defenseman. However, after a few days where I had invited players to camp, signed a few FAs etc, I was going to "continue" on to the next day. But all of a sudden I kept being thrown back to the Team Needs screen.

I then noticed that ooops, while my needs were checked, the actual positions I needed had been reset. So I ticked off the first need, then the second and boom, as I ticked off the final need I crashed to desktop...

You SI-guys recognize this?

Getting excited...

Minstrel's skins rock. He has one customized for every NHL team. It was head over heels better that last year's default skins.

I then noticed that ooops, while my needs were checked, the actual positions I needed had been reset. So I ticked off the first need, then the second and boom, as I ticked off the final need I crashed to desktop...

You SI-guys recognize this?

That sounds vaguely familiar. I think there were a few rare crash bugs that'll be fixed in the first patch, that may be one of them.

JeffR.. are you the one who made a HNC-skin? sortitoutsi was slow, so I gave up looking for a good skin there, any idea where I might find other neat skin (including the HNC one)?

There isnt a game in the world i would pay 70 bucks for....

Heh...I just shelled out $85 for War in the Pacific, and there are people on the Matrix Games forum saying they'd be willing to pay up to $200 for an enhanced version of it (which would probably be the only economical price to release it at, since the user base is so small.)

JeffR.. are you the one who made a HNC-skin? sortitoutsi was slow, so I gave up looking for a good skin there, any idea where I might find other neat skin (including the HNC one)?

Yup, that's me. I'm not sure what's up with their site, it's been unusually slow the last couple of times I've checked it. Try this link (http://www.sortitoutsi.net/getfile.php?action=download&id=3700) to download it without fighting your way through the menus, which should speed the process up.

The other good site for EHM stuff is http://www.eastside-uk.co.uk/, but it hasn't been updated recently - Neil's probably been too busy working on the new editor.

When will I be able to buy this game in a store in the US of A?

When will I be able to buy this game in a store in the US of A?


i sure hope so, last year version was non existent in the US compare to other games. it was very hard to find. i never saw it at Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit city, Walmart, Target, Fry's Etc. and those places carry a lot of computer software.

i sure hope the US release makes it into all those stores like other software does.

When will I be able to buy this game in a store in the US of A?

Early fall, most likely.

Yup, that's me. I'm not sure what's up with their site, it's been unusually slow the last couple of times I've checked it. Try this link (http://www.sortitoutsi.net/getfile.php?action=download&id=3700) to download it without fighting your way through the menus, which should speed the process up.

The other good site for EHM stuff is http://www.eastside-uk.co.uk/, but it hasn't been updated recently - Neil's probably been too busy working on the new editor.


Thanks for the link, but unfortunately the *.skn file seems to be missing from the zip-file.

got no problem with the "pay for the 2.25 update" policy here, if as someone else (MapleLeaf?) said it incorporates the new CBA etc. etc. If it doesn't well then right it probably wouldn't be worth picking up, although I would assume if there is a new CBA that it will pretty much have to be modeled in the game at that point. Other than that, probably waiting for the digital download version because unlike FM this isn't a game where I feel that overwhelming desire to have the CD, as much as it's a game I want to play. FM sometimes I like to have the CD so I can just sit there and look at it...caress it...etc.

Thanks for the link, but unfortunately the *.skn file seems to be missing from the zip-file.

Oops, how'd that happen? I'm surprised nobody else mentioned it yet, the color file is missing, too. Here they are http://members.shaw.ca/jeffrid/HNICcolskn.zip, and I'll get the sortitoutsi file changed, too.

I posted these player development results over on the SI forum, but might as well repeat them here if anyone's curious:

This is how the 2004-05 first-rounders turned out as of 2017 (note that this is a different game than the previous list I did.)

#1 pick - superstar, multiple Hart and Ross trophies
2 - solid #1-2 defenseman, no individual awards but has played in a couple of all-star games
3 - looked average in the early part of his career and had some injury problems, then turned into an elite player after he was traded at 26 - 100+ points the last 2 years
4 - pretty good second liner, reliable scorer but not a star
5 - star, gets 50-60-70 assists per season playing with an 04 pick who's arguably the league's best player
6 - awful his first few seasons after being rushed into the league at 18, then had a 50-point breakout year at 24 and wound up as the winger for the #1 pick mentioned above, where he's been getting 80+ points
7 - struggled, still a 2nd-line player but whenever he puts up a lot of points, his +/- has been awful
8 - a bust, didn't produce in the AHL after leaving junior, still eventually made it to the NHL but has been a career 4th-liner, sits in the press box half the time
9 - 2nd/3rd line forward, although he's coming off a career year (55 points) at 30
10 - good #1 defenseman, was a first team all-star and Norris contender in 2012, but ran into injury trouble the next season and hasn't quite been the same since
11 - solid #1 goalie, not a star but in the upper half of NHL starters
12 - slow, steady progress through his early career, then won the Smythe trophy (and the cup) in 2015 and has been a star since then
13 - 3rd/4th liner most of his career, although he's had more points the last couple of seasons as his team has declined and he took on a bigger role
14 - looked like a bust, up-and-down from the AHL in his early 20's, then finally managed to establish himself as a #5-6 defenseman
15 - journeyman forward, with his 5th NHL team, never broken 20 points
16 - borderline star, but point totals are very inconsistent (ranging from 30's to 70's) from year to year and has been traded twice
17 - 4th liner on bad teams/minor leaguer, was even stuck in the ECHL for a while
18 - looked like a future superstar in his post-draft season, and his rights were traded even-up for an established NHL star, but turned into a massive bust in North America - managed 2 points in 19 AHL games in two years, spent the rest of his time in the ECHL, then went back to Europe where he's been mediocre
19 - an AHL star, has produced when he's gotten a shot at the NHL but defensive liabilities keep him from sticking there permanently
20 - 3rd/4th liner that seemed to fade early and spent his late 20's shuttling between the NHL and AHL before going back to Europe
21 - looked only so-so, developed slowly and was traded twice - then suddenly found himself on Detroit's first line and had a 50-goal year; the Wings were smart and moved him at the deadline next year while his value was still high, and he fell apart after that; back at the 15-goal, 30-point level now.
22 - solid 3rd-liner, dependable for 30+ points a year
23 - goalie, never really established himself in the NHL and wound up back in the AHL after his one season as a (bad) starter, back in Europe now
24 - good AHL player that hasn't been able to progress beyond 3rd/4th line NHL status
25 - bust, had a huge AHL rookie year but wasn't able to repeat that in the NHL, went back to Europe after 36 NHL games in 5 years
26 - complete bust, wasn't even that reliable a scorer at the ECHL level
27 - goalie, paid his dues in the AHL and eventually established himself as a mediocre starter/decent backup at the NHL level
28 - career 4th liner, has only played more than 70 games once but has somehow always avoided being sent to the minors
29 - slow-developer that came on after turning 25 and became a good 2nd liner, although he slipped badly last season
30 - outstanding offensive defenseman, the steal of the first round, reliable 50-60 point guy who's been a 2nd team all-star and Masterton winner

The second round had worse busts than the first, five guys taken in it are no longer playing. No real NHL stars from the late rounds, but a dozen plus guys with solid multiple-year NHL careers, and a goalie taken #153 that's been a 60-70 game guy for the last half-dozen seasons.

Some more numbers, starting with the better late-round picks from 2005-2010. I counted "late round" as anything after the #180 overall pick - based on the research I did last year, that's the point where the likelihood of an extended NHL career gets very rare.

