Anyone who knows me knows I love hockey. My team is the New York Rangers, and it's never a question that whenever a brand new NHL game releases, I will do my favorite to consider these to multiple Stanley Cup Championships (especially as the actual life team's window to do so appears to be closing fast). But simply like there is lots changing in the NHL this year-what by having an entirely new franchise in Vegas-there's a great deal changing in NHL 18 as well. NHL 18 goes far beyond its real-life counterpart regarding changes for that better, though, with what is probably the NHL series' most complete entry in years. And, maybe, it was an excellent opportunity for me to change some, too.
One from the staples from the NHL series is Franchise mode, where one can control every facets of a team for virtual decades. As there is a brand new team (the Las Vegas Golden Knights) being added to the league this year, NHL 18 offers players a chance to re-create the expansion draft-a fantasy style draft where the new franchise picks one unprotected player from every other franchise in the league-and assemble the team from scratch. Of course, the Golden Knights now result in the NHL unbalanced with 31 teams, so there's also an option in which you make your own new team in the ground-up and place them almost any place in North America. It was the street I would go down.
I went with Seattle, which in hindsight was immediately a mistake. I forgot that the Vegas Knights would use the Pacific division around the west coast. My Seattle franchise, as deserving as that city is perfect for a hockey team, could be forced in to the Central, resulting in a lot of long road trips (maybe next year I'll visit Might instead). But my bed was made and I decided on a team moniker: the Sea Dogs, checking up on the alliteration the majority of the city's sports franchises have had using the Seahawks, Sounders, and Sonics, plus the nautical theme that the Mariners also fall into. I named our mascot Snoop C. Dawg, selecting from way too few options in regards to what our mascot actually could look like, and then proceeded to find the sickliest shade of green and yellow for their uniforms-another Seattle sports tradition.
I could then mold my home arena and my player uniforms from a variety of preset possibilities to me. I could tweak everything from the aim posts around the ice to what logos would seem on each of our jerseys, making sure to coat everything from head to feet within the radioactive green and yellow of my Sea Dogs. Much like the number of head and the body types I could choose from for Snoop C. Dawg, the options for team logos felt limited too, however i settled on a crazed-looking Viking, a sailor's wheel, and a dog with floppy ears. It had been a weird and new sensation after playing underneath the familiar banners that adorn Madison Square Garden for so many years, however i was loving the fact that I had created my own, personal team, and felt a piece of ownership together which i had never experienced among the throngs of Rangerstown citizens.
From there, I went into my very own expansion draft and had to choose players from each and every team. I had to hit salary cap and position requirements, and took several chances; it had been an exciting experience and added a brand new degree of enjoyment to Franchise mode I hadn't experienced really in years. One caveat, though, was several players had expiring contracts, as well as if I chose them, they might decide to leave my team, which happened in the case of two players-most notably Kevin Shattenkirk.
Shattenkirk was supposed to be certainly one of my top defensemen, and when it came time for you to negotiate a brand new contract, I offered him exactly what he was asking for, with no hassle. I was shocked when Shattenkirk turned it down, asking for more money. It was an interesting turn of logic, as NHL continues to be trying (and succeeding in lots of ways this season) to improve its feedback when creating deals as a team's Gm. After i would go to make trades later on, I'd get specific feedback from teams saying which bits of the offer they did or did not like (we like Cam Ward, but require more value around him to defend myself against that contract), which really helped the trade process. Here, however, Shattenkirk-and later other free agents who turned down fair offers-failed to provide specifics.
It was great that there was this dialogue here, and I got the sense when this were actual life, Shattenkirk wouldn't wish to go to an expansion franchise either (the truth is, he's a brand new York Ranger now and we are pleased to have him). But when everything dropped to some few money, how much more did he want? I offered him $200k a lot more than his initial asking price-not enough. I offered $500k a lot more than his initial price-still insufficient. I get he wants more money, there is however no clear barometer of the items constitutes a player happy. It's a problem common in many EA Sporting activities, actually, with regards to the off-the-field part of running your franchise.
Whereas in other sports games, like MLB The Show, whenever you negotiate in the off-season with players, you can see a happiness meter akin to the player's thoughts on a deal as you assemble it instantly. In NHL, you're stuck returning and forth, never really understanding what to do whenever a player decides he's going to hold out like this. That meter may be less realistic, but it helps keep the negotiation process from as being a chore. In the end, Shattenkirk signed with the Carolina Hurricanes for two years under he was requesting from me, as well as for a million more annually than he wanted from me. He never even mentioned the years were an issue. Fine-the Sea Dogs have no need for you anyway.
