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NHL 13 News Post


Check out some of the new NHL 13 screenshots, featuring dynamic goalies.

NHL 13 arrives in stores on September 11th.

Game: NHL 13Reader Score: 8/10 - Vote Now
Platform: PS3 / Xbox 360Votes for game: 23 - View All
NHL 13 Videos
Member Comments
# 1 FBeaule04 @ 06/29/12 10:46 AM
Except from the two pads stack poke check and one-knee paddle down in the middle of the net, I don't see anything different from an NHL 12 pic. Maybe I'm just missing something here.

I'll get excited when seeing more of how the goalies play when a HUMAN controls them and most important, how the Dynamic Goalies play out in certain situations.

Until then, unless I'm missing something, I'm not head over heals about those.
 
# 2 Panther84 @ 06/29/12 03:36 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by FBeaule04
Except from the two pads stack poke check and one-knee paddle down in the middle of the net, I don't see anything different from an NHL 12 pic. Maybe I'm just missing something here.

I'll get excited when seeing more of how the goalies play when a HUMAN controls them and most important, how the Dynamic Goalies play out in certain situations.

Until then, unless I'm missing something, I'm not head over heals about those.
Same thing i'm seeing in these pics! even in early videos i don't see much of an improvement in goalie animations.
 
# 3 FBeaule04 @ 06/29/12 04:33 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Panther84
Same thing i'm seeing in these pics! even in early videos i don't see much of an improvement in goalie animations.
To be faire to EA, the videos they showed on how Luongo was playing the 2 on 1 was solid but...

It's not my fault, it's EA's fault if I'm taking everything with a "caution flag" before saying it's out of the park. They deserve that skepticism with the way they worked for the last 3 years. Even more after saying that NHL 13 was the year they put the more work in the AI programming.

I go back to the Letang-Zetterberg video of last summer when they entertained the fact that the players we're now playing according to where the puck should be instead of reacting to the play. It was really impressive in the video, but the translation in the game itself was non-existent.

The goalies could make a back flip and end-up sitting on the cross bar in a pic, it won't matter if the AI is as poor it was in NHL 12. Show me a pic where a goalie plays the puck and don't take a penalty for playing it outside the trapezoid. You'll get me interested! ;-)
 
# 4 Steve_OS @ 06/29/12 04:59 PM
I saw ALL SORTS of goalie animations when I played at E3. Have no worries about that. I'm talkin' limbs moving in all sorts of directions, making it look absolutely realistic. Don't think anyone will have to worry there.
 
# 5 bwiggy33 @ 06/29/12 05:49 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve_OS
I saw ALL SORTS of goalie animations when I played at E3. Have no worries about that. I'm talkin' limbs moving in all sorts of directions, making it look absolutely realistic. Don't think anyone will have to worry there.
Steve quick question, do the goalies shuffle more realistically? All the goalies do is glide across the ice instead of having realistic shuffle movements. They have no momentum at all. It just looks so unnatural and it's been that way since 07. They just move at warp speed all of the time. I'm assuming the answer to my question is no but I may as well ask someone who's played at least the E3 version.

I really hope that they can fix this for next year if it isn't somewhat fixed this year. All I want is for the goalie to actually look like a real goalie would move.
 
# 6 bwiggy33 @ 06/30/12 03:56 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by RealmK
Just a tad nit picky imo.
How is that nit picky? I understand this game isn't 2k8 but why could they make goalies move realistically both standing up and in the butterfly position? Hell that game is almost 4 years old. The goalies in this game move absolutely horrifically. All they do is float across the crease at warp speed. It's exactly like everyone else complained about how players just floated across the ice when they skated (which seems like it got fixed). Why can't I do that about the goalies? They need momentum and character.

I like that they are focusing on goalies moving all their limbs, but making them move at a realistic rate is not nit picking when movement and reaction is the biggest part to goaltending. They cover up the goalies not making glitch goal saves by making goalies move at warp speed across the crease. That's not how it should be.
 
# 7 Cletus @ 06/30/12 05:48 AM
I hope the puck "plays" to it's actual size. There's a lot of those animations where the puck could go in 5 hole. A lot of times in NHL 12 goalies stopped a lot of shots cleanly and the ones that went in were like magic bullets going through people. It seemed like the puck played bigger than it was, if that makes any sense.
 
