NHL 2006 Impressions
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NHL 2006 Impressions
might as well get these going.......
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hoserthehorrible
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Pretty good game out of the box. I made a few adjustments to the sliders and the gameplay is actually very good now.
Positives....
Skating is very fluid and realistic. You can turn and stop however you can't skate 100mph and turn on a dime.
Speed burst is very well done this year for the most part. You can't just mash the speed burst button all game long and get away with it. You also lose control of the puck if you speed burst for too long.
Checking is toned way down from NHL2005. I found the human controlled hitting a little too easy on default settings so I turned down the hitting power and turned up the hitting difficulty.
Defense is a lot of fun to play this year. With checking turned down, you really have to play a fundamentally sound positional defense to stop the cpu. The poke check works great, as does the hook, when used in moderation. You can also hit, slash and pin an opponent but don't do them too often or you'll get a penalty.
Lots of ways to score. One timers, wrap arounds, rebound put backs, loose puck knock ins, shots from the point, wristers through screens, tip ins, etc.
The AI plays very solid offense and sets up plays. They are actually fairly tough to stop on medium level and you have to play well positionally to stop them.
Setting up the offense is really fun this year, specially on the power play. You have a little time to set up your plays, you can cycle the puck, and also find open players for great scoring chances.
The replays at the end of each period are excellent. All the good scoring chances and big hits are replayed if you care to take the time to watch them all.
The penalties seem fairly realistic. If I slash a guy too many times I'll get a slashing penalty. If I hook em too much same thing. I've also seen tripping penalties when poke checking too much and holding penalties when pinning opponents too much. Fighting penalties also occur like last year. I haven't seen any 5 minute majors (other than fighting) or misconduct penalties either yet.
Negatives....
The CPU doesn't hit as much as I'd like. They play pretty solid positional defense but they don't hit quite enough. It's possible that the sliders can be figured out to alleviate this but I'm not too optimistic that you can get just the right balance of CPU hits.
The CPU gives me just a little too much room to maneuver in the neutral zone and in the offensive zone before attacking me. It's not too bad but I can set up shop in the corners or behind the net usually and look for a pass. The CPU will attack me if I go to the net with the puck or make a pass for a scoring chance though. At least on medium and difficult the CPU will attack me if I just stand there with the puck in spite of what WAZ's video shows.
The goalies stack the pads a little too much. It's not that the pad stack is unrealistic it's moreso that they do it a little too often.
The announcers do a good job however they're the same old announcing team from the last few years. Just for a change of pace I'd like to see new announcers next year.
The rosters are about a month out of date. Nothing a good day or two of roster editing can't fix though.
Most of this is gameplay related. I haven't gotten into the franchise or other stuff yet.
My first impressions of this game is that it's a helluva lot of fun, fairly realistic although not quite perfect, and a huge improvement over NHL2005.
Positives....
Skating is very fluid and realistic. You can turn and stop however you can't skate 100mph and turn on a dime.
Speed burst is very well done this year for the most part. You can't just mash the speed burst button all game long and get away with it. You also lose control of the puck if you speed burst for too long.
Checking is toned way down from NHL2005. I found the human controlled hitting a little too easy on default settings so I turned down the hitting power and turned up the hitting difficulty.
Defense is a lot of fun to play this year. With checking turned down, you really have to play a fundamentally sound positional defense to stop the cpu. The poke check works great, as does the hook, when used in moderation. You can also hit, slash and pin an opponent but don't do them too often or you'll get a penalty.
Lots of ways to score. One timers, wrap arounds, rebound put backs, loose puck knock ins, shots from the point, wristers through screens, tip ins, etc.
The AI plays very solid offense and sets up plays. They are actually fairly tough to stop on medium level and you have to play well positionally to stop them.
Setting up the offense is really fun this year, specially on the power play. You have a little time to set up your plays, you can cycle the puck, and also find open players for great scoring chances.
The replays at the end of each period are excellent. All the good scoring chances and big hits are replayed if you care to take the time to watch them all.
The penalties seem fairly realistic. If I slash a guy too many times I'll get a slashing penalty. If I hook em too much same thing. I've also seen tripping penalties when poke checking too much and holding penalties when pinning opponents too much. Fighting penalties also occur like last year. I haven't seen any 5 minute majors (other than fighting) or misconduct penalties either yet.
Negatives....
The CPU doesn't hit as much as I'd like. They play pretty solid positional defense but they don't hit quite enough. It's possible that the sliders can be figured out to alleviate this but I'm not too optimistic that you can get just the right balance of CPU hits.
