Alright Boyz... NHL 11 impressions!!! [Archive] - Front Office Football Central

Icy

06-15-2010, 10:15 AM

Main new features:

Revolutionary Real-Time Physics Engine—Pioneering the next step forward in team sports video game realism, the all-new Real-Time Physics Engine brings real-world highlight reel moments in-game like never before. From face-offs to body checks, real-world puck and player physics trigger true-to-life reactions. Now anything can happen, including the ability to shoot and make plays while lying on the ice.

More than 200 Gameplay Enhancements—An all-new faceoff system, quick dekes, the new Hit Stick, and hip checks are just some of the many gameplay improvements that make NHL11 the most authentic hockey video game experience to date.

All-New Broken Sticks—Broken sticks now affect the action in more ways than one. After snapping your stick on a wicked slapshot or having it broken in two from a hit, the play is never dead. Kick the puck to your teammate or have your teammate pass you his stick if you can’t make it to the bench to get a new one.

Be a Pro Enhanced—For the first time ever, begin your career playing for the Canadian Hockey League’s Memorial Cup. Playing with and against licensed CHL players from the Western Hockey League, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, and Ontario Hockey League, experience both highs and lows of junior league hockey action. Get scouted, enter the NHL entry draft, and see if you can become the greatest player of all time.

All-New EASHL Dynasties—The EA SPORTS Hockey League takes online play to the next level as championship seasons are awarded with banner-raising ceremonies and new user celebrations that allow you to rub it in the faces of your biggest rivals. Prep your team for their playoff run with an all-new Practice mode.

Icy

06-15-2010, 10:16 AM

Really looking forward for Be A Pro, wonder when will EA get a BAP mode as good as FIFA's and NHL's ones in their football games.

MizzouRah

07-23-2010, 09:56 PM

I am so pumpy for this game!

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MizzouRah

08-13-2010, 06:32 PM

Woot! The greatest sports series on the consoles, for me anyway.. demo on Tuesday!!!

During the NHL 11 (http://nhl.easports.com/livechat.action) Developer chat today, it was announced that the NHL 11 demo will be released in North America on Tuesday August 17th and in EU on Wednesday August 18th. (On the 17th, 2AM PST for X360, and between 1-5PM PST for PS3)

Quick overview of what is included in the demo. You will get a first look at HUT. What is included in HUT will be a starter pack, with a mix of prospects and some rare cards. You will get to play through an offline tournament. Each portion of the tournament bracket you get to play will be the 3rd period of the game. You win? you move on, you lose? you start from the beginning of the tourney.

We will also be including Battle for The Cup in the demo as well. Very similar to last year. It will be Chicago vs Philly, 3rd period of Game 7.

MizzouRah

08-17-2010, 09:18 AM

Wow.. the new physics engine really give the game that NHL feeling to it, players have weight and it's hard to check, say Pronger with Towes.

The new faceoff system is great, add broken sticks, sticks that can pop out of hands when delivering that big check, goal reviews, presentation enhancements, etc..

Can't wait to get the retail copy in my hands!

DaddyTorgo

08-17-2010, 09:40 AM

Cool!

samifan24

08-17-2010, 01:59 PM

Has anyone heard of any pre-order bonuses? I didn't see anything on Amazon and haven't come across any mention on CAG.

Ajaxab

08-17-2010, 02:27 PM

You get some 20th anniversary Bauer boost pack with stick, gloves and skates for your be-a-pro (pretty sure that's the only thing it could be for) from Gamestop with a preorder.

Doug5984

08-17-2010, 02:55 PM

Is the demo out? (Is that how you played it Mizzou?)

samifan24

08-17-2010, 02:59 PM

You get some 20th anniversary Bauer boost pack with stick, gloves and skates for your be-a-pro (pretty sure that's the only thing it could be for) from Gamestop with a preorder.

Cool, thanks. I'm not a fan of the pay-to-upgrade DLC content so this would be as far as I go with the DLC boosters.

Is the demo out? (Is that how you played it Mizzou?)

Yes, the demo is out today on the 360 and will be released on the PS3 during the PSN update later today.

TurnerONU22

08-17-2010, 08:47 PM

Had a lot of fun with the Ultimate Team in the demo. Since the demo is a limited play, they stack your deck with a much better team than you will get when you play the game. Basically, you play in a 16 team tournament with your team. It is programmed for you to play the Windsor Spitfires (top CHL team), then Phillly, then Chicago, then Team Canada in the championship.

My first go round, I ended up with Malkin, Getzlaf, Backstrom, Zetterberg, Taylor Hall, Tyler Seguin, Luongo, Tyler Myers, Del Zotto. The farthest I made it in the tourney before my contracts ran out was Chicago.

For the most part, the game seems similar to last year. The new face-off system provides more realism and I started to get the hang of it by my final game. I really noticed the difference playing against Windsor and Philly. I could be much more aggressive defensively against Windsor, but Philly made me pay for it.

Looking forward to playing some more of the demo this weekend.

samifan24

08-18-2010, 09:58 AM

I just played the demo for the first time.

Things I liked:

- The new passing system makes passing much more difficult

- You can definitely "feel" the difference in player body types with the new physical engine...playing as Tyler Myers was fun because I was just waiting to crush forwards as they crossed the blueline...Patrick Kane felt more fragile, that kind of thing

- Game 7 felt more like the playoffs with fan chants, towel waving, etc.

Things I didn't like:

- Fighting in the final minute of a one goal game in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals should not happen.

- Oskar Bartulis doesn't fight in real life, so he shouldn't fight in the game. I hate it when guys that never fight in real life suddenly drop the gloves against heavyweights in the game. I'm tempted to turn fighting off completely in NHL 11.

- Why does the NHL series insist on keeping Gary Thorne's phrases like "keep that puck in the zone, he did" ever year? I hope the audio received a bit of an upgrade this year but I doubt if it Thorne's "Yoda speak" is still there

All in all NHL 11 just "feels" different in a good way from NHL 10 and NHL 09. It feels more like hockey and less like an arcade game now.

DaddyTorgo

08-18-2010, 10:07 AM

I just played the demo one game last night.

It kicked my ass.

I did manage to score one goal, but man I have no idea what the controls are since I haven't played an NHL game in years...

bhlloy

08-18-2010, 10:16 AM

- Fighting in the final minute of a one goal game in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals should not happen.

- Oskar Bartulis doesn't fight in real life, so he shouldn't fight in the game. I hate it when guys that never fight in real life suddenly drop the gloves against heavyweights in the game. I'm tempted to turn fighting off completely in NHL 11

Ugh, this was my biggest (only?) complaint last year. They went through all that trouble to put the new fighting engine in and to have it matter in the flow of the game, and then the matchups/situations were completely unrealistic. Something that was fine in the previous 5 versions of the game. :banghead:

Seriously, this is a 5 minute fix. Only players with x fighting rating should ever drop the gloves with players with greater than x fighting rating. done.

MizzouRah

08-18-2010, 09:19 PM

The Ultimate team is addicting.. uh oh.. didn't see that coming.

:)

MizzouRah

08-18-2010, 10:44 PM

For those of you who like hockey even just a little bit, try out the demo.

This EA team of programmers really understand how to improve on a great game, year after year.

It's remarkable what they can do in a years time. Everything just feels so organic and fresh.

I've played this demo more than NCAA and Madden already. :)

TurnerONU22

08-19-2010, 12:29 PM

The Ultimate team is addicting.. uh oh.. didn't see that coming.

:)

I love playing BeAGM, but I think this Ultimate Team stuff is pretty cool. I can't wait to actually start collecting players and I hope we can find a few people on here to trade with.

Mizzou, I'll make sure to send T.J Oshie your way if he ends up in a pack of mine.

MizzouRah

08-19-2010, 03:48 PM

I love playing BeAGM, but I think this Ultimate Team stuff is pretty cool. I can't wait to actually start collecting players and I hope we can find a few people on here to trade with.

Mizzou, I'll make sure to send T.J Oshie your way if he ends up in a pack of mine.

You are a good man and I would owe you for sure, just name it. ;)

Be a Gm is where most of my gameplay will come from, but this HUD feature is cooler than I thought.

I can't wait to sit down again tonight with this demo.

EagleFan

08-19-2010, 05:40 PM

You are a good man and I would owe you for sure, just name it. ;)

Be a Gm is where most of my gameplay will come from, but this HUD feature is cooler than I thought.

I can't wait to sit down again tonight with this demo.

Sucks, waiting for the TV to come back after the picture died. The 360 is just sitting there teasing me... :(

MizzouRah

08-19-2010, 09:30 PM

Sucks, waiting for the TV to come back after the picture died. The 360 is just sitting there teasing me... :(

As long as it's back by Sept 7th. ;)

Sweed

08-21-2010, 04:50 PM

Last year was the first year I had the current version of nhl. I added the music pack and absolutely loved the atmosphere that it added to the game.

Any of you vets of the game know if we'll be able to use last years sound pack? I don't have to have whatever the real 2011 teams are using, last years tunes are fine. Other than if the lengths of the tunes changed I can't see why they wouldn't work. FWIW I'll be playing on the ps3 so they music files are right on the console HD.

Thanks.

CraigSca

08-21-2010, 06:03 PM

Neuqua

08-26-2010, 03:20 AM

#TeamToews

Kane vs. Toews for NHL '11 for EA Sports - Chicago Breaking Sports (http://bit.ly/ae1hF8)

Icy

08-26-2010, 04:33 AM

Just preordered it, can't wait!

RainMaker

08-26-2010, 05:15 AM

Can someone fill me in on what the music pack is? Is it sold by EA? I've been playing the demo and can't wait for this game.

TurnerONU22

08-26-2010, 07:23 AM

Can someone fill me in on what the music pack is? Is it sold by EA? I've been playing the demo and can't wait for this game.

I haven't used it before, but I believe it is the correct songs for each team (intro songs, goal sounds and songs, ect..) Its not sold by EA, but usually put together by community members (I believe from Operation Sports forums).

I usually skip all of the cut scenes and such, so I don't bother. Especially since EA has added typical goal songs this year (such as Rock and Roll Pt 2 and Crowd Chant).

BTW, apparently if you invite someone to play the demo, you get a 2nd booster pack for the Ultimate Team in the full version of the game. I wonder if we can just invite each other, even if we already downloaded the demo, so that we can get the extra pack.

Sweed

08-26-2010, 07:53 AM

Can someone fill me in on what the music pack is? Is it sold by EA? I've been playing the demo and can't wait for this game.