# 8 jesushaxyou @ 06/30/12 01:13 PM
I may or may not shoot myself if that is the case, Rogie. Human goalies need an overhaul. No way it can be ignored AGAIN.
 
# 9 gopher_guy @ 06/30/12 02:13 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rogie Vachon
Whatever.....it`s obvious they use very little motion capture for the goalies.
As long as the skaters get to move realistically and can have their exploits for scoring it`s all good.

Why is it that everyone that has ties to EA pulls this attitude when a legit complaint or comment is made.
How many of their customers actually play as a goalie consistently?

I'd guess it's around 5-10%...

There are just more pressing issues with the game.
 
# 10 Fiddy @ 06/30/12 02:14 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by RealmK
It's a video game. Hey it would be super cool nifty if they mo capped a goalie down to the specific moment his weight transfers from one skate to the other for you guys animations and all. It's A VIDEO GAME.
thanks for clarifying that NHL 13 is a video game..

stuff like the goalie issues etc above, not nitpicking.

most realistic game right?
 
# 11 gopher_guy @ 06/30/12 02:40 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rogie Vachon
If there are more pressing issues,then why include it?

Seriously,...I could eat a can of alphabet soup and crap out a better argument than what you are making.
Include what??

I'm just saying there are more pressing issues than mo-capping a bunch of goalies and trying to make their movements in game look more realistic.

Just an opinion, cool your jets.
 
# 12 kai123 @ 06/30/12 02:52 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by RealmK
Don't get me wrong, I'd like more realistic goalie interaction/movement too. But I think there's far bigger issues with the gameplay that need more attention. At least it isn't like 2k10 where they flop around like dead fish on just about every shot sent their way. Basically it could be far worse.
Realmk, I like you and all but stop comparing EA Sports NHL game to 2k's game. 2k Hockey doesn't even exist anymore. And for the record Bwiggy only mentioned the goalies in 2k8 not the entire game. I understand that EA has no competition so there isn't really a need to compare to anything but Real life(or other sports games)....but as you said its a Video Game, so cue the Arcade style skating and unrealistic goalies.

Anyways the goalies in this game don't really need more animations, I think they just need better AI. I was pretty satisfied with the save attempts in NHL 12.
 
# 13 phillyfan23 @ 06/30/12 02:54 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by RealmK
Just a tad nit picky imo.
its not nitpicky at all. goalies are very important and realistic movement is needed to improve scoring. this is a huge reason why there are no 5 hole goals in the game. mist 5 hole goals occur whem you get the goalie moving and he opens up between the legs. why do his legs open up? because he is shuffling from one side to the other using realistic shuffle motions instead of warping like a voodoo man defying all physics.

they even had this in nhl 2k8. not nitpicky at all considering scoring goals is the meat of a hockey game.



Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using Tapatalk 2
 
# 14 Wingnatic @ 06/30/12 09:55 PM
EA needs to give some love to goalies and defensemen instead of mostly focusing on scoring. That's not what hockey is all about. These positions are so hard to play in NHL 12. I'm tired of being a defenseman and poke-checking and stick-lifting the hell out of a forward only to have him retain control of the puck somehow. It's like, I may as well not even have a stick sometimes. I know they were trying to tout their new hitting engine but I prefer playing the puck, in most cases.

I gave up on holding LT and getting in passing lanes. That doesn't even work most of the time. Mind you, I have my D-man set up with 99 defensive awareness and stick-checking.

Clipping is a serious issue too that negatively affects the gameplay. I see way too many goals go in because a forwards stick clips through the goalie and the net. It happens a lot on wraparounds.

I agree with a few here who have said that goalies need an overhaul. One of my huge pet peeves is the robotic skating. When I come out to play the puck, he doesn't skate like a real goalie. The clunkiness makes it really hard to play the puck properly. I would like to see something where, when the puck is coming around the boards and behind the net, you can press one button and your goalie GLIDES around the net to play it, and as soon as you play it, he automatically GLIDES back around to the front of the net.

Also, EA needs to work on the post-hugging. Coming on and off the post needs to feel less like a magnet and more organic. It's very hard to stop one-time passes from behind the net with the way it is now. Last but not least; what is it with so many pucks magically finding their way past the goalie. Is it 99 offensive awareness? Does that automatically make pucks squeeze through near impossible gaps? It's really frustrating when you have a good angle on a shooter and the puck still manages to get by somehow. I watch the replays and think, "There is no way that puck should have went in."

