NHL 17 News Post

NHL 17 Beta Available Now, Post Your Impressions Here!

05:09 PM - July 27, 2016 by RaychelSnr

EA Sports today announced the arrival of the NHL 17 Beta, available now to NHL Insiders. So basically if you get the NHL Newsletter and if you signed up for the beta by July 7th, you can get it today -- a full 24 hours earlier than expected.

The Beta will be available to everyone else starting tomorrow and will last through August 4 and features several modes for you to get a kickstart on your upcoming season:

Hockey Ultimate Team: Build. Collect. Compete. The most played mode in EA SPORTS NHL gets even better! Introducing HUT Synergy, an all-new �Team Building� system designed to challenge the way you build and play as your Ultimate Team. Pair player strengths together to create synergy in your roster and grant perks across your lineups. The all-new HUT Dynamic Sets mechanic takes collecting to a new level that replicates the biggest real-world hockey moments. Collect sets to unlock rewards, including new thematic sets, to constantly build and improve your team. With Dynamic HUT Sets, if it happens hockey, it happens in NHL 17.
EA Sports Hockey League: Take your EA SPORTS Hockey League team to the next level and build your brand by completing games, and leveling up your player and team to unlock customization items. Give your uniform a unique look or use the all-new Arena Creator to build the home ice you�ve always wanted.
Online Versus: Play NHL 17 online in a one vs. one environment. Own Every Zone with more end-to-end control with authentic goalies featuring positional awareness and Reactionary Save Intelligence, all-new Net Battles for offensive and defensive zone play, and dozens of thrilling new goal celebrations.

EA Sports is seeking feedback and opinions from the community about your playtime with the Beta. Be sure to leave impressions and thoughts on what you are playing in the comments below!

Game: NHL 17Reader Score: 8/10 - Vote Now
Platform: PS4 / Xbox OneVotes for game: 5 - View All

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Member Comments

# 201 jasonthenicest @ 07/31/16 04:05 PM

Okay, so I opened a pack in HUT, added the players to my collection, and I can NOT for the life of me bring them to my active lineup; did they change something this year? There used to be a substitute with collection, or when you went to collection you could 'send to active roster'??

EDIT: Just re-started my game and Aaron Ekblad appeared, we good. If you have this issue its an easy fix.

# 202 mikeq672 @ 07/31/16 05:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gosens6


	I'm seeing the SAME, cheap BS goals this year that Iv'e seen the past few years. I can play D just fine, My AI teammates still can't. Board play is still a complete joke. Passing, still tape to tape. I can go on and on and on and on. I honestly can barely see the minimal improvements. The game is near identical to 16 for me. I see absolutely no reason to upgrade.

I couldnt agree more. Sure there are a few minimal changes. Maybe its a slightly different process, but 2+2 and 2x2 both equal 4. Different process, same results as every other year. Just an ugly cluster**** of a game where the more broken plays there are and the more times you skate into your teammate and lose the puck, the better chance you have to score.

# 203 raiderphantom @ 07/31/16 05:43 PM

Slightly smarter AI and easier to score. Those are the only differences I really see. I want EASHL to be good but it still seems very unbalanced. Maybe I'm doing something wrong but I always feel at a disadvantage physically vs other users. Probably pass on 17.

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# 204 Walbeb @ 07/31/16 05:51 PM

Man I'm really disappointed. I used to take a few days off for the yearly NHL release and I haven't done that in a while. Seems I won't be doing it this year either.

I think my biggest complaint is every other sports title has been knocking it out of the park with every new year (Madden,NBA,MLB, granted MLB has seen very little change the last year IMO) but NHL EVEN AFTER taking a year off is still too far behind.

I know about the 'small dev team' but I think this series really needs a new vision. Kind of like when a successful head coach gets canned because he lost the locker room, dev teams need to be changed to prevent series stagnation.

