NHL 14 Available Now - Post Your Impressions Here

[kerosene31]

I bought the game and played two quick games, one play now, one be a pro. All star, sim settings.

Quick comments:
-CPU AI seems a little better at not letting you skate around... but
-Still too much "hot dog" hockey. You can just dance around with the puck with players who are agile
-The changes to defense are TERRIBLE. We desperately need separate offline and online sliders. The poke check is 99% useless now, and that's a shame
-Hitting is fun
-Fighting is fun (but I echo the same complain others have about too many and the wrong kind of players)

Saw some cool things:
-I was driving the net and got cut off and ridden into the net and knocked it off. Don't remember that from last year.
-Kessel on the Leafs tried some deke off his skate (or just fumbled the puck? but I think he tried a deke) and lost it. Later on he tried a spin move. Nice to see a skill player trying stuff that I didn't see others really trying.

Defense:
-As I mentioned before, the defense is terrible now. How do you stop the CPU? Poke check is useless, even if your stick is right next to the puck and the other player's stick. It isn't even worth hitting the button. I'm hoping this can be tweaked with tuners or sliders. How do you play D now? I've been a d-man for years and I'm lost. You end up having to be super aggressive which isn't realistic. Trying to pinch off an agile skater is asking for trouble. A few others have mentioned it. The CPU dangles the puck in front of you then shoots it right through you.

Seriously, what adjustments are people playing D making?

-Shot blocking seems overly difficult for human players. The CPU can do it, but the puck sails right through me. Hopefully something that can be tweaked with sliders.

Be a pro mode (or whatever it is called now)
-Overall the AI seems better. Teammates are more useful. I am a playmaking center and it feels better. I threw a nice pass to a guy open in the slot and he fired it on net.
-Hitting makes BAP 1000% times better. Last year BAP was awful because you couldn't hit anyone.

AI
-The AI still has a long way to go, but I do see improvements. The CPU seems better at backing each other up in the defensive zone. Forwards help out a d-man who is in trouble. The teammate AI seems a little better in the same regard. They also seem a little better at positioning and reading the play, not just skating to a spot on the ice. It is far from revolutionary, but it isn't nearly as sloppy as NHL13.

Overall:
-I need the D to be fixed, either with sliders/tuners and/or different tactics. I wouldn't even touch this game online until they tweak it.
If they can tweak the D I will say the game isn't bad. Not a huge jump from last year, but I see lots of little improvements.

Did I mention hitting in BAP mode is fun? This got called a charge. Come on.....

[CanuckJ]

I got the game, hate the fact BIP doesnt work at all, hope this is patched soon, I lost 4-3 to flames in a shootout using out of the box settings playing with the canucks, I like the goal variety but I have to tweak the settings for sure, I like the game but agree defense has gotten worse this year at least in the game I saw, they seemed smarter in 13, more likely to adjust and start skating backwards in position quicker.

[kerosene31]

I maxed out the poke check slider and bumped puck control down a bit and the game is a lot better. On hardcore/sim the poke check was super low for some reason? Anyway, I think with some sliders this game can work.

I was worried after my first game, but after tinkering with sliders it is improved. I still didn't see a shot block slider? Unless I missed it?

I never like to touch sliders so early, but I'm not sure why the poke check was basically off by default? At least the sliders seem to make a huge difference, which is great.

[Qb]

Quote: Originally Posted by bad_philanthropy

It's a novelty, but NHL 14 is definitely the best goon simulator ever. You can truly be the baddest man on the ice. I'm testing out an enforcer BAP and taking all sorts of liberties while barely being able skate, deke, and shoot. It's a joy when you pull off the injuring hit, and then injure the guy who steps up to fight. I'm a terrible person.

I played about a quarter of a season as a tough guy in the OHL with NHL13, but it wasn't too fun due to the poor hitting & fighting. I haven't tried it yet, but I suspect it would be a lot more fun this year.

Are there any enforcer specific tasks? Eg, "_____ is their star player. Get after him." I assume you get prompted to fight when your teammates get hit, but it'd be cool if the coach/team acknowledged your role. I don't remember much, if any, of that with 13.

[Money99]

Picked the game up last night and got in 3 games; 2 NHL94 mode with my kids and 1 Play Now game.

The NHL94 mode is what it is. My two young sons loved it and were causing all kinds of havoc, haha.
They said they can't wait to play again tonight (which I think is the point of this mode; for younger kids and frat boys, lol).

For the Play Now game, I'll preface my impressions with the fact that I haven't played this series a whole lot over the past 3 years. In fact, I'd bet I've played less than 40 games since NHL11 was released.
I returned NHL12 within a week and only played the NHL13 demo.
I think I was just burned out on the series.

Now, it's only 1 game granted, but I really, really enjoyed that one game.
I beat the Avalanche with the Islanders 5-2 and all of my goals were different; rebound, deflection, screen, snipe and empty netter.

Playing on hardcore sim the game's speed is perfect IMO.
The hitting is a touch overdone, but I didn't mind it at all.
Skating engine is great. It reminds me a lot of NHL2K10. In that game, you really had to know your body position and adjust accordingly. In previous EA NHL games, even if your player was facing one direction, when you got the puck, you could turn in the opposite direction without losing any momentum, speed, and you could get your stick into a prime shooting position in a split second.
Not anymore. If your guy is heading one way and you hit him with the pass, you have to adjust and work with the inertia of the players weight and speed.
(Maybe that's been there for a while now, but like I said, I barely played NHL12 and 13).

