Ask Me Anything: Sean Ramjagsingh, NHL 15 Producer

[PensDynasty87]

Re: Ask Me Anything: Sean Ramjagsingh, NHL 15 Producer

Didn't somebody just say he's not answering questions anymore?

[bigwill33]

Re: Ask Me Anything: Sean Ramjagsingh, NHL 15 Producer

"Hester147 wrote:
Is GM connected in future plans of ps4 and xbox one versions? And is there any way to release some sort of club patch? Otp is fun, except for having to join lobbies every game and hope all your friends get in"


"The future of GM Connected is TBD.
When we look at the data of how many people are actually playing the mode, it is VERY small relative to our other modes.
One of the things that we need to be careful of moving forward is to not spread ourselves too thin.
On G3, we have a lot of modes that get minimal use.
Maintaining these modes year on year (even if we don't add any new features) is very costly and it takes away from us working on other features in the more played modes which is why I say that the future is TBD based on current usage.
When we first put GMC in, it was a highly requested mode from our fans but that hasn't translated into the usage we expected."


This part is absolutely laughable to me! Of course GMC is not widely used, have you tried to use it? It is barely usable. Give us a functioning online franchise mode and I would bet you would see a higher usage. But don't blame us for neglecting to use something that was very poorly implemented. It would take a day and a half to navigate through the cumbersome menus. Trading and roster moves were a farce.

It is 2014, every sports game should have an online franchise mode by now. A fully featured online franchise mode, to boot.

If we are talking about wasted resources how about the debacle that was the NHL '94 remake. How often does that worthless mode get used? That was a back of the box featured mode and it is pretty much absolutely useless.

I don't mean to pile on, but even this Q&A was poorly done here. There was hardly any communication, nothing of substance was resolved, and it left an even worst taste in my mouth. The whole thing smelled of being forced to put out PR fires because the community was irate. The team hid as long as possible until they were forced into the limelight at the last possible minute. And rather than offer more insight on the questions actually plaguing that community it was a hit and run. We have almost as many questions now as we did this time yesterday.

The modes that seemed to make it to next gen will be very stripped down and we have no clue exactly how they will work or what all will be in them. Even the offline gamers that have no interest in the modes being excluded are unsure (or at the very least they are sure, but are probably wrong) as to what exactly they will be getting.

We know there will be a version of OTP in the game at some point, at least that is the plan. But we have next to nothing as to how that will work. It will only be NHL teams to start, meaning we can only pick a position and use a real NHL player in the mode. But will there be lobbies? Stat tracking? Leaderboards? Will we eventually be able to create our own player and use them in the OTP that we have come to know now? It didn't sound like it, but all we can do is infer.

How about some real insight into the game's development? When was NHL 15 actually started on with the EA Vancouver team. When did you receive your PS4 and Xbox One kit? Why does it seem that this gen of gaming was an apparent surprise with how the time was apparently budgeted? Why was it stated to the consumers that NHL 14 wasn't released on the next gen platforms as to not release a less than stellar game that wasn't fully featured when that is exactly what we are getting now a year later?

And most importantly; if the development team had this much time for the very first iteration of the game on these systems and that still wasn't enough, what is there to make us believe that this game will ever catch up to where it once was, let alone make improvements in so many of the areas that this game truly needs?

Giving us club and OTP and GMC on next gen would have been nice, hell it is what was expected for most of us, but simply porting those modes over and leaving them be as is will not suffice over time. Those modes are highly, highly, stale and have issues. The EASHL is a mess to many of us. There is no real explanation as to what going on in the game, there are playoffs like every few days for some reason, the ranking system is odd, the AI horrid, menus clunky, and there is no real understanding as to what it is all for. To simply rush to get that into the game and say "yay, we did it!" for next year is not sufficient enough really.

As I have said before, in a time when we should be pushing the envelope and taking our gaming to places we have only ever dreamed before, it seems as though we are stuck back at the start and rubbing two sticks together all over again. At this pace it will be 2016 before we even have everything back into the game that we had on last gen. This does not account for any improvements or additions, which is what we should be getting with next gen gaming.

When does the gameplay receive its makeover in this grand scheme? Are we ignoring that it is busted in many aspects? Are we refuting that anything on this list http://www.operationsports.com/forum...-gameplay.html is not an issue?

And if all of this cannot be done in a realistic time frame by the current team what is in place that should make us believe or have faith in that team to produce a game that is well rounded, has minimal bugs/exploits/glitches, contains purpose and replay ability, is fully featured offline and online, and has a general overall brighter future than what was in the past? Because most, if not nearly all, of what is being asked for is just stuff that has been in a game before. If not stuff that was even in an NHL game from EA before. Most of us do not have the foresight or creativeness to ask for stuff outside of the box and we certainly are realistic enough to not expect it. But the bar you are aspiring to each year that seems so unobtainable at times, that is the same bar that was set by your forefathers that made the very same game in the very same series upon which you are currently in control of. That is what is perhaps the most discouraging part of all of this. Well that and utter nightmare this release has come to be with the complete lack of communication and media up until this point.

