NHL 17 Beta Available Now, Post Your Impressions Here!

[Gangrel]

I assume most of the new commentary is franchise specific, so there was no need to include it in the beta.

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[speedtrucker]

Quote: Originally Posted by djhallberg38

Well, I respectfully disagree. We know they are holding back to a certain extent, if they only let you play online EASHL games. I like playing online, don't get me wrong, I think you experience more realistic outcomes and gameplay that way. However, I also enjoy playing my own season games in Franchise mode. It just would have been nice to see taste a little of the offline modes as well. I really hope your wrong about them not holding back on the presentation and celebrations, etc. Because if you are right, that means that there isn't a whole lot that has changed in that area and that would be disappointing.

They aren't limiting to just EASHL, there are other modes available in the beta

[mikeq672]

Quote: Originally Posted by djhallberg38

Well, I respectfully disagree. We know they are holding back to a certain extent, if they only let you play online EASHL games. I like playing online, don't get me wrong, I think you experience more realistic outcomes and gameplay that way. However, I also enjoy playing my own season games in Franchise mode. It just would have been nice to see taste a little of the offline modes as well. I really hope your wrong about them not holding back on the presentation and celebrations, etc. Because if you are right, that means that there isn't a whole lot that has changed in that area and that would be disappointing.

I really dont get how people can complain about presentation and celebrations when the gameplay is a train wreck. Also you can play EASHL, Versus, and offline and online HUT so not sure what youre talking about.

[brandon27]

Here's my impressions... I had initially posted this in the poll comments, but figured I'd put them here also with a little bit more info/rambling.


Personally, I found it to be the same as last year basically. There's a few things I've noticed that are different and come across as better, but overall, it's not anything extremely important. At least not for me, as an offline GM/franchise player.

Goalies do look better, their movements look a lot more natural, and better positioning etc. So, that's a plus.

My first game (HUT against the CPU, because as I said, I'm an offline player and that's the only way the Beta would allow me to play the CPU) the CPU took about 5 penalties. I was excited. The next two games I played, No CPU penalties. Huh?

Played 3 games, won 5-3 (w/an empty netter), 4-2, then 6-0.


Visually, it's still very nice to look at. I found it... smoother though. Could be that I haven't played hockey in a while on my X1, but it seemed to move a lot better, like the frame rate was much better. Maybe I'm crazy.

The CPU AI seems a bit more aggressive if I just come up ice and carry in to the zone, but if you get around that one aggressive D-man, it's smooth sailing to the net quite a bit of the time.

For the talk about skating differences, it seemed the same to me.


Stick/net tie ups look pretty cool. I didn't figure out how to do it on my own, but saw the CPU doing it to my guys a lot. Adds a nice touch.

Did I mention goalies looked and played better/more realistically? Because they do, and it's cool to see.

Player AI/CPU guys seemed a bit better/more aware defensively, but not a huge improvement, they don't play like their CPU team counterparts IMO.

Speaking of the CPU players, they still have moments of super human abilities. Whether it be speed, enhanced puck control, or lack of physics/momentum on their agility. They seem to be able to move quicker, accelerate quicker,, turn quicker/sharper than my own player or AI controlled players. Which is no real surprise for me with the NHL series as of late.

I know the beta is mostly centered around online play. So me playing strictly against the CPU probably isn't that helpful of an impression, but I just refuse to play this game online, and most sports games in general because of the way some people choose to play them. So, hopefully the player vs CPU Hut mode that was in the beta isn't fully reflective of the final version.

At this point, did I enjoy it? Yeah. I mean, EA's NHL can be fun to play if you're willing to overlook some of it's issues, and lets face it, as players, we all know them and are used to those issues by now because they never seem to go away fully, but if you can overlook them, you can play a fun game of hockey. It may not be fully representative of what you see in a real NHL game, but it can be fun and enjoyable as long as you don't let the frustrations kill it for you.

Also, goalies are improved, and it's awesome.

Bottom line for me... It's not getting a pre-order for me this year. I'm going to wait until the EA Access trial on the full game later in the year, then make my decision on buying or not when I see how things are affected with sliders, and get a good look at how GM mode is since that's where I spend all my time.

