NHL 13: Grading the Realism

[CujoMatty]

I really like the game but the goaltending is hurting the experience for me. Lately I've been messing with sliders in order to make the game more challenging and its become very apparent that EA relys heavily on goaltending to make the game harder instead of making the AI play better. I want to lose some games but I just can't stand losing 6-2 when I've outshot the computer 42-15 and my goalie is rated 90. I understand it happens but not every other game. I find it very hard to feel like I've really earned a loss which is such an important aspect of sports gaming. If I lose at madden or MLB or basically any other sports game I generally feel like it was deserved, not always but most of the time. In NHL however alot of the time it feels like im getting jipped

[Mikey88]

Great write up, pretty much sums up my feelings about the game.. I dont think offline versus CPU is even worth getting into. The AI is just not good enough. Online however seems like where this game comes alive.
I still like NHL 10 more than i have the last 3 years of NHL games combined in terms of game play. Obviously, 10 wasn't perfect but it was closer to the real thing and hey there were actual penalties being called regularly! wow what a concept! I have some random thoughts...

-Anyone else feel like the ice isn't big enough? They want to bring this game up to speed with realism, make the ice feel proportionate to the real thing.

-The hitting has also gotten progressively WORSE since 10.. in 10, if you lined up a guy properly you could send him flying.. in 13, no need. just bump him lightly and he'll hit the ice.

-There was a better tradeoff in 10. When you spammed poke check or stick lift too much, you risked getting high sticking or tripping penalties. Not this time around.. Hopefully they can fix it.

And the goalies - probably the worst thing about this game as mentioned in the article. Just plain unrealistic in the way they move, the way they can go post to post in a completely unrealistic way.. EA really needs to make this part of the game as realistic as possible IMO even before the hitting.

I have to commend them at least for getting the skating down pat. Great job by them but the rest of the game needs the same amount of attention to really bring this game to life.

[MetalCavs]

Good write up Jayson, while the skating tune up is a good bullet point for this years version of NHL , not addressing other legacy issues with this years title only will ensure that without any competition the hockey series is and will suffer the same fate as Madden. Good thing they'll always be customers that need to justify their yearly investment in the only game on the market and are willing to overlook such issues.

[canucksss]

Re: NHL 13: Grading the Realism

nice write up. but i have to disagree with your overall rating for NHL 13. it does not deserve a B-, imho. its C- for me. it could have been a B+ or even A- if the penalty issue is non-existence. to be in higher rating, goalie fatigue must be included and netplay and boardplay must be at least improved.

[xcanadaman9x]

Would it be more realistic if you didn't play it until the lockout ends?

[statnut]

Re: NHL 13: Grading the Realism

When an AHL goalie shuts down Havlat, Nugent-Hopkins, Callahan, Fleishman, Gomez, Hagelin, etc, stopping 31 shots through three periods and OT, something is wrong. And these were a variety of shots, rebounds, slap shots from the point, wrist shots, backhanders, one-timers, etc.

[Eddie1967]

Re: NHL 13: Grading the Realism

In NHL's defense, it much easier to replicate the sport of baseball than it is hockey, which is probably the most difficult.

Come on man, that is a weak excuse. Yes it may be hard but they are in the business of replicating the sport and how many years has it been now? If that's the excuse then they may as well quit. Yes the game has improved over the years and I realize it may never be perfect but when it comes to realism the game should be much farther ahead then it is right now.

[Minus 80]

Re: NHL 13: Grading the Realism

Come on man, that is a weak excuse. Yes it may be hard but they are in the business of replicating the sport and how many years has it been now? If that's the excuse then they may as well quit. Yes the game has improved over the years and I realize it may never be perfect but when it comes to realism the game should be much farther ahead then it is right now.

This would make more sense if there was ever a hockey game more realistic than this version. You say they should be farther, which is sweet, really, but it's not realistic.