Basically if you hear a tune IRL in an NHL arena you now hear it in your game. From entering the ice pregame, to faceoffs, scores, penalties, and arena filler music for any break in the action, it's all here.

This is the one I used last year for NHL 10 TNKNGM & Jokah NHL Music Pack - OPENING NIGHT EDITION - Operation Sports Forums (http://www.operationsports.com/vBulletin/ea-sports-nhl/364008-tnkngm-jokah-nhl-music-pack-opening-night-edition.html). 454 songs of immersion goodness! I watched most cut scenes because of the music pack and still finished games ~ a half hour.

Downloading, installing to ps3, and assigning songs took an hour or so and was well worth the time. As far as assigning songs I just went with pregame introduction, home\visitor scores, and IIRC home team wins music. There are other categories like home\visiting team penalty etc. but these can be set to random (this is what I did) and are drawn from the appropriate category.

One of the best mods I've ever used and wouldn't dream of playing NHL 11 without a music pack. If last years doesn't work I will be downloading this years.

MizzouRah

09-07-2010, 02:53 PM

My copy should be here any minute.

Anyone else pick it up?

MizzouRah

09-07-2010, 02:56 PM

GameShark | Reviews | NHL 11 Review (http://www.gameshark.com/reviews/3611/p_0/NHL-11-Review.htm)

Bill Abner...

NHL 11 is the best game EA Sports has ever made. The gameplay is certifiably brilliant – the best I have ever seen in any EA Sports game – ever.

TCY Junkie

09-07-2010, 04:12 PM

I'll probably get it Thursday or Friday, just waiting for your opinion? On the game, not what day.

cthomer5000

09-07-2010, 04:28 PM

I got it. I really suck though. Didn't play '10 at all, and played like a few hours of '09.

I think the last time i logged serious hours on this series was NHLPA 94. :D

Travis

09-07-2010, 04:35 PM

I've got my copy sitting beside me at work right now with a custom Hemsky cover already in place. Played the demo to get the extra card packs for HUT mode so I'm ready to go tonight (even got the PS3 update taken care of this morning so I won't have to wait for that).

Played the hell out of the demo and love the new faceoff mechanics. Not sure if HUT mode will get much game play from me going forward, but it sure made the demo a lot of fun.

Going to be quite a difference from the weekend though as we ended up playing NHL94 for drinks given that the water at the lake was too cold to go tubing :D

DaddyTorgo

09-07-2010, 04:56 PM

high praise from Abner.

I played the demo, but I sucked pretty badly. Maybe I'll pick this up used once it's aged a bit and down in price and everything.

Doug5984

09-07-2010, 04:56 PM

I think I'm going to pick it up on the way home today

DaddyTorgo

09-07-2010, 04:58 PM

fyi - even though abner says that, look at this guys:

What's Not (Hot): GM Mode (franchise mode) stats are shaky; awful GM mode interface; is there comeback AI?; a few defensive holes

Travis

09-07-2010, 05:11 PM

Oh, suppose it may not be a bad idea to put this out there, for those who end up picking this up on the PS3 side, maybe post what players you're looking for in HUT mode. I'm not planning on trying to collect all the players that'll be out there, but I'll definitely be looking for a few guys myself.

Outside of a key core of players, I'm open to trading (or however it's set up) cards I know I won't be using all that often, especially if I know people here are looking for those players.

For my part, I'm really hoping to be able to build a Hall - Eberle - Hemsky top line. Past that, Penner, Paarjarvi (or Svensson depending on what he goes by in the game) and Smid are the other Oilers I'll be on the lookout for.

cthomer5000

09-07-2010, 05:28 PM

Oh, bummed the Russian league was dropped. I enjoyed using some of those teams because they are the same clubs as their soccer teams. CSKA Moscow, Dinamo Moscow, etc.

samifan24

09-07-2010, 06:17 PM

How do you redeem the card pack that you got if you played the demo?

MizzouRah

09-07-2010, 06:30 PM

fyi - even though abner says that, look at this guys:

There is an issue in BeaGM from a schedule update that was just released, they are aware of the issue and plan on fixing it ASAP. I know it had to do with star players on lower teams within an organization. (not sure if that skewed stats, but I'm assuming it had something to do with them)

Played my first game vs the Islanders and won on Pro, 5-2. One thing about EA's hockey series, the game never feels scripted and always has those "wow" moments and definite organic feel to each game.

They slowed the speed down a tad, now speed of passes is tied to how long you hold the RT down (x360) love that. Each of those 7 goals in my game were different.

BIG THING for me is that now you can definitely tell separation from star players and average players. Also, Kariya can no longer knock players down, only the big boys hit effectivly.

Love the broken sticks, Kariya's broke when I was on the PP and he skated over to grab a new one from a player on the bench.

Also really like the "hussle" feature where you click the L stick to give your player that little jump on a breakaway.

Good stuff!

Balldog

09-07-2010, 09:08 PM

Still 50/50 about getting this, don't really have time for NCAA Football and this but if Patch 3 is as bad as I have read for NCAA Football I might just jump ship and buy this instead.

Last year was the first time I have bought NHL since the late 90s and I played it quite a bit (~100 games) despite not knowing most of the players.

TurnerONU22

09-08-2010, 07:49 AM

How do you redeem the card pack that you got if you played the demo?

If you go into the HUT Store, there should be a pack on the far right side. I got two: one for playing the demo and one for beating Team Canada in the demo.

As an aside, I was thinking about using a Google Docs spreadsheet and posting here of what cards I have. The best player I have is Kyle Beach and some AHL defensemen. Ideally, I'd like to trade with someone to help improve my team chemistry. I'm on the 360 version of the game.

TurnerONU22

09-08-2010, 07:53 AM

There is an issue in BeaGM from a schedule update that was just released, they are aware of the issue and plan on fixing it ASAP. I know it had to do with star players on lower teams within an organization. (not sure if that skewed stats, but I'm assuming it had something to do with them)

Played my first game vs the Islanders and won on Pro, 5-2. One thing about EA's hockey series, the game never feels scripted and always has those "wow" moments and definite organic feel to each game.

They slowed the speed down a tad, now speed of passes is tied to how long you hold the RT down (x360) love that. Each of those 7 goals in my game were different.

BIG THING for me is that now you can definitely tell separation from star players and average players. Also, Kariya can no longer knock players down, only the big boys hit effectivly.

Love the broken sticks, Kariya's broke when I was on the PP and he skated over to grab a new one from a player on the bench.

Also really like the "hussle" feature where you click the L stick to give your player that little jump on a breakaway.

Good stuff!

Yeah, I can tell the difference between last year's and this year's game, and I agree, it doesn't feel scripted. The other thing I love, and I can't believe it took this long, is that when you're on a 3-on-2 or 2-on-1, your CPU teammates actually drive to the net and look to get in open spots. I had a sweet play on a 3-on-2 where I passed from the LW to C, then to the RW, who put it top shelf above the goalie.

I'm quite impressed so far.

Travis

09-08-2010, 10:07 AM

Played through an offline HUT tournament last night and almost have enough pucks to buy another pack (the 2,500 puck pack that is). Didn't get the great initial pulls with my bonus packs from the demo (freaking Ethan Moreau) but seemed to pull a lot of low 70's/high 60's guys with 80+ potential so it's a start. It is pretty funny to see Riley Cote and Ortmeyer getting consistent first line time as I sit my better prospects to avoid burning up much of their careers before I can boost them to the higher end of their potential.

samifan24

09-08-2010, 10:29 AM

The player "contracts" in HUT mode can be used in both offline and online games and tournaments, right?

Travis

09-08-2010, 10:57 AM

I haven't tried any online games, but I'd imagine that the game type doesn't matter. Each game (either way) would deduct one off their contract length and count towards the max number of games they'll play in their "career".

Not sure if I'll take a swing online with that mode tonight so hopefully somebody can verify that, but given that the lineup screen is separate from the game types it looks to me like a game is a game whether it's online or off.

MizzouRah

09-08-2010, 11:09 AM

I believe you are right Travis.. as soon as the player hits the ice in any game, I believe it deducts one game.

PadresFan104

09-08-2010, 11:38 AM

I'll admit that the only current hockey player I know is Crosby, but the HUT mode sounds like a lot of fun. Looking forward to picking this game up soon... Keep the impressions coming!!

Pumpy Tudors

09-08-2010, 12:31 PM

I'll admit that the only current hockey player I know is Crosby, but the HUT mode sounds like a lot of fun. Looking forward to picking this game up soon... Keep the impressions coming!!
THIS IS BLASPHEMY! HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW KYLE WELLWOOD? CAN'T YOU SEE HIM FROM THERE????

Icy

09-08-2010, 12:37 PM

I have it since Monday as it was shipped early to me from an online shop in Canada.

I must say that is a nice upgrade to past year game, that was already awesome.

I'm enjoying a ton playing in my EASHL team, and have also played HUT a bit, as i enjoyed that mode a lot in FIFA10, it's a fun concept.

Broken sticks happen maybe too much, but i guess they wanted to show their new feature.

MizzouRah

09-08-2010, 01:23 PM

BeaGM mode fix/workaround:
"Hey Guys…just a quick note. For those of you that downloaded a roster update prior to the official launch of NHL 11, you may have experienced a few issues with Be A Gm due to our stress testing. So, if you downloaded a roster update, all you need to do is either delete your online roster or go and get another roster update that was released last night at launch and the problem will be rectified.
The second issue that you may have encountered is unsigned prospects leaving your team in your Be A Gm in the first offseason. Issue itself is that unsigned rookies only remain unsigned for one year currently throughout Be a GM. We’ll be addressing this issue in a patch but for now, if you want to start your Be A GM at the NHL ENTRY DRAFT, scroll down in the settings tab and set your starting roster to DRAFT DAY DEFAULT. If you start in the regular season you can choose any roster you wish but just sign the prospects you wish to sign (if any) by the end of the following re-sign phase. "

TroyF

09-08-2010, 01:32 PM

I picked this up last night. God, do I suck. I played against an AHL team and lost 3-1 on pro mode. (my goal came on a deflected pass by the way)

It was ugly.

DaddyTorgo

09-08-2010, 01:41 PM

I picked this up last night. God, do I suck. I played against an AHL team and lost 3-1 on pro mode. (my goal came on a deflected pass by the way)

It was ugly.

That's one of my worries - that I'll suck so much it'll destroy my enthusiasm. I need to spend some serious hours with the demo getting better first.