[CanuckJ]

I got a chance to play it this morning and I enjoyed it (won 5-2), didn't really seem all that different from NHL 16 to me but I enjoy NHL 16 so that's a non issue.

I was fooling around with the create-a-team feature and it's really cool, they FINALLY added some new custom logo's which is what I've wanted for years and adding different font's is a nice touch. I like how I can customise all the colours on the jerseys which is something I've also wanted for years from EA seeing is that feature was on wayne gretzky hockey back on PS2 so I've always known it was possible.

If I were to create a team in franchise mode does anybody know if that same team will carry over if I buy the full game?

[speedtrucker]

No it won't. Beta stats etc will not carry over.

[scitychamps87]

I have to say, full disclosure, I have bought every single EA NHL game since NHL 08. I have played 2k's NHL games as well. After playing the beta in head to head and HUT, the subtle changes that EA made to various aspects of the gameplay including defense, goaltending, skating, and teammate AI have absolutely transformed the game. These subtle changes intensify when in conjunction with each other. Presentation is slightly improved in terms of crowd noise and smoothness. However, I still do not feel Doc Emrick is being used to his full potential. Overall, this is a better game and will yet again be a day one purchase for me.

[Simple Mathematics]

Quote: Originally Posted by brandon27

Here's my impressions... I had initially posted this in the poll comments, but figured I'd put them here also with a little bit more info/rambling. Personally, I found it to be the same as last year basically. There's a few things I've noticed that are different and come across as better, but overall, it's not anything extremely important. At least not for me, as an offline GM/franchise player. Goalies do look better, their movements look a lot more natural, and better positioning etc. So, that's a plus. My first game (HUT against the CPU, because as I said, I'm an offline player and that's the only way the Beta would allow me to play the CPU) the CPU took about 5 penalties. I was excited. The next two games I played, No CPU penalties. Huh? Played 3 games, won 5-3 (w/an empty netter), 4-2, then 6-0. Visually, it's still very nice to look at. I found it... smoother though. Could be that I haven't played hockey in a while on my X1, but it seemed to move a lot better, like the frame rate was much better. Maybe I'm crazy. The CPU AI seems a bit more aggressive if I just come up ice and carry in to the zone, but if you get around that one aggressive D-man, it's smooth sailing to the net quite a bit of the time. For the talk about skating differences, it seemed the same to me. Stick/net tie ups look pretty cool. I didn't figure out how to do it on my own, but saw the CPU doing it to my guys a lot. Adds a nice touch. Did I mention goalies looked and played better/more realistically? Because they do, and it's cool to see. Player AI/CPU guys seemed a bit better/more aware defensively, but not a huge improvement, they don't play like their CPU team counterparts IMO. Speaking of the CPU players, they still have moments of super human abilities. Whether it be speed, enhanced puck control, or lack of physics/momentum on their agility. They seem to be able to move quicker, accelerate quicker,, turn quicker/sharper than my own player or AI controlled players. Which is no real surprise for me with the NHL series as of late. I know the beta is mostly centered around online play. So me playing strictly against the CPU probably isn't that helpful of an impression, but I just refuse to play this game online, and most sports games in general because of the way some people choose to play them. So, hopefully the player vs CPU Hut mode that was in the beta isn't fully reflective of the final version. At this point, did I enjoy it? Yeah. I mean, EA's NHL can be fun to play if you're willing to overlook some of it's issues, and lets face it, as players, we all know them and are used to those issues by now because they never seem to go away fully, but if you can overlook them, you can play a fun game of hockey. It may not be fully representative of what you see in a real NHL game, but it can be fun and enjoyable as long as you don't let the frustrations kill it for you. Also, goalies are improved, and it's awesome. Bottom line for me... It's not getting a pre-order for me this year. I'm going to wait until the EA Access trial on the full game later in the year, then make my decision on buying or not when I see how things are affected with sliders, and get a good look at how GM mode is since that's where I spend all my time.

Thank you for this great review. I am an offline/franchise gamer as well, so this was very useful for me.

From what I am gathering from most of the reviews, the small improvements are very welcomed, but it doesn't seem like they made that large of a difference. I am still very interested to see what the 100-point sliders can do. That is the major selling point for me this year.