After the entry draft, signing other free agents, and getting through the pre-season, it was time to finally begin playing with my Franchise. Typically, a lot of the rest of this stays exactly the same from here on out. You attempt to win games, and hopefully just one cup, so that they can keep the owner happy; you adjust concession and ticket prices to maximize profitability; you make trades and sign free agents and make line adjustments as you see fit; you signal scouts around the world in preparation for next year's draft. And it's all just like fun as this past year.
When your team takes the ice, the presentation remains impressive. I made sure to select a city and mascot Doc Emrick recorded lines for, and so it sounds incredibly natural to hear him discuss the Seattle Sea Dogs with Eddie Olczyk and Ray Ferraro. The world fills with fans within the disgusting looking green and yellow, however they are thrilled to be there. Sometimes there is a few audio misfires, like when Eddie or Doc start talking about team history. Um, the Sea Dogs are officially per month old. What history? Or Doc would discuss a record-setting string of sellouts. Sure, Doc, we've had three home games at this time, however i guess it is a record.
The game's visual presentation is still the NBC graphics you see on TV, but it's also funny when the NBC “Wednesday Night Rivalry” package starts. We're a month old; we don't have any rivalries yet within the NHL. The UI a minimum of has seen upgrading, and not just the in-game menus. The main game menu now enables you to pin your preferred modes to the title screen when the game begins for easy access, or turn the page to the dozens of other modes available these days in NHL 18 this year.
Another staple of the NHL series is Be a Pro. Here you create a player on your own and then either ask them to work their in place as a teen through Canada and, hopefully earning their way to being drafted by an NHL team, or get picked to your favorite team immediately. I personally want nothing more than to experience for the Ny Rangers, and so i made sure this is where I finished up.
There happen to be two minor additions to Be a Pro mode which should make fans very happy, the first being that your player are now able to request a trade. In the event you work your way as much as being drafted by an NHL team, there's a suprisingly low percentage chance that the favorite team will take you. Requesting a trade means that if whatever you worry about is playing for the hometown boys, this will enable you to get the entire experience with moving up the ladder and becoming the reward you desperately desire.
The other is that Be considered a Pro mode does a more satisfactory job of judging your talent now. The past few years, I'd possess a blistering stat line for the Rangers within the preseason, with multiple points a game and doing everything my coaches asked of me, only to start the season back in the AHL because my overall rating wasn't high enough. It was so frustrating that often times I'd give up on the mode shortly after, but that wasn't the case this season. Even though I'd argue my stats were slightly worse than previous years, with only 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in seven preseason games, I was promptly placed on the Rangers' third-line. In the real world, this might not happen-but it is a gaming and I think EA Canada a minimum of recognized here that the little more leniency was warranted (and welcome).
The something I think Be considered a Pro mode lacks is simply more customization options. Actually, I believe this carries over to NHL 18 in general, going back to the mascot and team logo choices in Franchise, and the same for EASHL as well. Personalized goalie helmets, increased details and choices for existing equipment, and much more are essential across all these modes where you wish to put personal touches on everything. Out of the box, it feels like many of the options from this past year carried over and done with no real additions on this front.
As great as Franchise and Be a Pro mode are shaping up, prior to taking the ice in any mode in NHL 18, I recommend even dedicated players check out the new tutorial mode that is narrated by Ray Ferraro and Coach Tom Renney of Team Canada. There are some new tricks EA Canada put into NHL 18 that Tutorial Mode can give in-depth explanations on, and it offers a good way to practice each one of these new on-ice gameplay additions crammed into NHL 18-including all the new dekes available.
Stick physics would be a huge focus for gameplay this year, and it shows. Within the advanced tutorials, you can practice some insane dekes that the most skilled players-like Sidney Crosby, cover athlete Connor McDavid, or Auston Matthews-can make whenever the opportunity arises. A few of the controls are a bit convoluted, making practicing with the tutorial mode suggesting what do a welcome addition, and it's extremely satisfying whenever you score by lifting and bouncing the puck off your stick, dragging the puck wide and sliding it past an out of position goalie, or my personal favorite-the “Marek Malik” as I prefer to call it-shooting the puck between your own legs. There's still the on-ice trainer too, but in heat of the moment, you're typically not likely to turn to that to pull off a toe drag or other fancy move. So, this was a nice touch.
More intuitive stick improvements have also been made around the defensive side from the puck. Tapping the right bumper once again allows players to poke look into the puck with their stick; it's a move that continues to be a tad overpowered, especially online, as players love just poking their opponents before the puck pops from the stick (only occasionally make payment on price with a tripper penalty). To help give a more realistic feeling of hockey, though, you can now hold the right bumper following a poke check to manage your hockey stick to the best joystick, much like you'd during offense to drag off those crazy dekes I simply discussed. Manipulating the stick on defense allows your defenders to expand their wingspan, remove more passing lanes, and overall be a gnarlier nuisance on the ice. Be cautious, though, as it is also simpler to get the whistle for tripping if you start swinging the hang in there like a madman. As someone who appreciates good defense, though, this is a huge addition to the on-ice gameplay.
