NHL 16: Official Gameplay Balance Video, Trailer and Blog

[sooner1074]

Quote: Originally Posted by Simple Mathematics

Doc is an incredible announcer in real life. He has such passion and emotion. Not sure why he's not displaying it in the game though.

It actually is more on the sound crew than Doc. They must be having a difficult time mimicking the atmosphere in the booth. Take it from me who worked in broadcasting, it's hard to get excited for something you really don't feel or hear.


Also, you have to take into consideration the whole ambiance of the crowd. It works hand and hand with Mike's calls. Ever notice the crowd is no different reacting to a game winning goal in overtime then to a first period score? If the crowd were more amped up when appropriate and banged the boards when the red light came on, then Doc's calls wouldn't be as terrible as you perceive it. So some of the blame goes to the crowd atmosphere - there is no variance.


But I digress...Hopefully, for our sake, they pump in louder crowds in the head sets and utilize an Oculus Rift for future installments. One can only hope these days.


The best option, though its hard from a legal stand point, would be to edit and use audio from previous NBC broadcasts. That way you achieve the raw energy that is sorely missed in the game and you capture the difference in amplitude from the crowd.

[knich]

The backhand passing is horrendous AGAIN this year. No one in the NHL backhand passes as hard and as accurately as the players in this game. Also, the backhand passes are made in areas where NO NHL player would attempt such a pass. This has been a problem with the game play for years. The backhand shot is also way overdone. I also agree with most posts that this looks like NHL 15 with some paint..not even sure if the paint is fresh. This game needs consultants and/or coaches who have actually played or coached in NHL. Players are falling all over each other, look like they just got their heads cut off, failing to dump puck in situation appropriate (or at all), poor positioning, crazy passes, and there is no organized flow. AI is horrible. I hope this is an alpha version and there is a lot not put in yet.

[coopsta007]

After seeing both videos, this game is looking to be an early no-buy for me. When you look at other games such as Madden, NBA2k, The Show and FIFA, each of these games truly feels like a next-gen experience on PS4/XB1. Call me crazy, but for some reason, the NHL series feels like it is stuck in last gen mode. The graphics may look a little bit better, however the core gameplay, in-game sounds, game modes, etc. make me feel like I am playing on the PS 3.25 instead of PS4.

Sure, the gameplay footage we saw today was a work in progress, however this year's marketing campaign for NHL 16 is looking an awful lot like NHL 15 (no pun intended)

[bigwill33]

Quote: Originally Posted by Roscosuper

Hmm... Anaheim was cpu controlled, correct? They were trailing late in this game and that is when the cpu presses the most (adjusts its strategies to do so). So, if that is the adjustment that will yield the most amount of pressure from the cpu, offline BaGM could be the same as always; a bit of a snooze-fest. Maybe this isn't the case here (I doubt it), but they did state Allstar-Hardcore; maybe Superstar will have different results, but past iterations tells us that probably won't be the case. I'd like to be optimistic, and I wish they would give us a level and a setting for a more sophisticated style of play, but I don't know, I don't think we're getting it this year.

There really has never been any contextual awareness within this game or its AI.

Even playing club with computer D there is no rush to get the puck up the ice to the open guy without my calling for it continually in the final moments of a game in which we are trailing. There is no drive to the net or sending 2 guys to the puck to support a tied up teammate in the corner etc.

This game just doesn't have those kinds of things programmed into it, never has, no matter what the aggressiveness and other settings are set to.

[iaxy]

Thanks EA. You just saved me $60.
I'm trying to focus on positives, but I'm afraid my original suspicions have been confirmed.
This is NHL 15.1. Same game play with some subtle graphical changes.
The biggest showstopper for me is the lack of fluidity and convincing animations. Whilst the skating looks OK when the skater is in stride, the change of directions is again horrible to watch. The trailer sure does a good job of advertising the micro movements and control, but what's the point if the idea is not supported by proper animations, momentum and fluidity?

[Money99]

Doc is great live, but not so much in this series (so far).
I wonder if it's because he's not comfortable with the setting?
We all know 'that funny guy' and think he'd be great as a comic or TV star.
But the minute a camera is put in his face he becomes a stone wall.
Maybe that's what's going on with Doc here?

As far as presentation goes - and this can be said for a lot of sports games today - I still wonder how NFL2K4 could give us a weekly wrap-up show, with a virtual Chris Berman, and yet nobody else has come close to emulating it.

I'm such a nerd for stuff like that, that if NHL16 offered a weekly show, or an intermission update showing highlights from around the league, I'd buy it instantly.
NHL94 ruled for many reasons, but being able to watch highlights from around the league was fantastic.

I'm taking this latest vid with a grain of salt.
It's less than 60s long and the intent was to clearly show better defensive AI and loose puck physics.
In that regard, I think it did well to show off what the producers intended.
We saw pucks get knocked away with incidental and minor contact.
We also saw a CPU controlled defender properly defend lanes and pick off cross-crease pass attempts.

I can't say this video made me super excited for NHL16, but I do like some of the tweaks they've made.

Still, none of this matters if NHL16 will still feature last-minute heroics by the CPU, or if the CPU has 5 Crosby/Chara's on the ice every shift.

[jake19ny]

It's looking like the game is what I expected, NHL 14 for next gen. Returned missing modes, added eye candy, and a few minor tweaks. I will still play because I miss playing a hockey game and revamped rosters and tweaks made past versions (NHL 15 not one of them) playable. I'm not sure how they can improve the NZ play and I don't know how complicated it is to do so but I wish they would. That aside 2 simple things we have asked for would go a long way and do not appear to be there
1) player seperation: watching this video I couldn't tell the difference between any of those players on the ice. They all seemed equally skilled and equal in speed. Hopefully revamped rosters will help
2) better CPU coaching AI: line matching by CPU or at least smart match ups at the end of the game. As previous poster mentioned down by one with under a minute to play and Horcoff and Jackman are on the ice instead of top guys. So sick of playing games up by one and Colton Orr is on the ice for the final minute....dumb dumb dumb.
If they had actual realistic player seperation and smart CPU coaching AI together would make games much better. I don't think we will ever see player seperation as EA prefers a level playing field for online gamers over a realistic offline experience.

[TDKing]

Thorne and Clement were way better than Doc. I warned you guys that were clamoring for a new commentary team now we are stuck with this chopped up crap. Lol... I'm mostly done with this game until it gets new leadership. I will give it a try with ea access but doubt I'll be buying it. Thing is, imo they were so close at one point to a having a really good game if they made a few important gameplay tweaks that they absolutely refuse to do or fail to see.