By @StefanKubus –

EA SPORTS returns with its latest hard-hitting installment in the long-running NHL video game series: NHL 17 (in stores and available digitally Tuesday, Sept. 13 on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One).

With an array of new features and enhancements across the board, including the World Cup of Hockey, it certainly feels like a big-enough step past last year’s edition to warrant a purchase.

Right from the initial boot-up, they work to cater the game to your personal playing style and preferences.

Before you even set foot onto the virtual ice, the game will first prompt you to choose a variety of hospitality settings based on both preference and experience, including which difficulty you wish to play on.

Of course, if you play offline, you can always adjust nearly every aspect of the game via the Gameplay Sliders in the Settings menu, from game speed and shot power to the goaltender’s reaction time.

When it comes to the gameplay itself, it certainly feels much better than last year’s installment in the subtle tweaks that have been made. Players will now seamlessly pick up loose pucks and catch passes on the fly without delay. Defensemen and forwards will now realistically battle in front of the net for position, and goaltenders have seen a slight overhaul with new animations and new Reactionary Save Intelligence, which is certainly a welcome addition. There’s no better feeling than being in full control of robbing a forward’s forehand-backhand breakaway bid. And likewise, as a forward using EA SPORTS’ Skill Stick – using one analog stick on the controller to guide a player’s skates and the other to control his stick – it’s still my favorite feeling in the game to score top shelf on the backhand.

The gameplay does seem a bit clunky at times, but I believe that’s just a byproduct of their attempt to make everything as realistic as possible. Due to the often unpredictable nature of hockey, I imagine it’ll always be nearly impossible to control your player with 100-percent accuracy. The more that set animations are thrown out in favor of real-time motion and additional control in the player’s hands, the more tricky it becomes to accurately reflect full-simulation hockey. Sometimes, however, that can lead to some realistic goals. In my first game, there was a scenario where players were battling in front of the goal, the puck was loose in the slot and after my player jammed away at it, the third attempt ended up going in. While a far cry from the fancy dangle, it just felt like a genuine hockey garbage goal.

If you’re just picking up this game for the first time, EA SPORTS has included the Visual On-Ice Trainer 2.0. This is essentially a guide to help assist you with decision-making and provides dynamic feedback to help get you seasoned. Of course, this can be disabled in the menus.

On the presentation front, it’s a full NBC broadcast once again with Doc Emrick, Ed Olczyk and Ray Ferraro between the benches. As much as I enjoy Doc Emrick’s legendary play-by-play style in real life, it just doesn’t translate quite as well to the video game. Personally, I would prefer if they brought back Jim Hughson and Craig Simpson from the early 2000s. That said, the commentary combined with the full NBC broadcast style is quite true to life, which makes for the most realistic presentation to date.

The menus seem much more responsive and just plain quicker than last year. Speaking of the menus, there’s a full soundtrack this year, too, for the first time since the series has come to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One (no more of the constant generic theme music, though it is still available if it tickles your fancy).

While the gameplay is ultimately the core experience when it’s all said and done, EA SPORTS has also implemented a number of much-needed features throughout the robust slate of game modes.

Customization

I must confess something: I’m a customization nut.

That’s why I specifically chose to lead with this segment. EA SPORTS has added something I’ve been waiting for since NHL 2004: arena customization.

Pick what type of jumbotron you want in your arena. Choose the colors of the seats, walls and railings. Personalize the in-game presentation for goals, power plays, team introductions and victories. You can have smoke or fire shoot out of the jumbotron when a goal is scored, set LED lights to flash on the stanchions and even choose from a wide variety of goal horns and songs. For my custom team, the Hartford Hounds, I fittingly chose a goal horn called “Dog,” which – as you likely guessed – featured a dog barking after the horn sounded. I was pleasantly surprised to find that having already chosen my team name and logo. And after wins, what else could I select but a chorus singing Hallelujah?

Now (something I hope to do albeit incredibly time-consuming) it seems possible to create 30 unique teams – maybe not 30 unique arenas necessarily – and have them replace the NHL teams in Franchise Mode. Then you could hold a fantasy draft and create an entire new league.

When it comes to individual player customization, whether you play Be a Pro mode offline or EA SPORTS Hockey League online, you’ll be pleasantly surprised with how specifically you can swag out your virtual dangler. Player models and facial features appear as true-to-life as ever. EA SPORTS has added the latest equipment, numerous new celebrations and even new Jaromir Jagr-esque hairstyles to allow for the most intimate customization experience to date.

Even for goaltenders, a variety of new masks have been added, something lacking in previous editions.