The CPU gives me just a little too much room to maneuver in the neutral zone and in the offensive zone before attacking me. It's not too bad but I can set up shop in the corners or behind the net usually and look for a pass. The CPU will attack me if I go to the net with the puck or make a pass for a scoring chance though. At least on medium and difficult the CPU will attack me if I just stand there with the puck in spite of what WAZ's video shows.
The goalies stack the pads a little too much. It's not that the pad stack is unrealistic it's moreso that they do it a little too often.
The announcers do a good job however they're the same old announcing team from the last few years. Just for a change of pace I'd like to see new announcers next year.
The rosters are about a month out of date. Nothing a good day or two of roster editing can't fix though.
Most of this is gameplay related. I haven't gotten into the franchise or other stuff yet.
My first impressions of this game is that it's a helluva lot of fun, fairly realistic although not quite perfect, and a huge improvement over NHL2005.
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pk500
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OK, the podcast can wait. I popped in NHL 06 and played a quick game, and I'm feeling like a bit of a dick for making two trips to EB.
NHL 06 is improved, but it's still too carnival for me.
Impressions from a Calgary at Edmonton game on Medium skill, the second-highest level:
First, the speed of the game, passes and shots is way too fast. So I turned down the pass speed to 0, and pucks still rip around the rink, tape to tape. You'll never miss a pass. Your only hope is to turn way up the pass interception slider. I turned the shot speed down to one click, and every shot has the same speed -- still too fast.
But the big bugaboo for me is the utter lack of checking in the neutral zone and board play. I know the NHL is trying to open up the game with these new rules, but the neutral zone looks like an open house for a gorgeous home on your street. Just walk right in -- come on down. It's so f*cking easy to enter the offensive zone it's not funny. No defensemen tried to stand me up at the blue line.
And there is no cycling of the puck whatsoever by the CPU team. They'll tic-tac-toe it around the circles and the slot, but not behind the net. I never was pinned once. Hell, I was barely checked, and I fiddled with those sliders.
Oh, you better turn penalties up considerably because I saw zero at default. None. Not one. The rinks also feel smaller than in ESPN NHL 2K5 to me.
Finally, the right skill stick is silly. Everyone, including goons, can do a spin-a-rama.
It's only one game, and I'll give it more time. But this game is NOT NHL 2004, based on my first impressions. It's improved over NHL 2005, but my first inclination is that this game is getting way too much love here and elsewhere. It's not the sim that NHL 2004 was and definitely not the sim that NHL 2K5 was.
More impressions to come. I need to tinker with the sliders, big time, to see if this game can resemble a sim at all.
Positives include the graphics, which are nice, the roster update already on XBL, the international league and national teams, and the skating physics. But the skating physics aren't the same or as good as NHL 2004. They're kind of a hybrid of NHL 2004 and NHL 2K5. Better than 2K5, but not as good as NHL 2004. And NHL 06 has nowhere near the amount of cool animations you saw in NHL 2K5, not at least in the game I played.
Take care,
PK
NHL 06 is improved, but it's still too carnival for me.
Impressions from a Calgary at Edmonton game on Medium skill, the second-highest level:
First, the speed of the game, passes and shots is way too fast. So I turned down the pass speed to 0, and pucks still rip around the rink, tape to tape. You'll never miss a pass. Your only hope is to turn way up the pass interception slider. I turned the shot speed down to one click, and every shot has the same speed -- still too fast.
But the big bugaboo for me is the utter lack of checking in the neutral zone and board play. I know the NHL is trying to open up the game with these new rules, but the neutral zone looks like an open house for a gorgeous home on your street. Just walk right in -- come on down. It's so f*cking easy to enter the offensive zone it's not funny. No defensemen tried to stand me up at the blue line.
And there is no cycling of the puck whatsoever by the CPU team. They'll tic-tac-toe it around the circles and the slot, but not behind the net. I never was pinned once. Hell, I was barely checked, and I fiddled with those sliders.
Oh, you better turn penalties up considerably because I saw zero at default. None. Not one. The rinks also feel smaller than in ESPN NHL 2K5 to me.
Finally, the right skill stick is silly. Everyone, including goons, can do a spin-a-rama.
It's only one game, and I'll give it more time. But this game is NOT NHL 2004, based on my first impressions. It's improved over NHL 2005, but my first inclination is that this game is getting way too much love here and elsewhere. It's not the sim that NHL 2004 was and definitely not the sim that NHL 2K5 was.
