NHL 15 News Post

NHL 15 Available Now For EA Access Subscribers, Post Your Impressions

07:03 AM - September 4, 2014 by CupCrazyManiac

NHL 15 is available now for EA Access subscribers. The game will be limited to 6 hours of gameplay.

Based off of early feedback, there is no player edit mode, create a player is in. Play a few games and let us know what you think.

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

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Member Comments

# 361 baseballboy13 @ 09/07/14 09:06 PM

How does joe louis arena look?

# 362 brandon27 @ 09/07/14 09:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by baseballboy13


	How does joe louis arena look?

Looks good to me.

# 363 headzapp @ 09/07/14 11:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cujomatty


	I knocked shot accuracy down a notch for wristers and slapshots and im getting a nice mix of missed shots which feels realistic. I knocked pass accuracy down and pass intercept up. im getting a fair mix of intercepts plus a few bouncing or rolling pucks. I did however score a goal on a pass across the crease that probably shouldnt have made it through. gonna try a nother notch next game for both.

This is what I want to hear! Missed shots by a foot, missed passes, bouncing passes. Watching real hockey so many shots miss the net and passes aren't tape to tape. So that's awesome we have that!
About passes that shouldn't of made it through, well that can happen in real life too.

# 364 ram4x4marc @ 09/07/14 11:55 PM

I love it. The demo had me worried as the goalies were just terrible. If you gave the puck handler some daylight the goalie never stopped it. I bumped game speed up to normal, and I moved goalie reaction almost all the way up on all-star level. Such a difference...the games are close, great saves, and lots of fun. I know so many people are bashing this game, but if you like Online Vs, I experienced no lag at all. Be a GM (franchise) is good enough for me I don't care about the Ultimate Fantasy stuff because in the end everyone wants the same 10 guys.

I normally don't post a lot but because of so much negative stuff, i feel the need to do so. I still have a couple hours left to play before it expires, but I'm waiting so i can finish it up tomorrow and buy it Tuesday. The hits in this game are great, shot deflections and pass breakups are essential and work perfectly. Commentary is pretty good, missing some energy at key points, like GW goal with 30 seconds left and its not a great call but by the time I get comfortable and know I heard everything I'm goingEA did a great job and like UFC, I know their patches that will arrive over time will make the game even better. The UFC patches not only added guys, but also animations and new ways to fight...incredible. Also, the demo showed only 3 skill levels, but there is a superstar level in the full game to have the radio on anyways.

# 365 therizing02 @ 09/08/14 12:10 AM

Great gameplay...except for the lack of penalties. No excuse for it. I'm not sure what it is, but it has to be some sort of philosophy among devs that penalties and fouls take away the fun factor in games.

Minimal penalties in NHL, rarely do fouls get called in FIFA, and finally the penalty situation in Madden. I'm sick of the excuses as to why this never gets handled.

# 366 Gerg04 @ 09/08/14 12:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MizzouRah


	Had to turn manual passing off in hardcore mode though.. I don't have time to hold the trigger to make good long passes.

This made me lol....

Anyways, doesn't seem like a ton of people playing early access. Wish we could get some more impressions. The demo has started to grow on me but I'm still not completely sold.

# 367 pirateelephant @ 09/08/14 01:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gerg04


	This made me lol.... Anyways, doesn't seem like a ton of people playing early access. Wish we could get some more impressions. The demo has started to grow on me but I'm still not completely sold.

I played all 6 hours of early access. The non-gameplay part of the game is not very good. But the actual gameplay is very fun, especially if you enjoyed previous iterations. I feel the skating is much more fluid and weighted without feeling too restrictive. I also like the little subtleties I am noticing with the head fakes and deking. The puck physics are really good, other than the some times around the net glitching in and through the net, but counting as goals. The hitting is overdone( as expected) but it seems like a big hit or defensive play can lead to really good transition plays. Also it seems like setting up the play in the zone is better. The players physics is pretty good but can get wonky at times. Graphics look fairly good, facial animations are almost cartoonish. HUT was really fun, it's a lot different playing with scrubs, more loose pucks/missed passes as well as shots going wide. The commentating seems off. Doc does 90% of it. Olzcyck(sp) barely says anything. It feels like studio time was very very limited for the pair. They say him a lot more than saying players names. Ex. "he moves the puck deep into the zone".

