EA Sports NHL 21

[btimbit]

How is be a pro? Heard it got some love, is it worth it?

[combustiblefuel]

Originally Posted by btimbit

How is be a pro? Heard it got some love, is it worth it?

I wouldn't know. I only ever play the Hut online seasons and events. I don't find it fun playing against cpus for sports. I wouldn't have bought it if I had known they didn't have that mode anymore.

[Inferno]

Originally Posted by btimbit

How is be a pro? Heard it got some love, is it worth it?

I've gone between it and Franchise in the 10 hour trial and I'd say it's improved but not to where I would buy it full price for the mode alone. It was way too easy to get drafted first overall and so far the coaches challenges are repetitive.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by btimbit

How is be a pro? Heard it got some love, is it worth it?

I'm in the same boat as Inferno, just playing the trial and I've only played in BAP so far.

It's definitely improved by a lot though, some notable things:
- Conversations with players, coaches, and reporters
- Commentary between games is relevant to how you're playing
- Line progression is laid out, so you earn or lose "points" with each line you're on and instead of just being on the 1st line, 1st PP, 1st PK etc. you could be on the 1st line and 1st PP if you're doing well offensively, but on the 2nd PK or off the PK altogether if you're bad on the PK.
- Record keeping, so you can see your performance relative to all-time records, franchise records, by career, season, and rookie season (and the commentary reflects achievements, so if you set the record for goals by a rookie on your team it'll talk about it)

It really, really adds a lot to the realism and feels like a fantastic base to work on. If EA just leaves it as is, that'll be disappointing, but if they tweak it and add to it next year and the year after it's going to be a great mode to play. It is pretty repetitive though.

I'll probably still wait until it's free through EA Play but it is the most tempting NHL game to buy in a long time.

[Russic]

I'm kinda bummed out. This is the first one in almost 30 years that I'm not buying. I suppose there were a couple in those N64 days that I missed, but for the most part this has been a thing I do. Finally just not feeling it.

[Yamer]

Gameplay and front-end is a carbon copy of last year. They have introduced a few new impossible and impractical dekes, like the Michigan. Of course I haven't found anywhere in game that teaches how to do these new dekes (should be in the Training Camp module), so that was well thought out.

They've introduced a record book, probably for the Be a Pro milestones. Well, it's more just a page: Top 5 all time in each of about 8 categories, and just the top player for each team for the same (or so) categories. Don't get too carried away, EA.

Evidently they have gone back to the Trade Deadline mini-game as previous years. Turned based, minute-by-minute. Same tedious #### with a new skin. Since Franchise mode is essentially the same thing as the last few years I'm pretty disappointed.

A decent Be a Pro could be the only thing that saves it, but I always found the mode to be a chore. With shifts and load times it seems like a poor translation to the sport of hockey.

[8sPOT]

Originally Posted by Russic

I'm kinda bummed out. This is the first one in almost 30 years that I'm not buying. I suppose there were a couple in those N64 days that I missed, but for the most part this has been a thing I do. Finally just not feeling it.

Same for me, this will be the first time in decades I won't buy the latest 'NHL'. Just not different enough year over year anymore. For $80 it's hard to justify getting a new one every year when in reality there is very little 'new' to the game.

I'll wait for Cyberpunk instead.

[TorqueDog]

As much as EA deserves to be crapped on for letting the NHL series get so long in the tooth from the tired front-end, to the resistance to implement their new gameplay engines until well after they've moved onto the next one, I have to give EA some credit.

I posted this sentiment on Reddit but it belongs here as well. I remember back when EA had a stranglehold on video game hockey (the first time) with the NHL series, coasting basically on $60+ dollar roster and Front End menu updates as they do today. Then 2K entered the fray and it was seen as a great thing for video game hockey, with 2K investing development resources into actual gameplay improvements, even if EA still had a visually superior product. Alas, 2K just couldn’t compete with EA and the 2K NHL games ceased, handing the video game hockey market back to EA by default.

But in the NBA world, EA got beaten by 2K and EA took a break from the NBA Live series. Since then, just look at what 2K has done when they are dominant. I bought NBA2K14 for the Xbox One when it was first released and I was astounded by all of the 'pay to win' garbage in the form of VC points or whatever. These days, it's even worse, down to 2K adding unskippable advertising in the game.

Say what you will about EA (I sure as hell will), but at least they aren't 2K.

[Yamer]

Interesting. Travis Hamonic isn't in the game.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Yamer

Interesting. Travis Hamonic isn't in the game.

Pretty sure he was on an opposing team when I was playing BAP the other night.

