NHL 14 Video and Blog - Gameplay Improvements: Stick Skills

[Steve_OS]

EA Sports has posted another NHL 14 blog. This one discusses the improvements to puck chops, faceoffs, pokechecks, defensive deflections, passing and puck pickups.

Puck Chops

Introduced in NHL 13, Puck Chops help move the puck around the ice quickly. In NHL 14, Puck Chops have been improved in a few ways:

• Chop controls are easier to pull off. Now, you only need to hold the LB/L1 button and then flick the right analog stick in the direction you want to chop. This ensures you’re not chopping the puck when you expect a pokecheck and allows you to chop a puck that is directly in front of you.
• If used when close to the offensive goal, that player will try and put the puck on net.

Faceoffs

• Some get frustrated by those who spam during face-offs, so NHL 14 now gives the advantage to the person who get their sticks in early and stays with their initial grip. Timing and skill will be the determining factor in winning a face off and controlling the momentum of a play.

Pokechecks and Defensive Deflections

• Pokecheck effectiveness will still vary based on a player’s stick-checking attributes, but we’ve ensured that pokechecks are less effective if the player’s body is not properly aligned.
• Just like real hockey, players will be stronger when they’re balanced on their skates and poking in the area directly in front of them.
• In NHL 14, speed is now much more of a factor in determining whether a poke or deflection is effective. If a puck is moving with great speed, the puck may slip through the defender’s stick. In other situations, if a defender only gets a piece of the puck, the speed will play a greater role in determining how much the puck will bobble.
• If a defender gets a stick on the puck, the player trying to perform a one-timer will no longer automatically pull it off.
• A player that pokes a puck will no longer pull it back with their own stick in times when it makes double contact.

Passing & Puck Pickups

• Fixes ensure it’s easier to pass to stationary players
• Less offsides on passes near the blueline. Now, the receiver will turn to face the pass rather than pull back to their generic stance and inadvertently go offside.
• On fake slap shots, the pickup is now much more seamless (previously the player would often fumble with the puck when reacquiring it)

[dlxsf18]

Quote: Originally Posted by Steve_OS

Sweet this stuff is great. I was okay with leaving the chop as is because I learned to be effective with it, but lots of people have had problems learning it so I'm glad they listened to feedback and made it easier to use. Also, on the EA forums a guy with connections to devs posted this-

Quote:

We have made some great improvements to Be a GM/GM Connected in NHL 14... info should be surfacing soon!

Great day for news on NHL 14

[Garism]

Finally with the faceoff-spam fix. I just started using it recently and I say i win a good 85% of my draws (I do have faceoff maxed and a +8 on my C). Not a loss for me at all cause I can win faceoff the normal way.

Glad they moved the poke chop too. Love the new addition with the L1 button cause I hate it when I want to poke it but i poke chop it and I'm stuck in that animation. With the addition of L1=puck chop, what happens to the old L1 function where you drop on 1 knee. I hope they take that out. Litterally makes you a pylon out there.

[dlxsf18]

Quote: Originally Posted by Garism

Finally with the faceoff-spam fix. I just started using it recently and I say i win a good 85% of my draws (I do have faceoff maxed and a +8 on my C). Not a loss for me at all cause I can win faceoff the normal way. Glad they moved the poke chop too. Love the new addition with the L1 button cause I hate it when I want to poke it but i poke chop it and I'm stuck in that animation. With the addition of L1=puck chop, what happens to the old L1 function where you drop on 1 knee. I hope they take that out. Litterally makes you a pylon out there.

The L1 will still function as a shot block/way to get your stick in a passing lane, it will only trigger a chop when the puck is loose. One thing I didn't notice was this-

Quote:

On fake slap shots, the pickup is now much more seamless (previously the player would often fumble with the puck when reacquiring it)

Which is nice to hear as using a fake clapper was useless on a powerplay or during a shootout this year.

[Simple Mathematics]

Nice additions. I love the puck chop control. Can't wait to hear the BaGM news. Hopefully it's not all for GM Connected.

[StLHokie]

Quote: Originally Posted by Garism

Finally with the faceoff-spam fix. I just started using it recently and I say i win a good 85% of my draws (I do have faceoff maxed and a +8 on my C). Not a loss for me at all cause I can win faceoff the normal way. Glad they moved the poke chop too. Love the new addition with the L1 button cause I hate it when I want to poke it but i poke chop it and I'm stuck in that animation. With the addition of L1=puck chop, what happens to the old L1 function where you drop on 1 knee. I hope they take that out. Litterally makes you a pylon out there.

Moderator on the EA forums clarified that the puck chop was R1/RB + RS. In the video, one thing is shown while another is stated. Made it a bit confusing.

[Hockeynut99]

You got my attention NHL14! Now just give me the 5 man hug!

[Simple Mathematics]

Quote: Originally Posted by Hockeynut99

You got my attention NHL14! Now just give me the 5 man hug!

Please, for the love of god, let this be in.