Once you learn each one of these crazy new moves in Tutorial, entering Franchise, Be a Pro, or one of the more sim-heavy modes NHL is renowned for isn't exactly a location where one can readily test them out against competition. That's part of what makes the largest new mode NHL 18 introduces even more fun. NHL Threes blends the simulation gameplay we typically keep company with the NHL franchise with increased arcade-driven fare in the past like Wayne Gretzky 3D Hockey or NHL Hitz.
NHL Threes takes the thrill of NHL overtime 3-on-3 hockey and completely turns it on its head. The rinks are smaller, the announcer seems like a brother of the guy from NBA Jam, and absolutely nothing is against the law except tripping and slashing. The action doesn't stop in NHL Threes before the period ends or the game ends. Penalties lead to automatic penalty shots; goals provide the puck to the team that was scored on; and major hits are encouraged while you watch pummeled players slide down the ice after massive hits. The additional ice space also enables you to get creative with how you attempt to score around the poor unsuspecting goalie.
Every NHL team is represented in Threes, and you may even play as a cavalcade of NHL mascots if you so choose. It's extra embarrassing when Stinger, the Columbus Blue Jackets mascot, may be the one who dekes you out of the skates and goes top shelf for that score. To add to the arcade nature of the game, there's also different rules. You can set the game for standard three NHL periods. Or, you are able to set the winning conditions to a certain quantity of goals, winning by two, or switch on the Moneypuck, that are special pucks that inflate/deflate the score depending on their color. Golden Moneypucks count two or perhaps three goals; ice blue Moneypucks will reward you team an objective, but also steal one, two, or three goals from your opponent. The sport can alter immediately whenever a Moneypuck is involved.
As fun so that as zany as this mode is-especially being this type of departure from the typical NHL experience-there's also a deep circuit mode. You're tasked with using the lowly Fridge Raiders, a minor league team by having an overall 60 rating, and beating every pro team and their minor league affiliates across four circuits which will take you across every major locale in the United states hockey world. You can set the difficulty to very easy if you so choose, but higher difficulties also provide better chances to earn better players to increase the Fridge Raiders, and new arenas and jerseys for online play. NHL Threes could've been a whole standalone game on its own, and here you go because the best new mode arrive at the NHL series inside a long time.
Speaking of online play, NHL 18's seems steady in its pre-launch state. I played several online versus, HUT, and EASHL games, and experienced no issues. Obviously, there never appeared to be lots of hundred folks online at a given time-whether it was those who preordered the game or were using EA Access-but our experience combined with franchise's online stability historically, I have no reason to believe it will not be equipped to handle the burden at launch.
And, of course, this leads us into NHL 18's online suite of modes. The NHL series provides more options to have fun with your pals than every other sports game out there, allowing a totally free mixing of local an internet-based players across all of their modes. NHL Threes' online play is great if you and a handful of friends are looking for an arcade experience. Meanwhile, HUT went the Madden route and merged with Draft Champions. Unlike Madden, however, Draft Champions is not behind any sort of level wall, and could be accessed right from the start. You can still attempt to draft the best team of hockey players over 12 rounds and from an assortment of classes to defend myself against the AI, or try to run the gauntlet of one-on-one games against online human players. HUT has also seen a UI shift, partially brought upon through the Draft Champions merge, that I personally feel has become the very best of the EA Sporting activities. It's neat and gets you directly into whatever action you are looking for as quickly as possible, whether again playing solo or against other players. Even HUT Sets are simpler to access and navigate this season it felt like.
Finally, the biggest and most accessible change came on the EASHL front. Both you and your buddies can continue to all enroll in a team together and go online to try to bring your team to glory in online seasons much like those seen in HUT. However, the difficulty of attempting to obtain six people together has become gone. 6-on-6 hockey remains, obviously, but a little inspiration from NHL Threes, EASHL now has a 3-on-3 mode, too, however with regular hockey rules. What this means is less individuals need to make a resolve for keep the respective EASHL team continuing to move forward, but also changes the gameplay drastically with increased open ice to create plays, and more pressure on each player to not screw up.
NHL 18 continues to be EA Sports' most consistently great series. Some minor annoyances from previous years continue to appear, but new modes, new gameplay, and new features within series staples like Franchise and become a Pro will have you sharpening your skates long in to the winter. Now, all we have to do is talk to Gary Bettman about how exactly we will make the Seattle Sea Dogs a real possibility.
