NHL 13 Demo Available Now, Post Your Impressions Here (360, PS3)

[Joborule]

Quote: Originally Posted by Qb

I noticed you were playing on All-Star with default settings. Try playing on the hardcore game style. I noticed that aggressiveness is only set at three on the normal style (not sure about default), but is raised to five on hardcore. That might help some.

Today I had a few games on Superstar skill level on hardcore. Notice subtle improvements in AI aggressiveness, but could be better still. Even on the low slider settings the AI should still be much more active with their sticks in general in the higher skill levels.

[SlyBelle]

Quote: Originally Posted by Section_25

Try playing a little more aggressive maybe? I'm not having this problem, so far in the ps3 demo I seem to stay in the box....lol I have seen lot's of penalties on both sides.

Its just the player, it is the CPU too. Neither team gets penalties. Same thing happened in past versions.

[RealmK]

Quote: Originally Posted by Section_25

Try playing a little more aggressive maybe? I'm not having this problem, so far in the ps3 demo I seem to stay in the box....lol I have seen lot's of penalties on both sides.

Same, I cycle alot, and draw calls on a regular basis. And on defense if you're aggressive against the puck carrier and stick lift/poke, you will get called. Not an issue here even on the locked low settings.

[plaidchuck]

Guess it's random. I've been spamming the stick lift and even the face wash buttons and haven't even gotten a penalty called on me yet.

[Section_25]

Quote: Originally Posted by plaidchuck

Guess it's random. I've been spamming the stick lift and even the face wash buttons and haven't even gotten a penalty called on me yet.

Yeah I have already gotten a couple of unsportsmanlike calls for trying to start fights.......what can I say? I'm a brawler

[Blzer]

Haven't read any other posts, nor have I played the retail versions of 10, 11, or 12 (just the demos, and quite a bit of all of them).

Honestly, the videos didn't seem to do much for me as far as a new look and feel. Yeah, I saw a few differences here and there, but I truly didn't feel them. Playing the demo, however... at face-off, it felt like everything had changed about the skating, off-puck movement, and interaction. It breathes much more loosely now as well, and transition animations are incredibly better. Momentum is also seemingly much more important. The AI is more solid and provocative than before. I haven't felt the new commentary set in yet after just one demo play through, but I never had a problem with it during action.

I also decided to spruce things up a bit: True Broadcast cam. Holy hell, if/when I get this game, this is the camera I'm using. Like baseball and basketball (unlike football IMO), an NHL game is playable with this camera. I still need to figure out the stick configuration with it (it's not the easiest) unless I'm told exactly how it's oriented this way, so far.

I just wish this game was released on Vita. I'm not saying it's possible to replicate this exact experience on Vita, but if they could (framerate and all), I would undoubtedly pay $60 for it on the handheld on release day.

Good stuff! I hope to play more later tonight or tomorrow. EA did us a real solid this time. NHL 09 might not stick around much longer (not enough changes in the last three years to warrant a new purchase, IMO).

[RealmK]

Quote: Originally Posted by iaxy

My observations thus far. Platform PS3 I played 10 games in Play Now, 10 games in Moments and about 20 min in free skate. I genuinely believe that this year EA has made the most significant step forward since the introduction of the skill stick. The new skating engine, when combined with the True Broadcast Camera, deliverers a truly fantastic experience and brings the game that much closer to watching the real thing. The skating engine finally addresses the choppiness and jittering associated to past EA NHL titles and it brings a sense of fluidity and wholeness completely new to the series (and not just EA, but any hockey game developed thus far). It is also very intuitive and logical. If you chase a puck heading for the boards, your player will bump into the boards and lose momentum. However, if you change your angle and gather the puck from an angle, the player will maintain momentum and will fly by the boards instead of slowing down – just like real life. To accelerate and then glide preparing for the pass or shot feels incredibly realistic and is actually part of the set-up game. I was able to score some truly stunning goals using this transition. Momentum plays a big role in this game and so it should. Finally EA have recognized the need to implement momentum – they could have easily messed it up, but they’ve really nailed IMHO. Also, thanks to the new skating, defense is now much more strategic and positional. You now really have to play smart positional defense, otherwise you get burnt and buried. For me it is truly revolutionary and I would even say it is more significant than the skill stick introduction a few years back. The True Broadcast camera is the other significant introduction. Without it, the game would have been already a winner, but changing the view to TBC gives a new, fresh, unpredictable experience that is very welcome (if a tad overdue). The camera angle allows for the game to be played like a real game of hockey. It just feels natural to move, make passes and shoot, just like you would expect to see it in a real hockey game. It’s hard to describe, but even without having mastered the controls, I was able to make plays which were completely reminiscent of a real game scenario. It just feels organic, intuitive and ultimately very rewarding (but equally punishing if you don’t get it right). Little things like having to get the angle right on a dump and chase (either on offence or defence) or the defenseman standing up straightening his body up when behind his own net – it just feels great. I tried to go back to Classic and Ice cameras, but the game just felt like an NHL 12.5 patch, whereas with the TBC it feels like an NHL 13.5 game. I am genuinely impressed with what EA have done here, especially in a year where they had no competition from any other hockey developer. Kudos for the effort put. Having said all that, there are certain things that still need to be ironed out and I am hopeful they will be before launch. Firstly, the collisions / body checks / pin ups don’t feel natural or realistic. There is a lack of sense of weight. They feel light and generally uninspiring. Every now and again you hear the crowd explode after a hit, but you don’t even see or feel the hit as a player. It just feels cumbersome. I don’t know if it’s just me, but the light / frame rate does not feel quite right on my PS3. It feels as if it’s darker than it should be and the player models look kind of blurred. I think this is more evident in a real game, but Free Skate feels better somehow. Not sure about this one, but it’s very evident – especially on the initial face-off when playing in TB camera. My other gripe is in connection to the puck contact physics. Often you don’t actually see sticks making contact with the puck, yet the puck changes direction. This is more evident this year than last year. Summary Pros: - Skate engine – a comprehensive winner - True Broadcast Camera – fantastic new way to play the game - Ice looks fantastic and degrades more realistically - SFX sounds a more realistic - Less shots hit the post / bar - Larger variety of goals - More intuitive AI - More unpredictable gameplay with all sort of interesting developments and scenarios. - Subtle visual improvements, such as the D man straightening his body when behind his net are just welcome little additions that add a lot to the realistic athmosphere. - Goalie animations are fantastic to look at. Cons: - Collisions between players don’t look or feel realistic (it actually feels like a step back somehow). - Light, shadows and crispness are not great (PS3 version) - When winning the puck on defense it still feels disconnected from the actual animation (i.e. you don’t actually see the stick making contact with the puck). - For some reason, you can’t make contact with the goalie any more - Commentary is stale and needs an overhaul Closing comment. The demo is very promising. If EA irons out some of the glitches mentioned above, this could truly be the best sports game developed thus far. Right now, the game feels like a solid 9 – may be even 9.5 If they were to give us the possibility to customize the height and zoom of the TB camera, I would give this game a perfect 10 score.

Good post man, I respectfully disagree on the hitting, I actually feel the collision detection feels alot more natural rather than a bit clunky awkward looking like it has the last couple years, unless your talking about the hits themselves being pretty jacked up since the sliders for hitting are just about maxed out in the options.

At any rate great post, I agree with 99.99 of what you're saying here.

[Blitzburgh]

I just want to say that I am really loving the demo and the true broadcast cam! Change the controller settings to always up and turn off auto zoom and its great! I only wish the demo had a full game to play.