Ratings with my time with the game so far.

Audio:5.8/10 (music seems missing, and commentary has holes)
Graphics: 8/10 (looks good and all, but it has no wow factor)
Gameplay: 8.3/10 (is fun, ai is better(far from great) the little differences make it fresh enough to be enjoyable.
Menus, and modes: 4/10 very barebones and the game almost seems like a prototype.

Verdict: 7/10

My hopes for the futrue of the series:

I think the best thing the nhl team could do other than add game modes back is to start to add individual animations or player(player type) specific animations and moves. The more variety added to teams and players the better the game will feel/ and the more realistic it will be. I also think it would appeal to casuals if you get to play as Ovechkin who plays and skates completely differently than Crosby. And both players are completely different than anyone else in the league. Make me feel like I am playing as the players and through this it will make me feel like i am playing as the teams I am playing as. Also when they add EASHL back if players have different abilities and nuances it will make players have to actually fill a role more specifically.

# 368 CujoMatty @ 09/08/14 02:05 AM

k I need help. I remember why I stopped playing this franchise a couple years ago. I know im not that great at the game but I keep losing BS games because the cpu goalie is ridiculous while my goalie stinks horribly and my ai teammates stand around while the cpu scores one timer after one timer. I thought I almost had a win 2 games ago. I was up 6 to 3 with 5 minutes left and the cpu scored 3 terrible goals to send it into overtime where the cpu scored 10 seconds in because my team just stood there watching their player win the draw and skate around my whole team.
this last game I out shot the cpu 43 to 19 and im talking one timers, screens, powerplay 5 on 3, nothing. I mean lunqvist is good but it was unreal. im playing on pro level!!!!!!!
im so tired of dominating the cpu and still losing someone help save this game for me.

# 369 Gagnon39 @ 09/08/14 02:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pirateelephant


	other than the some times around the net glitching in and through the net, but counting as goals.

Wait, what!? Can you explain this?

# 370 bigwill33 @ 09/08/14 03:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Qb


	Will, can you play one with aggression raised to 5 or 6 in addition to the other changes you made? Looked like the default is 3, which is too low for a competitive game.

Okay, finally got around to playing this. I played the Ducks in Anaheim with Pittsburgh. Lost 3-2 in OT. My first loss in this game.

This was by far the best game that I have played so far in terms of realism and puck looseness.

I dominated in the first period. 2-0. Shots were 11-2 in favor of me. I drew 3 penalties in the first alone. I was worried it was going to be another blowout. Then in the second I started getting calls against me and they came back with 2 PP goals. The second was kinda lame because I poked it from the guy 3 times and he kept getting it back and the final time just shot it short side for the goal from the high right circle.

Things were pretty highly contested after that, with lots of dump-ins and line changes to get match-ups based on situations.

Overall, they would up scoring in OT because once again the backside CPU D-man on my team refused to even look at the guy just past the top of the crease that took the pass from the side for the one-timer goal. I had perfect containment 4 on 4 in my own zone otherwise, but this just continually happens.

I wasn't as mad this time as it was a good game overall.

The shots totals were too low for a 7 minute period game, but with the shot accuracy sliders being lowered that is probably part of the reason. Shots were 19-18 in my favor.

Once again, there was not one puck over the glass or out of play.

Lowering the goalie reaction helps a lot, but I still got that stupid desperation save where the goalie looks like he is trying to catch a tray of dishes falling over as he lunges out. Maybe raising the reaction would reduce that animation, but I don't want robo goalies for either side.

I still can't score with a slap shot from the point at all. Hit a post though and did have a nice deflection goal along the ice that slid 5-hole on a shot from the point that Sutter touched as it slid near him.

I lowered fighting to nothing and was much happier with that.

Aggressiveness being raised didn't seem to do much though, they just tried to hit me more if I tried to carry past them without going wide as I came into their zone with the puck. They still never once contested my gaining of the blue line resulting in easy entry and setting up my offensive all game. This lead to a great time on a attack discrepancy early on in the game and thus the penalties being called.