#210 overall, 2005: 281 career NHL games, reliable two-way defenseman, Dallas's #4-5 guy the last two years.
222, 2005: 476 NHL games, offensive defenseman, looked like he was going to develop into a 30-40 point guy but tailed off after a 31-point year at 25
182, 2006: 293 NHL games, very defense-oriented defenseman, #6 guy for Colorado
225, 2006: 439 NHL games, good college forward that somehow slipped way down in the draft, developed into a decent 2nd-3rd line player
247, 2006: 493 NHL games, defensive defenseman, Flyers' #5-6 guy for several seasons
227, 2007: 277 NHL games, defensive defenseman with some offensive skills, #4-5 guy for Phoenix
233, 2007: 259 NHL games, big two-way defenseman and a huge hitter, slow to develop but has turned into a #2-3 guy with the Leafs
245, 2007: 472 NHL games, 4th line checker/grinderwho's on his 7th NHL team, but somehow manages to stay in the league
228, 2008: 466 NHL games, big 3rd line shutdown guy who has some playmaking skills, came over to Canada after being selected by the Leafs and wound up being WHL MVP in his final year and going straight to the NHL after that
185, 2009: 229 NHL games, forward who was up-and-down from the AHL in his first two pro seasons, then stuck and had a 20-goal, 40-point year, hasn't repeated that but still a decent 3rd liner
246, 2009: hasn't played in the NHL, possibly because he's making more money in the Swiss league than he would on a 2-way contract with Nashville, but is one of the best defensemen in Europe - all-star at the 2015 World Championships, 38 international games played for Switzerland
183, 2010: 108 NHL games, utility D/RW who'd been back-and-forth between the NHL and AHL until the Canucks made him a full-time defenseman, after which he put up 36 points in his first full NHL season
251, 2010: 60 NHL games, 25-year-old rookie surprise in 2016-17 after being signed by Montreal as a UFA - had been buried in the ECHL for three years by Detroit, who signed him after Nashville didn't offer him a contract coming out of junior
266, 2010: 169 NHL games, huge scorer in the lower Czech leagues who didn't come to North America until he was 22, then made the Ducks out of training camp...big guy who's turned into an effective 3rd-line checker in the NHL

Origins of the top 10 scorers and top 5 starting goalies (by save %) in 2016-17:

1. Drafted in 2004, starts the game in Europe
2. Drafted in 2005, starts the game in Canadian Major Junior
3. Drafted in 2003, starts the game in US college
4. Drafted in 2007, starts the game in Canadian Major Junior
5. Drafted in 2005, starts the game in Europe
6. Drafted in 2009, starts the game in Canadian midgets
7. Drafted in 2001, starts the game in NHL
8. Drafted in 2004, starts the game in Europe
9. Drafted in 2001, starts the game in NHL
10. Drafted in 2011, regenerated player

(that's a little misleading as to how well the regens turn out - 5 of the #11-20 guys were regens)

1. Drafted in 2003, starts the game in Canadian Major Junior
2. Drafted in 2000, starts the game in Europe
3. Drafted in 2007, starts the game in Canadian Junior A
4. Drafted in 1995, starts the game in NHL
5. Drafted in 1994, starts the game in NHL

Nice balance between existing NHL players and young guys/regens - most of the guys who are stars in 2004-05 are retired or declining 35-40-year-olds by 2017. The NHL isn't dominated by current superstars as long as in last year's version of the game.

And finally, the draft positions of the top 10 rookie goalies and top 5 scorers from 2016-17:

Scorers:
1. 94th overall, 2013.
2. 11th, 2014.
3. 2nd, 2015.
4. 16th, 2013.
5. 37th, 2013.
6. 3rd, 2016.
7. 13th, 2016.
8. 29th, 2009.
9. 54th, 2013.
10. 19th, 2014.

Goalies:
1. 50th, 2014.
2. 13th, 2012.
3. 109th, 2013.
4. 15th, 2010.
5. 86th, 2014.

I'm pretty happy with this - neither list is dominated by top-10 picks. Looking through the NHL rookies-of-the-year for the last 10 years, I see pretty much the same thing - high picks mixed with some 3rd/4th rounders.

I posted these player development results over on the SI forum, but might as well repeat them here if anyone's curious:

This is how the 2004-05 first-rounders turned out as of 2017 (note that this is a different game than the previous list I did.)....


You gotta love these reports JeffR comes up with :D Good stuff !

Maybe there is a subtle hint for a possible new future feature hidden in all this ?

Maybe there is a subtle hint for a possible new future feature hidden in all this ?
Getting really excited now after that report...

As for a future feature, how about draft screens like:
http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/draft/nhl1995e.html

Getting really excited now after that report...

As for a future feature, how about draft screens like:
http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/draft/nhl1995e.html
Sure. Bring up the Steve Kelly over Shane Doan pick. You couldn't pick another year? Why do you have to hurt me so? :p

Sure. Bring up the Steve Kelly over Shane Doan pick. You couldn't pick another year? Why do you have to hurt me so? :p What you meant to say was Steve Kelly over Shane Doan, Jarome Iginla and Petr Sykora. http://dynamic.gamespy.com/%7Efof/forums/images/smilies/wink.gif

Boy the Caps sure had a shitty draft that year.

Sure. Bring up the Steve Kelly over Shane Doan pick. You couldn't pick another year? Why do you have to hurt me so? :p

You can already see the past drafts in the game to check lists like this (except for Team Drafted From and the NHL totals but these two are on my list for future versions as well).

6. Drafted in 2009, starts the game in Canadian midgets

I didn't even know little people played hockey! That's awesome that you include their league and everything...

:D

The first patch is already out...

how are the initial "playable" impressions. not the #'s really, but how does the game "play" ? and yes i've checked out the demo, just want to hear impressions from someone who has gone further into the game

yep

what your guys initial impression so far with the new final release and latest patch for it?

Changes since v2.0.0

News

Fixed problem where player who won an award in a league he was assigned to, spoke out to thank the wrong GM
Fixed AHL trade deadline/roster freeze news item texts~
Fixed World Junior Championship news item error
Fixed duplicate news items about a player's availability on the trading block/in the transfer market

Screens

Added "Inf" (player status) column to training camp screen
"Wvr" status now doesn't show on the waiver wire screen, since all players have this status set
Fixed an incorrect tooltip on the player instructions popup in the tactics screen
Fixed incorrect player biography text on draft screen coach/scout/assistant reccomendations
Fixed two-line pass text error on league info screen
Fixed penalty shoot-out selections for farm teams so players not contracted to the team but playing there can be selected
Fixed +/- buttons being disabled in the "Practice Area" of the Practice screen when they shouldn't be
Players on level points should be sorted by the goals scored (comp stats)
Fixed default physio on request physio report screen
Fixed stat totals in the player biography for players who are farmed out to an affiliate/junior team

Trades/Transfers

Fixed trades where rights were traded to a player on training camp
Tuned fringe NHL player interest in preferring European Elite leagues instead of the farm leagues
Tweaked language barriers in player/non-player interests
Tweaked ECHL roster planning for AI teams with affiliations
Fixed the signing of players between teams who have a junior affiliation between them to work properly
Fixed a problem where players with Canadian nationality thought that people in the USA spoke a different language(and vice versa)
Fixed a problem at game startup with the date of first NHL contracts for players, which caused some players wrongly to be exempt from waiver draft
Tweaked qualifying offers for youngish fringe players
Fixed players staying available for farm team tactics once loaned/traded away by the parent team
Tweaked drafting to better consider current prospect pool on the basis of players for each position
Fixed minor league assignments so players with no background from major junior/ jrA hockey can be sent to minor leagues even while under 20 and with CHL rights (the case of Ryan Suter for example)
Tweaked roster management for NHL teams
Fixed NHL games counted for waivers in certain cases
Fixed player stats bug, where stats were cleared when someone went back to an affiliate team when he was loaded to another team

Match Engine

Tuned scoring and penalties over all the leagues

Competitions

Fixed incorrect League dropdown button on Danish Cup screen
Tweaked DEL game dates
Tweaked suspension lenghts
Fixed Euro Hockey Tour game dates
Fixed International breaks' dates
Tweaked the number of game misconducts given in Slovakian league
Fixed World Championship Qualification Group player stats not added to total points
Fixed DEL play offs format

Other

Printouts now don't have an underscore instead of a ™ symbol
Fixed competition record configs for non-English languages
Fixed tournament based management jobs to be assigned earlier in advance of the games
Fixed problem where players got the same second nationality as their first nationality


As for comments of the gameplay, here's something from someone in Sweden who picked up the game yesterday:


i am "lucky" enough to live in europe and picked up my copy of NHL Eastside hockey manager 2005. I think it is a great improvment on a game that gae me hours and hours of enjoyment the first time around. Tons of improvments but for me the best is the new scouting reports and team report feature.


And another comment:

Pretty impressed to now. Been playing around about 3 different games. Won the World Cup with the US in the first. Played with the Preds the last two. They're too damn tight with budgets and left me with no one to sign after I re-upped Erat and Hall. Made a mistake of not bringing in my AHL/prospect guys to training camp, but somehow was able to sign Peter Bondra. Anyway I restarted that game just played the first of my original game beating the Wild 3-1. The newspaper thingy predict me to finish second to last. After I play a season or two I might try and play with the Caps and tank the first season to get Sidney and Ovechkin on the same team. ::drools::

Early comments seem to be pretty positive and I haven't seen much complaints about the new and improved interface, so I can only assume we have gone into the right direction :D

Must... have... patience.

must....digitally...download...soon

Must... have... patience.
Me too.

must....digitally...download...soon
Can't... digitally... download... yet.

You know... I was using the config cheat with last year's version because of the lack of AHL and ECHL licenses. Even though we won't have the NCAA players, I don't think I'll miss it too much. The players are there on NCAA teams just with different names.

The 'real' AHL and ECHL is just a huge coup, even if they weren't playable.