[OddyOh]

Yeah, the big hits are ridiculous, mostly because they happen every shift. And the lack of board play is a huge missing piece compared to real hockey. It probably wouldn't be that much fun to play, but for those looking for a realistic match, it's important.
I hate the fighting engine...I don't really care, but 2004 had the best fighting, IMO.
Also the glass breaks way too often, why even have this in? It rarely happens. And last year when they were hyping Goalie Fights...and I think there was only one goalie fight in the real NHL that season.

[Minus 80]

Re: NHL 13: Grading the Realism

I've only had the glass break one single time since I've had the game at launch. That would probably be in about 60+ plus games.

[woody2goody]

The skating is extremely good on 13 - the most enjoyable and aesthetically pleasing feature by far.

I have a different gripe with goalies. Forgive me if I go a bit too in depth, but using my Avs as an example - Semyon Varlamov is a beast, and there's nothing wrong with that, as his .913 save% from last year shows. He is 82 overall.

My backup, JS Giguere, has not had a save% under .900 since 1999, and last year he was 0.918 with a 2.28 GAA. He is 76 overall and he is for the most part, extremely mediocre at best.

In real life, Giguere is still, despite his advancing years, one of the better goalies in the NHL, and on NHL 13 he is a human sieve.

The discrepancy in skill between two players with just 6 overall points between them is ridiculous. At the moment in my game, Varly is about .925 compared with Giggy's .860, which is daft. I know it's a small sample size from this year's game, but over the years, an inferior goalie nearly always means an inferior performance, and this years seems to be no different.

There's no point switching goalies to be honest if the backups are as bad as this.

Loving the game though!

[woody2goody]

Also, even though a lot of people wouldn't like this, the computer players on your team should fight of their own accord, if only to make it more realistic.

Cody McLeod has 0 PIMs so far this season for me

[tvman]

Re: NHL 13: Grading the Realism

The skating is extremely good on 13 - the most enjoyable and aesthetically pleasing feature by far.

I have a different gripe with goalies. Forgive me if I go a bit too in depth, but using my Avs as an example - Semyon Varlamov is a beast, and there's nothing wrong with that, as his .913 save% from last year shows. He is 82 overall.

My backup, JS Giguere, has not had a save% under .900 since 1999, and last year he was 0.918 with a 2.28 GAA. He is 76 overall and he is for the most part, extremely mediocre at best.

In real life, Giguere is still, despite his advancing years, one of the better goalies in the NHL, and on NHL 13 he is a human sieve.

The discrepancy in skill between two players with just 6 overall points between them is ridiculous. At the moment in my game, Varly is about .925 compared with Giggy's .860, which is daft. I know it's a small sample size from this year's game, but over the years, an inferior goalie nearly always means an inferior performance, and this years seems to be no different.

There's no point switching goalies to be honest if the backups are as bad as this.

Loving the game though!

They need to institute some kind of "possible" energy boost for a team switching goalies mid game like what happens in real life.

Make it so if you were to swap goalies that there could be an upgrade to player attributes or a downgrade to their attributes (for a limited length of time), with a graph showing which way it were to go.

[gamenation2012]

are rosters updated

[Devmcdonnell]

I have been looking for a good review (or at least a review I agree with) for a month now and I still haven't been able to find it. After reading this review, I'm still looking for one that I can agree with.

Before I get into this, keep in mind that I have been playing hockey all my life. I played 4 years through college and play semi professionally. I coach high school hockey and have been skating on the ice since I'm 2 years old. I have spent countless hours with private skating instructors (including members of the Dineen family). I am by no means a superstar, but I know how the basic mechanics of skating, shooting, passing, and the overall game of hockey should work. Also keep in mind that I have been a HUGE fan of the EA NHL series since they invigorated the series with the skill stick back in 07. Each year they have added more and more making it better and better and right when it began to seem like it was becoming a little stale and repetitive, EA promised another revolution in my favorite hockey simulation game. I couldn't wait. EA promised to bring a new age of realism to the game...True performance skating, new player and goalie AI, and (the clincher for me) the new GM Connected Mode. I don't remember the last time I was this excited to play the new NHL game. My excitement would turn to immense disappointment as soon as I brought the game home and explored all the new additions to the game. EA tried to bring a new sense of realism to the game....and they FAILED.

