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NHL 16 News Post


The NHL 16 development team once again answered more questions tonight over at their home base. You can find the responses below:

Will a full featured practice mode be back?

A full featured practice mode is high on our priority list but currently not planned for NHL 16.

Are the menus changed and more streamlined then 2015? Have you improved menu performance?

The menus have been worked on and we have made improvements to usability and performance.

Will the AHL affiliate teams be playable in Be a GM mode just like in the previous NHL?

All the AHL teams are back in GM Mode and your AHL affiliate is fully playable. So you can try and win the Stanley Cup and the Calder Cup.

In Be A Pro, are there different ways to start your career or do you always start in the CHL?

Hello Bryan. Be A Pro will allow you to play in three different ways. You can start on any NHL team but you would still have to earn your way to the roster. You can start in the CHL and work your way to being the number 1 pick or you can start at the entry draft where you play in the Memorial Cup and then go to the draft to see where you are drafted.

Will there be more kinds of penalties in NHL 16?

We haven't added new penalties to the game that we haven't had in the past but we have put focus on ensuring our current penalty logic is more solid such as calling boarding, charging, checking from behind and both regular and goalie interference more reliably.

Will you be able to take Timeout and changing Goalies without pausing the game?

Not for this year. We have added the Timeout sequences back into the game though, respecting all the unique bench locations of each of the stadiums and also added in Goalie Swaps so that the broadcast team can focus on the new goalie before the start of the next face-off.

Will Doc yell "score!" like he does in real life when someone scores a goal?

Yes, our audio team has done a great job of capturing the energy Doc has around goal calls. You will even hear some unique calls for some of the stars of the game to make the experience even more authentic.

I saw on the create a player video that there was the ability to select different sticks. Will selecting one stick over the other have an effect on game play or is this purely cosmetic? Thank you!

The effect of a shot comes purely from the ratings of the player taking the shot and the context in which the shot is taken. We have revisited the shot model to ensure players are accountable for how in control they are, the angle of the shot to their target and the direction they are travelling compared to their target. All of these factors can have an affect on both accuracy and power.

In the EASHL mode, will you be able to create your own player from scratch again? I got confused with the OTP where it says you play as nhl players.

You will play as your created pro character in EASHL. You will be able to use authentic players from each of the leagues/teams in OTP.

Will there be some sort of progression on the individual and team level in terms of attributes for EASHL?

Hi Scott, thanks for your question. When we set out to develop the new EASHL, our goal was to create a balanced, competitive experience. One of the first things on our list of things to tackle was whether or not to allow progression that boosted attributes. While we get progression was a rewarding design in the previous EASHL, it didn't necessarily create an even playing field for users who started playing later or didn't boost their stats, etc.

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Member Comments
# 1 snc237 @ 06/02/15 07:42 PM
Really they couldn't add practise mode back. Sigh seemed like an easy thing right?
 
# 2 snc237 @ 06/02/15 07:43 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by cmutat17
They're not answering too many offline questions, which kind of sucks. I don't play too much online play, but what is EASHL?


Where did you get these questions?
EASHL is where you create one guy (like be a pro) and control only him on created team (normally with your buddies) and face other human teams. Fun fun game mode
 
# 3 TerryP @ 06/02/15 08:07 PM
Have there been any ?'s at all about actual on ice gameplay yet(?). If so, guess I've missed them. Just hoping all the tackling from last year has been eliminated or toned down considerably.
 
# 4 finn712 @ 06/02/15 08:11 PM
A lot of things "high on their priority list" versus "currently being implemented".
 
# 5 blinkfan77 @ 06/02/15 08:20 PM
It is absolutely pathetic that they removed THE MAIN POINT of playing EASHL. I love progressing my player. Now what is the incentive to play games with a player that doesn't evolve? Such a monumentally bad design choice.
 
# 6 BearishRiggs @ 06/02/15 08:34 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by blinkfan77
It is absolutely pathetic that they removed THE MAIN POINT of playing EASHL. I love progressing my player. Now what is the incentive to play games with a player that doesn't evolve? Such a monumentally bad design choice.
To win games with your team? You can still evolve as a player and get better even though your ratings, most of which are superficial, don't.

I honestly don't get the big deal about not being able to progress/grind XP. Why would you rather spend 300 or so games being stuck with a crappy/slow skater rather than being able to play like you would with a Legend 3 right away? I love EASHL but didn't buy NHL 15 until the price dropped. Now that I have it I'm a 50 overall among 70's and 80's and there is no way I'm going to grind to get better with NHL 16 only a few months away. I know I'm good at the game and have excellent hockey awareness but I'm handicapped by a skater who can't execute the plays I've always been able to make. This new system eliminates that problem and places more emphasis on what YOU can actually do as a player, how you think the game and work as a team, rather than spending a good chunk of the game's life slowly progressing.

The only better alternative would be to have our players actually transfer over from game to game, that way we wouldn't have to start from scratch after logging hours of time building our player. If they're not ever going to implement that feature, though, I'm fine with this new system.
 
# 7 Don Jon @ 06/02/15 08:58 PM
I enjoyed 15, despite its many shortcomings. So I was looking forward to NHL 16. I just wanted a few things here and there.