You know... I was using the config cheat with last year's version because of the lack of AHL and ECHL licenses. Even though we won't have the NCAA players, I don't think I'll miss it too much. The players are there on NCAA teams just with different names.

The 'real' AHL and ECHL is just a huge coup, even if they weren't playable.

AHL and ECHL are now playable, you knew that right ?

There is an 3rd party editor in the works and a couple of other fan-projects as well to make new custom rosters with real college players etc.

AHL and ECHL are now playable, you knew that right ?

There is an 3rd party editor in the works and a couple of other fan-projects as well to make new custom rosters with real college players etc.
I know they're playable. I meant to say just having the real leagues in the game is a huge step forward, even if they weren't playable.

Thanks for the info on the fan project. I'll keep my eyes open for that.

With Memorial Day gone, hopefully those of us on this side of the pond will be getting copies shortly.

Just a bump to see if when people start receiving...

Just got back to my desk at work to find my brand new copy of EHM 2005.

Not only that but my order of "Preacher" graphic novels (vols. 4-6) arrived from Amazon right at the same time. Today is a good day.

Great! I'm hoping by Friday it makes it way west...

Mine was shipped on Thursday, I think. It would be a minor miracle if I had it on Wednesday, but I'm still hoping. I have big plans for the Devils. Step one: Trade Colin White. Step two: Invite Adam Edinger to my training camp. I'm sure almost nobody knows Adam Edinger, but he was one of my favorite players with the New Orleans Brass when that team was around. After a year or two in the ECHL, he got called up to the AHL and played for the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks. I hear that he has since retired to enjoy married life, but he's in the EHM 2005 demo database, and I want to give virtual Adam the NHL glory that the real Adam never experienced.

I am such a goober. :(

HB: Thoughts?!?!

Just got back to my desk at work to find my brand new copy of EHM 2005.

Not only that but my order of "Preacher" graphic novels (vols. 4-6) arrived from Amazon right at the same time. Today is a good day.

Prearcher rocks - I've pretty much read them all :D

HB: Thoughts?!?!
Heh! Sorry, RPI. Between work and the Pistons' game I wasn't really able to crack into things. I basically installed it and the patch. I may sneak an hour or two in today at work (shhhh!). I'll keep y'all posted.

Prearcher rocks - I've pretty much read them all :D
I just started reading a few weeks back and it indeed rocks. I've had them sitting on my shelf for a few months now and following got around to them. I have volumes 7-9 in waiting.

I have to control the comic book flow into the house or Lady HB will start going down the "More comic books? What the hell? You're 31 years old, why not try reading a real book once in a while?" route. Then again, to her credit, she has tried to read a few and really liked Alan Moore's "Top Ten". Preacher, however, I don't think she'll get into. She flipped open one volume and just so happened to be the issue where Jesse, Cassidy, and Tulip crash Jesus de Sade's party. 'Nuff said.

I just started reading a few weeks back and it indeed rocks. I've had them sitting on my shelf for a few months now and following got around to them. I have volumes 7-9 in waiting.

I have to control the comic book flow into the house or Lady HB will start going down the "More comic books? What the hell? You're 31 years old, why not try reading a real book once in a while?" route. Then again, to her credit, she has tried to read a few and really liked Alan Moore's "Top Ten". Preacher, however, I don't think she'll get into. She flipped open one volume and just so happened to be the issue where Jesse, Cassidy, and Tulip crash Jesus de Sade's party. 'Nuff said.

Try getting the "Watchmen" or if she's into humour try some of the old 2000AD stuff, DR & Quinch are very funny so long as you can take homicidal alien teenagers in the right vein ;)

The 'Crisis' series which span off from 2000AD was pretty good if you like political satire, but they're getting fairly rare on the ground these days.

There are some very good graphic novel adaptations of Terry Pratchett novels kicking around at the moment also, my daughter loves these ...

Try getting the "Watchmen" or if she's into humour try some of the old 2000AD stuff, DR & Quinch are very funny so long as you can take homicidal alien teenagers in the right vein ;)

The 'Crisis' series which span off from 2000AD was pretty good if you like political satire, but they're getting fairly rare on the ground these days.

There are some very good graphic novel adaptations of Terry Pratchett novels kicking around at the moment also, my daughter loves these ...
I have the "Watchmen." I think I have read it once a year or so starting in 1989/90. Still my favorite of all time. All time.

I will certainly look into the other books. I was big into comics during my teens and stopped following them back in the early 90's. Over the last three years I started buying graphic novels and the sort (no time to collect individual issues of books).

The ones I have come across and enjoyed over the last 2-3 years include:
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Top Ten
From Hell
V for Vendetta
(Pretty much anything Alan Moore does)
Raising Stars
Supreme Power
Walking Dead
Preacher
Hellblazer
Sin City
Transmetropolitan
Joss Whedon's X-Men series

Let me know if you have any other reccomendations. I am always on the lookout for new stuff.

I have the "Watchmen." I think I have read it once a year or so starting in 1989/90. Still my favorite of all time. All time.

I will certainly look into the other books. I was big into comics during my teens and stopped following them back in the early 90's. Over the last three years I started buying graphic novels and the sort (no time to collect individual issues of books).

The ones I have come across and enjoyed over the last 2-3 years include:
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Top Ten
From Hell
V for Vendetta
(Pretty much anything Alan Moore does)
Raising Stars
Supreme Power
Walking Dead
Preacher
Hellblazer
Sin City
Transmetropolitan
Joss Whedon's X-Men series

Let me know if you have any other reccomendations. I am always on the lookout for new stuff.
I just finished reading the 3rd Rising Stars volume, finally completing the series that I started reading years ago. Although I felt it was good, I have to say I was very disappointed by volumes 2 and 3. The first volume (issues 1-8) was amazing, just blew me away. Then volume 2 came out and I was disappointed, I just didn't like the direction it took. Volume 3 was a bit better, but still a let down. His time away from the series seemed to be evident, especially with sections where he contradicted things that had happened earlier (like the claim near the end that the specials could not bear children, even though Jason had kids and they had made it clear that the powers simply weren't transferred). Other pieces seemed to be tacked on or wrapped up too quickly.

What were your thoughts on it?

I just finished reading the 3rd Rising Stars volume, finally completing the series that I started reading years ago. Although I felt it was good, I have to say I was very disappointed by volumes 2 and 3. The first volume (issues 1-8) was amazing, just blew me away. Then volume 2 came out and I was disappointed, I just didn't like the direction it took. Volume 3 was a bit better, but still a let down. His time away from the series seemed to be evident, especially with sections where he contradicted things that had happened earlier (like the claim near the end that the specials could not bear children, even though Jason had kids and they had made it clear that the powers simply weren't transferred). Other pieces seemed to be tacked on or wrapped up too quickly.

What were your thoughts on it?
I haven't picked up Vol. 3 yet. But I agree with your thoughts on 1 and 2. Volume one was great. The origin story, the murder mystery, the politics involved, all of it. It was good stuff. Some of the best superhero stories I had read in a long time. Volume 2 did start taking things in a direction that was a bit odd and nowhere near as cool and nuanced as the first volume. I'll be sure to pass on a full review once I pick up volume 3.

Alan Moore is a god.

Watchmen
V for Vendetta (coming soon to a movie theatre near you)

Not to mention the great From Hell book.. much much better than the movie-adaption, which doesn't do Moore's excellent story any justice.

I'm not a great fan of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen though, and the movie-version was absolutely dreadful.

So, how's EHM 2005? :D

So, how's EHM 2005? :D
Thanks for gettin' us back on topic, Sach!

Thanks for gettin' us back on topic, Sach!

Any chance you run a season on holiday mode and let us know how the off-season is working? :D

I'm ready for the download to be available now...thank you.

I'm ready for the download to be available now...thank you.

I hear ya....

Honolulu_Blue

when you get some time can you tell me how the manual that comes with the game is? does it explain everything very well that in the game like tactics, ratings, rules, etc.

or just gives a brief summary only?

Honolulu_Blue

when you get some time can you tell me how the manual that comes with the game is? does it explain everything very well that in the game like tactics, ratings, rules, etc.

or just gives a brief summary only?
JB,

The manual is actual a meaty 58 pages. I think it does a good job explaining tactics and ratings. The ratings sections gives a description of each rating and what that rating is "essental for." I.e., "Anticipation is essential for top sex offencemen/top four d-men. If these key players anticipat situations quickly they can make plays happen."

As far as rules go, the manual really doesn't provide a breakdown of NHL rules (ie, icing is X, slashing is Y, etc.) I think the games assumes a basic understanding of the sport. It does provide some background on transactional rules for the NHL (waivers for example).

I hope this helps.

I would expect this is true:

Anticipation is essential for top sex offencemen

:)

Ok. Enough about comic books... Sorry for that frolick and detour.