The changes in this Beta are so few and far between it's the first time I've ever used the cliche 'It's the same as last year!'. I played a few games of the Beta and then played 16, it was sad how similar they were.

Hell for the few things they improved (hitting and poke checking really stuck out) goalies somehow become worse by letting in more 'dumb luck' goals then last year. Puck pickups are an embarrassment, my beer league team can pick up the puck better than the guys in this game.

I'm glad some of you guys are enjoying it but IMO if you've been playing other sports titles you'll realize just how little this series has changed since the current gen systems dropped. This game will sell just enough to not get anyone fired and we'll see the same exact thing in 18.

# 205 voodoo_magic @ 07/31/16 06:10 PM

I don't enjoy the speed setting for EASHL, it's too fast. All I see is guys running into each other with no time to set up plays like real hockey.
Some nice improvements to the mode but it's not fun for me game play wise.
Played HUT though I never waste my time on it during the season,just to get some time with offline single player. On default settings it's pretty bad, very arcade like.

I was happy to try the beta because I thought I might spend some time with EASHL this year but not now. Instead I can focus on season mode so it's ok for me.

# 206 1OOT_Frost @ 07/31/16 07:03 PM

Can someone send an extra Xbox1 beta code to [email protected].
I'm desperate to play!!

# 207 speedtrucker @ 07/31/16 07:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeq672


	I couldnt agree more. Sure there are a few minimal changes. Maybe its a slightly different process, but 2+2 and 2x2 both equal 4. Different process, same results as every other year. Just an ugly cluster**** of a game where the more broken plays there are and the more times you skate into your teammate and lose the puck, the better chance you have to score.

That is a really great example, the 2+2 is same as 2x2...

It feels different in ways and there are some additions but the changes but for what they added, they also mucked up some other areas.

The goalies in EASHL are bad, we played again for another 5 or so games... Same results. To the point that 2 of us were excited for a 1-2 loss we had because somehow only 3 goals were allowed unlike the 25+ goals scored on the other 4 games.

# 208 Ruffy @ 07/31/16 08:29 PM

I have to say the NHL series is so polarizing on OS.

Either hate or love.

# 209 TDKing @ 07/31/16 08:31 PM

So i have always up in my settings but when i get into a game its going down. Do your settings not work or what ? In EASHL, oh and im so excited i unlocked skate guards [emoji57] lol

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# 210 Gangrel @ 07/31/16 09:11 PM

Make sure you're not mistaken Always Up for Away up.......

# 211 TDKing @ 07/31/16 09:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gangrel


	Make sure you're not mistaken Always Up for Away up.......

Looks like i had to totally quit the game and then get back in and its working properly now. Thanks

Sent from my VS985 4G using Tapatalk

# 212 phillyfan23 @ 07/31/16 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by voodoo_magic


	I don't enjoy the speed setting for EASHL, it's too fast. All I see is guys running into each other with no time to set up plays like real hockey. Some nice improvements to the mode but it's not fun for me game play wise. Played HUT though I never waste my time on it during the season,just to get some time with offline single player. On default settings it's pretty bad, very arcade like. I was happy to try the beta because I thought I might spend some time with EASHL this year but not now. Instead I can focus on season mode so it's ok for me.

I just tried for the very first time playing EASHL mode and it is a whole new experience and specifically rewarding if you have teammates that "understand" hockey. Ive played exclusively as a dman for 35 games and you really have to be careful because the gameplay speed is just wayyyy too fast.

Is there a way to set up a private game and use sliders with a group of friends, because if possible, a 6 on 6 gane with OSers would be great.

