What NHL 20 Needs to Do on the Ice to Succeed

[Steve_OS]

Over the last few years the NHL has evolved into a different animal. No longer is...

Written By: Ryan

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[PES3Paul]

Needs a PC release, first. 

[TjJunior]

What is it with folks wanting to stick Frostbite into sports games? It's a FPS engine with no assets for a hockey game. It doesn't even translate well to 3rd person shooters, it just makes for shiny graphics and passable details. Ignite is built for sports games specifically why switch? I always see folks asking for Frostbite but I don't know why?

[scottyo60]

Re: What NHL 20 Needs to Do on the Ice to Succeed

And after reading the troubles Anthem has with Frostbite, I’m not so sure I want to see NHL try it. This has been a lost console for this series in many ways.

[Peter_OS]

The NHL series has been stale for several years. A complete overhaul of the gameplay mechanics, AI and animations is required imo. This is the first time in years where I have lost interest in playing the game. Picked it up on release day and only played it for about a month. Haven't touched it since. Just not fun anymore. 

[DJ NEO]

Re: What NHL 20 Needs to Do on the Ice to Succeed

Good article.

Hm, but could anybody please remind me what was the review score for NHL 19 few months ago on this place?

[MizzouRah]

Re: What NHL 20 Needs to Do on the Ice to Succeed

The NHL series has been stale for several years. A complete overhaul of the gameplay mechanics, AI and animations is required imo. This is the first time in years where I have lost interest in playing the game. Picked it up on release day and only played it for about a month. Haven't touched it since. Just not fun anymore.*

We are on the same page here. Too many good pc and console games for me to want to play the same NHL game this year. I'm going to try to get back into it with the new roster update but it's been a difficult journey.

[KoryDub]

Re: What NHL 20 Needs to Do on the Ice to Succeed

What is it with folks wanting to stick Frostbite into sports games? It's a FPS engine with no assets for a hockey game. It doesn't even translate well to 3rd person shooters, it just makes for shiny graphics and passable details. Ignite is built for sports games specifically why switch? I always see folks asking for Frostbite but I don't know why?

Frostbite is an EA engine designed to encapsulate all of their games under one hood.

Unforunately, documentation is horrible and studios have to put countless hours in to transitioning the engines to Frostbite with typically no benefit.

In the social media world (especially the echochambers where the 'EA sux' circle jerks run strong and deep) the kids say things like 'Frostbite would be awesome' with literally zero idea of what they're saying. They only say it because all of the other people who hate on EA for fun have been saying it.


This article lost me at this line:

"When playing NHL 19, there is zero creativity available at your disposal. "

That is statement made by someone who gets stuck in the patterns that NHL gives you and other players so there's less responsibility to be creative.

However, there's PLENTY of tools at your disposal to be as creative as you want. Just because you are unaware or unwilling or incapable of executing said creativity with any shred of success does not mean it is absent.

"I buy the game every year, play it a few times, whine about all the issues, let it sit on my shelf untouched for the next 10 months, "

How does this qualify as someone who has any authority to say what NHL 20 needs? If you only 'play the game a few times' - you're in no position to assert what NHL 20 'needs'.

[SuperGoalies]

Re: What NHL 20 Needs to Do on the Ice to Succeed

I've played it the whole year, off and on, am still playin' it, this year was best NHL game I played in decade, for ability to play 20 minute periods, I can only play 2 games at a time, cause I get worked up and fried, my mind numbing experience , I can play forward and Coach Mode (managing lines and strategies and stuff etc..) for franchise mode, I play on the classic setting.


am impressed at this game, I got to see how the game has evolved and stuff, at first I didn't appicate what I was lookin' , then one setting changed it all , pass assist: 87 (so close to NHL, it was like I was at NHL game), cause in December I went to real NHL game at Christmas, Winnipeg Jets Vs Vancouver.


so I got see what there entrance was like into the zone and stuff, so first thing I did was looked at it was pass assist: 87.


its dead on.


I suggest others try it also, to see it, so am not crazy or loonie.


yah it takes while find settings that works, but I think I have mastered it now, so I know what setting messes with others, what u do, take setting go into gameplay and play it doesn't work out might have to adjust something, doesn't mean u have to re-invent the wheel, it means there setting that slider doesn't like.


me I had to re-invent the wheel several times, before I find setting that was untinkerable, needed very little tinkering.


u kind've have to balance things out.


same with goalies, u need to find that untinkerable settings that helps u, where it needs very little slider changes, now for goalies it has changed over year, its gone from manual shot aim too aim-assist shot aim.