More about the game...

Well, if you've played the demo I assume you know about most of the new features such as training camp, assistant GMs, etc. It's all there and it's all good.

I love the new scouting features. Gives you much more control over what your scouts are doing and gives you much more in-depth analysis of players you're looking at. I have always wanted to be able to scout for a specific position (more so in FM than EHM), but I love the option.

The game still runs very fast. I love this. Much faster in all respects than the previous version.

I started a career with the Capitols. I decided that since I am living here, I might as well get more familiar with the team and playing the Wings (with their massive budget) was a bit too easy. Also, the prospect of playing with Ovechkin was too hard to pass up.

I have simmed through about a month or so of gameplay. Actually it's early November, I have played 13 games. All seems well.

There has been a lot of trade activitiy going on. There have been a whopping 19 trades since the season began in October. From what I can see, even though it's early in the season, it looks like teams with little prospect of competing are already begining to dump proven vets with larger salaries for prospects/younger players. For example,

New Jersey traded 23 yr. old Paul Martin to San Jose for Ozolinsh

Pitt traded Dicky Transtrom to Dallas for a 19 yr. old prospect

Detroit traded 20 yr. old Jiri Hulder to Atlanta for D-man Daniel Tarnquivst

Chicago traded Bryan Berard to Boston for 19 yr. old Patrice Bergeron

Not sure what I think about each of the trades above (except for the Boston deal, this is crappy trade for Boston), but I like what I am seeing. I assume as the tradeline gets closer we will be seeing A LOT more of these types of deals. I think this is good for the most part. It definitely was the trend in the NHL for the last few years.

Pretty much all of the decent free agents that start the game (and there are quite a few), have been snatched up. The sim engine is great. Goal scoring seems a bit down from last year's version, though it could just be that my team really sucks.

At RPI's request, I will start another career this morning/afternoon, go on vacation, and test the off-season and run through the draft.

For those of you that have been patiently (like me) waiting for GoGamer.com to get this game, today is your lucky day. Just posted today for $49.90. And with two-day shipping... :D

hmm... Marc or riz...any chance the download will be available before Monday? If not, I think I'll go the gogamer route.

Thanks scooter.

The SI folks posted an update on their forums this morning stating that they have found a partner for the digital download, but that they are still working out the particulars and that it probably won't be ready for a couple weeks.

http://community.sigames.com/eve/ubb.x/a/tpc/f/6461934525/m/3752074431

hmm... Marc or riz...any chance the download will be available before Monday? If not, I think I'll go the gogamer route.

Thanks scooter.
Its in the hands of the biz bods ... hopefully they'll sort it sooner rather than later - I'm guessing one to two weeks for an eta hopefully ... would prefer it sooner, but its out of my control I'm afraid.

All right. I started a tester career with the Wings. I played through the pre-season, right up through the waiver draft (I am control freak. I cannot release total control). I sgined some free agents (namely: Kovalev, Lindros, Palffy, Zhitnik.), and MacInnis (just because I could and it makes the St. Louis trio complete: Shanahan, Joseph, and MacInnis, and it would drive virtual primelord insane :D)).

We'll see what happens. More to come...

With Washington, expect atleast a few years of pure sucking. Not much to start with and you cannot build a winning team overnight. I've learned my lessons with the Rangers...just signing some heavy offensive UFA's just won't cut it....hey, isn't that what they tried in real life as well :D

Good to hear you're liking the new stuff.

And if you've not picked this up yet:

NHL EHM 2005 scoops Gamersinfo E3 award

NHL EHM 2005 has been awarded as one of the Gamersinfo E3 Editor's Choice games. Amongst the 28 games selected from the games on show at E3 this year, NHL EHM 2005 was the only sports game to win the award.

Gamersinfo E3 awards:

http://www.gamersinfo.net/content/news.php?id=168

Gamersinfo NHL EHM 2005 E3 preview:

http://www.gamersinfo.net/index.php?art/id:542

With Washington, expect atleast a few years of pure sucking. Not much to start with and you cannot build a winning team overnight. I've learned my lessons with the Rangers...just signing some heavy offensive UFA's just won't cut it....hey, isn't that what they tried in real life as well :D

Good to hear you're liking the new stuff.

And if you've not picked this up yet:

NHL EHM 2005 scoops Gamersinfo E3 award

NHL EHM 2005 has been awarded as one of the Gamersinfo E3 Editor's Choice games. Amongst the 28 games selected from the games on show at E3 this year, NHL EHM 2005 was the only sports game to win the award.

Gamersinfo E3 awards:

http://www.gamersinfo.net/content/news.php?id=168

Gamersinfo NHL EHM 2005 E3 preview:

http://www.gamersinfo.net/index.php?art/id:542
Congrats on the award, Rizo! Good news. Very good and well deserved.

Yeah, the Caps will be a project. That's part of the joy. In fact, the aspect I liked most about the first EHM was drafting and player development. I played around 10 or so seasons with the Islanders and had many of my draft picks develope into big time contributors. The best thing about it was that there were players drafted from all rounds (even a 9th rounder, Mark Tobin, who developed into a 40 goal scoring power forward) who developed. It was fun.

One quick database error I noticed. It appears that the Wings have two duplicate scouts. There are two Bob Harlarsons (sp?) and two some other scout.

Oh well...just when I got it posted about the Caps, I got a saved game from someone who had played with Caps and was in the second season....he had finished with 95 points in the first season, so it _is_ possible to achieve some success if you play well :D

what more important players ratings or tactics? if you had to give a % how would you break it down?

Tough call...if by ratings you mean talent.

I'd probably go with something along the lines of 60/40 in favor of talent. You can get by with lousy tactics if you have enough talent, but less talented teams can still take you down if they employ the right tactics. But as I said, its a tough call and there are many other factors to success than pure talent and tactics.

The SI folks posted an update on their forums this morning stating that they have found a partner for the digital download, but that they are still working out the particulars and that it probably won't be ready for a couple weeks.
In that case, I guess I'll be making an order from gogamer.com soon.

People in Vancouver and Edmonton have received the game and I'm still waiting....

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't care that there's a storm outside... get that thing to my mailbox!

http://dynamic.gamespy.com/%7Efof/forums/images/smilies/tongue.gif

As noted above, I simmed through a season. Unfortunately I actually had to do some work today at work (unbelievable, I know), so I wasn't able to really get into the off-season.

Anyway, here's a quick recap of what went on in this season:

1. Vancouver beat Pittsburgh, yes, Pittsburgh, in the Stanley Cup finals 4-2. I guess a healthy Lemieux makes a difference. The Pens also had Mark Recchi and I noticed he had something like 24 goals in the play-offs.

2. There wasn't a ton of activity at the trade deadline. Some, but not a lot. The biggest name moved was Craig Conroy. I guess the bigger deals went down earlier. For example, the Ducks traded Fedorov to the Sharks.

3. Jim Nill, my assistant GM, who was running the Wings while I sunned myself on some tropical shores made some dumbfoundingly ridiculous moves. First, as soon as I left he felt the need to sign almost any free agent worth a damn. I guess the extra cash in the payroll was burning a hole in his pocket. He went out and signed, almost immediately, Travis Green, Matthieu Schneider, Yanick Perrault, Drake Berehowsky, Todd Simpson, and Brian Holzinger. I didn't really think we needed these guys. And, in fact, we ended up losing Draper on waivers because of this.

That was just the begining of oddness. Nill then traded Jiri Hulder (one of our top 10 prospects) and the rights to two prospects for Ladislav Nagy. That's fine. I don't like giving up young guys, but Nagy is decent. However, SIX days later they send Nagy to the AHL and he gets picked up on waivers. Nice.

A similar thing happens a few days later. Nill trades Nik Kornwall (another top 5 prospect) for Sven Butchenson. He then puts Butchenson on waivers and he is picked up.

So, the Wings have traded away two of the best young prospects and two other prospects for absolutely nothing. That's pretty bad roster management. I left all the controls on "reasonable" while away. No idea what happened.

The trades I saw looked fine for the most part. Nothing outrageous there.

That's all I have at the moment...

I haven't gotten mine yet, although I guess I shouldn't expect it that soon since it only shipped a week ago. Should I have done the "priority" shipping from Gameplay that would've required me to sign for it? I didn't use that, and I'm now thinking that it might hold up my delivery for an extra few days. I need something to do until that damn game gets here. :(

As noted above, I simmed through a season. Unfortunately I actually had to do some work today at work (unbelievable, I know), so I wasn't able to really get into the off-season.

Anyway, here's a quick recap of what went on in this season:

1. Vancouver beat Pittsburgh, yes, Pittsburgh, in the Stanley Cup finals 4-2. I guess a healthy Lemieux makes a difference. The Pens also had Mark Recchi and I noticed he had something like 24 goals in the play-offs.