If you are not seeing penalties being called it is most likely because you are not setting up in the offensive zone and playing keep away. If I really wanted to I could play keep away all game so long as my AI teammates keep moving and feed off of where I go with the puck and as long as EA doesn't decide to just make my pass go wherever they want regardless of where I am aiming.

But once I stopped setting up and got to the lower lines and tried to dump and play the forecheck and defend the breakout against then I stopped seeing the calls in my favor and it resulted in less chances for my scoring as I wasn't simply carrying the puck into the zone and making one or two passes to shift their attack and gain a shooting lane.

But whatever the reason that game was more fun to me. If I could get things to play like that against the CPU all of the time, or more often, I would be a happy guy with the AI for now. It still needs major work in a lot of areas, but that was passable for a change.

It is just a shame that there is no way to get these sliders to work online or any mode that is complete enough to justify my purchase of this game right away or perhaps I would keep tuning the sliders to try and find something that could hold my attention for more than 3 weeks.

But as it stands now, I honestly do not see how those who are even enjoying this game for what it actually is will have their attention and enthusiasm towards it not heavily dwindled by Halloween time. There is just no replay value in what is in this game right now for most of us at all. And that statement is based on the as is part of the game. We have no idea what kind of bugs or issues await us as we get deeper into our GM modes. Stuff that has crept up in the past like sim stats being awful, lack of progression, game advancement freezes when simming, horrible AI trade logic, missing players, and the list can go on and on.

But for now these were just some more gameplay impressions as I know several people on here have been looking for in-depth reporting of how the game actually is when played. Perhaps this week I will try and stream a game so that some of you could watch and see the issues and good things that I am noticing when playing as well.

# 371 Madwolf @ 09/08/14 04:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cujomatty


	k I need help. I remember why I stopped playing this franchise a couple years ago. I know im not that great at the game but I keep losing BS games because the cpu goalie is ridiculous while my goalie stinks horribly and my ai teammates stand around while the cpu scores one timer after one timer. I thought I almost had a win 2 games ago. I was up 6 to 3 with 5 minutes left and the cpu scored 3 terrible goals to send it into overtime where the cpu scored 10 seconds in because my team just stood there watching their player win the draw and skate around my whole team. this last game I out shot the cpu 43 to 19 and im talking one timers, screens, powerplay 5 on 3, nothing. I mean lunqvist is good but it was unreal. im playing on pro level!!!!!!! im so tired of dominating the cpu and still losing someone help save this game for me.

One big question: Do you use auto-aim or manual aim? That is one big area that helped me. Learn how to snipe the corners, and place shots low in traffic for tip ins, and rebounds. Rebounds are a huge part of real hockey, and they seem to be in NHL 15 as well from what I've seen from the demo.

On defense the computer has lit me up a few times this year as well, but the first thing you need to do is stop chasing the puck, and play in the lanes as you've seen the players in the NHL do.

On defense don't try to be an enforcer out there with every player in the ice. Your job isn't to lay out everyone on the enemy team, but to get the puck. Learn to use the poke check to free up the puck and cut off passes.

On defense keep your player between the puck and the goal, don't give them anything easy.

On defense know when to dump the puck past the blue line, or into the zone from the neutral zone. This will force the other team to reset, and can buy you valuable time to change your lines and get fresh bodies.

In NHL 15 it's more important to get the puck into the hands of your scorers. Guys with lower ratings will miss wide more often, so if at all possible get it to your go to guys, and set them up for quick cross-crease passes and a score.

Try to avoid going 1vs1 with the goalie unless you're on a break-away. The computer goalies are pretty good with a little defensive help. They can be deked for a quick score though.

Cycle the puck as much as possible and make the goalie move.

When you have guys in front of the goal blast the puck in down low and try and get the rebound goal or the tip in.

# 372 CheapyD @ 09/08/14 05:40 AM

Sad to say it, but NHL 14 is just a better game all around. The gameplay and graphics improvements in 15 are slight, the announcers are worse, and so much of what made NHL 14 a complete package is missing.

# 373 MizzouRah @ 09/08/14 09:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gerg04


	This made me lol.... Anyways, doesn't seem like a ton of people playing early access. Wish we could get some more impressions. The demo has started to grow on me but I'm still not completely sold.

haha.. I have enough I'm trying to worry about then holding down buttons to gauge passing speed.