Icy

09-08-2010, 02:27 PM

Who of you play in PS3 and what is your id? it cna be fun to play some games, btw, can we play HUT vs friends or is it just the EA matchmaking who decides it?

samifan24

09-08-2010, 04:49 PM

Who of you play in PS3 and what is your id? it cna be fun to play some games, btw, can we play HUT vs friends or is it just the EA matchmaking who decides it?

I'm btw327 on the PSN. Feel free to shoot me a friend request. Please put FOFC in the message so I know who you are!

Travis

09-08-2010, 05:22 PM

I'm Nikle on the PSN, ditto to what sami posted above, putting FOFC in your request helps a bunch ;)

If anybody finds out how to make a HUT tournament with just people from your friends list, please post on here. I'm really hoping that's possible.

Honolulu_Blue

09-08-2010, 08:31 PM

THIS IS BLASPHEMY! HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW KYLE WELLWOOD? CAN'T YOU SEE HIM FROM THERE????

:D

cthomer5000

09-08-2010, 08:48 PM

Enjoying it. I'm gonna be pretty casual with it. 5-6 games in now and went from getting stomped in game 1 (on 'rookie') of a series to winning game six 6-0. Took me 3-4 games to really get the timing of defending and talking myself out of going for outrageous highlight reel checks and setting for a poke-check, etc.

MizzouRah

09-08-2010, 08:58 PM

I'll be around tomorrow night if anyone on the 360 is up to a game!

Beat my neighbor 6-5 with Chicago.. the line of Kane, Towes, and Hossa is quite the rush to the senses.

lynchjm24

09-08-2010, 09:19 PM

I'll be around tomorrow night if anyone on the 360 is up to a game!

Beat my neighbor 6-5 with Chicago.. the line of Kane, Towes, and Hossa is quite the rush to the senses.

We've gone full circle with EA then, it's Chicago, but no Roenick.

Travis

09-08-2010, 10:57 PM

On the PS3 and currently have these cards up for grab (HUT mode)

Jason Spezza (88/94)
Brenden Morrow (85/88)
Alexandre Burrows (83/88)
Todd Bertuzzi (81/83)
Adam Foote (80/82)

Those are the bigger name guys I have on hand. If you're looking for a specific prospect or mid tier guy, let me know and I'll see if I have them.

I'm currently looking for Ales Hemsky, Jordan Eberle, Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson, Dustin Penner, Gilbert Brule, Anton Lander and Tyler Myers (some others as well, but that's the majority of the list). I'll update this post a bit hopefully in the next hour as I'm hoping to snag a couple of these guys via auction.

Travis

09-09-2010, 10:29 AM

samifan24

09-09-2010, 02:27 PM

While I'm enjoying the game a lot I really dislike the fact that you need to be online all the time, especially to play HUT single player games. I lost a game midway through the 3rd period because I got disconnected from the EA servers. Lame.

samifan24

09-09-2010, 02:28 PM

Managed to snag a Hall on auction for a buy it now price of 4,400 pucks.

Yep, I've got a feeling that will, by far, be the best deal I get in HUT auctions this year. Did just miss out on auctions for Svensson, Hemsky and Lander though so I'm still looking for quite a few guys.

I sent you a challenge last night but I guess you didn't see it.

Anyway I tried to check out the auctions page but for some reason it said it couldn't find any active auctions. I'm not sure what that was all about. How did you earn so many pucks or did you buy them?

Travis

09-09-2010, 02:42 PM

Heh, I was in mid game when you sent the challenge, meant to message you back after my game to see if you still wanted to play and may have gotten a bit distracted by the auction house ;)

As for pucks, made them all through offline tournaments so far. I've gone through each of the lowest 3 tournaments so far (and been fortunate enough to win each of them) so that's where I've made my points/pucks so far. Not a huge amount (I've got around 3,800 left right now I think after buying Hall), but just means I have to be a smart shopper in the auctions. I'm considering selling off some more cards (got 950 for Moreau) to try and build the pot up some too if nobody on here has any interest in the guys I listed above.

samifan24

09-09-2010, 03:05 PM

Travis

09-09-2010, 03:31 PM

I added my Moreau card to my trade pile, went into the auction house and then listed it (allows you to set a minimum bid and a buy now amount if you want one as well as how long you want to list it for). Thankfully people bid on it so it sold so I'm not sure what happens if nobody bids (I'm assuming it's returned to you and you can relist it). I've got a stadium up right now I'm not expecting to sell so I may have more info on that in a while (put it up for 3 days with a cheap buy now hoping somebody will snag it).

As for people finding it, when you go into the auction setting you can do a card search (narrow it by card type, team, league, position, cost, etc) so that's how I've been looking for the cards I want. If you see a card you want but don't want to spend pucks on it you can go into the auction and click on the trade option and send them an offer of cards you have in your trade block (but not listed in an ongoing auction) and/or an amount of pucks. I haven't tried this method yet but I'm assuming it would notify them and give them a chance to respond assuming the auction hasn't yet ended and that nobody has utilized the buy it now feature if there is one.

So if/when people want to do trades for cards, the easiest way would likely be to come to an agreement outside of the game, then one person lists their card for a ridiculous price, the other person goes in, find the auction then offers a trade, person one accepts and that way there isn't a chance of Joe Random swooping in and snagging the card (unless he wants to drop a boatload of pucks for it).

JetsIn06

09-09-2010, 07:10 PM

Will be around tonight if anyone wants a game.

GT is DesignerSky

Maple Leafs

09-09-2010, 08:24 PM

THIS IS BLASPHEMY! HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW KYLE WELLWOOD? CAN'T YOU SEE HIM FROM THERE????
He's not really that fat.

MizzouRah

09-09-2010, 09:14 PM

Travis is fun to play.. played a few against him last year and will be on later tonight if anyone is up.

DaddyTorgo

09-09-2010, 09:16 PM

Scored my first goal in the demo last night. Of course I still lost in OT, but I scored.

I think if auto shot-aim was on i'd do better.

samifan24

09-10-2010, 10:27 AM

Two things regarding online play:

1) Has anyone been able to play a friend online? I tried several times this morning but was unable to play a friend online. Neither of us has a problem playing other people but we can't play each other. Is anyone else experiencing this?

2) Does anyone have any general tips for playing online? I do fine when I'm playing the CPU but the minute I go online I can't check anyone and my passes are all intercepted and it seems like every time I try to poke check the puck carrier I get a tripping penalty. Does anyone else find it much harder to connect passes when playing online vs. playing the CPU?

TroyF

09-10-2010, 11:34 AM

I just want to reiterate how much I suck at this game. I tried be a pro last night. Made myself a power forward right winger. Played on Pro mode.

Took SEVENTEEN shots in a 4 OT game and hit one post. I did hit like a madman (11 total hits) and my positioning was an A+. But 17 shots in juniors without a goal.

I think I need to put auto shoot on.

Travis

09-10-2010, 01:01 PM

Auto shoot is a dangerous crutch if you want to improve at this series. What I mean by that is that if/when aiming becomes second nature for you, the goals will come a lot easier than if you always play with auto on. My biggest suggestion would be to really practice going for corners early on, if nothing else, really exaggerate the placement even if it means your skater ends up going an odd direction because you make too much of an emphasis for getting your placement.

As you get more and more comfortable with it you'll need less and less time to flick the analog to the spot you want and you'll very likely see much better results. I've only been going with manual shot aim the last few years but the change, once I got used to it, has been phenomenal and there's no way I'd go back. Just got too frustrated watching my players smoke the goalie in the chest on fairly easy cross crease one timer plays and while I'm certainly not close to the top tier of players at this game, the difference since getting used to putting those shots nearside corners has improved my game a lot.

That said, I'd also suggest doing this with higher rated players so you're getting those results. In BaP mode, unless you've sunk all your development points into shooting accuracy, it may not make much of a difference yet.

Travis

09-10-2010, 01:03 PM

Also, depending on your familiarity with the series, the right analog/stickhandling is your friend. Use it to help your player shield the puck from defenders or to just confuse them as you attack them one on one. The longer you just skate with your guy the better the odds that you'll get hit or poke checked. Throw in the random stickhandle, deke or fake slap shot and you'll usually force the D to not attack you quick so straight line.

TurnerONU22

09-10-2010, 01:13 PM

I'm looking forward to get back to playing this game, but now I'll have a new boy to hold while I'm playing. I didn't think the wife would let me bring the 360 to the hospital :) I'll try to post my HUT on here when I get some time back at home. My username is TurnerOSU22 on Live if anyone is up for a game (although baby duty might cause me to quit early)

samifan24

09-10-2010, 11:00 PM

Ok so I can play total strangers in online versus play but can only play friends in online team play. Anyone else seeing this? It makes no sense. My buddy and I can play tons of other people in versus play but not each other. It just says the connection failed.

johnnyshaka

09-11-2010, 12:04 AM

sami, your friend's name isn't "Drop Dead Fred" is it? :)

Doug5984

09-11-2010, 12:13 AM

I just played online for the first time, I got the crap beat out of me twice.

I notice that every check the other guys make lay my guys out- all my checks are just glancing blows...what am I doing wrong here?

SunDevil

09-11-2010, 12:37 AM

...what am I doing wrong here?

Your playing with the Kings and have the off-sides turned off?

Travis

09-14-2010, 02:47 PM

Welp, I think I've just about got my lineup for HUT taken care of. Pretty heavy on Oilers flavor up front and just a down right fun defensive group to use in game.

Cogliano - Brule - Hemsky
Hall - Eberle - Kassian
Paajarvi - Lander - Svensson
Rajala - O'Marra - Abney

Myers - Hedman
Pietrangelo - Cowen
Ellis - Smid

Backstrom in net.

I'm just starting to get Kassian upgraded so once that's done that probably becomes my top line. I'll only get this lineup together for 20-30 games before I'll need to retool a bit due to cap issues with resignings, but it's going to be an awfully fun 20-30 games.

samifan24

09-14-2010, 03:31 PM

How did you get so many star players? Just by playing the offline tournaments? Will you enter an online league with that lineup?

Travis

09-14-2010, 03:52 PM

Well, depending on how you look at it, there aren't that many "stars" on there. Definitely lots of up and coming talents, but most of them are guys who required a lot of upgrading to get to star level.

That's why it's going to hurt once I need to resign them as their salaries will go up enough that it'll put me over the cap and I'll have to do some juggling.

That said, they've definitely structured contracts in such a way that you should be able to ice 6-9 big time forwards and 4-5 top end D. It's just a matter of actually getting the cards (and I had to do a lot of looking for deals in the auction house to do so).