2. There wasn't a ton of activity at the trade deadline. Some, but not a lot. The biggest name moved was Craig Conroy. I guess the bigger deals went down earlier. For example, the Ducks traded Fedorov to the Sharks.

3. Jim Nill, my assistant GM, who was running the Wings while I sunned myself on some tropical shores made some dumbfoundingly ridiculous moves. First, as soon as I left he felt the need to sign almost any free agent worth a damn. I guess the extra cash in the payroll was burning a hole in his pocket. He went out and signed, almost immediately, Travis Green, Matthieu Schneider, Yanick Perrault, Drake Berehowsky, Todd Simpson, and Brian Holzinger. I didn't really think we needed these guys. And, in fact, we ended up losing Draper on waivers because of this.

That was just the begining of oddness. Nill then traded Jiri Hulder (one of our top 10 prospects) and the rights to two prospects for Ladislav Nagy. That's fine. I don't like giving up young guys, but Nagy is decent. However, SIX days later they send Nagy to the AHL and he gets picked up on waivers. Nice.

A similar thing happens a few days later. Nill trades Nik Kornwall (another top 5 prospect) for Sven Butchenson. He then puts Butchenson on waivers and he is picked up.

So, the Wings have traded away two of the best young prospects and two other prospects for absolutely nothing. That's pretty bad roster management. I left all the controls on "reasonable" while away. No idea what happened.

The trades I saw looked fine for the most part. Nothing outrageous there.

That's all I have at the moment...

The trades you mentioned earlier, and these moves are just plain awful.......No way any of those moves would be made......and Pittsburgh in the cup finals......wow....patch time!!!

For those of you that have been patiently (like me) waiting for GoGamer.com to get this game, today is your lucky day.

I ordered it from gogamer.com today and got this email from them.

Dear Customer,

I regret to inform you that our shipment of NHL Eastside Hockey Manager 2005 did not make it today.

We are hoping to have it by tomorrow.

If you wish to make any changes to your order please let us know.

Regards,
Robert
GoGamer.com

Guess, I won't be able to play it this weekend. :(

The trades you mentioned earlier, and these moves are just plain awful.......No way any of those moves would be made......and Pittsburgh in the cup finals......wow....patch time!!!
Yeah, it's disappointing but that's holiday mode. I'd be much more worried if the other AI GMs were doing this during regular, day-to-day play.

I've never used holiday mode in my games so it's not a deal breaker for me.

a couple weeks for the download version? http://dynamic.gamespy.com/%7Efof/forums/images/smilies/frown.gif that's unfortunate. hey marc just out of curiousity, what % of SI's sales are digital download (roughly...off the top of your head I mean) ? I mean is this delay taking a big chunk out of your pockets, or are the early sales figures from EHM still looking strong?

3. Jim Nill, my assistant GM, who was running the Wings while I sunned myself on some tropical shores made some dumbfoundingly ridiculous moves. First, as soon as I left he felt the need to sign almost any free agent worth a damn. I guess the extra cash in the payroll was burning a hole in his pocket. He went out and signed, almost immediately, Travis Green, Matthieu Schneider, Yanick Perrault, Drake Berehowsky, Todd Simpson, and Brian Holzinger. I didn't really think we needed these guys. And, in fact, we ended up losing Draper on waivers because of this.

That was just the begining of oddness. Nill then traded Jiri Hulder (one of our top 10 prospects) and the rights to two prospects for Ladislav Nagy. That's fine. I don't like giving up young guys, but Nagy is decent. However, SIX days later they send Nagy to the AHL and he gets picked up on waivers. Nice.

A similar thing happens a few days later. Nill trades Nik Kornwall (another top 5 prospect) for Sven Butchenson. He then puts Butchenson on waivers and he is picked up.

So, the Wings have traded away two of the best young prospects and two other prospects for absolutely nothing. That's pretty bad roster management. I left all the controls on "reasonable" while away. No idea what happened.

He was probably sick of doing all your work for you and was actively trying to get you fired.

He was probably sick of doing all your work for you and was actively trying to get you fired.
Heh! http://dynamic.gamespy.com/%7Efof/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

Agreed. He was jealous of my vacationing, high-paid ass.

Yeah, it's disappointing but that's holiday mode. I'd be much more worried if the other AI GMs were doing this during regular, day-to-day play.

I've never used holiday mode in my games so it's not a deal breaker for me.
This was my thought as well. I didn't have the time to track what GM AI's were doing, but I don't ever recall moves like this happening. I think the holiday AI is odd. I think it's more of the exception than the rule.

For example, the Ducks traded Fedorov to the Sharks.

That's just wrong. Trade Fedorov? Definitely can see that. Trade him to the freakin' Sharks? No way in heck! :)

That would be like the Wings trading Yzerman to the Blues, or Canucks trading Naslund to the Avs.

Ok. I just ran through my first draft.

Over all, the draft felt very much like the first EHM, which I loved, with a few new bells and whistles. The biggest additions are 1) the assistant GM, head coach, and head scout reccomendation buttons. There is a button for each and you click it and they tell you who they think you should draft. I think this is based on both who they feel is the best player and what the organization needs. For example, two of the three reccomended I take a d-man with the first pick. One reccomended the highest ranked player on the board and the other two a d-man who was about 10th best or so. I selected the latter and was pleased with the rec. Later on in the draft all three kept reccomending I take a goaltender. They did this for about three rounds, reccomending goalies who weren't even ranked. I assume they felt that we lacked goaltending prospects, which is probably true. Over all the reccomended players were pretty decent and I went with a few. 2) The other new feature (I think) is the filter button. The options are just like they are in the free agent screen. It's nice to be able to only look at goalies if that's all you want at the moment.

I did not get any trade proposals during the draft. I am not sure that can happen. (Riz, can it?) There were five trades during the draft between the AI, with teams exchanging draft picks and players for picks. It was nice to see.

As expected, Crosby was the first player taken overall.

Oh yeah. After the draft I checked my "team report" to see where the players I drafted were rated in the top prospects. Six of the players I drafted were ranked as follows: 1, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 12. Not too shabby.


Now on to free agency...

Keep 'em coming HB!


Todd

Good news

Marc Duffy at SI said in the ootp forum

"If you do decide to get the game now, you'll pay no extra for the new season rules and data in September - it will come to you free *

looks like they change there mind for charging us a small fee for the sept release if we download it now.


http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/showpost.php?p=1228229&postcount=100

I always had a problem with goalies in trades. No matter how many goalies I had in the minors I kept getting trade offers with mid-range goalie prospects. It got so annoying that I took everyone off the trading block. This sounds like a continuation of that problem.

So I ran through the first month or so of free agency. Everything seems to be working fine. As usual there were a number of decent UFA's available. The biggest names include: Gonchar, Aucoin, Rafalski, Stevens, Straka, Modano, Khabibuhlin, Ozolinsh, Zubov, Peca, Mogilny, Niedermayer, and Belfour. All older guys who carried hefty salaries.

I made a run at Aucoin, but he got signed by the Devils.

I also signed Mike Dunham and then tried to ship Joseph off to a team in need of a #1 goalie. First I tried Tampa. They offered me back Jarrold Skalde. I rejected it and then they signed Khabibuhlin. I then went after Toronto and the Rangers. Toronto had no interest and the Rangers (shockingly) offered two mediocare prospects. I took the deal becuase I wanted to dump CuJo's $8.5 million salary.

One of the biggest gripes I had about the first EHM free agency was that the effect of losing a player's salary was not quickly enough reflected in your team finances. For example, in my prior game playing the Islanders we had zero money within our budget to sign UFA's, but we needed some. So I played around with trying to dump Yashin's US $10 million. I finally managed to, getting under the allotted budget, but according to my finance screen, I was still over budget and the team was still limiting how much I could spend as if I was over budget. Not good.

This time around, however, I dumped CuJo and it was immediately reflected on my team budget screen. A definite improvement for cash strapped teams trying to juggle their line-ups during the off-season.

Team were pretty aggressive going after free agents. As you could probably tell from the list above, New Jersey lost 3 starting d-men, so they targeted defense and were successful. There were some trades and other signings. No big names were taking jobs at smaller European clubs. A few retirements, but only for guys north of 40 (e.g., MacInnis)

All in all the off-season seemes to be working well.

All right, I think I am going to go back to my Caps career and starting building a champion.

I always had a problem with goalies in trades. No matter how many goalies I had in the minors I kept getting trade offers with mid-range goalie prospects. It got so annoying that I took everyone off the trading block. This sounds like a continuation of that problem.
I know exactly what you're talking about. I experienced the same thing in the first version as well. Though, after I finally drafted a goalie, in the 5th or 6th rounds, all my people stopped reccomending goalies entirely. I think they felt like we just needed one, which I think we did.