More impressions to come. I need to tinker with the sliders, big time, to see if this game can resemble a sim at all.
Positives include the graphics, which are nice, the roster update already on XBL, the international league and national teams, and the skating physics. But the skating physics aren't the same or as good as NHL 2004. They're kind of a hybrid of NHL 2004 and NHL 2K5. Better than 2K5, but not as good as NHL 2004. And NHL 06 has nowhere near the amount of cool animations you saw in NHL 2K5, not at least in the game I played.
Take care,
PK
"You know why I love boxers? I love them because they face fear. And they face it alone." - Nick Charles
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
I picked it up tonite and played a couple of games.....
there are lots of ways to adjust gameplay.......from sliders to adjusting a team's offensive and defensive strategies at the pre-game screen. The gameplay is a lot of fun and I think once we discover the right combination of settings, it will be a very solid game. There weren't any GLARING flaws, only things I wish would get better. I will report more later....
there are lots of ways to adjust gameplay.......from sliders to adjusting a team's offensive and defensive strategies at the pre-game screen. The gameplay is a lot of fun and I think once we discover the right combination of settings, it will be a very solid game. There weren't any GLARING flaws, only things I wish would get better. I will report more later....
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pk500
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Just played another game, this time on Difficult setting. I turned all speed assists and game speed to zero clicks. Same with shot accuracy, pass speed and shot power. Turned pass interceptions all the way up, and turned up aggressiveness to nearly max.
And I don't know how much more of this I can take. This is torture.
The f*cking pass speeds are a joke. Detroit moved a puck tic-tac-toe from behind my goal to nearly my blue line in about a second -- bing, bang, bing -- with the pass speed set to zero.
Shots remind me of the old FIFA games -- all too fast. There is no board play, no neutral zone play, no pinning. Nothing. It's up-and-down hockey, even with the speed set to zero.
I haven't missed a pass even with interceptions maxxed out. Two of my shots have missed the net, and the CPU hasn't missed the net once -- with shot accuracy turned to zero.
I'm really scratching my head at this one. I can't believe people are blowing this game. Maybe NHL 2005 was so bad that people are willing NHL 06 to be good. It might be fun, but it's not a sim. Not even close.
More playtesting to come. I owe it to myself to give this game a very good chance, and two or three games are not a proper chance.
But honestly, I don't know how much more I can take. My distaste for this game is very strong, especially since I drove back to EB, 20 minutes each way, to get it.
Take care,
PK
And I don't know how much more of this I can take. This is torture.
The f*cking pass speeds are a joke. Detroit moved a puck tic-tac-toe from behind my goal to nearly my blue line in about a second -- bing, bang, bing -- with the pass speed set to zero.
Shots remind me of the old FIFA games -- all too fast. There is no board play, no neutral zone play, no pinning. Nothing. It's up-and-down hockey, even with the speed set to zero.
I haven't missed a pass even with interceptions maxxed out. Two of my shots have missed the net, and the CPU hasn't missed the net once -- with shot accuracy turned to zero.
I'm really scratching my head at this one. I can't believe people are blowing this game. Maybe NHL 2005 was so bad that people are willing NHL 06 to be good. It might be fun, but it's not a sim. Not even close.
More playtesting to come. I owe it to myself to give this game a very good chance, and two or three games are not a proper chance.
But honestly, I don't know how much more I can take. My distaste for this game is very strong, especially since I drove back to EB, 20 minutes each way, to get it.
Take care,
PK
"You know why I love boxers? I love them because they face fear. And they face it alone." - Nick Charles
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
Keep them coming, PK. All of the praise had me from being on the fence, to going out tomorrow to pick it up.pk500 wrote:Just played another game, this time on Difficult setting. I turned all speed assists and game speed to zero clicks. Same with shot accuracy, pass speed and shot power. Turned pass interceptions all the way up, and turned up aggressiveness to nearly max.
And I don't know how much more of this I can take. This is torture.
The f*cking pass speeds are a joke. Detroit moved a puck tic-tac-toe from behind my goal to nearly my blue line in about a second -- bing, bang, bing -- with the pass speed set to zero.
Shots remind me of the old FIFA games -- all too fast. There is no board play, no neutral zone play, no pinning. Nothing. It's up-and-down hockey, even with the speed set to zero.
I haven't missed a pass even with interceptions maxxed out. Two of my shots have missed the net, and the CPU hasn't missed the net once -- with shot accuracy turned to zero.
