EHM Release date information

[Marc Vaughan]

(taken from sigames.com)

NHL:EHM will still be released in Europe at the begining of July (we are still aiming for July 2nd).

However, the US/Canadian release of the game is going to be held back until September. The reason for this is that Sega US want to be able to spend time doing marketing and PR on the game, which they have not had a chance to do as yet for various reasons.

HOWEVER, we are working on making the game available to the US and Canada on the same day as the European release via digital download. I didn't want to say anything until this was completely finalised, but due to the leak, I've had to - more information will follow as soon as it's all sorted out.

(thought the digital download option might surprise a few people ;) )

[Axxon]

Yay on the download option!

Boo on the wait for it to be in stores!

I just wanted to be the first response. :D

[Honolulu_Blue]

Finally living in Europe gives me a hockey-related benefit! It's about freakin' time!

[Coder]

Hehe.. I might actually buy the download version despite living in Europe.. endlessly sick of all the CDs piling up everywhere.

[Karim]

I want this one on CD so I think I'll be pre-ordering from Europe.

[Eaglesfan27]

It is available only via European import, then I will wait until September. However, if it is available via download, there is no way I will be able to resist ;)

I'm hoping that the download option works out :D

(taken from sigames.com)

NHL:EHM will still be released in Europe at the begining of July (we are still aiming for July 2nd).

However, the US/Canadian release of the game is going to be held back until September. The reason for this is that Sega US want to be able to spend time doing marketing and PR on the game, which they have not had a chance to do as yet for various reasons.

HOWEVER, we are working on making the game available to the US and Canada on the same day as the European release via digital download. I didn't want to say anything until this was completely finalised, but due to the leak, I've had to - more information will follow as soon as it's all sorted out.

(thought the digital download option might surprise a few people ;) )

[Marc Vaughan]

I'm hoping that the download option works out
It will do :D

[ice4277]

Well that kind of sucks that a retail version won't be available here until September, but I can also understand the reasoning behind this. Releasing a text-based hockey sim in the middle of the summer before an NHL lockout, with very little publicity behind the release, would not make much sense business-wise.

[SirFozzie]

July 2nd is unacceptable. We want it..

Oh wait.. I still have the beta Demo :)

Never mind.

(Just wait till I finish season one tho!)

[Ksyrup]

Talk about timing....the hockey season ends, and within hours, the announcement that a hockey sim is being released shortly.

In the absence of a new football game to play in the fall, I'll probably buy this in September. I'm one of those who has a definite "seasons" thing going on, and I'll continue to devote the summer to OOTP and watching baseball. I can't pick up a hockey game a couple of weeks after the season ends. Just like I haven't touched FOF since February. That's just the way I am.

Man...the idea of a text sim being in a store and having PR - I'm not quite sure my brain processes that information!

[Joe Canadian]

(taken from sigames.com)

NHL:EHM will still be released in Europe at the begining of July (we are still aiming for July 2nd).

However, the US/Canadian release of the game is going to be held back until September. The reason for this is that Sega US want to be able to spend time doing marketing and PR on the game, which they have not had a chance to do as yet for various reasons.

HOWEVER, we are working on making the game available to the US and Canada on the same day as the European release via digital download. I didn't want to say anything until this was completely finalised, but due to the leak, I've had to - more information will follow as soon as it's all sorted out.

(thought the digital download option might surprise a few people ;) )

Don't have CM, so I'm not sure how extensive manuals have been... but will an online one be avalible for the download? Maybe a CD Stmomp & DVD cover too?? :D

[Marc Vaughan]

Don't have CM, so I'm not sure how extensive manuals have been... but will an online one be avalible for the download? Maybe a CD Stmomp & DVD cover too?? :D
At the moment I'm not sure of the situation regarding this side of things, I'll see what I can find out.

At the very least I know Riz is planning on doing a 'hints and tips' file in a similar fashion to what I generally knock up for CM ..

[MizzouRah]

Talk about timing....the hockey season ends, and within hours, the announcement that a hockey sim is being released shortly.

In the absence of a new football game to play in the fall, I'll probably buy this in September. I'm one of those who has a definite "seasons" thing going on, and I'll continue to devote the summer to OOTP and watching baseball. I can't pick up a hockey game a couple of weeks after the season ends. Just like I haven't touched FOF since February. That's just the way I am.

