Why this series is dying

[Stormyhog]

I still enjoy playing NHL 16 but it is clear the game needs new people in charge to breath new life into it again. Like others have said the game is nowhere in the same league as the other sports titles. When I go back to NBA 2K16 it's like night & day everything from graphics, gameplay & presentation. Makes me wish 2K would take another crack at making an NHL game again. NHL 16 just feels like last gen games with a new coat of paint. The other sports titles are blurring the line between game & reality where NHL just keeps standing still.

[CupCrazyManiac]

Quote: Originally Posted by actionhank

I think that's the biggest frustration. While I appreciate the sentiment (though after last year I question the follow-through...) it's all completely unnecessary. Instead of flying someone out and getting questions from one person...pay someone to go through forums, to engage with everyone. Have a real dialogue, keep your potential customers informed. I think it's safe to say a lot of people here have played the game more than EA employees, because let's face it, some play it a ton, and the people at EA are working. It's easy to become so focused on what you're doing that you can't see the forest for the trees. You could just go through these forums and not even have to talk, and get a pretty good impression of what features people in certain game modes want. A back and forth would be better, but even just lurking would give them plenty of good ideas. We've got people with ideas for defense controls, AI improvements, goalie improvements, roster editing, player creation, attribute changes...there are people here with plenty of different backgrounds. Some that are new with a fresh take on things, and people that have been around for years. Some have played hockey, some haven't, some might be learning and are in fact still terrible (shameless self plug...). The people here are devoted to the game. There are people editing every single team and player through the often clunky interface, guys who relentlessly test the game to try and find out why things work the way they do (or don't) and people who can fill page after page on these forums with discussions about how to rate players, and how to accurately gauge real life performance against what the in-game should show. EA has a nearly unlimited well of potential hear that just needs to be tapped. Basically, EA has no excuse to not have at the very least a basic understanding of what their consumers want. If they did what SCEA does with The Show and just had their developers peruse the forums, or even if they elected people who worked directly in the community, they could easily improve the communication of ideas. I think a good idea would be instead of necessarily worrying about finding one or two game changers, find people online through this community and mark them as Developer Contacts. They can provide a conduit for conversation between the developers and crew at EA, and the forum. Have a handful of them who can be on the forum, gather ideas and suggestions, and relay them to EA, and then report back with what they hear. If a defensive skill stick seems popular, they can run that idea up the flagpole, and report with what they hear. Maybe EA says it just can't be done, maybe EA asks for them to get ideas for how it might work, whatever happens, it would be better than the current level of dialogue, which is slim to none. I'd love to talk with developers and forum members, and I know there are plenty of others here who feel the same way, and have plenty of better ideas than I do. Personally, I would rather EA save the money on plane tickets and put it into hiring people to improve the communication process with the community.

Really great comment, absolutely agree, you nailed it...again!

[Tsuki]

Quote: Originally Posted by Stormyhog

I still enjoy playing NHL 16 but it is clear the game needs new people in charge to breath new life into it again. Like others have said the game is nowhere in the same league as the other sports titles. When I go back to NBA 2K16 it's like night & day everything from graphics, gameplay & presentation. Makes me wish 2K would take another crack at making an NHL game again. NHL 16 just feels like last gen games with a new coat of paint. The other sports titles are blurring the line between game & reality where NHL just keeps standing still.

It is crazy to think having 2k get another shot is EXACTLY what would make them want to change the game.

Why not want to make the game better because well. THAT IS YOUR JOB....take pride in your work engage with the community. The show doe this, NBA2K does this why is it so hard for EA to grasp this idea?

[MizzouRah]

I still to this day have had more fun with last gen NHL 15 than next gen NHL 15/16. Pretty sad... the game just feels lifeless at times and scripted, like you know after the first 5 minutes who's going to win the game. Even to the point where your goalie let's in a soft goal and with the tape to tape passing you know it's coming.

Maybe I should just get NBA 2k and force myself to like basketball.

[s_mkheidze]

Quote: Originally Posted by Tsuki

It is crazy to think having 2k get another shot is EXACTLY what would make them want to change the game. Why not want to make the game better because well. THAT IS YOUR JOB....take pride in your work engage with the community. The show doe this, NBA2K does this why is it so hard for EA to grasp this idea?

cause it's all about the Benjamins y'all.

[MizzouRah]

Has anyone else had these awful goals scored on them? Goalie's pads coming up off the ice, pucks going through pads, etc.?

If so, do you just live with it? It's really ruining the game for me. I don't remember ever seeing this on old gen.

[Gangrel]

I have , mostly since the patch. I hope it can be fixed in a tuner......

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

[canucksss]

Quote: Originally Posted by MizzouRah

I still to this day have had more fun with last gen NHL 15 than next gen NHL 15/16. Pretty sad... the game just feels lifeless at times and scripted, like you know after the first 5 minutes who's going to win the game. Even to the point where your goalie let's in a soft goal and with the tape to tape passing you know it's coming. Maybe I should just get NBA 2k and force myself to like basketball.

IMHO, get the NBA 2k...its easy to like this game. I dont like watching basketball, but the way 2K present the game, EA's NHL is primitive.


Back to the OP, maybe the reason why this series is dying because of us too. Why people keep buying this product when EA hasnt proved anything since 2009 (IMHO) is beyond me. I just rented this game since "14 and in few days, I just returned it to GF...because its the same old game.