NHL 15 News Post

NHL 15 Demo Available Now, Post Your Impressions (Xbox One, PS4)

08:44 PM - August 25, 2014 by Steve_OS

The NHL 15 demo is available now on Xbox Live for Xbox One users. PlayStation 4 users can expect the demo tomorrow afternoon when the PSN Store updates with new titles.

UPDATE: The NHL 15 demo is now available for PlayStation 4 users. If you can't find it, click this link.

Some have had luck going to "New Demos" all the way over to the right. Games>New>Demos>New Demos (all the way over to the right) and grab the NHL 15 demo. Thanks @TheFlopfish)

The demo weighs in at 2.58 GB. Here are the details.

New York Rangers vs. Los Angeles Kings
Full game with three two-minute periods
Play in Madison Square Garden or Staples Center
Gameplay Camera Angles: Dynamic Low, Dynamic Medium, and Dynamic High
Practice Mode: Master the Superstar Skill Stick with a free skate against a goalie
Difficulty Settings: Rookie, Pro, All-Star

If you can't find it, try searching for it with Bing.

Play a few games and let us know what you think of this year's NHL title on Xbox One!

Game: NHL 15Reader Score: 6.5/10 - Vote Now
Platform: PS3 / PS4 / Xbox 360 / Xbox OneVotes for game: 16 - View All

NHL 15 Videos

Member Comments

# 201 Pezell04x @ 08/26/14 09:11 PM

Playing on All-star. Lost 2-1 in a shootout to NYR. I finished the game satisfied with playing it but I also left with a real feeling that it is a beautiful version of NHL 14.

There was a good flow to the game. Doc was okay in his commentary but after awhile I just tuned him out. There is no doubt I'd turn the commentary off.

The intro was really good and the graphics look amazing.

I am looking forward to playing with the Rangers to see if there is a difference in how the two teams play.

Side note: Whoever thought it was a good idea to press X to change the type of face off should be slapped. It is impossible to change the type of face off without triggering a cut scene of going to the face off. It is irritating.

# 202 Hockeynut99 @ 08/26/14 09:28 PM

the more I play the more I am trying to figure how people can say this is just like nhl14?! The puck is so much more alive this year! And the skating is awesome in my opinion.

# 203 TDKing @ 08/26/14 09:37 PM

Very dissapointed, after the missing modes i was hoping to be blown away by the demo, nope. Hate the player models (boxes), graphics don't look that much better than the 360. Same old gameplay with ice friction turned down. Whoever decided to waste one minute of devolpment time on wiggling jerseys needs to be reassigned. It looks like the players are deforming and having some kind of back spasms. Flipped a pass in front and it was gently tipped in and I hear "what a canon of a shot", really? Oh and where is this 12 man physics? Not seeing it! Someone mention already bored with it and I agree. Will they bring back the 3 stars of the game or is that to complicated, maybe not in the demo. I'll try the early access and give it another chance but I may be done with this series for at least the next 2 or three years. Guess I'll give FIFA a try this year. I'm happy for those who like it have fun I'm just not feeling it at all.

# 204 bigwill33 @ 08/26/14 09:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hockeynut99


	the more I play the more I am trying to figure how people can say this is just like nhl14?! The puck is so much more alive this year! And the skating is awesome in my opinion.

Take note of how you are entering the zone. Board play. What scores and what constitutes a scoring chance. The goalies, any aspect of how they play. The passing. The overpowered dekes and inability to really knock the puck loose when they are being performed.

Start by noting just those things while playing and then you will have a good idea of where those "people" are coming from with their opinions.

# 205 russ99 @ 08/26/14 09:56 PM

Plays pretty well, but looks so muddy, especially just after playing the visually brilliant PS4 Madden and looks previous generation compared to PS4 NBA2K.

Let's hope they fix this before release.

# 206 deejay2 @ 08/26/14 09:56 PM

for me it is the same like last year just with better graphics.

# 207 Stormyhog @ 08/26/14 10:09 PM

Yeah I find it feels pretty similar to last years game but with some tweaks. Puck is toned down no longer acts like a rubber ball when it is dumped into a corner. For a game that took next gen off last year I expected more of a jump.

# 208 SinisterAlex @ 08/26/14 10:11 PM

I've been playing on all star hardcore and haven't noticed any glaring A.I issues at all. I don't feel cheated like I did in the past when they would just magically get the puck off your stick, tap you in the back and you'd lose the puck, etc.

I love how they've improved the skating and players feel like they have weight to them. Same for the A.I. In the past I found that they could make pivots and turns that we human players couldnt do.

Overall I'm really loving this demo. Presentation is awesome and the new commentators are a breath of fresh air. I've rarely watched NBC games so Doc and Eddie are brand new to me.