Man...the idea of a text sim being in a store and having PR - I'm not quite sure my brain processes that information!

I'm a "seasons" kind of player myself, although the thread about which WR to pick in (forget who's) someone's dynasty got me back to playing FOF2004 again. I've learned to keep copies of all my favorite games on my pc (until a new version comes out) just in case.

* However, I've been waiting a long time for EHM to come to fruition, so as soon as I read some remarks from here - I'll get it and play the heck out of it.. if it's as good as it could be.

I was just thinking about the next games coming down the pipe sports wise:

Puresim
EHM: FE
NCAA 2005
Madden/ESPN 2005

(and I honestly think a TCY2 will be in there somewhere)

Ahhh...too many games.....too little time....


Todd

[Ksyrup]

Ahhh...too many games.....too little time....
In any event, with a colicky 4 week old, I'm find this to be all too true. I really haven't touched OOTP since the baby was born, but I'm dying to get back into it. Once they fix the waivers issue, I'll jump back in.

[FrogMan]

quite off-topic, but colics suck ass... I feel for you dude. Luckily, neither of our sons had even one tiny bout of colics...

Other than that, even though our son is now about to turn 5 months old, I also find that time is hard to come by. This is not helped by the fact that our 7 years old has started soccer season with karate classes interfering with the schedule :)

I play CM about 15-20 minutes at a time, with many stops in between sessions :)

FM

[Ksyrup]

*threadjack alert*

I'm no doctor, and it hasn't been confirmed, but I found several sources online that describe the symptoms, and we are able to check off every single one of them. Basically, from 8pm to 1am 3-5 times a week, she does nothing but scream/cry for no apparent reason. The only break we get is when she eats or when she falls asleep, but usually when she falls asleep and we put her in her crib, she wakes up within 5 minutes, screaming and crying again. And, of course, doctors aren't really sure why it happens and there's basically nothing that can be done for it until it stops on its own.

The odd thing is that on the last four nights this has happened, she falls asleep for the night (well, until the next feeding) within 5 minutes of 1am. Truly bizarre. It's like her internal clock tells her to stop. My completely off-the-wall hypothesis is this: she was born at 8:02pm and taken off to be checked out, weighed, etc., and I'm pretty sure they brought her back to our room at around 1am. Maybe she's reliving the birthing experience and associated trauma, and it ends around the time of night she was brought back to us?

[bbor]

Is it July yet? :D

[Arles]

As long as the download isn't in the "Queen's English", I think that will work for most of us :D

[jbmagic]

MARKUS


will the game have a good paper manual that comes with the game when it sold in he United states stores?

i hope it comes with a great Manual, that explain how to play the game..

thanks

[Bonegavel]

Are there any differences between the Europe/States version? IOW, will Tranfers be in the Euro version and Trade in the States?

This is great news.

[Joe Canadian]

As long as the download isn't in the "Queen's English", I think that will work for most of us :D


What do you mean... if they actually spell colour and centre correcetly it won't be ok with you :).

[Joe Canadian]

Marc, is there any confirmation on packaging? Will it be in a normal CD case, or a DVD case?

[rexallllsc]

Is there a downside to just purchasing from a Euro store? Will the game be any different?

[MizzouRah]

In any event, with a colicky 4 week old, I'm find this to be all too true. I really haven't touched OOTP since the baby was born, but I'm dying to get back into it. Once they fix the waivers issue, I'll jump back in.
I feel for you as well. I have a friend who's little one has the same thing.


I'm only into ootp for multiplayer this year.. for some reason I really hope Puresim does something to me this time around (immersion level). I'm dying for a fictional league basball universe and I'm hoping Puresim is the answer.

Time will tell...


Todd

[Johnny93g]

Will the version released on the 2nd (hopefully) in Europe be any different then the one released later after all the PR from Sega

[Marc Vaughan]

MARKUS


will the game have a good paper manual that comes with the game when it sold in he United states stores?

i hope it comes with a great Manual, that explain how to play the game..

thanks

Yes the manuals very good imho

[Marc Vaughan]

Marc, is there any confirmation on packaging? Will it be in a normal CD case, or a DVD case?
In Europe it'll be a DVD case (as is the norm here) - no idea for the US, but I'd presume the same as for the majority of games released in America (which is a nice way of indicating I've no idea at present - sorry I can't be more help).

