NHL 17 Beta Available Now, Post Your Impressions Here!

[iam31yearsold]

CPU AI is horrendous. D literally passing backwards into own goalie numerous times.

Feels loose, fast, and arcade.

Nothing about this BETA warrants $60. 16 will be $17 when 17 comes out. Almost same exact game.

[devinmr711]

I signed up for this Day 1 and I dont have a code yet. Anyone got a extra? XB1

[x5xflaccox5x]

I've registered to nhl 17 beta but I haven't received Has anyone a code for xbox one please??? I am very sad for not receiving

[seasprite]

Not sure what people are playing who are saying it's exactly the same as 16. There are many differences in the two, mainly passing accuracy and puck control. Pucks are much easier to separate from the carrier. The skating feels much different as well, feels much tighter at slower speeds.


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[pslieber]

In EASHL (I'm at ~150 games in NHL 16), definitely different.
1. Dig how they boot awful goalies. They kicked mine out literally in the first five minutes. Related, thank God for the one pause per team bit.
2. Glaring glitch in slapshots from the circle against goalie hugging near post. Opposing player literally scored 5 goals on this same shot against CPU goalie. CPU goalies, in general, give up more goals.
3. A little more realistic in getting going, skating. If you're a masochist like me who prefers D (with your partner always pinching and/or going for big hits), it's a great deal more difficult to prevent odd man rushes by fast skate back.
4. Passes are more realistic. The puck moving defenseman player type is new in gameplay.
5. Grading system is a bit stupid, in that it doesn't control for teammates. 16 was smarter on positioning versus outcomes (which you obviously can't control).

I understand the consternation above, but - IMHO - different from NHL 16. 'Very' different? Well, we'll see how final version comes out.

[bad_philanthropy]

Couldn't find an opponent for online vs so I've played EASHL. I don't play the mode, and didn't play last year so I'm sure most will think my impressions are pretty useless.

Anyway, I'm not going to criticize the mode since I am inexperienced, but coming from playing single player for decades, and Rocket League it was like an assault on the senses with all the indicators, and jerky, sometimes stiff, sometimes twitchy movement (why do there even need to be indicators for your teammates?).

What I will say, is players seem ridiculously strong on the puck and able to retain it in open ice simply by holding the right stick.

Small contact does seem better though, and I actually like what they've done with contact in traffic in the offensive zone. It can be a bit unreliable at times, but generally, screening the goalie, and backing into a defender feels pretty good.

Some aspects of skating seem a bit better, but the acceleration curve is still either too high or there simply aren't enough animations at lower speeds to convey the control and agility a player should have. I still think they need a modifier for close in skating control.

I've played enough hockey in my time and for whatever reason it makes me feel like skating speed, momentum, and the whole of its physics generally seem scaled to a larger sized rink than the one in the game. It's odd.

[joshtree14]

Only played versus. Players feel heavy. Big guys feel big and shifty players feel elusive. The game is more sloppy and that's a great thing. Hockey is a sloppy game. The precision of tic tac toe passing is not as prevalent as in years past. Cross crease was difficult to pull off. The gameplay just seems more organic. In that I mean when you add up puck deflections, players bumping into other players and the weighty ness of the players, anything can happen at any time.


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[Money99]

Quote: Originally Posted by bestout51683

For those that say the game is exactly the same must not notice the little differences. The AI plays 10 times better than any other NHL game. They actually mark open players and I haven't seen a the opportunity to get off the glitches one-time shots unless you make a smart play. It also appears the game penalizes you for trying to skate back on your side of the and then just skate by the gpu defender back up the ice. It seems as if the AI sticks to the offensive player a lot better and will steal the puck. There may not be a dramatic change to appearance but I am definitely seeing a big improvement with the AI , physical physics, and the overall game play as a whole. Definitely feeling more simulation hockey.

Nice impressions, thank-you for posting!

How is your teammate AI? Are they still really passive? Will they work to get open after they've been marked?
How is the CPU offensive AI? Do they work for chances/goals?
Any moments where you saw it do something that you're not capable of?