NHL 11 General Discussion

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by theonlywhiteout

Unscreened soft wrist shots from 60 feet out just dont go in... I mean maybe from up closer or inside the dots, but from 60+ feet twice in one game? with an 85 goaltender?

Is your goalie Grant Fuhr?

[AC]

I quickly found that the only way this game is any fun is to play with local friends.

Those times have been the only occasions where I've played this game since the first few weeks.

[bubbsy]

i made this game exciting again by:
1) downloading the peter puck rosters
2) editting the flames players and being more realistic in the attributes (reducing a bunch like iginla, regehr, bouwmeester, stajan, bourque, jokinen, increasing giordano and some of the prospect potential)
3) doing 2, resulted in the simming of my first season to look a lot like what's happened this year
4) i traded regehr and a 3rd rounder for a #6 pick, to go along with my #4 (i think) pick, and ended up getting RNH and Coutier

i'm in the 3rd year of GM'ing and it's a lot more fun when you have some players to evolve as u reshape the franchise.

game play's ... meh. i've tweaked the game play options it to a point where it's challenging enough. It's frustrating that my shooting % is roughly 10%, but the computer scores on weak shots from the outside all the time. They will literally score 3-4 on every 10-15 shots per game...

in any case, game is fun again. HUT is boring.

i'd prefer an online GM feature.

[dissentowner]

So I want a hockey game but I am put off by all the negative talk lately in this thread. Is NHL 12 coming out in the near future? Should I wait?

[CMPunk]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

So I want a hockey game but I am put off by all the negative talk lately in this thread. Is NHL 12 coming out in the near future? Should I wait?

All the NHL games come out in September

[dissentowner]

Originally Posted by CMPunk

All the NHL games come out in September

Crap, I don't want to wait that long.

[theonlywhiteout]

EA sports really needs to revist how they handle the CPU ai. it's a complete train wreck. the CPU gets better by having super human reaction times, making games a total waste of time. the only real fun i have with this game is vs my friend in selkirk over xbox live or a local game with friends here in calgary

[Joborule]

Originally Posted by theonlywhiteout

EA sports really needs to revist how they handle the CPU ai. it's a complete train wreck. the CPU gets better by having super human reaction times, making games a total waste of time. the only real fun i have with this game is vs my friend in selkirk over xbox live or a local game with friends here in calgary

If you're playing on the superstar level, the CPU is a bit 'boosted' to have a bit more advantages over the human player. You can tone down the effect in the sliders menu however.

[theonlywhiteout]

even at pro its stupid. the CPU still has uncanny reaction time but they cant put the puck in. i just havent found a good combo for skill/sliders. hockey is a difficult game to program AI for, i acknolwedge this. theres a free flow element hard to replicate. with football games its easier, of course.

[jeremywilhelm]

The worst annoyance is the CPU teammates who don't track the puck. 5 seconds behind every play. I have to switch players at a rate of about once a second just to keep my guys in the offensive zone and maintain control of the puck. The CPU makes zero attempts at going after loose pucks

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by jeremywilhelm

The CPU makes zero attempts at going after loose pucks

That one right there is the kicker for me. Opponent is 30 feet away and gets to the puck first because my AI teammate is skating away from the puck in front of my net...

[Traditional_Ale]

The one thing that drives me nuts is playing D against a rush. If I take the puck carrier then the CPU D tries to as well. If I leave the forward with the puck for the CPU D, then he doesn't do eff all. Lose lose.

FAWK!!!!

[Kjesse]

Friends and I picked this game up a few days ago so we could play online. It has been nothing but a hassle. We created a league, played about 1/2 way through the league, now a roster update was released today and we can't play each other in the league anymore. Researching online, this is a known bug with roster updates. The problem is, the game tells you you must update to play online, then you update, then the invitee is always told their roster is wrong and won't let the game start.

It is such a simple problem and has been in the game since release according to the easports forum.

Very disappointed with several aspects with the head-to-head online experience in this game.

[theonlywhiteout]

My review of NHL 11

As a long time vet of the series (I've played and/or owned every single version) I wanted to get my voice in on this years version of the game. NHL by EA has been an amazing series and for me been the flagship of EA as a company. I know of course that the Madden series is the biggest thing at EA, but as Canadians we all love the NHL series. So lets get to the review, shall we?

Graphics
The graphics are hard to argue with in this game. They look great. The ice effect is slick, the texturing is nice, and the players look reasonably realistic. I wont drone on much about this section, it's well done. 5/5

Sound
I've heard people go either way and frankly I don't get it. If you dont like the commentary, like me, turn it off. The sounds are great. The effects are accurate, and the music is awesome. It's a 4 and not a 5 because crowd cheering doesn't always match up what's going on. 4/5 and again, well done.