I'm really scratching my head at this one. I can't believe people are blowing this game. Maybe NHL 2005 was so bad that people are willing NHL 06 to be good. It might be fun, but it's not a sim. Not even close.
More playtesting to come. I owe it to myself to give this game a very good chance, and two or three games are not a proper chance.
But honestly, I don't know how much more I can take. My distaste for this game is very strong, especially since I drove back to EB, 20 minutes each way, to get it.
Take care,
PK
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pk500
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Sully:
I'm going to play some more tonight, but this might be an all-time record for the quickest posting on eBay after a purchase in my life.
If you're a sim hockey fan or a 2K series fan, I would recommend avoiding this game.
Hopefully I'll figure some magic slider setting combination or see one posted.
F*cking-a, I wish my EB had this on a kiosk. I NEVER would have purchased it if I had a chance to play it. It gives me the feeling of limburger cheese sitting on a hot sidewalk for about four hours.
Stinks.
Take care,
PK
I'm going to play some more tonight, but this might be an all-time record for the quickest posting on eBay after a purchase in my life.
If you're a sim hockey fan or a 2K series fan, I would recommend avoiding this game.
Hopefully I'll figure some magic slider setting combination or see one posted.
F*cking-a, I wish my EB had this on a kiosk. I NEVER would have purchased it if I had a chance to play it. It gives me the feeling of limburger cheese sitting on a hot sidewalk for about four hours.
Stinks.
Take care,
PK
"You know why I love boxers? I love them because they face fear. And they face it alone." - Nick Charles
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
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pk500
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Hey, if you're looking for a run-and-gun, fun game, NHL 06 will work. But it's not in the same league as NHL 2K5 as a sim. I don't have NHL 2K6 yet. Well, I did have it and F*CKING returned it tonight for this damn game!vader29 wrote:Same here, I almost went out tonight to pick it up.Sully wrote:
Keep them coming, PK. All of the praise had me from being on the fence, to going out tomorrow to pick it up.
Looks like no new hockey game for me this year.
Take care,
PK
"You know why I love boxers? I love them because they face fear. And they face it alone." - Nick Charles
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
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pk500
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Jack:JackB1 wrote:PK - online play may fix all these AI problems
I want a game that plays great offline and online. I play hockey more than any other team sport on the consoles.
Plus, I don't see how online play is going to stop the laser, accurate passes and shots unless there's a completely different game engine for online play.
The sad thing is, the AI positioning isn't half-bad. So that's not a problem that online play needs to cure.
Take care,
PK
"You know why I love boxers? I love them because they face fear. And they face it alone." - Nick Charles
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
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dbdynsty25
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pk500
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Lord, NHL 06 is getting worse the more I play it. More problems:
-- I'm averaging one to two penalties <b>per game</b> with the penalty slider <b>maxxed</b>.
-- My defensemen are making no-look passes, while pinned along the glass behind their net, to forwards up at the blue line. What, are they using the reflection of the glass for vision?
-- The lack of hitting is appalling. I'm deliberately trying to use contact situations, such as taking a small wing along the boards while entering the zone and just leisurely skating along the boards toward the corner. The defensemen <b>NEVER</b> leave the lane to pinch me against the boards and take me out of the play. Never. I'm rarely hit in the neutral zone, too.
-- I saw an 89-mph wrist shot from the low crease to the goal.
-- The CPU goalie covers the puck once or twice <b>per game</b>, on average.
-- The CPU never ices the puck and rarely goes offsides. Once per game on the offsides, if lucky.
-- I have shot accuracy set to zero, and I've seen the CPU miss the net <b>once</b> in a bunch of games.
I have the most sim settings I can find. Zeroes on speed, speed boost, pass accuracy, pass speed, shot power, shot accuracy; maxxed on pass interceptions, player fatigue, aggressiveness, checking. And this does nothing to help this game.
Man, what a bag of goods this game is. I can't believe people are calling this a hockey sim. It's not. The more I play it, the more it's closer to NHL 2005 than NHL 2004, except for EA hasn't toned down the physical play. It's removed it.
Take care,
PK
-- I'm averaging one to two penalties <b>per game</b> with the penalty slider <b>maxxed</b>.
-- My defensemen are making no-look passes, while pinned along the glass behind their net, to forwards up at the blue line. What, are they using the reflection of the glass for vision?
-- The lack of hitting is appalling. I'm deliberately trying to use contact situations, such as taking a small wing along the boards while entering the zone and just leisurely skating along the boards toward the corner. The defensemen <b>NEVER</b> leave the lane to pinch me against the boards and take me out of the play. Never. I'm rarely hit in the neutral zone, too.