Anyway, I'm done rambling. Despite it's flaws, EA produces great hockey games.
 
# 15 FBeaule04 @ 06/30/12 10:02 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by RealmK
Eh I think we knew that before they even said it. As an offline guy it bothered me too but look at it from a realistic light. It's a yearly title, just like any other sports title. It has a smaller budget and sells far fewer units than say a Madden or NCAA Football, and they have a line to balance between not only online and offline play, but hardcore guys like us and casual fans which is the majority of their sales, the casuals.

Did it bother me a couple years ago when they said they totally revamped CPU logic and the sim engine and it ended up not panning out how us hardcore guys would have liked? Sure as hell it did, the difference is I try and find enough good in the series to go along with the bad parts of it and at the end of the day it's enjoyable.

I'm right with you, I'd like to see better goalie movement, better puck physics, etc etc etc. But seriously some of you guys only post the negative or go out of your way to find things to pick the game apart on. If you hate the game so much every year, why buy it every year?

If I seriously thought the game was terrible and I didn't enjoy playing it, even with the AI issues, or trade logic issues or take your pick issues, I'd be doing the same thing you guys do every year. Personally though the game is fun, about as realistic a hockey game as we're prolly ever going to get in it's current state with the changes to the skating engine and the like, and hopefully the AI talk ends up panning out and we get a pretty awesome game out of it.
You know Realm, I've said it many times, I'm part of why EA can do a lazy job and still make money with their games. I'm not happy, but I'll play them from day 1 to day 364, and start over next year.

On saying that you enjoy playing it because it's fun, for me, it's the exact opposite. I play it because it's the only hockey game available on the market, because I'm an hockey addict and lover and because I need my fix no matter what. I can put NHL on the shelve for a week, you can be sure I'll start hitching toward it just to play a few games.

Knowing that my craving for hockey is that bad, I try everything possible to have a great time and close my eyes to obvious situations that aren't making sense with this game. I've played a game few hours ago and I should have but I didn't, took 4-5 videos of example of what's wrong with this game. I was on the verge of swinging the DVD by the window and sey to EA : "Go F*** Yourselves, I won't buy that game anymore." Then I go play another game for 1-2 hours, and my hitching for hockey, trying something else to make that game works, starts again.

Maybe goalies movement is asking a lot from a game development team, but they are making miracles all over the place with the game, but in other area, this is so bad, it's tough to accept. I've said once and will say it again. Until proven differently, EA's guy maybe a hell of a team on the programming side, but hockey wise, they are terrible. Proof of that is that the AI so well programmed on the computing side that it's making almost the same thing every game. On the hockey side, it's so bad that these things they are programmed to do makes the game tough to enjoy.

To be honest Realm, I don't care that much about those stats not beeing that close to reality, not caring much about the fact the AI CPU trade logic is bad as long when you play the game, the players play like they're suppose to play. If they aren't, you can provide us with what you want for menus, systems, etc. it won't matter since what most guys want is not the goodies, but a game that reflects what we are seeing on TV (to some extent, I should say).

What I'm seeing and try to blind my eyes from for the last 9 months isn't near what I saw on the ice for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Offensively, this game isn't that bad. Defensively, it's a joke (with the voice of Jeremy Roenick) and in net, it's a parjury.

Just my two cents.
 
# 16 ComaFaction @ 07/01/12 11:16 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by RealmK
Wouldn't having dynamic saves be the same thing as manuals. For hyping a feature like dynamic limb control for goalies, why would they remove that from human goalies? It makes no sense.

Keep in mind they were playing a very early alpha build at the CE and things are obviously subject to change. I wouldn't panic just yet.
As I recall, during the community day feed, Rammer specifically stated that they hadn't finalized how they would apply the dynamic limb control to goalies. They weren't sure if it would be automated or if they would map it to the user's control in some way. Pretty sure it was during the Q&A session at the end of the livestream.
 
# 17 ComaFaction @ 07/01/12 02:34 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rogie Vachon
They said the goalies were 95% done.

Human goalies are getting jobbed!
True, but I think you're taking that out of context. I believe Rammer was referring to the fact that they were trying to get the goalies to the point that they could stop 100% of shots and then scale them back. I think that is where the 95% comment came from. He later said they were still toying with what level of control human goalies would have.

I'm not saying you will or won't see what you want, but I believe that was the context of those statements.
 