Let's start with true performance skating. While EA has taken a step in the right direction with the idea of True Performance Skating, they fail to execute the concept the right way. Yes, there is not just one speed in hockey, skaters are ALWAYS changing speeds and the best skaters know how to use deceptive speed to beat defenders. The problem is that while EA tried to create this new system, they executed backwards. If you watch the way a player reaches "top speed" in NHL 13, you will see a players first 2 to 3 strides be a lazy slower stride and then once they hit that 4th or 5th stride they begin to turn it up to top speed. This is a completely BACKWARDS system. Anyone who grew up playing hockey has had it drilled into their heads that your first 2 to 4 strides are the most important. As you take your first 2 or 3 strides you explode out and gain your speed, once you are at top speed you can lay off and glide it out a bit. EA has touted that they have explosive speed in NHL 13, but the explosive speed doesn't arrive until you're already in full stride. This creates a bunch of problems such as the extreme ease in catching someone on a backcheck, throwing a massive hit from behind (I will get to hitting later) and stealing the puck away to go the other way with it. Another issue that just burns me up is that when there is a loose puck in the defensive zone corner, the defenseman will skate lazily toward it until he is about 3 or 4 (sometimes 5) strides in and will pick up speed when he is already in the corner on top of the puck. This is extremely unrealistic as when there is a loose puck in the corner, a player will explode at top speed toward it and as he closes in on the puck lay off and glide as he picks it up. Everything about "explosive speed" is backward.

The other bone I have to pick with True Performance Skating is the turning. While some turns are realistic and yes, it is impossible to make sharp turns at top speed, there are some highly unrealistic turning animations. The first one that I noticed right away was making a turn while standing still. Turning while standing still should be your tightest, quickest turn as all you have to do is rotate your body and cross over, but in NHL 13 we are forced to go through a slow semi wide (wider than it should be) mini turn that takes precious seconds away and gives the opposition time to move in and cause a turn over with the tremendously easy to use poke check or hitting mechanic. What the developers also don't understand is that a cross over is actually a form of stride. The game requires that you lose speed while crossing over when in fact you should be maintaining relative speed or sometimes even gaining speed if you are crossing over from a low speed or a stand still.

I do have a lot more issues with True Performance Skating but the last problem I will list is the pivot from skating backwards to skating forwards and vice versa. Contrary to your review, I like the idea of being able to skate backwards but I do agree that I miss the "vision" button in being able to stay square to the puck and I do think they should bring something like that back in NHL 14. Players pivoting, especially from skating backwards to skating forwards go through a painstakingly slow animation that, just like the turning from a standstill, wastes precious time and allows the opposition to close in at full speed. It is because of this that even though it is my natural instinct to do this pivot in the defensive zone when moving the puck from defenseman to defenseman and then looking to move up ice, that I have omitted it from my play. It is just unrealistic and only serves as a detriment as you will probably lose the puck to a fore checker.

All in all true performance skating makes me feel like my players are stuck in the mud. I will give it to EA that they are trying to be innovative and it is only the first step in a process, so I hope that NHL 14 will bring a refined skating engine. It is because of this that I will be generous and give True Performance Skating a C grade.