Video showcasing the Create Team process and its many features:

Franchise Mode

For those of who you enjoyed Be a GM mode, rest assured; it hasn’t been removed in NHL 17, but rather EA SPORTS made immense additions to it and have called it Franchise Mode. So now, in addition to playing general manager, you can take even fuller control of your organization. Set ticket prices, upgrade your facilities, run a promotional bobblehead night for your star player and – should the owner agree – even relocate your franchise elsewhere. If you relocate, you can then use the aforementioned Create-a-Team tools to completely draw up new uniforms and design an arena for the new franchise.

In my brief experience with Franchise Mode, I needed to repair the arena’s bathrooms and upgrade the arena club seats and concessions by the end of the season with my budget. I was also asked to set promotional nights for the season, in which I set two bobblehead nights and a t-shirt giveaway night.

This newly-christened Franchise Mode brought me back to the same level of detail included in the Owner Mode from another EA SPORTS blast from the past: MVP Baseball 2005, widely-regarded as one of the best baseball games of all-time.

This may seem like a lot to balance, so of course, you can simply play without all of that and just be a general manager again. But it really is an enriching experience, especially if you’re a customization nut like I am.

Be a Pro

Be a Pro honestly didn’t need all that much in terms of improvements, so EA SPORTS perfectly filled the void I felt in my past experiences with a number of minor changes.

Now Be a Pro (and other game modes) will celebrate major player moments and milestones with improvements to broadcast and presentation. A player’s first NHL game, goal, hat trick and fight will all be memorialized in the game. Also, key milestones like a player’s 500^th career goal or retirement game will also be celebrated.

A mode like this is still far behind what the NBA 2K series has done with its comparable game mode, where there are full cinematic scenes featuring your player on draft day, with his family, etc.

Draft Champions/Hockey Ultimate Team

Arguably EA SPORTS’ most popular online game mode has seen some terrific new additions that make for more enjoyable, lasting experience.

Hockey Ultimate Team, which essentially allows you to construct a fantasy team via trading cards – you can buy individual player cards on the auction house or hope to score your dream player in a pack of cards.

Now, for those who don’t have quite as much time to sit down and dive into HUT, Draft Champions has been introduced. Here, you start with a team of randomized players based on a theme – there are four themes to pick from, such as World Cup of Hockey players, young rising stars or European players. Through a draft of 12 rounds, you are presented with four cards in each round and you pick one each time to upgrade your pre-randomized roster. Once your draft has been completed, you play in a series of four games. You won’t earn any coins for HUT, but you will receive one Draft Champions collectible card per victory for use in HUT. You can then trade these in for various HUT rewards, such as high-rated individual player cards. Also, it’s a great way to test out the high-end cards to see whether or not you like those players and want to add them to your roster down the road.

Also new are the additions of Dynamic Sets. As reward for completing a team’s player and jersey set (fortunately most teams don’t require the highest-rated players for this), you can unlock one “hero” card per team, featuring a legend from that organization for use in HUT. For example, completing a Red Wings set unlocks a special, 94-overall Brendan Shanahan card. Heroes are just one of the themed cards this year. Throughout the year, EA SPORTS releases Teams of the Week, Players of the Game, Movember cards and more based off real-life performances.

Additionally, no need to immediately sell off your duplicate cards anymore. Dynamic Sets allow you to trade in various cards for upgraded cards. For example, trading in any 10 Gold Head Coach or Arena cards can unlock a Gold Collectible card, which can then be exchanged for better rewards.

But despite these changes, as it usually goes with HUT, I find it hard to compete sometimes with the players who pour loads of real money into buying countless packs. I imagine this will be no different in NHL 17. That said, EA SPORTS gives you the option to play HUT entirely offline, wherein you can still earn pucks to buy packs and individual cards on the Auction House.

Video of a HUT pack opening, featuring a legend card:

EA SPORTS Hockey League

Many of the changes in the EASHL come from aforementioned additions in team and player customization. Now, in addition to team uniforms, you can now completely create a home arena for you and your buddies to play in online. As your team progresses and hits milestones, you will unlock more features to eventually upgrade your arena to look like a five-star NHL facility.

As you progress your player by earning milestone badges and advancing levels, you can unlock celebrations, equipment and hairstyles to enhance your character’s look and style on the ice.

If you’re not on a team, no problem. There’s drop-in games you can jump into any time. And compared to past editions of EASHL, it’s much easier to get into games now, as you can select your position before connecting to a game. This makes starting a game much more seamless as nobody has to fight for positions anymore.

 

SCORE: 8.9/10

If you’re on the fence about this year’s edition or have sat out for a year or two, now is the time to get back into the game. NHL 16 just couldn’t quite keep my attention for a full hockey season, but this appears to be the year that keeps me coming back for more with all the customization additions and significant improvements to the already-existing game modes. Even as someone that primarily plays offline, I can see myself taking the plunge into the online side far more often with the changes made in NHL 17.