[Marc Vaughan]

Will the version released on the 2nd (hopefully) in Europe be any different then the one released later after all the PR from Sega
Because it'll be running behind the European release it might have some fixes applied if any patches are neccassary for the European release, it'll also have a host of legal changes to minor things (ie. splash screens, EULA etc.) but the gameplay will be the same if thats what you mean?

[Johnny93g]

Because it'll be running behind the European release it might have some fixes applied if any patches are neccassary for the European release, it'll also have a host of legal changes to minor things (ie. splash screens, EULA etc.) but the gameplay will be the same if thats what you mean?

Thats what I meant...Thanks

[Joe Canadian]

Because it'll be running behind the European release it might have some fixes applied if any patches are neccassary for the European release, it'll also have a host of legal changes to minor things (ie. splash screens, EULA etc.) but the gameplay will be the same if thats what you mean?


That secures my choice of purchase... I can't stand those mini-cardboard computer game boxes that have recently become the standard for PC games. So I'll be sending the extra money on getting the European release, instead of buying th download or NA Retail release.

[mordhiem]

That secures my choice of purchase... I can't stand those mini-cardboard computer game boxes that have recently become the standard for PC games. So I'll be sending the extra money on getting the European release, instead of buying th download or NA Retail release.

I see that the North American market not discovered the wonder of slim-line DVD cases for games. How I hated those old cardboard boxes...

[Danny]

That secures my choice of purchase... I can't stand those mini-cardboard computer game boxes that have recently become the standard for PC games. So I'll be sending the extra money on getting the European release, instead of buying th download or NA Retail release.

It's certainly a waste of material. I just take out the manual and jewel case and throw away the rest.

[ice4277]

I see that the North American market not discovered the wonder of slim-line DVD cases for games. How I hated those old cardboard boxes...
A few games have used them, but for the most part they have migrated to smaller cardboard boxes. Guess they don't want to give up all that shelf space at retail.

[Blackadar]

Damn you, Marc!!!

You guys keep releasing games that are so good you force me to buy them and divorce myself from my family for weeks on end.

I'm sending the attorney bill to you if my wife finally decides to leave me.

:)

[Simms]

Since nobody else has asked yet....

(Realistic expectations aside, I'm semi-serious in my curiosity here....) What happens if, by some miracle, a new CBA gets hammered out by Sept 1 and, as a result, say, Group III through V free agency is abolished and there's a salary cap? :D

(hey...it could happen)

[ice4277]

Since nobody else has asked yet....

(Realistic expectations aside, I'm semi-serious in my curiosity here....) What happens if, by some miracle, a new CBA gets hammered out by Sept 1 and, as a result, say, Group III through V free agency is abolished and there's a salary cap? :D

I don't think people would take much notice as this would be quickly followed by the announcements of hell freezing over and the Earth no longer rotating on its axis.

[Karim]

I've pre-ordered from special reserve for 28.99 pounds.

Since I'm familiar with CM, I really don't care if the Euro version has "transfer" instead of "trade" etc. It's an easy tradeoff for me to get it two months early. I'm have more time to play now then come September.

[SackAttack]

The reason for this is that Sega US want to be able to spend time doing marketing and PR on the game...

So how is that gonna work? "The NHL may not see the light of day for another three years, but you (yes, YOU!) can still guide your favorite team to Lord Stanley's Cup with NHL Eastside Hockey Manager!"

:D

[ice4277]

So how is that gonna work? "The NHL may not see the light of day for another three years, but you (yes, YOU!) can still guide your favorite team to Lord Stanley's Cup with NHL Eastside Hockey Manager!"

:D
"EHM:FE: Because Some Hockey is Better Than No Hockey"

[SackAttack]

"Warning: laboratory tests have shown EHM combined with a lack of daily hockey news to cause depression in Canadians. Use only as directed."

[Marc Vaughan]

I've pre-ordered from special reserve for 28.99 pounds.

Since I'm familiar with CM, I really don't care if the Euro version has "transfer" instead of "trade" etc. It's an easy tradeoff for me to get it two months early. I'm have more time to play now then come September.

We've altered that side of things anyway (ie. trade/transfer) ...

[Honolulu_Blue]

We've altered that side of things anyway (ie. trade/transfer) ...