The only guys that were going for big money (more than 5,000 pucks or so) were Eberle and Hall. Hemsky at times and Hedman is close to that 5,000 point if you're patient enough, ditto for Myers.

And yes, so far I've only played offline tournaments. I'll venture into the online mode once I'm fully upgraded, just didn't want to get in there and get completely handled because I hadn't gotten my team together properly yet.

thesloppy

09-14-2010, 03:54 PM

So, I picked this up the other day, after having tons o' fun with NHL09, and after a couple days of fooling around with it, it finally dawned on me that:

I've been trying to using the right stick to direct my passes for TWO FUCKING YEARS.

No wonder I don't pass so gud.

Pumpy Tudors

09-14-2010, 06:48 PM

samifan24

09-14-2010, 07:25 PM

Well, depending on how you look at it, there aren't that many "stars" on there. Definitely lots of up and coming talents, but most of them are guys who required a lot of upgrading to get to star level.

My HUT lineup only has Ville Koistonen, Brent Sopel and Raitis Ivanans and a couple of AHL players like Chris Conner, Bobby Bolt and former NHLer Blake Sloan. I won my first tournament but got bounced in the first game of the second with that lineup. I've purchased three or four packs with the EA Pucks in addition to the free pack I was given from playing the demo. I just wonder if you guys all started out with a comparable talent level in the beginning.

Travis

09-14-2010, 09:53 PM

Oh, very comparable. I probably played close to 12-15 games before I even had 1/3 of this lineup assembled. I took that opening roster, played a bunch then started going after individual cards via auction. The last card I had in my lineup from my starting group was Matt Hendricks who was my first line center out of the gate and had 3x as many goals as any other player on my team.

samifan24

09-14-2010, 11:05 PM

What do you guys do with HUT cards after their contracts expire? Do they just sit on your roster with expired contracts?

thesloppy

09-15-2010, 04:21 AM

Man, I am unable to turn away from any easy check against the boards. Boarding penalties are delicious. Last game I got a boarding, a charging, and finally a game misconduct and an ejection. It was worth it to see those chumps' melons crumple to the ice.

TurnerONU22

09-15-2010, 08:18 AM

What do you guys do with HUT cards after their contracts expire? Do they just sit on your roster with expired contracts?

Basically, you have a dressed roster, scratched roster, and my collection. I really don't know why they have the last two categories separate. What I've been doing is trying to keep any players that have contracts left in my scratched roster, for quicker access when a current player runs out of his contract and I want to swap him out.

Random question for 360 HUT players: Does anyone have any forwards from Spokane they'd be willing to trade? I have Kyle Beach and I'm trying to up my team chemistry.

samifan24

09-15-2010, 09:53 AM

I really dislike two things about HUT mode:

1) The game doesn't notify you when you win an auction or are outbid on an auction. If I'm in the game but doing something else, it should at least be able to notify me when I win an auction.

2) I hate the fact that to view your entire collection, the game forces you to go team by team. They really need to fix it so that you can view your entire collection all at once and not have to go to different teams/leagues to see them one by one.

Doug5984

09-15-2010, 11:33 AM

Travis

09-15-2010, 11:41 AM

Yes, they definitely need to increase their sorting both for your own collection and for the auction house searching. I should be able to search by stat ratings and player names for sure in the auction house and sort by position or full collection for my own cards. Definitely my biggest pet peeve so far but hopefully something they can rectify with an update if the mode is getting enough play to warrant it.

thesloppy

09-16-2010, 07:13 PM

thesloppy

09-16-2010, 07:21 PM

Also, do most folks play with position lock on? I'm lost without it, but I've spent most of my time with the NHL series playing Be A Pro mode, so it's no surprise that's what I'm most used to. Seems that positional lock ON makes offense easier, since it's easier to track/position one dude without possession and control constantly shifting, yet you can still control shot/pass selection somewhat, whereas defense is tougher, as you have to cover your patch of ice and you're pretty much entirely at the mercy of your CPU (usually less aggressive) defensemen.

samifan24

09-16-2010, 10:02 PM

Uh oh, this HUT thing is pretty addictive. Anybody else having way better luck with the 'peewee' packs than the normal packs? It took me so long to save for one of the bigger packs that I was sorely disappointed with players in the 60s, and my 'rare' card was a GOTdamn contract card, booooo! My last two attempts have been roughly the same, with two rare training cards, and a handful of more crappy players. I'm gonna avoid those packs for a while, the peewee packs are giving me consistently better players so far, and I get more consumables, while I can probably get a better value and target specific player needs through auctions.

I was just saving for my first regular pack when I read this. I've purchased five or six peewee packs and got one free pack and have had a couple of NHLers come out of them. I'm not sure what constitutes a rare card, though. I'll keep that in mind, though.

Does anyone know why some NHL players cards look different? Are those the rare cards? Also why do some players have their names horizontal across the card while most players have their vertical down the side?

thesloppy

09-16-2010, 10:56 PM

The rare cards have a different background that is a little more obvious once you've seen a few of them....and they might have a gold border. There are also some more gaudy, 'foil' type designs that are pretty telltale. Go do a trade search for cards with a buy-it-now price over 1000 pucks or so, and you can get an idea for what they look like, and they should mixed in with some of the nicer 'regular' cards for comparison.

samifan24

09-17-2010, 11:11 AM

Any other PS3 players here?

Icy

09-17-2010, 11:13 AM

My USA PSN id is: heavylynx (write FOFC in the friend request)

samifan24

09-17-2010, 12:43 PM

My USA PSN id is: heavylynx (write FOFC in the friend request)

Just added you.

thesloppy

09-17-2010, 04:45 PM

I like how on All-Star level or above, the computer controlled team is like 5 little roboGretskys, but MY computer controlled teammates are still a squad of retarded clowns. *HONK* *HONK* *AHHH-OOOH-GAHH!* "DURRR. Why the hell would I want to get this puck across the blue line?"

I was so sad when I found out I couldn't check my own players.

DaddyTorgo

09-17-2010, 04:49 PM

EagleFan

09-17-2010, 08:34 PM

This game makes me want to be a better gamer...

cthomer5000

09-22-2010, 08:37 PM

I feel bad as the center who was originally the star of my UHL team moves to the second line...then the third line...then the fourth.... and now currently playing out of position on the fourth line. One more decent RW comes my way and I'm going to have to bid him adieu.

Heartbreaking.

samifan24

09-22-2010, 09:40 PM

I'm playing on PRO in HUT mode and routinely outshooting the computer by 30 shots per game and typically lose by one or two goals. It's frustrating but I'm having fun building my team.

What kinds of luck have you guys had with regular and jumbo packs? I've only ever purchased peewee packs. I think packs are the best way to spend pucks because auctions become frantic right at the very end. Also, what do you do with all the junior players you get? I can't sell most of them for even 150 each.

thesloppy

09-22-2010, 10:55 PM

What kinds of luck have you guys had with regular and jumbo packs? I've only ever purchased peewee packs. I think packs are the best way to spend pucks because auctions become frantic right at the very end. Also, what do you do with all the junior players you get? I can't sell most of them for even 150 each.

Decent luck with 1 jumbo pack, as the number of guaranteed rares seem to nearly make it worth the cost, and that's where I got my only 'foil' type rare player. Absolute crap luck with regular packs, which generally net a single rare card, but since that single rare can be a contract, training, a coach, or a jersey (and probably more, like a stadium or a logo, I only know about all the other types 'cause I've received each), it's not necessarily worth the cost IMO, provided you're looking for players. It sucks to slog through an entire tournament, saving up for 2500 pucks, only to get a rare GOTdamn contract card (seriously, a 25-game contract card is considered a rare, and makes a REALLY shitty reward for 2500 pucks spent, as I know all too well).

If you're looking for quality players, I think peewee packs are actually the way to go, as you're less likely to get a rare player rated 80+, but more likely (because of the cost per pack) to get decent-enough-to-make-the-lineup players rated between 75-80, as well as training cards to boost 'em up. If on the other hand, you're looking for a specific position at 80+, you're probably best scouring the auction wire.

For juniors I tried fooling around and trying to wring every puck out of every dude for a while, listing and re-listing auctions, but the returns weren't worth the effort. Now I pretty much immediately discard any dude rated below 70 (for the benefit of anybody who assumed you got nothing, you do get ~60 pucks for discarding a dude), I list a dude I don't want, rated 70-75, at 150 start, and 200-300 buy it now, for 12 hours, and if they don't sell, making it back to the available pile, I discard them too.

cthomer5000

09-22-2010, 11:06 PM

I haven't paid actual money, just pucks. I have had a ton of peewee packs, and after getting lucky (consecutive OT wins) and winning a tournament, i sprung for the 2nd level pack (with 1 guaranteed rare).

Unfortunately my 'rare' was a 30 game contract, which kind of pissed me off.

I've got a stable of decent Centers... like mid-70s dudes with low 80s potential... but it's been very scattershot elsewhere. I picked up serious upgrades at LW and RW for 200 and 300, respectively. I think both were also mid 70s level with mid 80s potential and reasonable career lengths yet. Seems to be a buyers market really.

thesloppy

09-23-2010, 12:16 AM

Unfortunately my 'rare' was a 30 game contract, which kind of pissed me off.

I've got a stable of decent Centers... like mid-70s dudes with low 80s potential... but it's been very scattershot elsewhere. I picked up serious upgrades at LW and RW for 200 and 300, respectively. I think both were also mid 70s level with mid 80s potential and reasonable career lengths yet. Seems to be a buyers market really.

The rare contract cards really are horrible...I don't know how they're supposed to present an upgrade over a pair of contract cards that give you the exact same result. At least in the case of jerseys or logos or arenas or whatever, at least you're getting something unique. In the case of rare training boosts there is a limit of training cards each player can equip, making saving/using a high-value training card still worthwhile, but there's no limit to the number of contract cards you can use on a player, so the only difference between a rare contract card offering you 30 games, and TWO super un-rare contract cards that add up to the same, is that you're saving 1 of your 50 consumable card slots.....whoopee.

On players between 70-80 (or perhaps up to 78, more specifically), I think you're right that it's a buyer's market, and you can pretty much fill any position for 200 pucks....which is probably a better return (purely in terms of players) than you're going to get even from the peewee packs, at 600 pucks a pop.

..after futzing around and playing WAY too many games, with the luck of the draw, I've managed to field a defense with 5 rare dudes...but I've just recently hit my newest stumbling block: I'm over the salary cap. Balancing the cap is proving to be a bitch, and as a result of my hoarding and building, I've gone from having good talent all over, to having to unbalance all of my lower lines with chumps, in order to make room under the cap for my studs. Beware.