-- I saw an 89-mph wrist shot from the low crease to the goal.
-- The CPU goalie covers the puck once or twice <b>per game</b>, on average.
-- The CPU never ices the puck and rarely goes offsides. Once per game on the offsides, if lucky.
-- I have shot accuracy set to zero, and I've seen the CPU miss the net <b>once</b> in a bunch of games.
I have the most sim settings I can find. Zeroes on speed, speed boost, pass accuracy, pass speed, shot power, shot accuracy; maxxed on pass interceptions, player fatigue, aggressiveness, checking. And this does nothing to help this game.
Man, what a bag of goods this game is. I can't believe people are calling this a hockey sim. It's not. The more I play it, the more it's closer to NHL 2005 than NHL 2004, except for EA hasn't toned down the physical play. It's removed it.
Take care,
PK
"You know why I love boxers? I love them because they face fear. And they face it alone." - Nick Charles
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
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Jimmydeicide
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pk500
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-- Nice menus.rubba19 wrote:PK, is there ANYTHING you like about it?
Anyone get this for PC yet?
-- Cool throwback jerseys available from the start -- no unlocking needed.
-- The fighting engine is excellent, but that's not why I buy hockey games.
-- Good soundtrack.
-- Hughson seems a bit toned-down as a commentator even though he has, does and always will suck.
-- CPU works the puck around its zone much better than in past EA hockey games, even if that passing never involves cycling behind the net and the passes are WAY too fast and accurate, even with slider adjustments.
But I honestly need to dig deep into my memory from last night to think of anything else I liked on the ice. NHL 06 has to rank as the biggest letdown of the year for me when matched to the hype and feedback from others.
Sometimes I really think I got a beta disc or something instead of the final retail version. I can't believe I'm playing the same game as some of you who have praised it.
Granted, I've watched and played hockey for more than 30 years and am a stickler for accuracy with hockey games possibly more than any other sport. But I'm really puzzled at the praise this game is earning and now can't wait to get my mitts back on NHL 2K6 and actually remove the cellophane this time.
Take care,
PK
"You know why I love boxers? I love them because they face fear. And they face it alone." - Nick Charles
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
PK.....on the surface, it's a fun, smooth, nice looking game that plays a decent game of hockey. But the more you look deeper into it, the more it's glaring weaknesses come out to bite in the ass. You almost have to force yourself not to take advantage of the piss poor defensive AI to have any fun. I can literally start behind my net and carry the puck all the way up ice and get a close in shot off almost every time. I also found an almost sure way to get easy goals......you just keep skating accross the xrease until the goalie flops and then you roof the puck. Way too easy.
I was having fun with this game for a few games, but then qucikly tired of the inept defense. I tried playing on the highest difficulty setting, which helped the challenge factor, but the game didn't resemble hockey. The AI would tick, tack, toe bullet passes all over the place like mad without hardly any skating with the puck or stickhandling. All you hear is click, click, click, click, clickity-click click. The I took the game online in hopes of finding something to save this game, but no. There are loads of problems just getting hooked up with someone and getting a game started. And then when you do, you are forced to play at too fast a gamespeed if you want a ranked game. I would like to try a game against a friend, which sim-like settings, to see how that is. Anyway....
things are looking bleek for NHL06 for anyone who takes their hockey remotely seriously. Very puzzling why EA would release a game that plays zero defense and no checking, even on the highest settings.
My only hope is to get the PC version and hope someone can edit the rosters/player attributes to conter-act the horrible default settings.
I was having fun with this game for a few games, but then qucikly tired of the inept defense. I tried playing on the highest difficulty setting, which helped the challenge factor, but the game didn't resemble hockey. The AI would tick, tack, toe bullet passes all over the place like mad without hardly any skating with the puck or stickhandling. All you hear is click, click, click, click, clickity-click click. The I took the game online in hopes of finding something to save this game, but no. There are loads of problems just getting hooked up with someone and getting a game started. And then when you do, you are forced to play at too fast a gamespeed if you want a ranked game. I would like to try a game against a friend, which sim-like settings, to see how that is. Anyway....
things are looking bleek for NHL06 for anyone who takes their hockey remotely seriously. Very puzzling why EA would release a game that plays zero defense and no checking, even on the highest settings.
My only hope is to get the PC version and hope someone can edit the rosters/player attributes to conter-act the horrible default settings.