# 18 bwiggy33 @ 07/01/12 05:37 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by gopher_guy
How many of their customers actually play as a goalie consistently?

I'd guess it's around 5-10%...

There are just more pressing issues with the game.
I'm not even talking about playing as the goalie. I never have and most likely never will because it doesn't do a very good job of depicting a goalie and how they play. I'm specifically just talking about the goalies in the actual gameplay. Have you ever watched the goalies move in this game? It's an utter joke. Just gliding and warping across the crease. They stop on a dime and just move every part of their body with 0 momentum or effort. Looks and plays terribly. That's the major problem with the goalies. Sure there are other issues but if they are fixing the limbs or whatever on the goalies now, it seems like they should be able to stay focused on fixing other parts of the goalies as well.

Now for Rogie he plays as the goalie if I'm not mistaken so obviously this affects him as well.
 
# 19 FBeaule04 @ 07/01/12 11:25 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by RealmK
Again I'll ask, does the new skating engine affect tenders as well? If so it'll make a huge difference. Or should in theory.

Hockey is without a doubt the toughest game to emulate in video game form, add in all the limiting factors of consoles with 512 megs of ram, 10 month yearly dev cycles, resources etc etc.

Goaltenders in EA's game are obviously not 100% realistic, and honestly, they prolly never will be. They are however functional and believable imo for the most part. And appear to be getting alot of love this year along with AI really in general that was long overdue.

We're never going to get perfection, it's just not going to happen.
To me Realm, it's just going back to what I was saying about NHL 12. It's the case of the frog wanting to be a beef (that a french expression, I'm not sure at all I can say that in english, anyhow...).

In NHL 92 (yep, 20 years ago) we had our first hockey game from EA. There was not many mode, graphics we're great at the time for a video game, it was fun, we didn't ask for much since it was the first one.

Then, the game started to expend with the years. Seasons and Playoffs, Stats, Trophies, Lines, Create a team, etc. Things we're implemented in the game, and taken out year after. There was more and more problems, but modes and goodies increased, increased, and continue to increased.

I remember, in NHL 08, there was few modes but online was versus and that's it. Funny enough that in NHL 98, you could have GM connected online in a league and it's a brand new thing in NHL 13. Anyway, that wasn't the point. Matter of fact is that instead of saying : "That's enough for modes offering, there plenty to be happy with" the company, looking at new cows to milk, decided to go toward Be a Pro, EAUHL and EASHL. These three modes together should have taken more then there share of time on the team, making the other modes completely stalled.

I'm not saying that Be a Pro isn't a good mode, that UHL isn't a good addition neither is EASHL. My only grief is that, if you say that the console as it's limitation and they only have 10 months to develop the game, why don't they concentrate on making the product the most flawless in years. They even can afford not offering not much new goodies, they don't have an opponent to put the game in trouble.

Like I said, we're responsible because we buy the game year in year out, we played it from one cover to the other, and most reviews are giving the game a 8.5 to 9 every september. The real grades should be the ones we gave when we washed up this game, late june when the NHL seasons end.

As for myself, the 8 I gave to the game in september after few weeks would be a 6.5 now. To all the great things this game as to offer, the flaws of the AI in the game kills it more than in previous years. We don't ask for perfection, but I wouldn't accept a guy having the talent of Sidney Crosby to play like Sean Avery. And that's exactly what EA did with NHL 12.

Note to myself : Go read what you just type and ask yourself why you still play the game. Because you're an idiot!
 
# 20 ch46647 @ 07/02/12 02:23 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by RealmK
Excellent post and I agree 100%, I never asked for BAP, or EASHL or HUT or any of that stuff, and the addition of all those modes over the last few years have stagnated work needed in other areas, skating, AI, heck you know the list, the important areas rather than shiny new online modes for the casuals.

There is a difference in players, honestly there is, it's just not nearly pronounced enough, guys that are shut down defensive specialists like a Chris Kelly aren't allowed to shine because the AI just wasn't their for it. The AI was so driven on "Get the puck get the puck get the puck" That it didn't understand what a forecheck was or a backcheck for the most part, you'd still see the occasional move from an AI controlled 2 way forward to cut off a pass at center ice but it happened so rarely it really wasn't even worth mentioning.

EA's saying it themselves, "We've worked more on AI this year than the last 3 years combined" Gee ya think? Stop adding new modes and focus that limited dev cycle and resources on the important aspects.
Realm, have you played NHL 13?

Thanks!
 

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