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# 213 Zuke @ 07/31/16 11:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by phillyfan23


	I just tried for the very first time playing EASHL mode and it is a whole new experience and specifically rewarding if you have teammates that "understand" hockey. Ive played exclusively as a dman for 35 games and you really have to be careful because the gameplay speed is just wayyyy too fast. Is there a way to set up a private game and use sliders with a group of friends, because if possible, a 6 on 6 gane with OSers would be great. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

No sliders in EASHL but you can challenge other teams

# 214 BSDShoes @ 07/31/16 11:13 PM

To me, it's exactly like NHL 16, which isn't a good thing, however AI isn't as dumb (but it's still bad in different ways) also skating and goalies is still crap. Not going to be getting NHL 17 as I'm not interested in EASHL or HUT.

# 215 GetThePuckOut @ 07/31/16 11:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1OOT_Frost


	Can someone send an extra Xbox1 beta code to [email protected]. I'm desperate to play!!

http://www.operationsports.com/forum...&postcount=208

# 216 phillyfan23 @ 08/01/16 12:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zuke


	No sliders in EASHL but you can challenge other teams

Thats really too bad....with just 2 slider modifications ( game speed and hit power) , an EASHL game with 12 players would be amazing.

As it is right now, its quite fun but the game speed just promotes individual highlight reel hockey....which of course is probably the design choice of the devs. Just give us a non ranked room where we could edit sliders just like what nhl 2k5 offered on ps2.

Oh the possibilities.....

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# 217 thedudedominick @ 08/01/16 01:10 AM

EASHL would be amazing this year with two things, get rid of the hustle button completely, and slightly better goaltending.

# 218 mikeq672 @ 08/01/16 01:30 AM

I continue to attempt to play this game, and I continue to be baffled at how anyone sees this game as different from last year. There is no discernible difference. Its a just a pile of crap. You dominate the puck for 10 straight minutes, get nothing, and then you skatey bump around off 3 defenders and morph the puck through the side of the net/goalie and get a goal. EASHL continue to be a stale mess if you have less than 6 because the AI ruins the game. There is zero flow to anything, how is that after 7(?) years of this mode, the AI is still completely unaware that there is a net and that they cant skate through it or dump the puck through it since they love going back behind the net for no reason? This is the only series Ive ever played where even winning just isnt fun because of how the game plays. Maybe the people that like the game dont watch much hockey or something, I really dont get how people can enjoy it. It doesnt resemble the NHL or any other halfway decent hockey at all.

# 219 Ruffy @ 08/01/16 08:33 AM

I have played and officiated hockey since i was 8 years old.

My 33 years of playing the sport and again gaming since video games began.

This game is the best NHL I have played to date.

Are there shortcomings yes. But if you like to play online competition this is where the game is the most fun.

No reason to pick apart a beta but the additions to HUT which I will play likely 400 to 600 games is great so far. Looks like there will be lots to do and I like the addition of sets. I always enjoyed collecting hockey cards and the sets give me that nostalgia from being a kid.

If i was on offline player I would really wait for others to get the official game and find out how the sliders are working as they are providing all of the sliders the devs have access to on a 100 scale which could be glorious for those offline only players. Again offline isnt my thing as playing humans to me is where this game shines.

EASHL really isnt my thing either but again when you get a good group of guys together and fill out all of the positions it can be a ton of fun.

Great beta...definitely some things to work out before release but again I will be buying and playing this game a ton.

# 220 djhallberg38 @ 08/01/16 02:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Money99


	I thought I had read that this was fixed? Might be wrong though. Count me as someone who wants a 5-man hug too. It's time that was fixed. Saying that, I'm still liking what I've been reading regarding the gameplay. I'll reserve judgement when I hear more impressions of real NHL games vs the CPU, not just HUT.

I am just hoping that EA is holding back on the Beta, just like they have on the trailers they have released to date. If that is the case, maybe we will be pleasantly surprised when it launches. I get it if that is what they are doing. Much like not wanting to spoil a movie release by giving away too much in the trailers. What worries me, is that they really seem to be going out of their way to not show any post goal celebrations in the few trailers released, but didn't seem to mind showing off several of the stupid, over the top user controlled single player celebrations. Which I might add, are apparently only going to be usable in EASHL. Dumb,

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