It has arrived, friends. Tuesday marked the release of EA's latest offering in the hockey video game market: NHL 16. After the resounding disappointment that was NHL 15, this really was a make or break game for EA. At first glance, NHL 16 improves on its predecessor in nearly every way. It promises more features, more realistic gameplay, a revamped tutorial system, and more overall polish than last year's game.
Despite the new, shiny features on its surface, there is one core element to the NHL series that matters to everyone: gameplay. Although often overshadowed by the addition of new game modes, a better menu system, and the addition of mascots, gameplay is, in my opinion, the most important feature of the game. The NHL series is, after all, a sports simulation game. It should reflect real life hockey as much as possible.
NHL 15 really dropped the ball on this department. If you don't know what I'm talking about, look around at some NHL 15 videos and you'll get it. The AI was overall just terrible. Most of what's out there is flukes and glitches (
like these) which were way more common than they should have been. However, the AI did have some fundamental issues (
like these). Ultimately, you would see at least one flukey play per game, and the fundamental issues all of the time.
This review will only cover everything that I have seen thus far in playing actual gameplay. Although my play time thus far is limited, I have noticed several huge changes in gameplay, as well as things that have not changed. I have played about ~6 hours of gameplay split (not equally) between rookie, pro, and all star difficulties. For all games, I use simulation settings. I will touch on the differences I saw in each mode, as well as the constants between them. I don't have a capture card, so I won't have actual video, but if there is a way to record gameplay without a card, I'd be happy to post examples as I continue to see them.
First, a bit about my play style. As someone who has watched/played hockey for over half of my life, I like to think that I know a lot about how the game is played. I like to run my offense with a fast paced, skilled team. I play a possession oriented game with lots of passing and puck movement. In terms of comparisons to actual NHL offenses, I would compare it to the Lightning. Defensively, I play a less physical, low risk game. Instead of going for poke checks and hits whenever the CPU enters my zone, I try to force them to the outside and into bad shots. Most of my defense consists of blocking shots and getting in the passing lanes. However, I will occasionally go for a big open ice hit. In terms of special teams, I run an overload powerplay with a diamond penalty kill.
Now onto gameplay...
General Improvements (Not in order):
1. Penalty Kill: The penalty killing in this game is so much better from the CPU perspective. Gone are the days of CPU players clearing the puck as soon as they get it. Now, they skate it out as far is they can, and dump it when under pressure. They do still take a lot of risks offensively on the penalty kill, but not as many.
2. Goaltending: The goaltending in this game, both for human and CPU goalies, is so much better. EA really did great at synthesizing actual goaltending in the game. No longer will the goalies allow 4 fluke goals a game. This year, it is actually possible to score on CPU goalies as well. Overall, huge improvement over last year.
3. Powerplay (Kind of): Unlike last year, it is easy to set up your powerplay in the offensive zone. Players will generally go to their positions and do whatever they're supposed to do based on your settings. In the neutral/defensive zones, there are still some issues.
4. Glitches: As previously mentioned, glitches and fluke events were a huge problem in NHL 15. Thankfully, they seem much improved this year. Although still there, they are much more rare, and don't seem to be a big deal.
5. Passing: The passing in this game seems much improved. Players pick up the puck easier, and the new aiming suggestion is pretty cool. In terms of interceptions, I find that the default settings are pretty good, with both teams' players being able to intercept passes in their vicinity.
6. Shot Aim: I love the new shot aiming system. The new interface, which shows where on the net you're aiming with a green circle, is great. It's much easier to get accurate shots wherever you want.
7. Your Teammates Don't Suck: Gone (for the most part) are the days of your CPU teammates playing completely out of position for no reason. In general, they don't seem to be too much of a hindrance for you.
Things that Still Need Fixed (Not in order):
1. Powerplay: Although the offensive side of the powerplay is great, the rest still needs work. The most frustrating thing that I noticed was that when the CPU clears the puck, your entire team will skate out into your defensive zone to retrieve it. After finally getting the puck, you will take ~20 seconds (not scaled) to set up your powerplay again. Realistically, the powerplay quarterback would go back and get the puck while the rest of the line receded a bit, but did not fully clear the offensive zone. This way, the team could easily reset the powerplay.
2. The Hitting Magnet: This is probably the most annoying thing about the game for me. Whenever you will get the puck and try to skate it into the offensive zone, the nearest CPU will skate by you and give you a physics defying check, causing you to lose the puck and go flying. Regardless of the player's momentum, size, and proximity to your skater, you will lose the puck. There is no way that Zdeno Chara will lose the puck when checked by a standing Nathan Gerbe. The magnet doesn't go both ways, however, as it is very difficult to hit an opposing player in the same manner. I have yet to find a slider that fixes this, having tried modifying puck control, hitting power, and others. I want the CPU to be aggressive, I just don't want this.
3. The Poke Check: Similar to the hit magnet, where almost every CPU pokecheck causes you to lose the puck. Again, doesn't happen when you try to pokecheck the CPU. Moreover, when they do miss, and end up tripping you, there is rarely a penalty called, and you still lose the puck. This brings us to...
4. Penalties: The CPU doesn't take penalties. Period. Even with the slider turned up fully, CPU teams get at most 2 penalties per game. Things that should be called are not, like the aforementioned trips. Boarding also seems to be an issue.
5. OP Mode: This seems new this year, but about midway through the 3rd period, the CPU will become unstoppable. This is more likely to happen if they are losing. It's almost as if the computer went into settings and changed the sliders all the way up for the CPU and all the way down on you. Of course, the level will depend on your difficulty, but on Pro, I saw a CPU suddenly score 3 goals to tie the game in 1:39 (5 minute periods). After dominating most of the game, I wound up going into overtime.
6. The Breakout: Something I have yet to see in any NHL game. When breaking out of the zone, forwards aimlessly wander through the zone awaiting a pass. They don't run a simple, controlled breakout, or even hug the boards.
Now difficulty settings...
Rookie:
Not much to say here really. I didn't spend too much time on rookie, because it wasn't all that fun for me. Faceoffs are almost impossible to lose, and your team is vastly superior to the CPU's team. The few times I played a whole game on rookie, my team would usually win somewhere in the realm of 15-1. Great setting for people who are new to the game.
Pro:
This is where I play most of my games. In terms of difficulty, I think this is the most realistic, at least for me. In terms of realistic gameplay, it isn't as crisp as superstar, but its close. One complaint is that it's somewhat inconsistent. Some games, I'll score 8 goals in a shutout, and others I will lose 5-0. My playing doesn't really change between these. Most of the time, though, it's a close game with a reasonable score.
All Star: From what I've seen, in terms of how the AI plays, this is the most realistic setting. The computer will do things that an actual hockey team would do. It does, however, seem like the CPU has an advantage similar to that of the human on rookie. Even with the difficulty setting at 0, I got destroyed.
Overall, the gameplay is a huge improvement over NHL 15. It's far from perfect, and its still not very realistic, but its better. To top it off, its a lot of fun.
Hopefully, through sliders or patches, we are able to get an on ice product that's closer to reality.
09-17-2015, 04:36 PM