# 209 DIRK41NOWITZKI @ 08/26/14 10:12 PM

Does it really look as bad as people make it out to be? The trailers looked pretty nice to me.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

# 210 SinisterAlex @ 08/26/14 10:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hockeynut99


	the more I play the more I am trying to figure how people can say this is just like nhl14?! The puck is so much more alive this year! And the skating is awesome in my opinion.

Agreed loving the puck physics. I've had a lot of broken plays happen in the three games I've played so far than I did in all of NHL 14.

# 211 Hockeynut99 @ 08/26/14 10:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigwill33


	Take note of how you are entering the zone. Board play. What scores and what constitutes a scoring chance. The goalies, any aspect of how they play. The passing. The overpowered dekes and inability to really knock the puck loose when they are being performed. Start by noting just those things while playing and then you will have a good idea of where those "people" are coming from with their opinions.

We must be playing a different game. Because I noticing all the stuff the AI is doing right.

# 212 bigwill33 @ 08/26/14 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hockeynut99


	We must be playing a different game. Because I noticing all the stuff the AI is doing right.

That is good then. I apparently got the NHL 2010-2015 where the same exact goals are scored and I can pass the puck up the boards all day on the breakout and enter the opponent's zone without a challenge again. Along with all of the same exact passing lanes and goalie mechanics.

In the first 3 minutes of turning on the demo of a "new" game I had already had 3 ways to score every single time during practice mode on the best goalie in the game.

If you don't notice those things then I either envy the game that you got, or we just don't see things in the same way. Which either way is fine.

# 213 Hockeynut99 @ 08/26/14 10:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigwill33


	That is good then. I apparently got the NHL 2010-2015 where the same exact goals are scored and I can pass the puck up the boards all day on the breakout and enter the opponent's zone without a challenge again. Along with all of the same exact passing lanes and goalie mechanics. In the first 3 minutes of turning on the demo of a "new" game I had already had 3 ways to score every single time during practice mode on the best goalie in the game. If you don't notice those things then I either envy the game that you got, or we just don't see things in the same way. Which either way is fine.

Lol try it is a game and not practrice.

also it is all good. Not everyone is going to like the game. The puck moves a lot more real to me.

# 214 Blzer @ 08/26/14 10:32 PM

Downloaded it on my Vita and immediately started playing it via Remote Play downstairs.

I obviously didn't get the full effect of the visuals when I was playing, but I liked them. Then I got to my PS4 later, and honestly I wasn't super wowed but I am just happy that they have a nice 60 FPS lock with everything. Presentation was definitely nice.

Controls were good and the puck movement is just awesome. Passed feel "delayed," but it's just the authenticity of the animations kicking in as they're supposed to, so it's forgiven. I can't get a good beat of anything after just two minutes of play, but to be honest the game hasn't had super drastic gameplay changes even since NHL 08. It's roughly the same idea, and personally I'm okay with that.

I'll be picking this up when it comes out, but I need to rely on the community for sliders and settings.

EDIT: By the way, did this game always have an L3 sprint feature?

# 215 hawley088 @ 08/26/14 10:42 PM

Anyone notice the graphics while actually playing like on the played jersey aren't that good? The letters and numbers are like real soft and blurry

Game looks great during cutscenes tho

# 216 Stormyhog @ 08/26/14 10:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hawley088


	Anyone notice the graphics while actually playing like on the played jersey aren't that good? The letters and numbers are like real soft and blurry Game looks great during cutscenes tho

Yeah I noticed it as well.

# 217 Kabuki @ 08/26/14 11:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hawley088


	Anyone notice the graphics while actually playing like on the played jersey aren't that good? The letters and numbers are like real soft and blurry Game looks great during cutscenes tho

i think its due to the resolution. UFC had the same problem with IQ. sucks because it really does detract from the look alot.

# 218 meep316 @ 08/26/14 11:34 PM

There is no way for me to articulate this, and maybe it's just that everyone I'm watching play sucks, but it's been like this for a while:

Is it just me or do the players just not move around like hockey players? There is something very robotic and unnatural about just the way they move, the way they stand/turn, shoot, everything. It just looks so weird.

# 219 bwiggy33 @ 08/27/14 12:11 AM

I've finally got around to playing the demo so here are my thoughts. I've played 5 games so far. The two minute periods are really pissing me off though. It's just not enough to get a true feeling on the game and whether or not I enjoy it.

PROS

PRESENTATION- The presentation is really really good. The commentary is better than in the videos but still lacks and is really simplistic at times with what they say. The arenas also look really solid. The game needed close to authentic arenas for quite a while.

STICK HANDLING- I've been saying it for a long time, stick handling needed major retooling. Well they must have listened or something because now it is near perfect. Gone are the days of skating up the ice doing full extension back and forth stick handling BS. I see a ton of people have commented that they hate the stick handling. That's probably because it's more realistic and the players actually stick handle within themselves which is what you see in real life. I'm not necessarily a huge fan of those moves being tied to the skill stick but that I can adjust to. EA do not change this no matter how many people complain. You are on the right path to how players actually stick handle in real life.