Fidatelo

09-23-2010, 08:26 AM

The rare contract cards really are horrible...I don't know how they're supposed to present an upgrade over a pair of contract cards that give you the exact same result. At least in the case of jerseys or logos or arenas or whatever, at least you're getting something unique. In the case of rare training boosts there is a limit of training cards each player can equip, making saving/using a high-value training card still worthwhile, but there's no limit to the number of contract cards you can use on a player, so the only difference between a rare contract card offering you 30 games, and TWO super un-rare contract cards that add up to the same, is that you're saving 1 of your 50 consumable card slots.....whoopee.

While I agree that rare contract cards aren't exciting, I think what you're missing is that there IS a limit to the number of contract cards you can apply at one time to a player. For example last night I applied a 10 game card and then a 40 game card to my goalie, and it said that I could not apply any further contract cards at this time.

The impact this has is in regard to your cap. Ideally you want to sign a young stud for as long as possible before you train him up, so that his cap hit stays low. If you can slap a really long contract on him you can have him at that low salary for a really long time, whereas if you are dumping 10-15 game contracts on him you'll have to re-sign him at his higher salary much sooner.

But I agree, a 25 game contract is not worth the 2500 pucks, considering you can pick them up on the trade block for 200-300 pucks. Hell, I got that 40 game contract off the auction block for 400 pucks (although I think that was a bit of a steal).

samifan24

09-23-2010, 08:43 AM

Fidatelo

09-23-2010, 09:31 AM

I had no idea that player contracts go up each time you give them a new contract. It would've been nice to know that in the game (unless I missed it completely). I like the HUT mode but EA really needs to add more little touches like auction notifications, better search functions and an explanation of how contracts/the cap work.

This is very true. The interface and help are relatively mediocre. I'd especially like to be able to filter out players with < 10 career games remaining from my searches on the trading block. There are a tonne of d-bags out there listing cards that are 'used up' and I've had a few where I've almost bought before noticing that attribute. I'm guessing there are a fair number of people who have gotten burned.

Travis

09-23-2010, 10:57 AM

Your contracts only go up if you apply an ability increase to your player.

So, for example, my recent Semen Varlamov project.

Bought Varlamov via auction. His currently salary is 1,550 and he was under contract for 7 games. I played an 8 game contract card on him to get that to 15 games (this is the highest number of games under contract a player can be that you can still apply another contract card to them). I then played an 80 game contract card on him so he's now under contract for a cap hit of 1,550 for the next 95 games.

THEN I went nuts with upgrading. I had been saving up a bunch of goalie upgrades for a project like this, so long story short, his ratings are now all maxed. When those 95 games are over he'll still have something like 15-25 games left in his career, but his new cap hit will likely be closer to 2,500 than 2,000 I'm guessing. Had I not been able to win an 80 game contract via auction I most definitely would have been using a 35 or 40 game contract on him prior to doing those upgrades.

That said, I fully agree that the search function needs to be revamped, but in a way it's helped me as I think most people don't wade through the masses of auctions to find some of the deals I have. If you could get really precise with your searches I'm assuming a lot of those deals would disappear quite quickly (which may not be a bad thing overall but has helped me out a lot so far).

DaddyTorgo

09-23-2010, 11:06 AM

i don't understand how this whole thing works at all. lol

Fidatelo

09-23-2010, 12:07 PM

Your contracts only go up if you apply an ability increase to your player.

I don't think this is 100% correct. I've had guys come up for a new contract, and then it shows a (very minor) salary increase even though I've never added any training cards to them. I've been trying to figure out if younger players improve over time regardless of whether you actively train them via cards, and this seems to be the biggest hint I've seen that they likely do (although not to anywhere near their potential, I would imagine).

Again, we shouldn't have to be guessing and doing trial/error for this stuff though.

samifan24

09-23-2010, 12:23 PM

Does anyone have a Hartford Whalers jersey they'd be willing to trade to me? My team is called the Whalers, after all, and these Senators and OKC Barons jerseys just aren't cutting it!

Travis

09-23-2010, 12:50 PM

I don't think this is 100% correct. I've had guys come up for a new contract, and then it shows a (very minor) salary increase even though I've never added any training cards to them. I've been trying to figure out if younger players improve over time regardless of whether you actively train them via cards, and this seems to be the biggest hint I've seen that they likely do (although not to anywhere near their potential, I would imagine).

Again, we shouldn't have to be guessing and doing trial/error for this stuff though.

Fair enough, this isn't something I've run across myself, but I usually use training cards on younger guys fairly early on so I've chalked salary increases up to that. I've yet to see a guy I've had to put a third contract on have any sort of increase so it at least looks like it stabilizes later on.

Just going through a bit of a printer issue at work right now but if that gets cleared up I'll take a stroll past the EA forums and see if this topic has been addressed over there and if there is some more info.

thesloppy

09-23-2010, 01:51 PM

While I agree that rare contract cards aren't exciting, I think what you're missing is that there IS a limit to the number of contract cards you can apply at one time to a player. For example last night I applied a 10 game card and then a 40 game card to my goalie, and it said that I could not apply any further contract cards at this time.

The impact this has is in regard to your cap. Ideally you want to sign a young stud for as long as possible before you train him up, so that his cap hit stays low. If you can slap a really long contract on him you can have him at that low salary for a really long time, whereas if you are dumping 10-15 game contracts on him you'll have to re-sign him at his higher salary much sooner.

Aaaaah, I see, that makes (more) sense.

I've had guys come up for a new contract, and then it shows a (very minor) salary increase even though I've never added any training cards to them. I've been trying to figure out if younger players improve over time regardless of whether you actively train them via cards, and this seems to be the biggest hint I've seen that they likely do (although not to anywhere near their potential, I would imagine).

I believe adding contract cards increases the salary a slight bit (EDIT: This does NOT appear to be the case, although I swear it was...maybe it was changed recently)....also, I DO think players train/develop a little beyond the cards you put on them. I've got a guy that when I clicked on his bio, one of his stats was displayed in red to show he'd gone up a point in skating, although I had not spent a single training card on him.

Travis

09-23-2010, 02:08 PM

I haven't found anything on the EA forums yet, but did want to throw this out there, anybody with an 80 game contract they're looking to move, please let me know as I'm trying to get quite a few of them right now. And if you do, please list what you're looking for right now and hopefully we could come to some sort of a deal.

cthomer5000

09-23-2010, 02:50 PM

i don't understand how this whole thing works at all. lol

It's fairly confusing. I'm glad i'm learning on this though so I can hit the ground running in FIFA 11... which i know has a similar mode. I had FIFA 10 on PC, which had no such thing, and is essentially a different game at this point.

Pumpy Tudors

09-23-2010, 04:38 PM

So, for example, my recent Semen Varlamov project.

oh my

samifan24

09-23-2010, 04:54 PM

Fidatelo

09-23-2010, 04:56 PM

I opened my first regular pack today and got Anders Eriksson, a +9 hands training card and a bunch of decent other cards. It's a small sample size but the standard pack seemed to have better cards overall. I wonder though, is the +9 training card considered the rare card there?

+9 is for sure rare. You may have gotten two rares in that pack, although I've never seen an Eriksson so I don't really know.

thesloppy

09-23-2010, 05:00 PM

I opened my first regular pack today and got Anders Eriksson, a +9 hands training card and a bunch of decent other cards. It's a small sample size but the standard pack seemed to have better cards overall. I wonder though, is the +9 training card considered the rare card there?

I, on the other hand, am still having horrible luck with regular packs. Just bought one and got a rare contract+30, and 2 junior players rated 66 + 67. Mmmmmmm. I did get a lot of minor training cards though, which is at least worth somethin'.

Travis

09-23-2010, 05:09 PM

oh my

It's a bit premature to tell but I'm expecting it to be a smashing success.

That's not helping is it?

SirFozzie

09-23-2010, 11:49 PM

Anyone playing EASHL (not the ultimate team thing, the Be a Pro thing), and want to team up on the 360?

EagleFan

09-24-2010, 12:00 AM

Picked up my first second level pack tonight and upgraded a couple positions nicely, including my first Flyer Emery in goal.

It is amazing at how you start to get attached to some of the early players. My original first line center is now 4th line and seeing little time but that was a hard decision as he scored in every game that I had played in.

EagleFan

09-24-2010, 12:01 AM

Anyone playing EASHL (not the ultimate team thing, the Be a Pro thing), and want to team up on the 360?

Haven't tried that yet. Started out with a Be a Pro but have since been hooked on HUT.

samifan24

09-24-2010, 12:09 AM

Yeah the HUT mode is pretty addicting. I'm 12-11-1 with one tournament win. I came back from a 4-0 deficit against Montreal and beat them 5-4 in a tournament game and then took Tampa Bay to a shootout with a 4-4 score (I blew a two goal lead) before losing. Not too bad for having a 75 rated non-NHL/AHL goalie as my starter.

thesloppy

09-24-2010, 08:47 AM

Grumble, grumble, grumble....I just saved up for my second Jumbo pack, and for 7500 pucks, the rares I pulled were Antti Miettinen (RW rating: 80 potential: 85), a contract (30), a contract (25) and a training (+9 CHK). I want my pucks back. On the auction block, I probably coulda turned that into 7 or 8 dudes with an 80 rating, I was hoping for two rare players, and at least 2 or 3 more useful new players, and instead I got one GOTdamn dude I can use (and the rest of my player 'haul' was 4 dudes rated under 70, and one guy rated 59...59! for cripes sake).

EDIT: There was soooo much suck in the jumbo pack, that I was able to immediately able to buy a peewee pack with the pucks made from discards...and I got two players rated 77 in that single peewee pack, neither will end up on my active roster, but I'll save one and likely make a few hundred pucks off the other, which beats the hell out of just throwing them away and wishing I hadn't spent the last day saving up for a jumbo pack.

samifan24

09-24-2010, 10:08 AM

I've seen some foil "rare" cards on the market, cards for star players like Rick Nash and Pavel Datsuk. Are those just regular "rare" cards or are they another level I don't even know about yet?

Fidatelo

09-24-2010, 10:52 AM

I don't know that I see the point of the Jumbo packs. You get 4-5 rares and 24 cards total. For the same amount of pucks you could get 3 standard packs, which would be 3-6 rares and 36 cards total.

cthomer5000

09-24-2010, 11:09 AM

I am ready to unleash my all Phoenix Coyote 1st line. Too bad I still suck horribly.

heybrad

09-24-2010, 11:57 AM

It is amazing at how you start to get attached to some of the early players.
I have a man crush on Mattias Ohlund now as he's anchored my D from Day 1. I slapped a long term contract on him as soon as I had the chance to make him a Tornado for life.