Honolulu_Blue

this game sounds great so far. i cant wait for you to do a dynasty. i hope you can go in detail when you do your tactics and tendencies. thanks

is the view the game screen slow now when you put it on very slow? is it easy to follow?

thanks

Honolulu_Blue

this game sounds great so far. i cant wait for you to do a dynasty. i hope you can go in detail when you do your tactics and tendencies. thanks

is the view the game screen slow now when you put it on very slow? is it easy to follow?

thanks
JB,

I'll see what I can do for a dynasty. Never really done one before due to time constraints. Sad, but true.

As for the game screen, I think very slow is easy to follow. You shouldn't have too much trouble. I am pretty impatient, so I usually put it everything on super fast. Though sometimes during the play-offs I'll watch a game more closely.

Oh. One more thing, JB. Not sure if you've tried the demo yet, but if you watch the game with the "game view" screen you see a bunch of little snap shots of what's going on. It's a bit herky-jerky (nowhere near as smooth as the 2D sime for FM), but it's certainly good enough to follow what's happening on the ice. You really don't even need to read the captions.

Oh. One more thing, JB. Not sure if you've tried the demo yet, but if you watch the game with the "game view" screen you see a bunch of little snap shots of what's going on. It's a bit herky-jerky (nowhere near as smooth as the 2D sime for FM), but it's certainly good enough to follow what's happening on the ice. You really don't even need to read the captions.


thanks i will try that tip

After the draft I checked my "team report" to see where the players I drafted were rated in the top prospects. Six of the players I drafted were ranked as follows: 1, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 12. Not too shabby.
How in the world did you manage that? Are these ISS Rankings? I've never seen players that highly ranked last beyond the first or second round.

How in the world did you manage that? Are these ISS Rankings? I've never seen players that highly ranked last beyond the first or second round.
No! Not ISS Rankings. Those were my team's internal rankings. So, following the draft, my newly drafted prospects were ranked that high within the Detroit Red Wings organization.

Argh. Every day, I've been leaving extra work sitting on my desk because I want to come home and grab EHM out of my mailbox. It still hasn't arrived. Really, would the priority shipping have possibly helped me here? :(

Argh. Every day, I've been leaving extra work sitting on my desk because I want to come home and grab EHM out of my mailbox. It still hasn't arrived. Really, would the priority shipping have possibly helped me here? :(
I dunno, PT. I kicked in the extra for priority shipping or whatever the higher rate off of gameplay was and mine arrived Tuesday afternoon.

I dunno, PT. I kicked in the extra for priority shipping or whatever the higher rate off of gameplay was and mine arrived Tuesday afternoon.
OK, I was trying to figure out how you already had yours while mine still hasn't arrived three days later. That must explain it. Thanks.

One more thing to report. So, after simming to an off-season with the Wings, I returned to my regularly scheduled career with the Capitals. I am in early January at the moment hovering around 9th-10th place in the East. Not great, but Leonsis seems pleased with what I have done.

I have played enough games to develope a certain dislike for some of my players, so I have started shopping around a bit. One of my biggest, no, probably my biggest gripe with EHM 2004 was trading. While it worked sometimes, it so often felt like you were shouting into a deep, dark cave. You would make a proposal. Get rejected. Make another proposal. Get rejected. Etc. Etc. Etc. It was quite frustrating. They really seem to have fixed it this time around. If a team is not interested in a guy you offer, they'll tell you. If they want more, they tell you. They will also be willing to work with different combinations without slamming the door shut in your face (something that happened too often in EHM 2004).

For example, I decided that I wanted to make a run for NJ defensemen David Hale. I inquired and NJ responded that they wanted prospect Jeff Schultz in return. He's the #2 ranked prospect in the Cap organization. An 18 year old 6'6" hulking defensemen who was drafted late in the first round in 2004 (I think). I hate trading prospects. So I countered with Boudamiene (sp), a 26 yr. old defensemen. He's not bad actually, but is a Type IV UFA who isn't interested in re-newing.

So, NJ countered again with Schultz. I countered with Schultz for Hale and first rounder. They countered with Schultz and 2 2nd rounders for Hale and a 1st. I finally countered with Schultz, Boudamiene (he'd been waived), and a 2nd rounder for Hale, a 1st, and a 2nd. NJ accepted the deal.

There was great feedback and the computer AI was willing to work with me on the deal. I was very pleased with the trade, but infinitely more impressed with how it all went down. Very pleased.

Let's just hope Jeff Schultz never develops into a Chara/Pronger type. If so, I will be regretting this one for years...

Are any of you guys running the game on a computer as crappy as mine (P3 900 MHz, 256 MB RAM). If you are and having good results I'll consider downloading the demo, but I don't want to waste time downloading the demo, if its gonna be crappy on my PC.

HB: You've just about sold me on the game with that last post.

the europe version you order is the cd softwrap version?

also anybody know if fm2005 and fm2006 when it comes out is on softwrap version cd?

i hear horror stories, it interferes with people computer if you have a cd writer or cd writer software install on your cpu.

thanks

so how long is it taking you guys to get the game from say gogamer or whatever? curious cuz I may just buy the thing online now i'm so excited :)

I just ordered from Gamespot (GoGamer doesn't ship to Canada) and it won't ship until latest the 10th due to backorder.

the europe version you order is the cd softwrap version?

also anybody know if fm2005 and fm2006 when it comes out is on softwrap version cd?

i hear horror stories, it interferes with people computer if you have a cd writer or cd writer software install on your cpu.

thanks
I'm not quite sure what you mean by 'cd softwrap' - but no the CD version doesn't contain softwrap at all, it uses a bog-standard copy-protection system used in many many commercial titles (same one as in FM).

I selected it on the basis of it working reliably on 99.99% of machines and not being intrusive to legitimate users while being a commercial protection system (which is required for a game to get into retail these days).

I'm not quite sure what you mean by 'cd softwrap' - but no the CD version doesn't contain softwrap at all, it uses a bog-standard copy-protection system used in many many commercial titles (same one as in FM).

I selected it on the basis of it working reliably on 99.99% of machines and not being intrusive to legitimate users while being a commercial protection system (which is required for a game to get into retail these days).


ok thanks

i guess i was getting confuse when i was reading some post in the SI forum and OOtp forum about softwrap.


i cant wait to get EHM 2005 and i going to wait to get fm 2006.

Just messed around with the demo, and very impressed so far. I think this will be a definite purchase, but will wait for the download to make sure no major issues come up. Keep the reports coming!

~rpi-fan

Let's just hope Jeff Schultz never develops into a Chara/Pronger type. If so, I will be regretting this one for years...
IRL, he had a horrible playoffs with the Hitmen. At 6'6", he played like he was 5'6".

also anybody know if fm2005 and fm2006 when it comes out is on softwrap version cd?
Is FM available as a download? I looked but never saw that option.

I'll be kicking myself if it's been available that way for a while...

Is FM available as a download? I looked but never saw that option.

I'll be kicking myself if it's been available that way for a while...
Obviously, Marc can give a more authoritative answer, but I'm 99% certain that FM is not available as a download.

Is FM available as a download? I looked but never saw that option.

I'll be kicking myself if it's been available that way for a while...


no Fm not available for download.

but EHM 2005 will be soon available to download.

I just ordered from Gamespot (GoGamer doesn't ship to Canada) and it won't ship until latest the 10th due to backorder.

Wow, what a surprise to wake up to. I check my order on Gamespot and it says my item is being shipped today! That means next week I'll probably end up receiving FM2005 and EHM 2005 within days of eachother. :eek:

My life is never going to be the same.

I've started my first Dynasty... check it out here: http://dynamic.gamespy.com/~fof/forums/showthread.php?t=39539

Home alone relaxing.. and Gogamer has been opened in a separate browser all morning with NHL EHM 2005 in shopping cart. Must resist $55 purchase........

if we get the EHM 2005 europe version, will we be able to get the Sept update for free too?

or Sept free if you only digital download EHM 2005?


will the digital download come with a manual?

thanks

I'm not quite sure what you mean by 'cd softwrap' - but no the CD version doesn't contain softwrap at all, it uses a bog-standard copy-protection system used in many many commercial titles (same one as in FM).

I selected it on the basis of it working reliably on 99.99% of machines and not being intrusive to legitimate users while being a commercial protection system (which is required for a game to get into retail these days).

Does this mean you have to have the CD in the drive to play EHM if you get the CD version?

Does this mean you have to have the CD in the drive to play EHM if you get the CD version?

Yes.

Can someone at SI comment on the future of text outputs, in particular are there going to be anymore? It would be nice to have everything printable, espcially for dynastys.

