The trick behind annualized titles is the attempt to simultaneously change things and keep things the same, which keeps both veterans and newcomers interested in the same content. Profit is a fiscal thing, but those who always want access to more of what we like get that very thing from EA, and the perception of that is based on opinion only. EA Sports knows how to give its fan base what it wants, and that’s why we keep coming back to titles like NHL 14. As is the case, this year’s rendition still has a few lingering issues that EA can’t seem to shake, but the additions may bring some of the new players to the ice, and one new gameplay feature in particular might have what it takes to bring in old-school players as well.
Last year’s release of NHL featured a new skating engine called the True Performance Skating engine, which made skating more natural in its delivery. Our thoughts on it were that the game was slowed down from the release of the year before, but it did give it a more realistic feel to player movement. With NHL 14 enhancing the ice-navigating engine, gameplay has sped up a little, but it doesn’t exactly go back to the way that things were. Still, after a year to stew on the change and a new release that settles the system in properly, the new style grants more opportunities to think through strategies and react properly. Personally, NHL 13 had me trying to overcompensate and overthink what I should be doing, but NHL 14 has a nice balance of action and reaction, which solidifies the new direction very well.
Check out some of the game enhances after the page break.
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Proper collision physics have been added to the game, but I can’t say that I properly enjoy them. To be fair, the ability to ram full boar into another player is great and all, but, much like what has taken place in the Madden series, more and more gameplay elements are becoming part of the basic movement as player movement and weight factor into landing hits. Arguably, one does not have to press a button while actually playing hockey in order to land a hit on someone, but the lack of input when interacting with other players makes for a rather nontraditional and disconnecting experience. This perspective may be less objective than it should be, but it also should help indicate where you as the player stand on the matter and if you’ll get out of it what I did not.
Speaking of collisions, one reason why non-hardcore fans of hockey watch hockey is to see a bunch of guys fight on the ice, and NHL 14 brings in a cross-title EA Sports inspiration to better that aspect of the game; for the record, NHL players don’t walk on the field to fight, but we all enjoy it anyway. Straight from Fight Night—engine and all—NHL players who engage in fights will be in full third-person view while doing it. Gone are the days of first-person fights as you use the joysticks to execute three simple abilities: grapple, punch, and dodge. Not only are the controls simple, you no longer have to jump through hoops to initiate fisticuffs; now, players you’ve royally pissed off will force you into a fight, so if fighting is your practice each game, then you don’t have to work so hard to make it happen.
The RPG element to modern-day sports games is becoming more and more prominent as the games become more involved in simulating the lives of actual players, and the formerly-titled Be a Pro game mode is now Live the Life. Games are going further and further into a simulated life of an actual player. Not only will you be increasing your player’s stats through performance, you also have access to social events, press conferences, and financial endorsements, which puts you definitively right in the driver’s seat of a contracted NHL player.
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Playing online is now a borderline universal endeavor, where you can play all game modes online with your friends with a potential of having 12 people playing in the same EA Sports Hockey League, or EASHL. What the EASHL does far above standard online services is that it focuses on an entire experience rather than one thing here and another there. Here, the general manager aspect is on the front burner right alongside your created character, which combines perfectly the GM Mode and your created player; GM Mode still exists on its own, if you’re more inclined to focus on that side of hockey instead.
One unfortunate staple to EA Sports games is the laggy menu navigation throughout. Considering that EA Sports games are placing a more diversified focus on an RPG aspect, having such a slow and unresponsive menu makes for quite a lethargic, dull experience. The menus themselves are fairly well thought out, but a combination of software delay and slow servers makes both offline and online navigation take twice or thrice as long as it really should, resulting in an experience that is better taken in sittings rather than in marathons like RPGs. Again, this might be my preference, but, one way or another, progress in presentation as well as execution is almost expected in today’s consumer base.
If you’ve been out of the game for a good while, this might be the time to jump back into the NHL scene, as EA Sports has provided a game mode to accommodate the hockey standards of yore. Coined NHL 94 Anniversary Edition, the mode has an over-the-top camera presentation and narrows down the controls schemes and even the rules of the game; that means no offsides and no icing. The oldest hockey game I’ve ever played was Wayne Gretzky’s 3D Hockey 98, and that game was the first thing that came to mind when I saw my player highlighted with a star instead of a circle, so the nostalgic retro feel is vibrant. I wouldn’t say there’s much longevity to this mode, but it combines the old with the new in a way that can bring players who left the game a long time ago with players who haven’t ever played the game.
AI is always an issue with games that featured simulated human interactions, plain and simple. Unfortunately, we’ve seen a lot of games with a lot of good and bad simulations. Now, I wouldn’t consider myself an expert on hockey and its intricate workings, but I never felt like I had much of a team working around me. When I watch live games, the players are constantly responding to what’s going on with the puck and those who handle it. However, on most occasions, players would take a position relative to where the puck was on the field and stick to that rather than making offensive pushes or defensive reactions. Higher difficulty makes for more actions and reactions that counter the lack of sophisticated AI, but it’s still there, and it will be more prominent for those who have played the games over the years.
EA Sports, after years of change and experimentation, has generated something that brings in players both old and new in a way that even other EA Sports games haven’t done. Even though NHL 94 mode doesn’t go too far or last very long, it’s a genuine method that makes NHL 14 accessible to more and more people across many facets of past experiences, or lack thereof, than any other sports title available. The online aspects of the game are on a positive track as well, but the unresponsive menus and unsophisticated AI still make their appearances. NHL 14 is an exciting experience that hockey fans of any age can pick up and play.