Puck physics have also really improved. The puck jumps and rolls a lot.
Speaking of physics, I saw something really cool last night. After I steamrolled Tanguay, he was led off the ice because of a sprained knee.
In the replay, it showed how his left leg turned in a grosse manor when his body collapsed on top of it, with his left skate stuck in the ice.
The injury was spot on with how his leg reacted to the hit. Very cool.

I was also pleased with the CPU AI. The Avs top player of the game was definitely Matt Duschesne. He was all over the ice making moves, setting up chances and breaking down my D with his speed.

Fighting. I've heard it's a bit overdone and I saw some of that last night too.
However, and I don't know if this was just coincidence, but the Avs didn't fight or challenge me once in the first two periods.
But that changed in the third. Up 4-0, suddenly the Avs were challenging me anytime I laid out a big hit.
I also one-punch KO'd Sarich. Not sure how that happened, as most fights ended after a series of blows. But it was cool to see.

Overall I was really happy with what I saw last night. Yes, it was only one game, but I had a great time and can't wait to play it again tonight.

[GROGtheNailer]

Early with this game I am pretty worried about the defensive aspects. The tools/abilities/AI is largely slanted towards the offensive game. Playing defense is frustrating, way too many pucks going through defenders.

[DJ]

Quote: Originally Posted by Money99

Picked the game up last night and got in 3 games; 2 NHL94 mode with my kids and 1 Play Now game. The NHL94 mode is what it is. My two young sons loved it and were causing all kinds of havoc, haha. They said they can't wait to play again tonight (which I think is the point of this mode; for younger kids and frat boys, lol). For the Play Now game, I'll preface my impressions with the fact that I haven't played this series a whole lot over the past 3 years. In fact, I'd bet I've played less than 40 games since NHL11 was released. I returned NHL12 within a week and only played the NHL13 demo. I think I was just burned out on the series. Now, it's only 1 game granted, but I really, really enjoyed that one game. I beat the Avalanche with the Islanders 5-2 and all of my goals were different; rebound, deflection, screen, snipe and empty netter. Playing on hardcore sim the game's speed is perfect IMO. The hitting is a touch overdone, but I didn't mind it at all. Skating engine is great. It reminds me a lot of NHL2K10. In that game, you really had to know your body position and adjust accordingly. In previous EA NHL games, even if your player was facing one direction, when you got the puck, you could turn in the opposite direction without losing any momentum, speed, and you could get your stick into a prime shooting position in a split second. Not anymore. If your guy is heading one way and you hit him with the pass, you have to adjust and work with the inertia of the players weight and speed. (Maybe that's been there for a while now, but like I said, I barely played NHL12 and 13). Puck physics have also really improved. The puck jumps and rolls a lot. Speaking of physics, I saw something really cool last night. After I steamrolled Tanguay, he was led off the ice because of a sprained knee. In the replay, it showed how his left leg turned in a grosse manor when his body collapsed on top of it, with his left skate stuck in the ice. The injury was spot on with how his leg reacted to the hit. Very cool. I was also pleased with the CPU AI. The Avs top player of the game was definitely Matt Duschesne. He was all over the ice making moves, setting up chances and breaking down my D with his speed. Fighting. I've heard it's a bit overdone and I saw some of that last night too. However, and I don't know if this was just coincidence, but the Avs didn't fight or challenge me once in the first two periods. But that changed in the third. Up 4-0, suddenly the Avs were challenging me anytime I laid out a big hit. I also one-punch KO'd Sarich. Not sure how that happened, as most fights ended after a series of blows. But it was cool to see. Overall I was really happy with what I saw last night. Yes, it was only one game, but I had a great time and can't wait to play it again tonight.

Well this is encouraging to read, as I know you've had your issues with the NHL series, Money. Like you said, maybe part of it was burnout.

Thanks for the impression. I'm still playing 13, only because I haven't had the time to go out and buy 14 yet. I hope to get my hands on it in the next couple of days.

Are you guys all playing Superstar-Hardcore?

[Money99]

Quote: Originally Posted by DJ

Well this is encouraging to read, as I know you've had your issues with the NHL series, Money. Like you said, maybe part of it was burnout. Thanks for the impression. I'm still playing 13, only because I haven't had the time to go out and buy 14 yet. I hope to get my hands on it in the next couple of days. Are you guys all playing Superstar-Hardcore?

LOL! Not even close! I'm on PRO for crying out loud (don't judge me!).
Yes, I'm that bad at games these days, haha.
But I am playing on hardcore simulation mode.

I had a blast with the demo and even more fun with the retail version last night.
I plan on getting in more quality time tonight.

DJ, I really do think it was burnout.
The last 3 years I've added sports games I never, or barely played, into my rotation.
I've been playing basketball and baseball games a lot more.
So after 2 or 3 years off, when getting the latest b'ball, baseball or hockey game, the games feel a lot more fresh and you notice all those little changes a lot more - changes that I might not have appreciated if I had purchased the game on an annual basis.
I mean, just look at the NBA2K forums. That series is unbelievable, but some of the comments I've read there, you would think that 2K13 and 2K14 (which only has videos online) are terrible.
(I'm not judging, just look at some of my comments about the NHL series over the past 3+ years).

So I believe taking a break from all these games every 2 or 3 years has really helped appreciate and enjoy each game.