I'd be up for playing FOFC'ers online as so far I've gotten my head kicked in by anybody else I play online with my HUT team. I'm totally addicted to this mode though as I thought I was buying this to play Be a Pro mode. I haven't even gotten to BAP with the time I've put into HUT.

Travis

09-24-2010, 12:15 PM

heh, I hear you. My original plan was to play HUT until the season started and a new roster was released with the up to date information, then start a BaP career and likely do a Be a GM with the Oilers.

I still may do those, but it certainly won't be replacing HUT as I originally thought it would though from the makeup of my team it's certainly not hard to tell I'm an Oilers fan.

Oh and to +whatever to the idea of finding new favorites, my original pack gem turned out to be Matt Hendricks (Colorado in the game, now with Washington I believe). He doesn't make it into the lineup very often anymore but that's one card I will likely never sell in the auction house and usually keep on my active roster even if he's not playing so his stats show up in my team section.

samifan24

09-24-2010, 02:07 PM

How do you transfer a card from your collection to your active roster? The only options I see are "send to trade pile" and "discard."

Travis

09-24-2010, 02:14 PM

thesloppy

09-24-2010, 02:27 PM

or press down until you get to your bench, find a blank card (should be black) then click there and you can bring in a player from your collection.

It took me hella long to figure this out on my own, and for like 2 hours I thought A) you couldn't get a card back once you sent it to the trade pile, and B) you couldn't get a card back on your roster, from your collection (both of which seemed obviously stupid, but for the life of me I couldn't find any other answer).....of course you have to access your scratched roster from within the edit your lineup screen, and switch one of the black/blank cards with a card in your collection, and of course you can't add a card to your active roster when you view it in your collection, because that would just be stupid.

Travis

09-24-2010, 02:38 PM

Yeah, they definitely have a lot of improvements to make to the mode, which kind of scares me given how much I'm enjoying it as it is ;)

That and once you get the processes figured out it's still relatively stream lined. I do like the fact that when you're swapping with your collection that at least there you can organize by position/league/team/etc. That's the way I check out my collection more often than going to the actual Collection area.

thesloppy

09-24-2010, 02:50 PM

Yes, I've been in this thread mostly grumbling abut my returns on card packs, and minor UI gripes, but along the way forgot to mention that this is a really, really, REALLY good game. Like a few folks above, I was already locked in to BaP mode, thanks to earlier versions, and was already really happy with the game, and that single mode, before I even discovered the HUT mode which has since devoured my soul. Most importantly, it also plays a really good game of hockey. I think someone quoted a review earlier, stating that this was 'the best EA Sports game' they had ever played, and after hurtling a few weeks down the rabbit hole with this game, I'm tempted to agree.

cthomer5000

09-24-2010, 02:55 PM

How do you transfer a card from your collection to your active roster? The only options I see are "send to trade pile" and "discard."

Absolutely mind-blowing that they don't give you the option to send a guy to your active roster from the collection.

Really needs to be fixed in an update.

samifan24

09-24-2010, 03:11 PM

Go to Edit Lineup and then you can switch out a player on an active line by clicking on them and saying switch with collection, or press down until you get to your bench, find a blank card (should be black) then click there and you can bring in a player from your collection. There is a limit to how many guys you can have on your bench but their salary doesn't count towards your cap hit until you actually put them into an active line.

Thanks. I figured it out with the black boxes but it's a mistake that you can't transfer a player from your collection when viewing his card from the collection screen.

How do you transfer cards back from the trade pile once their auction has expired? That's another thing I can't find but I see you guys figured it out.

thesloppy

09-24-2010, 03:21 PM

How do you transfer cards back from the trade pile once their auction has expired? That's another thing I can't find but I see you guys figured it out.

Now that I've done it, I can't even remember, but I think you hit X from within the trade pile, to get to 'card options' rather than A (which of course offers you some, but not all, of the same card options).

thesloppy

09-24-2010, 03:27 PM

I don't know that I see the point of the Jumbo packs. You get 4-5 rares and 24 cards total. For the same amount of pucks you could get 3 standard packs, which would be 3-6 rares and 36 cards total.

Well, I think the rub lies in the 'small chance' to get those secondary rares, and assuming that EA made the chance to get those secondary rare cards very, very small, making the extra guaranteed rare that you get in a jumbo pack worth the investment.

After having sketchy luck with returns from both regular and jumbo packs, i am tempted to try an experiment that takes your logic a step further, and I'm gonna try and save up 7500 pucks and drop 'em all on 12 peewee packs at one time (maybe more, considering the discard monies), and compare the results to my latest busted jumbo pack.

Doug5984

09-24-2010, 03:48 PM

I think tonight I'm going to go home and make a nice excel sheet to track all my guys/cards on my HUT... then I'm going to play off-line games, I have to get better- when I go play on-line it's pretty bad.

Travis

09-24-2010, 03:55 PM

I just did that today myself (re: spreadsheet). So if anybody is looking for a particular player (PS3), let me know and I'll see if I have a copy. And I'm still very much looking for 80 game contracts and +3 All Goalie training cards.

thesloppy

09-24-2010, 03:55 PM

My single foray online was none-to-pleasant, as I was beat 3-1 by a guy I outshot 40-15, thanks to two dekey slapshots from near the blueline, and a one-timer from a faceoff. All of 'em felt cheesey, and sent me back to offline mode.

thesloppy

09-24-2010, 04:18 PM

I am impressed by how dynamic HUT is. Once I got to the point where everybody on my team was rated 75+, I thought it would be pretty smooth sailing from then on, and that I'd just be going through the cycle of easily collecting more-and-more pucks and occasionally replacing a retiring stud with an even-bigger stud...typical stuff to expect from a secondary mode in a sports game.

However, a couple stumbling blocks have changed my initial thoughts of smooth sailing, and easy collecting. First, the salary cap, as has been discussed in here by many folks, makes a horrible first impression, as you can ignore it pretty easily until you bump into it, and then all of a sudden you have to make drastic moves if you want to fit in a new player. Second, and one that I haven't yet seen discussed in here, is I'm butting up against 80-90 games with this team...enough so that my first generation of stud players that I had acquired is starting to retire, piece by piece, and I am NOT adequately prepared to cover the holes, and am having to scramble to do so.

As a result of the cap (and untamed spending/training), I went from having a team that was consistently rated 75+ at literally every position, to being heavily front-loaded, and filling my 3rd and 4th lines with clowns (including a few guys who literally FALL OVER when skating too fast/turning too sharp). Now as those front-loaded lines have started to retire, I don't have comparable players to replace them, and the ~75 rated players I used to have as my competent backups, have now had to step into the front lines where they are overmatched, while the scrubs and clowns remain on the roster.....all with negligible cap relief (since I hadn't handled training/salary of my 75 rated dudes well either, before butting up against the cap).

As a result, not only has the look of my team drastically changed, but I've had to switch up my play style as well. When my team was at it's top, I could blow through the pro-level tourneys with ease, regularly scoring 6-10 goals a game, but now I've got to grind through my games, even on pro difficulty or below, as most of my remaining studs are on defense, and I no longer have the speed or finishing ability to fly down the wings and just fling crap at the net.

I'm stoked to see that (at least up to this point) HUT requires and rewards diligence and attention, and remains pretty dynamic in the late stages, rather than just endlessly and mindlessly hoarding pucks and getting better, and better, and better......though, on the other hand, it was my crappy financial management that lead to all of my difficulties, and not so much because of poor strategy so much as first-timer's trial-and-error (as is necessary with a game with this little info/help), so I'm probably giving the game a large benefit of doubt, and we'll have to see how it holds up once all the rules and reasons are perfectly clear.

samifan24

09-24-2010, 04:53 PM

I have a 40 game contract if anyone's interested (PS3 version).

JS19

09-24-2010, 06:51 PM

ok.. i've been on the fence so far with getting this game but it's only 8:00, Friday night and I'm sick. Should I go get this game?

Doug5984

09-24-2010, 07:20 PM

yes, i've been playing straight since i got home from work 3 hours ago...and plan to go a few more

JS19

09-24-2010, 10:21 PM

yes, i've been playing straight since i got home from work 3 hours ago...and plan to go a few more

that's all i needed to hear. got a couple games in so far, and as expected, i suck. pretty much just button mashing, need to figure these controls out. i played a lot of nhl10 so hopefully it will come back to me.

Scoobz0202

09-24-2010, 10:27 PM

EagleFan

09-24-2010, 10:44 PM

When you play a Jump In game or whatever its called in the online league thing. Where each position is controlled my a user. You play with your Pro. Is that Pro the same pro I use in my Be A Pro mode?

Cause that online thing fucking rocks but my Be A Pro guy sucks ass.

Yes and no. It's your Be a Pro player but for online games they have their own ratings that aren't associated with any of your save games using that Be a Pro.

samifan24

09-24-2010, 10:45 PM

When you play a Jump In game or whatever its called in the online league thing. Where each position is controlled my a user. You play with your Pro. Is that Pro the same pro I use in my Be A Pro mode?

Cause that online thing fucking rocks but my Be A Pro guy sucks ass.

Yes. It's weird though. My Pro is a LW but I got stuck at LD in an online game. It was still fun, though, even though I was one of the less experienced online players.

Scoobz0202

09-24-2010, 10:50 PM

Yes and no. It's your Be a Pro player but for online games they have their own ratings that aren't associated with any of your save games using that Be a Pro.

Ah. Cool. Wasnt sure because I was getting checked like a mofo but I was hitting the other guys like a little girl.

But it was still fun as hell. Three games played. First one sucked. Second one we won 3-1, I scored a goal and had an assist. Last game we won 4-2 and I had two goals and an assist. Was the first star in that final game.

bhlloy

09-25-2010, 02:04 AM

thesloppy

09-25-2010, 02:52 AM

Slowly getting addicted to HUT mode... didn't think I'd like it but it's pretty addictive, earning packs and trying to put a solid team together.

Finding that I suck at this game so much though, Rookie obviously is a cakewalk but I can't win a game on Pro. The only thing I've played for the last 2 years is Be-A-Pro so my overall team game is sorely lacking. Finding that I have a hard time figuring out where my guys are on the ice on offense, might switch to a more zoomed out camera. Not sure if most people are using the default or something else?