Another big issue I have with this game is the physical play. As you have stated in your review, it seems that every hit the computer makes is a monster hit that sends the player flying into the air. Let me start off by saying that it is Hockey 101 to protect the puck with your body. I preach this to my high school team all the time. “Separate the puck from the opposing player using your body.” “Protect the puck with your body.” This concept is irrelevant in NHL 13. Turing your back to a defenseman while carrying the puck will not allow you to protect the puck as the defenseman will check you from behind knocking you down and causing you to lose the puck. It doesn't matter if the defenseman is standing still or coming at you full speed, it doesn't matter if the defenseman has a 99 rated checking ability or a 65 rated checking ability, 9 times out of 10 it is the same result. You will get hit, fall and lose the puck. This is another EXTREMELY unrealistic aspect of the new NHL 13. Unless the player is just learning how to skate and their balance is just awful or he is incredibly weak, it is extremely difficult to send a player to the ice when their back is turned to you. I can't tell you how many times I have seen a player fly back into the defensive zone on a backcheck at full speed, throw a devastating hit from behind on the player with the puck, only to pick it up and go the other way with it at top speed. I don't think EA realizes how much energy it takes to catch someone on a backcheck, let alone throw a hit strong enough to knock a player down from behind, and then have enough energy to race the other way with the puck. EA has told us that they wanted to give us more realism and less of an "arcady" feel. If this isn't arcady, I don't know what is.

While we are on the subject, the puck control in this game is just atrocious. I can understand EA trying to make the puck more live, but this is just too much! As I stated before, protecting the puck with your body is a basic element of hockey, but it is impossible to do in NHL 13. Any tiny little bump of the body will either send you crumbling to the ice or at the very least, send the puck off your stick. It is impossible to hold onto the puck. Again, my natural instinct is to turn my back to the defending player in an effort to protect the puck, just as any real hockey player would, but it is a futile effort as you will lose the puck no matter what. Your best option in NHL 13 is to keep as safe a distance as possible between you and the defender.

I give the hitting and physical play a D.

Scoring in this game is extremely difficult, and as you expressed in your review, a majority of the goals scored are bad bounces or the "cheese" goal that has plagued NHL 11 and 12...faking to one side and scoring on the gaping short side. One timers are almost impossible in the slot and as you said before, the "tie up" in front of the net in unrealistic. Too often I am pulled into a scruff only wanting to skate away but find myself unable to. A tie up in front of the net is not literally sticking to the defenseman, a skater can easily skate away from being tied up and open up some space for himself...it is impossible to do this in NHL 13 and another example of unrealistic game play.

My final thought on game play is that overall the game is slow. Every year, EA finds a way to slow the game down and this is a big big problem. Hockey is an extremely fast paced game, but like I stated earlier on, it feels like the players are all stuck in the mud. I find myself turning up the game speed slider to 100% and only then do I feel that it is a somewhat authentic representation of the speed of the game. Hockey is a game of split seconds, but with NHL 13 I find myself looking at my watch while playing wondering how long it is going to take players to skate up ice.

What I hoped to be the saving grace for the game after my disappointment with regular game play was the newly added GM Connected mode. I currently run a league with 15 GMs and while it is a lot of fun, there is A TON of work to be done on this game mode. Slow menus, lack of Commissioner controls, Poor communication and league/ team information, glitches in trades, the absence of live fantasy and entry drafts and much much more have created an outcry from fans eager to get their hands on this game solely for this game mode. I will not go into detail here as the problems with this game mode deserve a post of its own. All you need to know is that it's bad, and many people feel cheated.

Overall, NHL 13 fell flat and did not deliver. They promised a revolution in their hockey game and while I agree that it is a step in the right direction, it is not the revolution that the skill stick was in 07. When the skill stick was introduced I was completely content with the feel of it in game and believed it to be an authentic representation of what it is like handling the puck on a real sheet of ice. I can hardly say the same for True Performance Skating. Instead, we were given a work in progress as there is much to be done to refine this concept. Hopefully NHL 14 uses the concepts introduced here in NHL 13 and takes 3 steps forward with it. All I know is that for the first time since 07, I WILL NOT be pre ordering NHL 14 as I no longer believe that EA's NHL franchise will deliver the best virtual hockey experience available. Hopefully they prove me wrong.