That makes perfect sense. It's not so much a North America/European thing as it is a hockey/football (socccer) thing. For one sport the language works, because it's the language of the sport, for one sport it doesn't.

[sachmo71]

I wonder if Jim will be playing this game?

[Blackadar]

I got to play a little with EHM and so far, it's pretty good.

I'll start off with my concerns:

1. I started with my beloved Bruins. I only got through 4 exhibition games before the game quit to desktop, which was very annoying. I'm hoping that is an isolated case.

2. The shots seem a bit high to me. In those 4 games, I took no less than 40 shots per game. In two games, my team exceeded 50. That seems a bit much.

3. When scouting in the NHL, my scouts kept coming up with guys who were draft-eligible. There should be a way to not have the scouts find these players - or tag them when they do so I don't go looking over 90+ players to see if I can even do anything with them.

4. For whatever reason, almost every contract in the game was up on 6-30-2004 for the Bruins. Perhaps that's real - but I couldn't extend them. The max offer was $100,000 that I could give with many of these players making $3-$5 mil.

5. I didn't see any staff or player interaction during my short time with the game. I'm hoping that much of the CM interaction gets into EHM.

6. Found the interface to be a bit confusing. But then again, I always did when it came to CM.

The positives:

1. Looked and acted much like CM.

2. I like hockey much better than soccer.

3. I'm buying it. :)

[druez]

I'm very happy.

[sachmo71]

I'm very happy.

:(

[Anthony]

i was a colic baby. my mother said i drove her nuts cuz i wouldn't stop crying. she said she'd always take me to the doctor and they'd give me a different formula. maybe you should look into changing your baby's formula.

of course it didn't work, i guess i just stopped on my own. as a toddler and young boy i made up for it, because she said i was very quiet. so maybe you won't have to go through those terible two's and bratty kids as a consolation prize.

[Karim]

For whatever reason, almost every contract in the game was up on 6-30-2004 for the Bruins. Perhaps that's real...At the conclusion of this past season, the Bruins have 35 free agents throughout the organization. Good planning or poor planning depending upon your perspective of the CBA negotiations and your anticipated outcome.

[Blackadar]

I'm hoping Marc will stop by and answer the other concerns I had with the demo. If not, I'm still buying it. :)

[MizzouRah]

I'm hoping Marc will stop by and answer the other concerns I had with the demo. If not, I'm still buying it. :)
Fanboy!


;)




Todd

[Blackadar]

Bump for Marc.

[riz]

I got to play a little with EHM and so far, it's pretty good.

I'll start off with my concerns....

1. I started with my beloved Bruins. I only got through 4 exhibition games before the game quit to desktop, which was very annoying. I'm hoping that is an isolated case.

2. The shots seem a bit high to me. In those 4 games, I took no less than 40 shots per game. In two games, my team exceeded 50. That seems a bit much.

3. When scouting in the NHL, my scouts kept coming up with guys who were draft-eligible. There should be a way to not have the scouts find these players - or tag them when they do so I don't go looking over 90+ players to see if I can even do anything with them.

4. For whatever reason, almost every contract in the game was up on 6-30-2004 for the Bruins. Perhaps that's real - but I couldn't extend them. The max offer was $100,000 that I could give with many of these players making $3-$5 mil.

5. I didn't see any staff or player interaction during my short time with the game. I'm hoping that much of the CM interaction gets into EHM.

6. Found the interface to be a bit confusing. But then again, I always did when it came to CM.



1) BETA demo. A few crashes that were a result of certain user actions were tracked down with the feedback from the beta and fixed.

2) Shots and scoring were tweaked after the beta and are constantly being tweaked to find the best possible balance between shots/goals/saves in all the different leagues in the game. Given my knack for stats, I'll find myself finetuning these things until it looks good all around. Any statistical irregularities that people might come up with, I'll try to address in updates naturally.

3) Scouting in the NHL ? You mean sending a scout to the region of USA or the region of Canada ? If so, there are a LOT of different leagues in these regions and most of them (the junior leagues) have draft eligible players. If this was not the case, let me know and I'll take a deeper look.

4) IRL, the NHL teams had a great deal of contracts that were up at the end of this season. I wonder if the CBA expiring had anything to do with that.... :) The max offer limit was due to the finances being "in progress" at the time of the beta and I was still coding the limits from the owners in different financial situations (over the budget, under budget, little cash, huge debts...)