# 374 lockjaw333 @ 09/08/14 09:16 AM

I started to come around to the gameplay right as my 6 hours ended. I decided to spend the last few hours trying to adjust sliders to improve the gameplay, and I really felt like I was making some headway. The sliders do actually have a noticeable effect, to the point where I was starting to enjoy it. I do feel that raising aggression really eliminates that "constant powerplay" feel to being in the O zone. Also decreasing puck control really adds to more loose pucks. I also figured out that I play infinitely better defense if I just control one play (usually the deepest forechecking forward), rather than switch players constantly. I'm able to keep him in proper position and not pull other players out of position, and the CPU plays much better controlling the defensemen than I do. This was never the case in the past, but this year I think its better to just control one player and let your team play defense. I ended up impulse buying the game at the end of my trial because I felt like I was making progress and wanted more. (apologies for the one paragraph, my browser at work doesn't seem to format properly on this forum).

# 375 dammit100 @ 09/08/14 09:52 AM

I thought the "new" commentary was actually much worse than last year. It just has no flow to it whatsoever.

# 376 Qb @ 09/08/14 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigwill33


	Okay, finally got around to playing this. I played the Ducks in Anaheim with Pittsburgh. Lost 3-2 in OT. My first loss in this game... This was by far the best game that I have played so far in terms of realism and puck looseness.

Quote:

Originally Posted by lockjaw333


	I started to come around to the gameplay right as my 6 hours ended. I decided to spend the last few hours trying to adjust sliders to improve the gameplay, and I really felt like I was making some headway. The sliders do actually have a noticeable effect, to the point where I was starting to enjoy it. I do feel that raising aggression really eliminates that "constant powerplay" feel to being in the O zone. Also decreasing puck control really adds to more loose pucks.

Thanks, guys. It's good to hear some slider adjustments can improve things.

# 377 pipelayah @ 09/08/14 11:18 AM

Is it possible to make trades on menu screen or is it only in be a gm mode?

I would like to make own team but as editing is out this seems to be only way.. if you can make trades and then save the roster.

# 378 pirateelephant @ 09/08/14 11:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gagnon39


	Wait, what!? Can you explain this?

I only saw it happen twice or so. But a player on the backdoor would catch the puck but not in a shooting position .Then when they would be at the side of the net and their stick and the puck would glitch through the net. Then the puck would shoot off super fast. It would count as a goal too.

# 379 lockjaw333 @ 09/08/14 11:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Qb


	Thanks, guys. It's good to hear some slider adjustments can improve things.

Yeah they do seem to have a distinct impact. For me even on hardcore the game plays too docile. There is way too much open space and the puck is possessed way too much. I found that lowering things like puck control and passing accuracy and increasing things like aggression, poke effectivess and interceptions made a huge difference in terms of making the game play a more "chippy" game of hockey. I also turned down wrist, one-timer and slapshot accuracy, and you see a lot more shots going wide and ripping off the back boards. This also helps decrease shot totals for the CPU (they really spam shots, especially on cross-crease one-timers). I also upped goalie screen effect and saw some point shot goals. The actual on-ice gameplay is better than it has been in (although fairly similar).

# 380 Jet Sufferer @ 09/08/14 12:12 PM

Let me preface my thoughts with the early access by saying I am buying the game because I've gotten back into hockey big time and also table hockey, I'm even playing with Coleco "pros" in NYC and elsewhere, if it wasn't for the Best Buy deal I would wait for used.

I have gotten some better play tweaking sliders but what still drives me mad and what I can't fix and what EA MUST FIX sometime before I collect Social Security is my teammates AI. Watching these professional players play like amateurs who have never touched ice before is driving me nuts, I'm looking for a button to instigate a fight with my AI teammates.

I'm not one for consipiracy theories but....this whole meme that "but the gameplay is great" ALL OVER THE INTERNET has my spider sense tingling. Amazing coincidence since so many modes are missing that all of a sudden a game that plays incredibly similar to the game I have been playing on past gen is now recognized by many as a game with "great gameplay", just too bad it's missing a few modes. That's not to say that some people don't honestly feel that way, but the constant pounding of that meme wreaks of viral marketing to me.

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