Pros:
-I like that they fixed the menu's, that was such a pain, it took me 90 seconds just to save a file.

-I like that they're answering these questions truthfully, that leads me to below...

Cons:
-I don't like the answers they chose to respond to. They've already answered 2 AHL questions, so why do it again, waste of time.

-You would think their goal with answering questions was to get people to buy the game, but with all the "not this year" or "that's high on our list for the future", it's making most second guess if they even want to buy it this time.

- I really would like to know what their goals for NHL 16 was, and if they met them. Because it really seems like many of the small, reasonable things I would have liked to see in the game (practice mode, shootout mode, edit player) didn't make it in.

So far I am extremely disappointed in the news about 16' so far, and I don't even know what would turn that around since they've already said what isn't in the game
 
# 8 snc237 @ 06/02/15 09:27 PM
Feel like the team must of really been focusing a ton on other stuff. No shootout mode which is already in the game after OT. No practise mode which is just a modified game. Either there really working hard at EASHL cause some of the stiff they said no to are very easy to implement for a more fully fledged out game.
 
# 9 Simple Mathematics @ 06/03/15 08:01 AM
Seems like they have a very lengthy priority list. I wonder when they plan on having all of these priorities in the game. And I wonder where edit player fits on their priority list.
 
# 10 myfontana21 @ 06/03/15 08:57 AM
What about goalie masks and if they changed when traded to the appropriate team or if you were to call a goalie up. They either keep their mask from the previous team or use the AHL mask during franchise and there is no way to change it...to me that is a small pet peeve that is extremely annoying and i think should be an easy fix..no?
 
# 11 wheels2121 @ 06/03/15 11:11 AM
that's a big one. Nothing worse than a red goalie mask on a team which wears blue or green
 
# 12 Pezell04x @ 06/03/15 11:16 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by blinkfan77
It is absolutely pathetic that they removed THE MAIN POINT of playing EASHL. I love progressing my player. Now what is the incentive to play games with a player that doesn't evolve? Such a monumentally bad design choice.
Really? I hated that. I hated that, as a parent with limited gaming time, I had to try and grind out games to reach a level where someone with all the time in the world would hit legendary card status. There's nothing worse than playing a team who isn't as good as you beat you because they're higher rated just because they don't have responsibilities in life.

I am so, so, so happy they're taking the grind out.
 
# 13 peter21 @ 06/03/15 06:51 PM
I'm on board for the revamped EASHL, but I'm disappointed that skates and sticks don't give you at least a little differentiation from other players. That seems like an easy way to add a little of that back into the game, but i guess that's an element that they're 'looking into.'
 
# 14 infernoisdead @ 06/04/15 01:16 AM
I'm not sure if this has been said elsewhere, but I'm not upset at all about all of the negatives they are answering. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have a fully fleshed out game now. I just think it's a great thing that they are addressing the multitude of shortcomings now. Last year a lot of people were up in arms with getting the bad news essentially the week of launch. Now people (not necessarily in this thread) are up in arms that the bad news is coming so early in the process.


When would be a good time to discuss the things that are missing? I'm just happy I know early on what to expect
 
# 15 canucksss @ 06/04/15 02:42 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by infernoisdead
I'm not sure if this has been said elsewhere, but I'm not upset at all about all of the negatives they are answering. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have a fully fleshed out game now. I just think it's a great thing that they are addressing the multitude of shortcomings now. Last year a lot of people were up in arms with getting the bad news essentially the week of launch. Now people (not necessarily in this thread) are up in arms that the bad news is coming so early in the process.


When would be a good time to discuss the things that are missing? I'm just happy I know early on what to expect
IMO, its not how early or late the infos are coming but the lack of attention to the clamor of the fans people are frustrated. For example, Edit-a-player feature will not be in 16 whereas most sports game has it.
 
# 16 bigwill33 @ 06/04/15 03:05 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by infernoisdead
I'm not sure if this has been said elsewhere, but I'm not upset at all about all of the negatives they are answering. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have a fully fleshed out game now. I just think it's a great thing that they are addressing the multitude of shortcomings now. Last year a lot of people were up in arms with getting the bad news essentially the week of launch. Now people (not necessarily in this thread) are up in arms that the bad news is coming so early in the process.


When would be a good time to discuss the things that are missing? I'm just happy I know early on what to expect
I agree about being glad about more transparency, but we can't expect the customers to be joyous over what is essentially still bad news.

I think people were really hoping that EA had some tricks hidden up their sleeves for 16, after 15 was so stripped down and disappointing to so many. And while it is certainly a step in the right direction that they are answering more questions this time around, they still aren't the answers that many people were hoping to hear for this year.

I think we must also wait and see how early they start releasing actual game play media, and how much of it they show. Because it peculiar how secretive they were with last year. Almost foretelling. Now, it must be noted that almost all of the sports titles that had their initial launch on the latest gen consoles had media secrecy that was nearly unmatched in history, but NHL 15 was seemingly at red alert with lockdown on their features and footage from the actual game.

I hope that the lesson learned is that transparency and honesty builds trust. As has been evident with other developers. Sure, people will be upset and angry that their most wanted features are not in, or not exactly how they had imagined, but there was nothing worse than hiding it from the consumers, or even lying about it!
 

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