These are my questions and issues.

[canucksss]

Re: Ask Me Anything: Sean Ramjagsingh, NHL 15 Producer

I'm not sure how you consider that they built from the ground up a lie...Completely new play by play, player models, arenas, etc - all of which were "built from the ground up".

In addition to this, the fact that EASHL and GM Connected are not being included is actually evidence they are being built from the ground up. Obviously the feel of the game is going to be similar, as there has been a foundation laid from the previous generation, but to blatantly accuse them of lying prior to playing the game yet for ourselves is just plain ignorance.

built from the ground up - have they improved the gameplay since 2009? was the group celebration present and then removed and then try to include it again (thats not building up...thats just bringing in what was there before). Puck physics? What? Where is it?

I will only believe if EA will show a demo, done by 2 people with great knowledge in hockey and show to us these so called improvements and not just a movie clips.

I switched to EA in 2007 because of their ground breaking right analog stick as your hockey stick. But after 2009, the BaGM which I play the most is untouched and become stupid mode because of AI trade logic, no differentiation between players and teams.

Built from the ground up - until 13, no player and team differentiation and I am inclined to believe its still the same in 15. Prove me wrong about this, then I will believe them.

Built from the ground up - in previous version, the home team can put the lines after the away team sent their lines. In 13, there's no opportunity to play the lines. Thats going backward instead of going forward.

Built from the ground up - gameplay, gameplay, gameplay..... is important in a sport game and not just presentation, unless is organic and not canned, will be a short lived enjoyment.

[Sheba2011]

Re: Ask Me Anything: Sean Ramjagsingh, NHL 15 Producer

built from the ground up - have they improved the gameplay since 2009? was the group celebration present and then removed and then try to include it again (thats not building up...thats just bringing in what was there before). Puck physics? What? Where is it?

I will only believe if EA will show a demo, done by 2 people with great knowledge in hockey and show to us these so called improvements and not just a movie clips.

I switched to EA in 2007 because of their ground breaking right analog stick as your hockey stick. But after 2009, the BaGM which I play the most is untouched and become stupid mode because of AI trade logic, no differentiation between players and teams.

Built from the ground up - until 13, no player and team differentiation and I am inclined to believe its still the same in 15. Prove me wrong about this, then I will believe them.

Built from the ground up - in previous version, the home team can put the lines after the away team sent their lines. In 13, there's no opportunity to play the lines. Thats going backward instead of going forward.

Built from the ground up - gameplay, gameplay, gameplay..... is important in a sport game and not just presentation, unless is organic and not canned, will be a short lived enjoyment.

You'll have the chance to judge the gameplay for yourself when the Demo drops.

[darkraider7]

Re: Ask Me Anything: Sean Ramjagsingh, NHL 15 Producer

"Hester147 wrote:
Is GM connected in future plans of ps4 and xbox one versions? And is there any way to release some sort of club patch? Otp is fun, except for having to join lobbies every game and hope all your friends get in"


"The future of GM Connected is TBD.
When we look at the data of how many people are actually playing the mode, it is VERY small relative to our other modes.
One of the things that we need to be careful of moving forward is to not spread ourselves too thin.
On G3, we have a lot of modes that get minimal use.
Maintaining these modes year on year (even if we don't add any new features) is very costly and it takes away from us working on other features in the more played modes which is why I say that the future is TBD based on current usage.
When we first put GMC in, it was a highly requested mode from our fans but that hasn't translated into the usage we expected."


This part is absolutely laughable to me! Of course GMC is not widely used, have you tried to use it? It is barely usable. Give us a functioning online franchise mode and I would bet you would see a higher usage. But don't blame us for neglecting to use something that was very poorly implemented. It would take a day and a half to navigate through the cumbersome menus. Trading and roster moves were a farce.

It is 2014, every sports game should have an online franchise mode by now. A fully featured online franchise mode, to boot.

This! The mode was terribly implemented, you literally had to sit for 20-30 minutes just to advance a period of 3-4 games. Not to mention another minute just to navigate to any screen. A couple of my friends who have not bought past NHL games were really looking forward to this mode on next-gen. But now they will not be purchasing the game, thus killing any hope I had of them getting into a series I know they would enjoy and love. Is it really too much to ask for to have an online franchise mode when every single other sports game on the market includes it. Needless to say, as someone who has bought every NHL game since 2006 I am severely dissapointed.

[canucksss]

Re: Ask Me Anything: Sean Ramjagsingh, NHL 15 Producer

You'll have the chance to judge the gameplay for yourself when the Demo drops.

Yes and EA needs to prove me wrong. But then again, DEMO is not much to know this game. We cant really sum up this game in 2 min/period x3 period game. I will rent this via Gamefly and see....if its still the same garbage...this is the shortest rent ever.