You can still play with positional lock on in HUT if you like....I do, because I too started on be a pro, and am not used to the chaos that is trying to manage the whole offense at once. I also zoom the camera out all the way, and then lower the angle (to around 30, I think), so I can see more of the ice, but without the overhead angle, which bothers me.

samifan24

09-25-2010, 05:22 PM

I just pulled Taylor Hall from a standard pack in HUT mode! He's a 75/93 with 12 training slots and a 130 game career. His salary is only 990 credits, too. It looks like I could get close to 10,000 pucks for the card straight up or 15,000+ with some training slots. Guess I'm going to use that 40 game contract card now...

edit - I got Hall up to an 81 with 6/12 training slots used and a 35 game contract. Who's been your best pull in HUT so far?

thesloppy

09-25-2010, 08:27 PM

edit - I got Hall up to an 81 with 6/12 training slots used and a 35 game contract. Who's been your best pull in HUT so far?

Dion Phaneuf, who was my only foil pull out of a bajillion different packs so far. I think he's up around 88 currently, with all his training slots used up, but I did all of his work before I understood contracts/training, and his salary is 1750, which has turned out to be a killer. He also played his first 20 games without a single goal, despite a shooting above 90, and my repeated attempts to modify the strategies/force-feed him the puck (I use positional lock at LW/RW, and as a defender I couldn't get Phaneuf to be more aggressive, no matter how I tried). I eventually just said screw it, and moved him to left wing, whereupon he scored his first hat-trick, 17 minutes into the first quarter, of his first game.

rowech

09-26-2010, 12:33 PM

Fidatelo

09-26-2010, 12:37 PM

EagleFan

09-26-2010, 02:47 PM

Can someone tell me how in the hell your score any goals in this game? I am now in my 9th straight game of not scoring a goal. I outshoot and outhit my opponents in every game on next to highest level (all-star?) and cannot score no matter what I try.

Passing and aiming seems to be the key. Either get the goallie moving or get into a high percentage scorig area but make sure you are aiming or it will go right at the goallie for an easier save.

thesloppy

09-26-2010, 03:47 PM

When people refer to 'foil' cards, how are they different than a rare? Maybe I've never seen one. And what are the cards that have "victory" written on them? Are those even better than a normal rare somehow?

I don't think I've ever seen one of the cards with 'Victory' on them...but the 'foil' player cards are pretty obvious, as the picture on the 'front' of the card is a full body shot, and takes up the entire card.

samifan24

09-26-2010, 04:26 PM

I don't think I've ever seen one of the cards with 'Victory' on them...but the 'foil' player cards are pretty obvious, as the picture on the 'front' of the card is a full body shot, and takes up the entire card.

I think you guys are talking about the same cards.

DaddyTorgo

09-26-2010, 04:50 PM

It's fairly confusing. I'm glad i'm learning on this though so I can hit the ground running in FIFA 11... which i know has a similar mode. I had FIFA 10 on PC, which had no such thing, and is essentially a different game at this point.

well fucko. I'm going to have to learn it for FIFA 11 I guess???

Is it something where you play online against people with these teams, or what??

How much extra are all these packs of "cards" that people are buying??

thesloppy

09-26-2010, 05:22 PM

I think you guys are talking about the same cards.

That would be typical for me.

thesloppy

09-27-2010, 06:05 PM

Yowzers. Just picked up my first superstar-level HUT tournament win. I ground out a 1-0 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning, with a lucky deflection scored in the first quarter. I finished the game behind in shots 14-21 (as opposed to the pro tourneys, where I usually average around 50 shots), and every second was a grind, trying desperately just to keep the puck out of shooting zones, and struggling mightily to keep my overmatched 3rd and 4th lines on the ice as little as possible. Epic fun....too bad the pucks weren't particularly worth it.

TurnerONU22

09-27-2010, 06:11 PM

Epic fun....too bad the pucks weren't particularly worth it.

I agree, it is more worthwhile to play on the lower level and run up the score against the other team. The best way to get pucks is to play in the Alpha Cup, which gives you 2,000 pucks if you win the tournament.

thesloppy

09-27-2010, 06:17 PM

I prefer the Euro Championship Cup (I think it's that one) that is also pro-level, pays 1,500 to win, but the modifier for individual games is greater (and you can average about 500-600 pucks per game). That one has trickier restrictions though.

EagleFan

09-27-2010, 06:22 PM

Wow, I suck at this online. I just got my ass kicked by someone in online HUT play. It seemed like this guy had 10 players on the ice at all times, he was freaking everywhere. When did I get old? I remember days when no one could beat me at games... :(

The frustrating part is that I have had mixed success with online play early but now that my players are higher skill level I am doing worse. With a team full of castoffs I was able to play a team first game and keep the game close, and even win. Now I have some high skill players on the team but have trouble scoring (even in single player now for some reason).

I do know one thing that seems to always kill me. When the puck is going towards one of my players I hit the trigger to change to that player and it always ends up that I hit it just a split second too late and the player go the puck just before the trigger registers and he passes the puck away. Yet there have been several times when I tried to not press the change player button and the other play ends up backing off instead of going for the puck.

Also, any tips on passing during odd man rushes? I have had multiple odd man rushes where I have been on one wing or the other and had two other options to pass to. One is own low near the net but he is covered and another is wide open in the slot. If I pass directly across it goes to the man down low but it I even try to pass slightly back it passes all the way back to the defenseman (who may not even be in the zone yet). Anyone else having trouble with that or do I just suck that badly?

thesloppy

09-27-2010, 06:35 PM

Now I have some high skill players on the team but have trouble scoring (even in single player now for some reason).

I've heard this complaint too often recently (and from my own mouth) to think it's coincidence. Maybe the last version of 'tuners' (whatever the hell those are) are out of whack. It seems like maybe goalies have become a little overpowered, as I'm still getting the same amount of chances, just scoring less (and it seems like the scoring is now coming more from slapshots at the point).

Although it gets old winning 10-2, I do feel like there's a time and place for that, especially since HUT mode often asks for teams rated 65 to go up against teams rated 85. The alternative is that now when I face a 65 rated team, and I'm still rattling off 50 shots a game, it seems unrealistic to me when only a puck or two seems to get through (and seems completely random as to when and how they do), against some junior goalie.

EagleFan

09-27-2010, 07:15 PM

I've heard this complaint too often recently (and from my own mouth) to think it's coincidence. Maybe the last version of 'tuners' (whatever the hell those are) are out of whack. It seems like maybe goalies have become a little overpowered, as I'm still getting the same amount of chances, just scoring less (and it seems like the scoring is now coming more from slapshots at the point).

Although it gets old winning 10-2, I do feel like there's a time and place for that, especially since HUT mode often asks for teams rated 65 to go up against teams rated 85. The alternative is that now when I face a 65 rated team, and I'm still rattling off 50 shots a game, it seems unrealistic to me when only a puck or two seems to get through (and seems completely random as to when and how they do), against some junior goalie.

I actually put one of my snipers from my original team (a 65 rated player) back in during my last game and he scored our two goals. Yet Kostitsyn can't buy a goal.

EagleFan

09-27-2010, 07:16 PM

dola: I had one player that I trained up to a 97 shot rating. He had more goals before the training than after.

thesloppy

09-27-2010, 07:59 PM

I had similar problems, and got crushed online recently multiple times 3-1, all by dekey slapshots from long distance, after outshooting dudes by that same 3-1 margin.

I think I remember seeing an option to go back to previous tuner sets, somewhere from the main menu, but I'm not sure how that would effect HUT (but doesn't seem likely to work, considering how they try to balance things). I wonder if the goalie/slapshot strengthening is just a case of overcompensation, as though I preferred the older results, my complaints back then would have been that goalies were underpowered, and my defenders were rarely scoring. My complaint used to be the oppostie of the one I make above; that although I was blowing away most teams that I obviously out-ranked, they were still scoring a few too many goals and the wins they were occasionally able to squeak out were more likely 5-to-4 high scoring affairs, rather than the 0-1 grind-outs you'd expect a low-rated team would need to beat a highly skilled opponent.

samifan24

09-27-2010, 08:20 PM

1. Does everyone know that the longer you hold down the pass button, the harder the pass? I didn't know this until last week.

2. How do the online HUT seasons work? I saw a notice the other day about online HUT seasons starting. Do you have to play the other teams in your league at a specific time?

cthomer5000

09-28-2010, 08:23 AM

well fucko. I'm going to have to learn it for FIFA 11 I guess???

Is it something where you play online against people with these teams, or what??

How much extra are all these packs of "cards" that people are buying??

You can earn them for free or pay for them. Playing games against anyone (online or offline against computer) earns you 'Pucks'. There is a base level you earn per game, and you earn more for scoring more goals, etc.

Pucks then buy packs of cards. I personally haven't, and won't spend real money on the cards. It's a fun little way to play the game, but I can't see myself shelling out real money. It's kind of pointless when I know i'm never going to be some elite player anyway.

Galaxy

10-25-2010, 03:48 PM

How do you get and unlock the jersey code (360)?

EagleFan

10-25-2010, 07:03 PM

How do you get and unlock the jersey code (360)?

What jersey code?

samifan24

10-25-2010, 09:10 PM

What jersey code?

There's a jersey code used to unlock the new 3rd jerseys but I don't know how to unlock it on PS3 either

Voo

10-25-2010, 09:20 PM

There's a jersey code used to unlock the new 3rd jerseys but I don't know how to unlock it on PS3 either

Traditionally the code comes out on the night that the final 3rd jersey gets worn in a game. I want to say last year it was late november/early december before the code came out.

samifan24

10-25-2010, 10:24 PM

Traditionally the code comes out on the night that the final 3rd jersey gets worn in a game. I want to say last year it was late november/early december before the code came out.

Ok. Good to know. Thank you.

Galaxy

10-25-2010, 11:32 PM

Kind of ridiculous considering you can't wear the Sabres new road white jerseys.

TurnerONU22

10-26-2010, 09:05 AM

Traditionally the code comes out on the night that the final 3rd jersey gets worn in a game. I want to say last year it was late november/early december before the code came out.

The Blue Jackets and (I think) the Ducks are the last to debut their 3rds, which is on Black Friday. The code should be out shortly thereafter.

EagleFan

10-26-2010, 04:21 PM

thesloppy

10-26-2010, 06:54 PM

Anyone else have issues with losing connection to the EA servers once in a while? I have a pet peeve about this actually. Three different times I have lost connection during a single player HUT game and it boots me from the game and then I got a message that says my reliability grade will be affected because I didn't complete the last game.