5) Some of the media/player interaction does not kick off right from the start, as things need some time to develop. It also depends on the team situation and their success. If things are going well and the chemistries are fine in the lockerroom, expect little disturbances in the players/media. It's usually when things go wrong when the media start picking on you and the players.

6) A new interface, a new game. It just takes some time to get used to things. We have had loads of people on the boards coming in the same day the beta was released, saying that the UI was utter s**te. After a week or so, we've seen the same people coming back saying that after playing for a while and learning the ropes, it was actually all pretty good. Go figure. It's just the shock of new things I guess :)



The positives:

1. Looked and acted much like CM.

2. I like hockey much better than soccer.

3. I'm buying it. :)

1) No it doesn't ;) It uses the same codebase but the looks have been changed pretty much completely.

2) Me too

3) Thanks, much appreciated. This will help us gain a foothold and develop the game further.

Marc is very busy this week so I thought I'd drop by and answer these since I've got a little vacation and some spare time.

[MizzouRah]

1) BETA demo. A few crashes that were a result of certain user actions were tracked down with the feedback from the beta and fixed.

2) Shots and scoring were tweaked after the beta and are constantly being tweaked to find the best possible balance between shots/goals/saves in all the different leagues in the game. Given my knack for stats, I'll find myself finetuning these things until it looks good all around. Any statistical irregularities that people might come up with, I'll try to address in updates naturally.

3) Scouting in the NHL ? You mean sending a scout to the region of USA or the region of Canada ? If so, there are a LOT of different leagues in these regions and most of them (the junior leagues) have draft eligible players. If this was not the case, let me know and I'll take a deeper look.

4) IRL, the NHL teams had a great deal of contracts that were up at the end of this season. I wonder if the CBA expiring had anything to do with that.... :) The max offer limit was due to the finances being "in progress" at the time of the beta and I was still coding the limits from the owners in different financial situations (over the budget, under budget, little cash, huge debts...)

5) Some of the media/player interaction does not kick off right from the start, as things need some time to develop. It also depends on the team situation and their success. If things are going well and the chemistries are fine in the lockerroom, expect little disturbances in the players/media. It's usually when things go wrong when the media start picking on you and the players.

6) A new interface, a new game. It just takes some time to get used to things. We have had loads of people on the boards coming in the same day the beta was released, saying that the UI was utter s**te. After a week or so, we've seen the same people coming back saying that after playing for a while and learning the ropes, it was actually all pretty good. Go figure. It's just the shock of new things I guess :)



1) No it doesn't ;) It uses the same codebase but the looks have been changed pretty much completely.

2) Me too

3) Thanks, much appreciated. This will help us gain a foothold and develop the game further.

Marc is very busy this week so I thought I'd drop by and answer these since I've got a little vacation and some spare time.
Thanks for the answers! Should be a fun game to 'dig' into.


Todd

[Blackadar]

Thanks Riz! Cool.

Just one question/clarification...

When I was scouting for the Bruins - scouting the USA, Canada, Finland, etc. - most of the players returned were still draft-eligible, meaning I really couldn't touch them. Since we hadn't started the draft yet, these guys were off-limits. I went through like 200 players only to find most of them I couldn't do anything with.

It would be good, when getting these scouting reports, if it said something about these players not being immediately available because they're NHL-draft candidates. That way you don't waste your time clicking to see their stats and then preparing to make a bid only to find you can't.

I hope I explained that ok... :)

[riz]

Thanks Riz! Cool.

Just one question/clarification...

When I was scouting for the Bruins - scouting the USA, Canada, Finland, etc. - most of the players returned were still draft-eligible, meaning I really couldn't touch them. Since we hadn't started the draft yet, these guys were off-limits. I went through like 200 players only to find most of them I couldn't do anything with.

It would be good, when getting these scouting reports, if it said something about these players not being immediately available because they're NHL-draft candidates. That way you don't waste your time clicking to see their stats and then preparing to make a bid only to find you can't.

I hope I explained that ok... :)

You should be able to apply filters to the scout lists in the search screen. From the top right of the main view, click "Filters" and from the opening window, you can define a lot of different attributes to narrow the list down.