NHL 17 - More Details on Gameplay, Franchise, EASHL & Much More (Game Informer)

[GrandMaster B]

Game Informer has posted 68 things they know about the game, that you might not be aware of. The list includes details from gameplay, franchise, EASHL, Draft Champions, HUT and much more. Some items are listed below, but read the entire article here.

• Practice mode is finally more fleshed out, allowing you to practice with one player versus a goalie, power plays, penalty kills, 3v3, etc. You can even practice as a goalie.
• For the first time in many years, EA is introducing a new difficulty. The semi-pro setting slides nicely between amateur and pro settings.
• In fact, EA has surfaced tuning sliders for most gameplay settings so players can tweak to their liking. The new sliders are the same ones the developers use to tune the game, ranging from 0 to 100. They now allow players to alter settings of everything from the speed of passes and how much players bobble passes to the frequency that specific penalties get called.
• Everyone who played the past two NHL games has a story about landing a successful check that knocks the player to the ground, only to have the puck be shielded by the downed player, which allows the checkee to recover possession before the checker has a chance to win the puck. EA thinks it finally found a solution to this. When you hit a player away from the puck direction, the puck can come free now and keep going. That should cut down the number of times we see this frustrating circumstance occur.
• You can always spend to the salary cap, but the owner may not want you to. If you overspend past your budget outlines on contracts anyway, should you fail to meet the owner expectations, his judgment will be much tougher.

[SocialAssassin]

Hopefully they picked 68 for Jaromir.

[Moose24x]

So not only is the only thing really added to GM mode the ticket and concession prices, but if I don't manage them well it will effect how much my owner wants me to spend on my roster? Find me one GM in the NHL who determines bathroom repairs and concession prices. What if you have no interest in fiddling with this stuff? You no longer can play a franchise to full enjoyment because poor merchandise sales effect your team's internal budget.

[Simple Mathematics]

There's some good stuff in here that I have not heard yet. I'm excited for the team budgets in Franchise Mode. I'm hoping they have teams like Toronto, Montreal, and the Rangers be able to spend up to the cap ceiling and teams like Arizona, Florida, and Carolina barely spend more than the cap floor. This could be a game-changer if this is done correctly.

[azy19]

Quote: Originally Posted by GrandMaster B

After two years of using orchestral music in menus, NHL 17 returns to the EA Trax approach of featuring contemporary bands on the soundtrack.

Thank god.

Quote: Originally Posted by Simple Mathematics

There's some good stuff in here that I have not heard yet. I'm excited for the team budgets in Franchise Mode. I'm hoping they have teams like Toronto, Montreal, and the Rangers be able to spend up to the cap ceiling and teams like Arizona, Florida, and Carolina barely spend more than the cap floor. This could be a game-changer if this is done correctly.

I don't get why so many people are upset over the new franchise stuff. It's atleast something to do instead of the very bare bones roster management.

[BlacknBlue]

Quote: Originally Posted by Moose24x

So not only is the only thing really added to GM mode the ticket and concession prices, but if I don't manage them well it will effect how much my owner wants me to spend on my roster? Find me one GM in the NHL who determines bathroom repairs and concession prices. What if you have no interest in fiddling with this stuff? You no longer can play a franchise to full enjoyment because poor merchandise sales effect your team's internal budget.

Exactly! I couldn't care less about setting concession prices and worrying about all of that. Just like last year I didn't want the fake chemistry and roles being assigned to players and impacting their on-ice performances. Just make the players play like they do in real life and let me control them.

But honestly, I've far past given up on franchise/GM mode in this game simply because of how putrid the AI is. Maybe if we could control all teams and have our friends control other teams (like a GM connected mode, even if only offline) then I would give it another shot.

[Simple Mathematics]

Quote: Originally Posted by azy19

Thank god. I don't get why so many people are upset over the new franchise stuff. It's atleast something to do instead of the very bare bones roster management.

I just think people would have rather seen things like improved scouting, trade logic, draft day, player growth, etc. I think a lot of people here (me included) are buying this game to simply play hockey, so we don't really care about concession prices too much.

I think the owner-type things they have added this year would have been a cool addition after they nailed down some of the basics like scouting a little more. Even still, they should give you an option to turn this stuff on "auto" so if you don't care about popcorn prices you don't have to worry about it.

For me, I'd take improved hockey-related items in Franchise Mode any day before I got the ability to change concession prices.

[Money99]

Quote:

Everyone who played the past two NHL games has a story about landing a successful check that knocks the player to the ground, only to have the puck be shielded by the downed player, which allows the checkee to recover possession before the checker has a chance to win the puck. EA thinks it finally found a solution to this. When you hit a player away from the puck direction, the puck can come free now and keep going. That should cut down the number of times we see this frustrating circumstance occur.

Love that they fixed this.

Still don't understand why they are so against altering the player ratings though.