How to forfeit against cheating CPU?

[kerosene31]

What do you do when the game randomly decides that it is impossible for you to win for a night?

The Rangers are destroying my Sabres in franchise. They have uber speed boosts and steal every puck. The CPU does this once every 2-3 games. Every pass you make goes through your teammate's legs. Every player gets stick lifted from behind. Every puck is knocked right to the CPU.

I even had a pass go backwards, bounce off the boards and hit my goalie's skate and go in. There wasn't even an attacking player on that side of center ice.

I quit online because of the glitchers, only to have the CPU cheat badly as well.

I only get time for 1 or 2 games a night, and that is no fun when the CPU is twice as fast as you.

[kerosene31]

Nevermind, I'm done with the game.

[jsquigg]

Wow. I used to think the same way until I KEPT PRACTICING and improved my own skill. If there is a chance you aren't done with the game, what skill level do you play on? I have yet to see the CPU "cheat." When I wasn't as good at the game, I thought there was a chance, but then I realized I could get better at numerous things within the game. If you have a more specific concern than "the cpu cheats," I'd be happy to help.

[MrMars]

JSquigg,

I can relate to a degree with kerosene, I too, was feeling that way towards the game. What I have come to believe is that there is some sort of programming function in the Dynasty mode that tries to simulate the ups and downs of a NHL season.

The announcers even talk about lady luck and what have you, hitting posts and crossbars all game, and out playing your opponent and still losing. We all know these thing happen to teams in the NHL, and the game tries to represent this.

I've out shot teams 42-12 and still lost 3-1. I played a game this morning (I also have a Sabre's Dynasty, in my third year) against the Islanders; got shutout 2-0 and out shot them 31-22. the very next game against the Rangers beat them 5-1.

The point is that in the dynasty mode, you can tell when your cyber players are playing well or playing poorly by what happens on the ice. All the things Kerosene was talking about occur in dynasties when the cpu want's represent your team not playing well. Things such as;

Puck's bounce over your stick all game long.

Passes seem to skew right to defenders

your Goalie let's in soft goals

CPU goalie (Ranked lower than yours) stands on his head

Perfect setup for one-timer and your guy fans on the shot,
or freezes with his stick up in the air.

CPU seems to win every face-off

CPU win's all the loose puck battles.

The question now becomes; "Can I overcome these obstacles?" In most cases, NO. But for some reason the dev's think that we are still having fun while all this is going on. Heck, some of us might be, and this is what I want to relay to Kerosene. If you want to keep playing this game and maintain your sanity you MUST find a way to have fun each game you play even when you lose. If you cant do that you might as well sell your system and give up gaming all together. For the sake of your mental health.

I'm not saying it's easy, It took me a while too. But once i did this, i found little things to go "wow, that was cool how they did that" even when I'm getting roasted by the cpu. I also changed the focus of the game. For example, one game i played went in to Ottawa by the end of the first period I was down 5-0. So the focus of the game became avoiding the shutout, because I knew I wasn't gonna win. I ended up losing 7-1, but my objective was met.

Bottom Line, I'm sure there are some players out there who can glitch the cpu, I'm not one of them. I play a couple two, three games a night and I do the best i can. You gotta try different things, what do real hockey teams do when they are not playing well? They bench certain players for a game or two to get their attention. They call up the hot rookie from the AHL. They juggle the lines, or Make a trade. These are the things you gotta do in order to keep the fun in Dynasty mode when you are losing consistently. I know, cuz right now I am 3 games under .500 in the second month of my third year with the Sabre's and have lost 6 of the last 9, and lost Vanek to a concussion. Believe it or not I am having a blast. The challenge for me is to try to play through the rough times. Looking for a possible move i can make to spark the team. keeping an eye on my ahl team for a possible call-up. Experimenting with different Line combination's. This is where the fun is in Dynasty.

Kerosene hang in there.


Mr Mars

[jsquigg]

I know what you're saying, but all of what you just mentioned happens in real hockey. You shouldn't be able to just kill everyone because you do everything right. There are multiple factors involved, and personally, I just haven't seen anything that egregious since I've stepped my game up. If you do everything right in hockey, it is still the only sport where you can still lose. The reason: goal tending. I am in a Caps dynasty, and trust me, goalie ratings MATTER. I made a trade and got Giguere for Theodore (not the only players involved before someone freaks out) and Theodore is a sieve by comparison. This doesn't mean I haven't lost games to teams with lower rated goalies, it just means I have more stability back there. There will be the occasionally controller breaking game, but if you keep focus, you will realize that the cpu is just smart at adjusting. If the people complaining could post videos, maybe some of us can show them what they could have done different. But let's face it: Sometimes a goalie gets hot and the puck doesn't bounce your way. As a wings fan, I have seen this time and again in real life. I guess that the other teams cheat every few games......

[kerosene31]

Quote: Originally Posted by jsquigg

Wow. I used to think the same way until I KEPT PRACTICING and improved my own skill.

No no no no no.

You don't get it. There are games where you go out and you team is pre-progammed to be flat. The CPU go into berzerker mode while your players are skating in concrete. Anyone who doesn't see this hasn't played enough.

Most games, I am competitive on all star. I win some, I lose some. That's what the game is about. However sometimes you go out and the CPU is just all over you like a rabid dog.

For example:
-Every time I win a faceoff back to my point man, a CPU winger is on him at the EXACT SAME TIME the puck reaches him. The CPU puts on a perfect stick lift and is off to the races. This has no counter, as you can't even move. The only counter is to purposely lose the draw.

-Every single poke check by the CPU steals the puck, no matter what positioning. You can turn your back to the player and move the puck away from him, still even with clear separation he can stick lift you from behind (an automatic penalty for humans).

-Passing the puck to a teammate and having it miss them completely (usually through the skates). This happens even when both the player making the pass and the player receiving it is not under pressure and the pass is not blocked. I wanted to upload one video of a play where a winger dropped a pass back to a wide open point man. The pass bounced off his skates and cleared the zone.

This isn't just those "they made a lucky play and won" kind of hockey things. That happens in real life. This berzerker mode is different. In the 3rd game of the season my team is already dead tired and won't skate.

I can spot this mode in the first few minutes of the game, and it is total cheese. I play 10 minute periods and I don't have time for this. I even pulled the goalie and guess what, the insane CPU cheats disappeared and they couldn't score!

[flamingarmadilo]

Quote: Originally Posted by kerosene31

Go Sabres! (can we get a Sabres avatar?)

There is one although I wish it were the real classic one.

And I get what you mean, it gets annoying when it seems like the CPU is 99ing on you.

[baa7]

Quote: Originally Posted by kerosene31

The CPU go into berzerker mode while your players are skating in concrete.

Exactly. My biggest peeve is the ridiculous CPU ping-pong passing when they're in berserker mode. Whoever programmed this game, either doesn't know hockey or had no intention of creating a sim representation of the sport -- because that crap is NOT hockey.

FYI: If you edit CPU players' Aggressiveness ratings down to between 50-60, it essentially eliminates all that nonsense.