Looking it up it appears a few random free agents accidentally vanished in the last roster update, so that’s probably why.

[Yamer]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

Pretty sure he was on an opposing team when I was playing BAP the other night.

Looking it up it appears a few random free agents accidentally vanished in the last roster update, so that’s probably why.

That's what I figured.

[dobbles]

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

As much as EA deserves to be crapped on for letting the NHL series get so long in the tooth from the tired front-end, to the resistance to implement their new gameplay engines until well after they've moved onto the next one, I have to give EA some credit.

I posted this sentiment on Reddit but it belongs here as well. I remember back when EA had a stranglehold on video game hockey (the first time) with the NHL series, coasting basically on $60+ dollar roster and Front End menu updates as they do today. Then 2K entered the fray and it was seen as a great thing for video game hockey, with 2K investing development resources into actual gameplay improvements, even if EA still had a visually superior product. Alas, 2K just couldn’t compete with EA and the 2K NHL games ceased, handing the video game hockey market back to EA by default.

But in the NBA world, EA got beaten by 2K and EA took a break from the NBA Live series. Since then, just look at what 2K has done when they are dominant. I bought NBA2K14 for the Xbox One when it was first released and I was astounded by all of the 'pay to win' garbage in the form of VC points or whatever. These days, it's even worse, down to 2K adding unskippable advertising in the game.

Say what you will about EA (I sure as hell will), but at least they aren't 2K.

To me the takeaway isn't that EA or 2K are inherently bad, but that monopolies are bad. Exclusive licensing deals that lock out competition are bad. Competition creates better quality products. And until there is actual competition, this is what consumers will get.

[btimbit]

Originally Posted by combustiblefuel

I wouldn't know. I only ever play the Hut online seasons and events. I don't find it fun playing against cpus for sports. I wouldn't have bought it if I had known they didn't have that mode anymore.

That's interesting that it's not included. Doesn't bother me, I always hated the gamemode and think sports games are terrible online since you don't actually play hockey, it's just whoever can exploit whatever unique gameplay flaw that years game has. But I thought it was their main focus for many years, surprised it's gone.

[Inferno]

Originally Posted by dobbles

To me the takeaway isn't that EA or 2K are inherently bad, but that monopolies are bad. Exclusive licensing deals that lock out competition are bad. Competition creates better quality products. And until there is actual competition, this is what consumers will get.

I don't know about 2K having exclusive rights to the NBA now but the rights to the NHL isn't exclusive to EA. Another company could make an NHL game but choose not to.

[btimbit]

Originally Posted by Inferno

I don't know about 2K having exclusive rights to the NBA now but the rights to the NHL isn't exclusive to EA. Another company could make an NHL game but choose not to.

This exactly. It's not a rights issue, it's companies not thinking it's a big enough market for the investment

[TorqueDog]

Originally Posted by dobbles

To me the takeaway isn't that EA or 2K are inherently bad, but that monopolies are bad. Exclusive licensing deals that lock out competition are bad. Competition creates better quality products. And until there is actual competition, this is what consumers will get.

What they do once they have the monopoly is where I see the biggest difference between the two. EA hasn't implemented microtransactions into the most basic aspects of gameplay. 2K, I could train a rookie to become Lebron James in one sitting if only I allow the game to eat enough of the limit on my credit card.

[btimbit]

I enjoy that you earn currency in game to put toward things like skill points or different equipment in 2K, it makes stuff like contract negotiations seem like they actually matter.

But the way they slow it down to feel like such a grind then offer micro-transactions to speed it up is so god damn scummy.

[combustiblefuel]

Originally Posted by btimbit

That's interesting that it's not included. Doesn't bother me, I always hated the gamemode and think sports games are terrible online since you don't actually play hockey, it's just whoever can exploit whatever unique gameplay flaw that years game has. But I thought it was their main focus for many years, surprised it's gone.

Their focusing on the threes game play now. Lame.

I've never had issues with online play. Games are good and its hard to exploit flaws when you know how to defend them.

[combustiblefuel]

Excellent!

Xbox refunded me my money back for this game. All 115 bucks. Not sad this time around to not have it NHL 20 still has a good gamer pool and all the other games I want come oit next month so no big loss.

[canadiancactus]

Originally Posted by combustiblefuel

Excellent!

Xbox refunded me my money back for this game. All 115 bucks. Not sad this time around to not have it NHL 20 still has a good gamer pool and all the other games I want come oit next month so no big loss.

I haven’t played since NHL 17 but thinking about jumping back in. Do you recommend just a cheap copy of NHL 20 over $80 NHL 21? I mostly play online so was worried about player pool.