[m_maclean24]

Re: Ask Me Anything: Sean Ramjagsingh, NHL 15 Producer

built from the ground up - have they improved the gameplay since 2009? was the group celebration present and then removed and then try to include it again (thats not building up...thats just bringing in what was there before). Puck physics? What? Where is it?

I will only believe if EA will show a demo, done by 2 people with great knowledge in hockey and show to us these so called improvements and not just a movie clips.

I switched to EA in 2007 because of their ground breaking right analog stick as your hockey stick. But after 2009, the BaGM which I play the most is untouched and become stupid mode because of AI trade logic, no differentiation between players and teams.

Built from the ground up - until 13, no player and team differentiation and I am inclined to believe its still the same in 15. Prove me wrong about this, then I will believe them.

Built from the ground up - in previous version, the home team can put the lines after the away team sent their lines. In 13, there's no opportunity to play the lines. Thats going backward instead of going forward.

Built from the ground up - gameplay, gameplay, gameplay..... is important in a sport game and not just presentation, unless is organic and not canned, will be a short lived enjoyment.

I think we are having a difference of opinion about what built from the ground up means...to me it means that they've built this year's version from the ground up...as I said, the evidence is in the new player models, arenas, etc...I don't necessarily disagree with anything you've said here...my issue is that I feel they are finally trying to give what people have asked for, and this is the starting point, building presentation and AI (remains to be seen) "from the ground up" for this generation.

My issue is that you flat-out called the developers liars, which I don't see...my understanding is that they are talking about this year's version of the game, not NHL 07-14.

[canucksss]

Re: Ask Me Anything: Sean Ramjagsingh, NHL 15 Producer

I think we are having a difference of opinion about what built from the ground up means...to me it means that they've built this year's version from the ground up...as I said, the evidence is in the new player models, arenas, etc...I don't necessarily disagree with anything you've said here...my issue is that I feel they are finally trying to give what people have asked for, and this is the starting point, building presentation and AI (remains to be seen) "from the ground up" for this generation.

My issue is that you flat-out called the developers liars, which I don't see...my understanding is that they are talking about this year's version of the game, not NHL 07-14.

The statement "built from the ground up" is just a rehash, year after year EA is saying this. Instead of moving forward, they delete some features and bring it up after several years. If their statement is really true, by now we have the greatest NHL game ever which is close to the real thing. But in reality, its still the same..... not a replica from the real NHL. That is why I say it is hard for me to believe in their claims "built from the ground up".

[intmsn]

I Cant believe that you leave gmc behind at ps4. In Sweden there is lots of leagues. Its take some time to establish 30 solid members, but now more and more players signing in and more leagues is starting.

For us gmc is everything, now we left ps4 and nhl15 behind.

[Dazraz]

Personally the one Mode I play is Season Mode. Although I've seen no official confirmation of the Mode being excluded I think we can safely assume it's NOT in. With all the negative feedback being given to EA they would be sure to announce every single Mode in that is in the game.

[SweeT 9 LoU 84]

Sean,

I have seen in a number of Q&A's with you that certain game modes are not played as much, which is obvious because everyone does not like the same number of things and some people like online, some like offline, other like single player, while more like multiplayer. What my question for you is, what is the statistical breakdown of game modes played. I believe EASHL and OTP has to be in the top 3 along with either HUT or VS. I have been in the top 100 the last few yrs in VS and is not played as much anymore. I just want to know what the statistical breakdown is per game mode. Also, how did a game mode like NHL Moments make the cut, that has to be the lowest played along side GM Connecteds which people start and then never finish and Shoot-Outs which we mainly just do while waiting on friends for club and OTP leagues.

[Keso Paghuni]

Re: Ask Me Anything: Sean Ramjagsingh, NHL 15 Producer

Rammer,

How will this committee for the EASHL be decided? There are a lot of members from other communities that have been playing EASHL since the start of NHL 09 that should have first dibs and I'll explain why. Back when EASHL was announced certain guys ranked high on the leaderboards started forming teams in NHL 08 and playing OTP through that. To this day those same people still organize 6v6 leagues are more competitive than EASHL itself. I'm 100% sure these people that run these leagues are the right people for the job and need to be chosen.

[ozcore]

is rosters gonna be easier to download this year. or in the future can we see something like mlb the show with a roster vault

[Eski33]

Are there any plans to bring classic teams and players into the game in the future? I have been starving to play with some of the all time best teams. I would like to see the Nordiques, Whalers, Rockies represented. I think it would be sweet to have teams from each era with gear (no helmets).

[meep316]

Re: Ask Me Anything: Sean Ramjagsingh, NHL 15 Producer

long post that I won't quote the whole thing

Another 10/10 post. What I wouldn't give to see them address your posts point by point. Better chance of hell existing and freezing over, though.