Can someone at SI comment on the future of text outputs, in particular are there going to be anymore? It would be nice to have everything printable, espcially for dynastys.
Eventually I want our games to be able to export themselves as a linked website which will allow people to browse around the major parts of the game (ie. teams, human players etc.) just as if you were in the game ...

That being said, implementing that is a huge task so don't expect it in a hurry ;)

Yes.

ugh...well I guess I'll wait until the digital download then. I hate having to keep track of CDs (especially in my computer room).

thanks for the response Jeff.

Eventually I want our games to be able to export themselves as a linked website which will allow people to browse around the major parts of the game (ie. teams, human players etc.) just as if you were in the game ...

That being said, implementing that is a huge task so don't expect it in a hurry ;)

That would be great, but at the present I'm only looking for a txt output for each page, or at least news articles, team reports, and things like that.

Arghgrrrr. My game had better arrive today (not likely).

I hope the North American version comes out before NCAA and Madden.

Ok here's a brief report on my Caps season so far. I have played 1.5 season.

WARNING. There could be some SPOLERS below. I talk about draft picks, prospects, etc.

It's not too detailed or anything like a dynasty, because unfortunately I don't have the time for that. I also cover a lot of what's already been said/known.

Enjoy.


I finally started a career and after much deliberation on which team to lead to glory (or infamy) I decided to take the Washington Capitals. I did this for three reasons: 1) Two words: Alexander. Ovechkin; 2) They are pretty bad, but have a decent crop of prospects (see #1, supra); and 3) I am living here and might as well learn about the organization.
Anyway, here's what's new and improved in EHM: 2005.

1) Training camp. This is much more involved. You can invite players to try out (NHLers, prospects, free agents, etc.) and hold scrimmages. After the 8 day training camp your coaching staff gives you a run down of which try out players they think you should keep or get rid of. It's a good way to get a feel how your prospects are developing, allowing them to get some PT with NHLers. If your camp is a bit small, certain random players come to camp to try out. These guys all suck. They are just warm bodies (in some cases) to fill up the scrimmage rosters.

2) Assistant GMs. This is a nice touch. Your assistant GM will give you a run down of your team needs. He also compiles a "team report" for your team and every other NHL team. This team report provides the following: 1) an organizational-wide depth chart, 2) A list of a team's top 10 prospects, 3) a break down of a team's players by category (e.g., best checker, best skater, best enforcer, most physical, most overrated, most underrated, etc.); 4) a summary of recent performances by position. Assistant GMs, as well as head coaches and head scouts, will also recommend players you should draft with each pick. Sometimes they are pretty helpful, other times not so much.

3) Trading. This has been the most improved area. Trading is much, much, much more dynamic. The other team gives you much more feedback. They tell you why they are rejecting a trade or come back with counter-offers. Other teams are often willing to work with you on a deal, fine tuning things until everyone is happy. I have really enjoyed trading.

4) Finances. The biggest gripe I had was that finances weren't fluid enough. For example, when McShane and I were playing the Islanders and had our first off-season we were totally blind-sided by our lack of funds. We couldn't. sign. anyone. It was ridiculous. Granted it made sense since we were over our budget, but some sort of warning or head's up would have been nice. Also, even when we experimented with dumping salary (trading Yashin for peanuts), there was no effect. Even though we should have been under our budget, we still had no more freedom than before.

5) More in depth scouting. The scout reports tell you a lot more about each player, often giving you a NHL comparison.

This has all changed. You get a constant update as to where you stand in relation to your annual salary budget. As soon as you trade a player or he's picked up on waivers his salary is erased from the books and you are able to use the new found "cap room" to sign new free agents. Re-signing UFA's has also been improved. All is good.

There still seems to be a lack of player personality. It is there, but still limited. Nowhere near what one experiences in the soccer game. Then again, the soccer game has been developing for something like 15 years or so. Give it time.

So... onto the Capitals. I have played through about 1.5 seasons now.

Preseason:

The Caps start off in rough shape. Because of the looming strike (which in this virtual world was thankfully avoided, though this likely means all the teams will be bankrupt in 5 years), the Caps have very, very few NHL caliber players on the roster. When I took over the team basically consisted of: Kolzig, Witt, Zubrus, Halpern, Pettinger, and Whitfield. There was really not much more than that. Some young guys, but not much.

The game starts in late August, which is after the international transfer window, so there was to be no Ovechkin in our first year. I debated whether to go with only a bunch of young and pretty crappy guys who are in the AHL, thus making a run for the "Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes" or sign some NHL free agents and try to compete. Since I hate losing, I decided to go for the former. My success was limited.

Before training camp started I went out and made a splash in free agency picking up the following players: Dancin' Anson Carter, Glen Murray, Alexei Zhitnik, Dan McGillis, Yannick "The Tonic" Perrault, and Petr Bondra. I liked the idea of bringing Bondra back to the Caps.

I invited a bunch of fringe NHL free agents to camp and afterwards signed Todd "Bart" Simpson and Brian Holzinger. These were the only two players who my staff felt we should try to sign.

The waiver draft saw the Caps pick up David Aebischer (Colorado picked up Joseph who was waived by the Wings because they signed Osgood. All of this was very odd) and Nolan Pratt. I waived Pratt a few weeks later. As soon as I re-assigned him to the AHL he demanded a trade, but was claimed by Carolina on waivers. No big loss.

I also signed Petr Sykora. No, not that Petr Sykora. The other one. The one the Wings drafted a few years back. He is in the Caps system at the moment and seemed decent enough. We still needed bodies.

The Season:

The season was not a success. We found our groove here and there, but our goalie play was pretty bad. Oalie The Goalie, in particular, struggled. He was sitting there making $6.5 million and taking a crap in the crease. He tested my anger time and time again. Aebischer was actually out performing him as the season went on.

We were in the running for a play-off spot for a while, but by January we were mired deep in the 10th-11th spots in the East. There was really no hope of making it a run. We were done for.

As is bound to happen with any H_B team at some point during its maturation process, once we started to struggle and things were looking bleak, things turned ugly. Very ugly. We led the NHL in PIMs. The next closest team was about 340 minutes behind us. We averaged over 20 minutes of penalties a game. There were lots of fights. Lots. Brendan Witt (who traded at the deadline) became known as Brendan Witt "The Human Punching Bag." He dropped his gloves a whopping 33 times. He won only 7. It was ugly. We also picked up Scott Parker and Garth Murray, both who fought a ton. Pettinger (before he was traded), Jason Doig (a big d-man), Todd "Bart" Simpson also fought a lot. Alexander Semin, a young Russian winger, with amazing talent (#2 on the team in points) is one dirty bastard. He racked up over 160 PIMs, getting 4 10 misconducts and 2 game misconducts during the season. Dirty.

As our struggles continued it was time to start shedding salary and looking towards the future. So, you remember that free agent splash we made at the beginning of the year, well it was time to get out of the pool. Also, certain players started to irritate me something fierce. Those who drew my ire were: Pettinger, Whitflied, and Kolzig...

The trades were fierce, swift, and legion. We traded the following players: Whitfield, McGillis, Glenn Murray, Pettinger, Bondra, Perrault, and Witt.

We waived Kolzig who was picked up by Columbus. I would have traded him, but he had a "no trade" clause so I was stuck. He didn't want to be traded and wouldn't waive. Oh well...

The only veteran free agents who survived the purge were: Zhitnik, Carter, Holzinger, and Simpson.

What we received via trades were: Garth Murray (grinding, physical forward), Aaron Asham, Hannu Toivonen (Finnish goalie who played well for me in EHM 2004), Alexei Ponikarvosky (some big, grinding Russian forward in Toronto), and Braydon Coburn (a big, tough defensive prospect from Atlanta, and a BOATLOAD of draft picks. I ended up drafting 16 players in all.

We finished 12th overall in the East, missing the play-offs by 23 points.

The only positive was Petr Sykora. He won the Calder.
The Draft:

Entering the draft I had a ton of picks. Three first (#7, 24, and 29), four second, two fifth, and one pick in every other round.

Minnesota won the "Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes." I tried to pry the #1 pick overall from them with a variety of trades, but they weren't biting. They took Crosby and I moved on.



I tried to trade up a few more times in the first round. I was looking a great center prospect to play with Ovechkin. There were quite a few really good ones, but I couldn't move up without giving up too much. I finally resigned to my fate and picked at #7. Low and behold there was one center available. All of my people, assistant GM, head coach, and head scout all recommended the same guy. The one. The only. The Slovenian Sensation Anex Kopitar.

I then let a few picks go buy and then traded the #24 pick and a high second round pick to move up to the 10th spot. There I picked the top defensive prospect in the draft, Jack Johnson. Very pleased with this pick.

