[ChaseB]

It's not hard to find out about all the awards the NHL series has won over the years. (And if you do happen to forget, the folks working on NHL will be quick to remind you of the number.) But those awards were rightfully earned, so I can live with the borderline gloating. I can also live with it because the EA NHL series epitomizes the proper way to iterate a yearly sports franchise.

At E3 I was able to check out some of the new gameplay things going on in NHL 11, which includes the new quick moves, broken sticks, checking system and faceoff system.

I want to start with the checking because it ties into the development team's focus on the physics engine this year. During my time with the game, I saw a ton of different checks. I witnessed brutal open-ice checks where the player slid along the ice after being decimated. I saw some checks along the boards where the puck carrier was hit but only his head banged off the boards as he fell. I saw some checks that were more nudges between two friends than heated rivals. I even saw a check where the initiator of the check bounced off its target -- call that one the Chara special. The point is there is a ton of variety to the checks this year, and you will not just see the same 5-10 check animations anymore.

And seeing a lot more dynamic checks adds a lot to the game in terms of "Oh Snap!" or "Wow" moments, but the checking system also needs some tuning. At this point, I'm seeing too many big hits or hits that are not quite lining up with the momentum of the two players. The biggest issue in this area seems to be the amount of "big hits" that occur. In a game of hockey, you really will not see many checks where a player is knocked to the ice. Now, while I don't expect to witness just a a couple checks a game where a player falls down, I do think there should be more instances where players are simply muscled off the puck rather than destroyed. To put it more simply, when the players are not really going near full speed, the ensuing check should not lead to a person landing on his butt. This checking system is still being tuned, and player size, checking attribute, momentum, etc. are all tying into these checks, so the idea is sound.

The new quick moves look good and are attempting to strike a balance between adding depth while not overwhelming users. You initiate these moves with the left bumper and then a quick flick of the right stick. My favorite new move is the ability to hop over flailing corpses as they try to slide in front of you -- nothing is more frustrating then losing the puck as you try to go around a defender who is sprawled out on the ice. It's easy to pull off, and the only concern is how easily you will be able to pull off the move.

Another cool move to avoid the poke check is another quick flick of the right stick while holding the left bumper to move the puck off your skate. It's a nifty move and, again, the only question is how easily these moves will be pulled off.

I witnessed the breaking of a stick while playing, and it was just fun to watch how the non-stick-having player went about his business. He can call for a stick, go to the bench and grab a stick or even be given a stick by one of the wingers or center out on the ice with him. He can even bypass the stick altogether and just try to play defense without one. The broken stick is also an in-play element out on the ice. If that broken stick is around the crease, it is not out of the question for a puck to go off that busted stick and into the net or at the very least disrupt a cross-crease pass. The broken sticks really just add to the organic nature of gameplay that NHL 11 is really trying to hit on this year.

As someone who has never played organized hockey, it is somewhat hard for me to understand the intricacies of the faceoff, but even so, I can understand the amount of depth to the faceoff system this year. The controls are pretty basic in terms of controls since it is all on the right stick. You can move the stick left or right, or even press up on the right stick at the right moment to knock away the opposing center's stick. But it's the scenarios that can be dreamed up that really make the new faceoff system interesting. If you are bad at faceoffs, you can simply try to battle the guy in the circle to a standstill so a winger can quickly come in and try to get the puck. In the same situation, maybe you battle the guy to a standstill because you want the winger on the right who has a wicked left-handed wrister to swoop in and skate across the slot and flick a shot into the top shelf. This is just one scenario that has many outcomes, but it makes me excited to think about the possible set plays and scenarios. Oh, I also have to mention that you can even shoot right off the faceoff if you time things right.

I don't want to go on too much longer, but let me just point out a few more things in bullet fashion:

-There seems to be less "suction" to the board play.

-There have been some tweaks to goalie animations -- should not see so many big rebounds on soft wristers and vice versa on hard slappers. In addition, it looks like the goalie handles the puck differently behind the net. As someone who has played hundreds and hundreds of OTP games in net, the first part especially excites me.

-There are now user-controlled goal celebrations.

Let me end with a final story from my time playing the game that sums up the focus on creating a "new" gameplay experience for NHL 11. While battling it out against a developer -- yes, I did win in OT after I gave up the tying goal with 2 seconds left in regulation -- a situation arose where a shot from the point was taken. As the shot was fired, cover athlete Jonathan Toews came across in front of the net and deflected the shot with his stick between his legs. His deflection pushed the puck just wide, but the animation tied with the sudden holy-crap-that-was-close-and-unexpected nature of the play was great to see after the deflection goals were nearly non-existent in NHL 10. That's just one moment, but it's indicative of the type of small moments I frequently witnessed during just a short amount of time with the game.