Yeah, that happens to me all the time. They do a decent job of announcing downtime, but a not-so-decent job of making that info prominent/noticeable...and sometimes it does just seem random. Regardless, you'd think they'd have some mechanism for recognizing the difference between their servers going down, and me cheesing my game/console. The consolation seems to be that the reliability effect is relatively tiny and temporary.

samifan24

10-27-2010, 05:05 PM

What sliders is everyone using?

EagleFan

10-27-2010, 05:10 PM

This game is evil. It is taking my 360 time (not that it is a lot of time at the moment) from every other game.

I have found myself hooked on that damn HUT mode. When I saw what the mode was I thought it was just going to be a novelty and only decided to try it to get a couple accomplishments. Now, about 80 HUT games later, I find that is about all that I do. I haven't even gotten a month into my franchise game and not even out of the first preseason in either of my Be a Pro games (winger and goallie).

thesloppy

10-27-2010, 05:21 PM

I have found myself hooked on that damn HUT mode. When I saw what the mode was I thought it was just going to be a novelty and only decided to try it to get a couple accomplishments. Now, about 80 HUT games later, I find that is about all that I do. I haven't even gotten a month into my franchise game and not even out of the first preseason in either of my Be a Pro games (winger and goallie).

I had very much the same 'problem'. HUT is a timesuck in the best way.

JonInMiddleGA

01-30-2011, 09:44 AM

TurnerONU22

01-31-2011, 10:35 AM

Relative newbie question (haven't played hockey on console in several years): Does the player type have any impact in Be A GM mode? Or does that only apply to HUT/online modes?

Darned if I've seen anything referring to chemistry in single-player GM mode at all & Googling gives me the impression that chemistry is most(all?) of what the player types impacts.

Thanks in advance.

Chemistry is only in HUT, not in the Be a GM mode. However, I still like to pair up different player types on my lines.

JonInMiddleGA

01-31-2011, 11:21 AM

Chemistry is only in HUT, not in the Be a GM mode. However, I still like to pair up different player types on my lines.

Thanks. That's the conclusion I was coming to but didn't want to screw myself over by being wrong.

Chubby

01-31-2011, 12:09 PM

Relative newbie question (haven't played hockey on console in several years): Does the player type have any impact in Be A GM mode? Or does that only apply to HUT/online modes?

Darned if I've seen anything referring to chemistry in single-player GM mode at all & Googling gives me the impression that chemistry is most(all?) of what the player types impacts.

Thanks in advance.

player type in franchise mode only affects how they get exp but I also like to have a mix of guys on each line and a grinder/tough 4th line. you can change a guys type in franchise mode if you choose to

JonInMiddleGA

01-31-2011, 02:20 PM

you can change a guys type in franchise mode if you choose to

Yeah, I've messed with that a little (only in year two right now) but wasn't sure what it was doing, if anything at all.

DaddyTorgo

01-31-2011, 02:49 PM

The desire in me to get this game is actually growing as the winter wears on.

Chubby

01-31-2011, 03:15 PM

I'min year 5 of my franchise in Be a GM, 2 Cups in our grasp. Last season while scouting a guy came up as "franchise" instead of top 10/round 1/whatever during scouting. I of course traded into the #1 at the expense of the Leafs to grab him. He came in as an 85 LW SNP, will update his stats as he goes on (almost done with season 5)

Sweed

01-31-2011, 06:39 PM

Just got my copy through Goozex last Friday. Weird thing is the game came still wrapped in cellophane with no retailer tags or price marks. Just plain cellophane. Free copy the guy somehow got from EA? Don't really care just thought it was a little strange. Nice thing is it meant the online code hadn't been used.

Found sliders at OS, used the latest tuner set, installed my nhl 10 sound mega pack(works fine in 11), and started a BAGM with the Bruins. Damn is it fun playing with Chara with the new physics engine. He just crushes people. Currently 3-3 and enjoying the hell out of the game.

Been awhile since I played nhl 10 but 11 seems to have much better fore checking and is tougher to get through the center zone. I like the new face-off system but haven't figured out if\how to control the direction of the puck.

I do have one question about contracts. Can one extend contracts during the season? I've got a few players that are UFA at the end of the year with Chara being the biggest but I don't see any way to make a contract offer. Is this something that can only be done preseason?

DT, get the game if you think you have time to play. Ranks right up there with The Show and NBA 2k11 IMHO. The huge advantage nhl has over nba2k is I can play a game (10 minuter periods) and get realistic stats in ~40 minutes. 2K takes me about 90 minutes playing 12 minute qtrs.

JonInMiddleGA

01-31-2011, 08:01 PM

I do have one question about contracts. Can one extend contracts during the season?

Nope. Can't release/buy out during the season either apparently. The latter becomes an issue when you want to pick up an FA or get 2 back for 1 in a trade but you've hit your roster cap.

Sweed

01-31-2011, 09:02 PM

Nope. Can't release/buy out during the season either apparently. The latter becomes an issue when you want to pick up an FA or get 2 back for 1 in a trade but you've hit your roster cap.

Thanks.

Chubby

01-31-2011, 10:53 PM

This part took me FOREVER to figure out so figure I'll post it: since you can't do extensions with players (ever) you have to negotiate with your UFAs during the resign period. If you wait then they are free game to anyone.

DaddyTorgo

05-03-2011, 02:15 PM

DaddyTorgo

05-03-2011, 02:17 PM

Icy

05-03-2011, 04:41 PM

Getting emotionally invested in the playoffs has me wanting to stop in and grab this game tonight. Quick question though - I remember from the demo that they've got an all new faceoff system and all new control system with all sorts of right-stick movements.

I found it hard to get a grip on in the demo - is it something that's optional, or is it the only way to go?

Any other thoughts on the game overall?

I prefer the new faceoff system, old one required no skills at all and the new one is not that hard anyway, you just need to play the tutorial and you can adjust sliders anyway.

About the game itself, it's not a huge upgrade over NHL10, but still it's really great game. The GM AI is still a little weird if you pay attention to all the league transactions, specially to some stars sitting in FA for a full year as not any team can afford them.

The BAP mode is a blast, i have been playing it a lot past weekend and with MLB the show and NBA2k11 it's the best sports roleplaying experience. In NHL11 you start in the Canadian leagues playoffs before the draft.

DaddyTorgo

05-03-2011, 07:28 PM

Is there a setting for auto-shot aim anymore? I suck at aiming my shots.

EagleFan

05-03-2011, 07:37 PM

Haven't played it for a little while but almost certain that auto-aim is still there.

DaddyTorgo

05-03-2011, 08:14 PM

yeah, i found it. not the most intuitive spot. scored 1 goal in each of my first 2 games on rookie with manual aim (7-8 min periods). trying auto aim now.

DaddyTorgo

05-04-2011, 07:43 AM

Loving this game so far. Drafted a killer team (will have to give details when I'm at home and can remember the whole roster) with great depth - only problem is that I don't really have a physical line...it's all snipers and playmakers (koivu/kovalev on my 4th line for example), so I can see that that may just be silly and I may have to redraft a more realistic team that is better for a long-term season.

Getting better I think - was winning 4-1 last night in the 3rd period when I had to quit and go to bed.

MizzouRah

05-04-2011, 11:25 AM

Why would you quit up 4-1? :)

DaddyTorgo

05-04-2011, 12:28 PM

Why would you quit up 4-1? :)

It was bedtime (2am).

Pumpy Tudors

05-04-2011, 12:32 PM

It was bedtime (2am).
This is the strangest thing I've ever read in my life, and I actually read my own posts sometimes.

Captain2711

08-10-2011, 01:38 PM

I had a few questions and hoped you guys had the answers. I'm new to playing online (but not to the game) and just started, but it seems no matter how good I am, I always get my butt kicked.

1. How do I get my player better online?
2. Can I boost my player through Be a Pro or do I have to play online ranked matches?
3. Come NHL 12, does everyone start over or is it just hopeless my player will never catch up to others that have been playing for years?
4. Is playing NHL 11 pointless because at this point everyone is so much better than me I can't compete?

I win a game here and there, but I can't ever win enough in a row or play consistant enough to move up player levels. I guess my biggest issue is that when I play ranked matches, no one wants to play with me because my rankings are too low or if I do play and start winning people quit. Just frustrated because I enjoy playing with most online, but my player is so much worse than I am (especially physically) that I can't get better. Its a never ending circle. Thanks in advance.

MizzouRah

08-10-2011, 09:03 PM

It was bedtime (2am).

You are a strong man!

Pumpy Tudors

08-10-2011, 10:04 PM

I CAN'T FINISH THIS PERIOD BECAUSE IT'S BEDTIME!!!!!!!!!!!

Icy

08-11-2011, 10:27 AM

I had a few questions and hoped you guys had the answers. I'm new to playing online (but not to the game) and just started, but it seems no matter how good I am, I always get my butt kicked.

1. How do I get my player better online?
2. Can I boost my player through Be a Pro or do I have to play online ranked matches?
3. Come NHL 12, does everyone start over or is it just hopeless my player will never catch up to others that have been playing for years?
4. Is playing NHL 11 pointless because at this point everyone is so much better than me I can't compete?

1. Playing online and meeting some requirements to reach the next player card you get experience points that you can use to increase your player attributes.

2. It must be online ranked, but you can unlock equipment and boosts to apply to that equipment by playing offline BAP. You can see the unlocking requirements in the equipment shop. You can also pay real $ to unlock them.

3. Until 12 you always started over, for 12 it's said that those who played a lot 11 will get some gear unlocked, but not a real difference maker or nothing you can't unlock playing or paying.

4. You can compete even with your default player, of course the boost make a difference, but you can play a good level without them. I recommend you to keep playing mainly to get better at the game and to be ready for 12. At this stage i would pay any real $ to unlock equipment or boosts.

Captain2711

08-11-2011, 02:18 PM

1. Playing online and meeting some requirements to reach the next player card you get experience points that you can use to increase your player attributes.

2. It must be online ranked, but you can unlock equipment and boosts to apply to that equipment by playing offline BAP. You can see the unlocking requirements in the equipment shop. You can also pay real $ to unlock them.

3. Until 12 you always started over, for 12 it's said that those who played a lot 11 will get some gear unlocked, but not a real difference maker or nothing you can't unlock playing or paying.

4. You can compete even with your default player, of course the boost make a difference, but you can play a good level without them. I recommend you to keep playing mainly to get better at the game and to be ready for 12. At this stage i would pay any real $ to unlock equipment or boosts.

Thanks Icy.
If I spend money on boosts now, do they transfer to next year or do I have to buy again?