Online gameplay
This is a hard one to review and attribute it to a company. If there are a lot of cheerers is that EA's problem? If people spend all their free time looking for exploits, how can EA be blamed? I wont rate this as frankly the games online mode is what you make of it yourself and I cant blame EA for peoples hang ups.

Offline gameplay
In a word: terrible. I think the focus of player vs player has left CPU vs player in a complete state of chaos. Even in player vs player the CPU team mates you have are brutal and stupid. Whenever I play the CPU it's always a complete rodeo... the CPU has perfect-skynet like- reaction time. I only get the puck back when the CPU decides it's done with it or takes a shot. No forchecking by my team, even on 3-2. Turn down the gameplay settings? Great, now you have a stupid opponent you can beat 5-1 everytime. I understand that making the AI for CPU is hard, as hockey is free flowing and non-static. 2 out of 5. Terrible stuff.

Be a GM mode
Ugh. Such garbage. Ok before I can rate this though:

Rosters and rating systems
This is a bad situation. Player rating are way too clumped together, and the difference between players is really muted. Most of the NHL top 9 forwards are between 79-84. Crosby is 93? Why not 99? Not just that, the Islanders, on paper at the select team screen, is not that bad. They're quite comparable to almost anyone. Which leads me to

Be a GM mode
I started a be a GM mode save file and took the Flames. I made very few moves, infact, zero. I couldn't get a deal I wanted. So what happens? I finish top in the standings. TOPS. #1 in the league. I make it to the cup finals, and, who do I play and beat? The Islanders. Are you shrooming me? Well really, it's not that hard to see why. When simming the game the Islanders have a decent offense rating and not too terrible D and goaltending. If there's a mode in the game to be a GM and just work on deals, you have to make the ratings worth something and the sim engine worth a damn. They aren't. Be a GM mode is a 1/5. I'd give it a zero but I don't want to make a rip in the space-time continuum. Oh and I almost forgot to include the trade system is brutal, embarrassing, and a waste of time. No counter offers? Really? You make the GM of another team a reasonable offer, they dont want it.. . so what do they do? Offer a couter? Nope. THey slam the phone on you and you start from scratch. Awesome.

Overall replay value and thoughts
This is a game and a series that is suffering from stagnation like a swamp. The smell of decaying features and the bloated carcasses of failed code is just over powering. The game reeks of "been here, done that". The Stanley cup celebration is 5 years old. FIVE YEARS OLD. EA has essentially sat back and become very lazy, and kept shoveling our hard earned money down it's fat throat. Is this a good game? Yes, a great game. FIVE YEARS AGO. Sorry for the caps, I know it comes off crazy-like. But lets face facts, EA has become really content in taking money year after year for a roster update. This game genre desperately needs competition. If you can sit down with this title, play single player and find any kind of enjoyment or satisfaction, I envy you. I can conclude this review with only 4 words.

Shame on you, EA.

[Yamer]

Originally Posted by theonlywhiteout

NHL by EA has been an amazing series and for me been the flagship of EA as a company. I know of course that the Madden series is the biggest thing at EA, but as Canadians we all love the NHL series.

[theonlywhiteout]

I stand corrected yamer.

[Yamer]

Originally Posted by theonlywhiteout

I stand corrected yamer.

Only because it has such international appeal.

Also, I should have added that I agreed with your review quite a bit.

[LGA]

I was stoked to get NHL 11 because of the introduction of the CHL and real prospects...but I'm already annoyed with the game.

First, playing against the computer is just ridiculous, you can't make a pass without the computer magically ending up with it, even if it is physically impossible for him to get it. Then the comp will rush up ice and hit 20 tape to tape passes like your team isn't there.

Not to mention it is almost impossible to register a hit, apparently checking someone to get the puck, instead I have to freakin launch them into the air and kill them to get one hit. How am I supposed to get 240 hits (season expectations) if the hitting mechanics are absolutely broken?

[secol]

Originally Posted by LGA

I was stoked to get NHL 11 because of the introduction of the CHL and real prospects...but I'm already annoyed with the game.

First, playing against the computer is just ridiculous, you can't make a pass without the computer magically ending up with it, even if it is physically impossible for him to get it. Then the comp will rush up ice and hit 20 tape to tape passes like your team isn't there.

Not to mention it is almost impossible to register a hit, apparently checking someone to get the puck, instead I have to freakin launch them into the air and kill them to get one hit. How am I supposed to get 240 hits (season expectations) if the hitting mechanics are absolutely broken?

you must not have high enough check/strength/agility against computers i average over 15 hits per game easily

[3 Justin 3]

Me and my buddy's +/- is incredibly horrible and we want to increase it (to get it even!) so we can get some of the cards.

What we plan on doing is going into a game against each other, him as a player, me as a goalie and then just getting the goalie to pull themselves over and over, for a game or two.

But we need a third (or fourth) person for this so it registers the game. Anyone want to get some +/- and points?