I don't believe anybody ever came out and said this was a total sim. It's a fun freaking game and alot of people are saying that. A lot of people are also saying that NHL06 is the better game this year. I couldn't put it down last night, I don't remember the last game that I bought where i started a season on the first night of having the damn game. The game is without a doubt a helluva lot more fun to play than 2K6, maybe people have just grown stale of 2K6 since I've seen alot of threads stating that. I think if you're blowing off NHL06 because it's not sim enough you're going to miss out a pretty decent game.pk500 wrote:-- Nice menus.rubba19 wrote:PK, is there ANYTHING you like about it?
Anyone get this for PC yet?
-- Cool throwback jerseys available from the start -- no unlocking needed.
-- The fighting engine is excellent, but that's not why I buy hockey games.
-- Good soundtrack.
-- Hughson seems a bit toned-down as a commentator even though he has, does and always will suck.
-- CPU works the puck around its zone much better than in past EA hockey games, even if that passing never involves cycling behind the net and the passes are WAY too fast and accurate, even with slider adjustments.
But I honestly need to dig deep into my memory from last night to think of anything else I liked on the ice. NHL 06 has to rank as the biggest letdown of the year for me when matched to the hype and feedback from others.
Sometimes I really think I got a beta disc or something instead of the final retail version. I can't believe I'm playing the same game as some of you who have praised it.
Granted, I've watched and played hockey for more than 30 years and am a stickler for accuracy with hockey games possibly more than any other sport. But I'm really puzzled at the praise this game is earning and now can't wait to get my mitts back on NHL 2K6 and actually remove the cellophane this time.
Take care,
PK
Tim
"tjungin it"
PS4 - tjung0831
Xbox - NHLTIM
"tjungin it"
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Xbox - NHLTIM
Tim.........how is it "fun" when you can skate end to end and take a shot from 15 feet out every time? Once I found how easy it was to score by just cutting back and forth accross the crease until the golie flops and then you roof the puck, it took all the fun out of the game for me. I am all for a "fun" game, but these glaring weakesses take the fun out.
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pk500
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Glad I'm not alone, Jack. Sorry it sucks for you, too.JackB1 wrote:PK.....on the surface, it's a fun, smooth, nice looking game that plays a decent game of hockey. But the more you look deeper into it, the more it's glaring weaknesses come out to bite in the ass. You almost have to force yourself not to take advantage of the piss poor defensive AI to have any fun. I can literally start behind my net and carry the puck all the way up ice and get a close in shot off almost every time. I also found an almost sure way to get easy goals......you just keep skating accross the xrease until the goalie flops and then you roof the puck. Way too easy.
I was having fun with this game for a few games, but then qucikly tired of the inept defense. I tried playing on the highest difficulty setting, which helped the challenge factor, but the game didn't resemble hockey. The AI would tick, tack, toe bullet passes all over the place like mad without hardly any skating with the puck or stickhandling. All you hear is click, click, click, click, clickity-click click. The I took the game online in hopes of finding something to save this game, but no. There are loads of problems just getting hooked up with someone and getting a game started. And then when you do, you are forced to play at too fast a gamespeed if you want a ranked game. I would like to try a game against a friend, which sim-like settings, to see how that is. Anyway....
things are looking bleek for NHL06 for anyone who takes their hockey remotely seriously. Very puzzling why EA would release a game that plays zero defense and no checking, even on the highest settings.
My only hope is to get the PC version and hope someone can edit the rosters/player attributes to conter-act the horrible default settings.
Take care,
PK
"You know why I love boxers? I love them because they face fear. And they face it alone." - Nick Charles
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
"First on the throttle, last on the brakes." - @MotoGP Twitter signature
XBL Gamertag: pk4425
I find the game extremely fun, I havne't even won a game yet on the medium level. It all comes down to preference, i was tired of 2K5 as are apparently a lot of other people.JackB1 wrote:Tim.........how is it "fun" when you can skate end to end and take a shot from 15 feet out every time? Once I found how easy it was to score by just cutting back and forth accross the crease until the golie flops and then you roof the puck, it took all the fun out of the game for me. I am all for a "fun" game, but these glaring weakesses take the fun out.
Damn...Paul was really getting into with the people on OS...over a damn game!! TOO f***in FUNNY!!! People are liking NHL06 and Paul is trashing it as much as he can!! PK is not a happy man when people give props to EA!
Tim
"tjungin it"
PS4 - tjung0831
Xbox - NHLTIM
"tjungin it"
PS4 - tjung0831
Xbox - NHLTIM