I dunno how am beating the AI CPU at there own game, but I annihilate them, 6-3 or 9-4 or 7-3 , sometimes 5-2, with ai learning sometimes at Zero most of the time its 5-1.


I just kept at it, its rewarding when I beat them to pulp.

[dandeb]

Re: What NHL 20 Needs to Do on the Ice to Succeed

I play against the computer. The opposition skates and passes the puck like a laser and it never comes off their sticks. When they're in my zone, it's insane. the opposite is also true. I can't hold a puck for a second before I'm swamped by the defense. I adjusted sliders, etc. and it's still out of control. If these things can be fixed, what a game it could be.

[SuperGoalies]

Re: What NHL 20 Needs to Do on the Ice to Succeed

I play against the computer. The opposition skates and passes the puck like a laser and it never comes off their sticks. When they're in my zone, it's insane. the opposite is also true. I can't hold a puck for a second before I'm swamped by the defense. I adjusted sliders, etc. and it's still out of control. If these things can be fixed, what a game it could be.

whose setting u using, I go look at it, and see I can fix there's.


you gonna need , pass reception ease at 50 and pass reaction reception at 30 and puck control at 30, puck control rating: 77 and puck pick ups at 100, if u go 100 for puck control rating the more puck bounces off stick, between 50-77 is best, other slider at 65 (don't go to 75 or 85 puck bounces off stick) 55-65 is best, bouncey puck keep this at 55 or 65, tried it at 75 (really bouncey puck), low it had no bounce but played in AI CPU Favor.


keep pass speed min: 35-45 and pass speed max : 65 , saucer pass speed: 50-55-60


now deking impact: 45-50 and spin deke impact: 50 & Skating Impact: 45-50


off to work I go, i'll be back later.

[dandeb]

Re: What NHL 20 Needs to Do on the Ice to Succeed

Thank you my friend. Are the first set you listed for the CPU? I have CPU numbers you mentioned at 0. I poke check and hit. But they always spend more minutes in my zone than I do in theirs by a wide margin. Thanks again.


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

[The EVHL]

Would've liked to see a more in-depth article that actually explains AI problems in-depth, as their problems extend far-past offensive zone blueline awareness and staying onside. One thing I have to note as I have been an exclusively ONLINE player since NHL 10, and have recently switch to exclusively OFFLINE for NHL 19, is that NHL 19 actually offers way more goal variety and dynamic scenarios than any other NHL game I have played to this day. Users simply do not want to put the time and effort into building custom sliders and adjusting strategies to make the game a lot more dynamic...and for goo reason.
That reason is, you cannot edit CPU strategies in Franchise mode due to the lack of multiple team support (definitely unacceptable in today's world) which makes the time and effort to get the gameplay correct meaningless if they can only use those edits in Play Now or Season modes. Being a huge believer in creating my own "eSport" league and storylines allows me to be okay with being stuck with season mode, but I can definitely see why people who love to build teams and enjoy the GM side of the game as much, or if not more, than the on-ice gameplay would rather ditch the game completely than struggle through uninteresting gameplay that is currently present in Franchise Mode. 31 team (or 36-38 take NBA 2k MyLeague as someone to model) is an absolute MUST for me to spend another $1 on this series in this generation of consoles. The lack of creativity and customization in an offline mode is inexcusable.

This game needs some sort of online league feature. I'm not asking for a full-blown CFM (as I actually thing CFM is a total pain to setup full-league control) but an online league like NHL 08-12 had with customization sliders and rudimentary trades would be more than enough to revitalize a community of hardcore NHL users who like to experience human opponents, but are turned off by the lackluster slider values that cater the casual/eSport players who like to see the same goal scored 10 times a game.

All-in-all, this game can be tuned into a respectable representation of hockey. Archaic choices that include little to no customization in offline modes paired with the lack of any sort of custom lobby/league feature where users can import their own gameplay sliders is hurting NHL 19's reputation more than the actual quality of the game.

[SuperGoalies]

Re: What NHL 20 Needs to Do on the Ice to Succeed

Thank you my friend. Are the first set you listed for the CPU? I have CPU numbers you mentioned at 0. I poke check and hit. But they always spend more minutes in my zone than I do in theirs by a wide margin. Thanks again.


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

I was about to go update them as of now, am assuming u are using the 20 minuts with ai learning at 0, yah just gimmie couple minutes I go update them.


Updated! slider am currently, am using the ai learning 0 and coach mode sliders.

[jack72]

Re: What NHL 20 Needs to Do on the Ice to Succeed

Needs to fix accumulating bugs from previous years..
Such as - fix the penalty sliders. Make sure they work,
How do you release the game with them not working?