NHL still tends to force you to pass the puck to the AI

As a lifelong hockey fan, I have a special place in my heart for EA’s NHL video game series. I grew up playing the legendary NHL 94 with my friends, on the Sega Genesis system, making those one-timers, and always picking Jeremy Roenick because, for some reason, he couldn’t be knocked off the puck. Then, the series moved to real stick-handling in NHL 07, using the “Sports Skill Stick.” I learned the game all over again, and grew to love it even more. And like most fans, it pains me to say that I found last year’s NHL to be a big disappointment. In order to make the tight development schedule in the change-over, the EA NHL team was forced to scale back a lot of the modes that made the game great. Season Mode was scrapped, although you could play a version of it in Be a GM. Be a Pro was not quite the same either - you couldn’t work your way up through junior anymore, which took away a lot of the fun of “earning” your spot on a Pro team.

Be a Pro is naturally back, with it's own set of improvements. Last year you were thrown straight into the NHL, but this year your customised player will spend three seasons in the Canadian juniors (starting at the age of 16) before graduating to the big league. As in EASHL you get to choose what kind of player you want to be, and here your actions on the ice will improve your stats as you progress. Serving precise passes will improve your passing stats, great shots will boost your shooting stats, and so on and so forth. In addition you can now simulate the parts of the match where you are benched, unlike what was the case in NHL 15. A massive improvement to the overall experience.

"First we looked to our biggest fans and asked them to be a part of our team," said EA. "We spent more time listening and working with them this year than ever before." EA is also answering direct questions from fans on the game's website, and doing so in a more forthright way than developers of big-budget franchises usually do. Through free updates, EA Canada eventually added many NHL 15 features that were missing at launch. NHL 16 will bring back those items in full force, such as six-on-six online team play and online-enabled couch co-op; a revamped EA Sports Hockey League; the Action Tracker, which offers replays of every in-game event; a Be A Pro mode that once again allows players to simulate to their next shift, and work their way up through the minor leagues; and a Be A GM mode with AHL affiliates and a fantasy draft.

Of course, that’s still the one thing missing from the NHL series: plays. The developers emphasized speed in this year’s edition, which is great, but there’s still the problem of play once your team has entered the zone. Board play is still agonizing and the AI still has your teammates face your player when you have the puck instead of the net itself. Even an open player will receive the puck facing away from the net so they can’t shoot right away. It can be infuriating. FIFA (another great EA sports game) solved this problem by allowing the player to call for the AI to perform actions, like runs, and it allows you far more control over your passes. NHL still tends to force you to pass the puck to the AI, rather than controlling where the AI is going to head with your pass. It’s a small thing but it prevents the player from really using the ice to the fullest.

The gameplay and game modes are obviously the most important aspects of any sports game, but presentation can also play a big part. Arenas have been updated to be as accurate to life as possible in NHL 16, with the team of Doc Emrick, Eddie Olczyk, and Ray Ferraro leading the commentary yet again. The NBC Sports presentation is quite phenomenal, with the commentary itself being more story driven, based on the game itself, which helps to avoid repetition in the play-by-play.

The game has also added something superficial that many have asked for, playoff beards. This is something that has been around sports, particularly the NHL, for ages now and while the character creator itself is merely okay, the ability to design your beard and even the growth rates is rather impressive and a much welcome addition.