D PRESSURE- Through these first 5 games I have felt like the D pressures more. It seems as though I have less time and space to make decisions. It has definitely help detract my hate of "easy zone entry." The game just seems a tad more challenging.

AI SETTINGS- The AI settings remain in the game. I would not have been shocked at all if they would have been removed. I think with the combination of the AI settings and what I've seen so far with the D pressure the game could be playable for me.

PENALTIES- Yes penalties. I have seen a bunch so far. Boarding, tripping, interference, goalie interference, fighting, and roughing. I have had at least 2 penalties in all of my games and that's obviously on 2 minute periods. I know some are still saying they aren't seeing them. I just have seen them so I'm adding it as a positive at the moment.

CONS

MENUS- Absolutely horrible. Why oh why does EA have to make all of these clunky, laggy, and detailed menus? Every menu takes forever and the screens are so damn busy. I would much rather prefer a more simplistic lag free menu than some of the stuff they have going on. I don't want to wait 3 seconds so an entire player model can load to choose the jerseys I want to wear. Why not just be able to scroll through the jersey like it previously had been? I just hate EA's concept the past few years with their menus in all of their games. It's been really aggravating.

LOOKS- As some have been saying the game does not look very good at all. I'm on PS4 and it just looks so washed out and blah. None of my other games look like that at all. After just having played Madden it's really stuck out how bad NHL looks at the present time.

WARPING/COLLISION DETECTION- The jerseys and cloth detection is awful in this game. I see the jerseys going through the bodies of players constantly.

I also have just another example of why this game needs some sort of stick on body and stick on stick detection. I was the Kings. The Rangers took a shot on Quick. Quick made the save and did the lay on back animation to freeze it but the guy I was controlling (Matt Greene) somehow managed to move his stick from the feet of Quick all the way up through his head to put the puck in the net while it was laying under Quick. It's just pathetic how that should happen. If EA isn't going to have stick on stick and stick on body detection because the game plays too sloppy, at least do it for the goalies. It's just like how they left out the goalies in the physics engine. Do the same in this situation. There's no way in hell I should ever be put in a situation where I score a goal on myself because my user controlled player magically puts his stick through my goalies body and sweeps the puck in the net.

EASY ZONE ENTRY- No need to say more. It's still in the game.

OFFSIDES-I have yet to go offsides yet due to the back and forth constant pace this game is played at. It continues to sicken me. While the gameplay is much more "sloppy" it still needs something so I go offsides occasionally. I feel like every forecheck I am going into the zone with one or if I'm lucky, two players. That's just not hockey. What happened to entering the zone 3 on 2 or 3 on 3 like in real life? That's where the skill of the best hockey players in the world comes out. The tick tack toe passing and creating space for your teammate. It's just not present in this game and it's sorely needed.

FEELS LIKE NHL 07-14- This game still feels and plays exactly like the rest of last gens NHL games. It's fine if some parts of the game would still play that way, but to me I don't see anything so far gameplay wise that has changed because of the power of the system. I believe any gameplay changes could have been done on 360 and PS3 as well.

SITUATION LOGIC- The game still severely lacks in this area. Just one example of this is in the final minutes of a game when I or the CPU are down a goal. I shouldn't see players backing out of the offensive zone if they turn over the puck. If the team is down a goal and they turn over the puck in the offensive end they should be attacking the opposition to get the puck back. Instead the players see the puck changes possession and back off on pressure and often times just head to the neutral zone. That's just elementary stuff. Maybe it can be fixed with changing strategies but I haven't done that yet. It's been this way for a long time with this game.

That's it for now. It's still way too hard to judge playing two minute periods. It's like the game is over before it starts. The crappy thing for me and really all of the other PS4 owners, is besides the demo and other reviews from Early Access, this is all we have to go off of. Basically I'd be buying it almost blind and I don't know if I want to do that. It will be a hard decision on whether to buy this game or not. It still just feels too much like last gen to me and with the way the game looks it doesn't even feel like much of a graphical upgrade. I will say this though, the demo is much better than I thought it was going to be. The game feels different pressure wise. I'm not sure if that was tuned this year or if it's because I haven't played this series since the Winter when I rented NHL 14.

# 220 headzapp @ 08/27/14 12:19 AM

I shot the puck around the boards, and a player on the other team tried to block it up the others side, and the puck just popped up chest high. My other player checked him to the ice stole the puck and I went in for a nice shot. It when to the goalies chest, but the puck just flipped and went to the ice, and the goalie froze the puck. It was pretty nice.
It's nice to feel pressure in the offensive zone, and defensive zone. I like checking someone and not destroying them, but have a nice little check to let them know i'm there ha ha. The ice is beautiful, the crowd scenes draw you into the game, and the commentary is just fine. I was afraid as many others about it being bad from the videos. but it works. I haven't noticed anything annoying.
I like how there is day and night fly ins of the cities. I played three games and doc had three different ties on.

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