Here is a brief rundown on the picks and what my scouts say about them:

Anze Kopitar: Slovenian center, "a more talented version of Craig Conroy" (faint praise)



Jack Johnson: American defenseman, "a more talented version of Jovocop" (nice!)



Michael Blunden: Canadian winger, "a more talented version of Pierre Dagenais" (I better hope he is)



Ryan Stoa, Canadian winger, "a more talented version of Keith Tkachuck" (Big shot, but no aggression, so not so much like Keith)



Vitaly Anikeenko, Russian defensemen, "a more talented version of Al MacInnis" (uh, no. Big shot, but lacking defensively)



Ryan Parent, Canadian defensemen, "a more talented, defensive-minded Anders Eriksson" (had I read that more closely, I may not have picked him. I AM TOO FULL OF CHOCOLATES!)



Cody Bass, Canadian center, "a more talented version of Kris Draper" (seems accurate)



Jakub Lev, Czech Goalie, "like Corey Schwab" (all of my people wanted me to take this guy and I did. Not too pleased, but maybe he'll be a late bloomer)



John Vigilante, Canadian winger, "like peter schafer" (I couldn't pass this guy up. No way. I love the name. Unfortunately, he's more talented than tough. Oh, how I wish he was a big, tough enforcer who would bring his own brand of "Vigilante Justice" to the ice...)



Luch Aquino, Canadian winger, "like Michael Ryder" (it was late in the 5th round)



Gary Friesen, Canadian winger, "like Tomas Holmstrom" (seems about right)



Chris Trafford, Canadian winger, "like Scott Walker" (the sun aint gonna shine anymore!)



Jan Novak, Czech defensemen, "like Josef Boudemiene" (while I traded Josef earlier in the season, Jan is one of those 26 year old draftees who is ready to play now. All my scouts saw him as a "core player." Since I lacked many core players, I took him in the 8th)



Jukka Voutaleinanen, Finnish center, "like Pavel Demtria with a smaller frame" (another 25 year old draftee who will start)



Drew Fisher, American center, "a bigger better version of Steve Begin" (this happens to me all the time. I fall in love with certain prospects and I need to draft them. So I end up trading other prospects or other late round picks from future years to get guys. Fisher is one of those guys. He's a tough, 3rd/4th line guy. A long shot, but I like him)

Jason Lawrence, American winger, "like Matthew Barnaby" (he's another one of those goes. I wanted him. I got him.)

All in all I love my draft. Many of the guys are already developing nicely. Kopitar and Johnson are playing in the NHL. Though Johnson was a tough signing. There may be with issues with him in the future...

Free agency rolled around and I signed Mike Peca and Mike Dunham. I also traded Zhitnik to Chicago for defensive prospect Brent Seabrook (who apparently is "like Sheldon Suray").

Oh yeah. St. Louis beat New Jersey to win the Cup.

Season 2

Ugh. We started out horribly. I think we won 2 games out of the first 15 or so. We give up a lot of bad, untimely goals. It's killing me. We are really young and pretty bad. We finally started to turn things around a bit. Playing much better. We're now 11th in the East, about 10 points out of a play-off spot.

We made some more deals. I traded Alexander Semin to Florida for Niklaus Hagman and Anthony Stewart "Head" (he's a 21 year old right wing prospect who looks great). I hate to let Semin go, but the deal was a good one. I also picked up Marty Murray off waivers. And most recently I shipped three #2 picks for Dion Phanuef (a 20 year old defensive prospect in Calgary who is like "a bigger Sean Hill."). He should be solid and worth the picks.

According to head coach, Glen Hanlon, we suck. He says we need "a number one goalie, a solid right wing, depth at left wing, depth at right wing, and a blueline prospect." He recommends we go after drafts picks, prospects, and inexpensive young talent. So far, I have been doing that.

The rest of our coaching staff includes former players James Patrick, Ulf Dahlen, and Rob Ray. Don't laugh. Ray is an absolute amazing coach in my game. He's like the second coming of Scotty Bowman or Jack Adams.
We're about 51 games into Season 2. Ovechkin is #1 in rookie scoring (18 goals/18 assists). I brought Kopitar up recently and he's played very well (12 points in 19 games). Jack Johnson has been great (21 points in 45 games).

Current line-up:

Carter - Peca - Sykora
Ovechkin - Kopitar - Zubrus
Hagman - Holzinger - Voutalienanen
Ponikavorsky - M. Murray - Asham

Phanuef - Johnson
Hale - Fahey
Novak - Eminger

Dunham
Abischer
Halpren and Simpson are both hurt. When Halpren comes back, he'll join the 3rd line, the "Triple H" line.

That is all for now.

You da' man!

~rpi-fan

very nice Honolulu_Blue
what type of tactics and tendencies your using?

how is that part of the game? do they follow it well?

very nice Honolulu_Blue
what type of tactics and tendencies your using?

how is that part of the game? do they follow it well?
I think tactics are pretty important, but I will be the first to admit I am not a tactical mastermind.

I tend to play a "mixed" style and "high forecheck." I can't stand the sound of "passive forecheck", just seems too soft. I have tinkered with the dreaded "trap" and "left wing lock", but have had no real success.

I tend to have my top two lines (offensive lines) play, "mixed", "positional" (sometimes crash the net if there are power forwards), and high forecheck.

For my third and fourth lines I tend to do the same, though will use "dump and chase" for whichever one is more of a "grind line" or "seek and destroy" type of line.

I haven't tinkered with the PK or power-play settings. Though I am giving up way too many SH goals this year, so I will look to change that.

I do change the "fighting" command and "board play", making my more physical players use "power" instead of mixed or finese.

I also tinker with pass/shoot bias, trying to have my snipers (Ovechkin) shoot rather than pass. Same goes for d-men with big shots.

Oh, this reminds me. A couple of weird errors:

1. When setting board battles between: unit, mixed, finese, or power. Instead of power it reads "Power play (Chances - Goals)." Is that right?

2. Also, scout reports for goalies seem to be a bit off as well. Under "Projected Role" it always says: "Third Second Round Replays." Interesting.

I REALLY need to wait for the digital download... although gogamer is calling me.

Any more news on the digital download? Maybe a timeframe.. if it's 2-3 weeks off, I'm buying it from gogamer.


Todd

I hope the North American version comes out before NCAA and Madden.


http://dynamic.gamespy.com/~fof/forums/images/icons/icon3.gif

Well, I just purchased the game via gogamer as my best friend just came over and bought my PSP. :)

Might be a good time to start up a dynasty considering OOTP 6.5 is a week or more away.. and I think an EHM 2005 dynasty would be fun, especially with the Blues.

Two more days! :)


Todd

does the game have sound on the full version? i hear no sound on the demo for play by play.

thanks

1. When setting board battles between: unit, mixed, finese, or power. Instead of power it reads "Power play (Chances - Goals)." Is that right?

2. Also, scout reports for goalies seem to be a bit off as well. Under "Projected Role" it always says: "Third Second Round Replays." Interesting.

Both dumb mistakes by me. First one should just read "Power", second one should be "Third Line" something. When I first did the US-English translation, there was a miscommunication between Graeme at SI and I that resulted in me creating a file with only the translated lines in it and none of the original ones, when he actually needed both, with the lines paired together. To fix that, I had to go back and (with the help of one of the testers) cut-and-paste the translated version line-by-line into a list of the original text.

Problem is, the order of the lines didn't match up exactly, so it was a matter of taking a translated line, hunting down its partner in the original file, and pasting it over. We actually did better than I expected, error-wise, but having 20,000 lines to do made it inevitable there were a few things, like those two, that got mistakenly put in the wrong place. And this was all going on fairly late in the game (and the delay caused by the cutting-and-pasting didn't help the timetable), so testing didn't catch them all.

They'll be changed in the next patch. I actually had them fixed in time for the first one, but the updated translation didn't make it in, somehow.

(And if anybody has suggestions for better, more North American-sounding wording on the news items, let me know. It's better than it was, but I know there's still some awkward-sounding stuff in there.)

does the game have sound on the full version? i hear no sound on the demo for play by play.

thanks

Yup. Wasn't in the demo for file size reasons, I think.

if you dont coach your game, does the head coach ever change the tactics?

in the demo i notice the head coach is keeping it at default tactic for ever game. it dont look like he changing it.

if you dont coach your game, does the head coach ever change the tactics?

in the demo i notice the head coach is keeping it at default tactic for ever game. it dont look like he changing it.
Mine shipped!! Should be a fun rest of the week.


Todd

Mine shipped!! Should be a fun rest of the week.


Todd

great. cant wait to see a dynasty on your Blues.

great. cant wait to see a dynasty on your Blues.
Look for it to start on Thursday.


Todd

And... mine... still... isn't... here! Grrr.

Neither is mine. I can't belive I went cheap on shipping...

Mine has shipped!!!



Todd