I have also played about 20 games and the power play opportunities are really even. I have no complaints. I don't use the right stick much (I do use the left trigger/right stick combo a lot so move the stick), although I did chase someone down on the Flyers last night to spear him after someone took a cheap shot at Mario Since I've stopped chasing people down looking for hits, my defense has improved. I'm sure the hit numbers are close as well. I'm also getting better at not settling for poor shots and I probably draw an extra penalty or two a game just by keeping possession longer than I used to.
I've been getting great variety. Just when I think the game is too easy, I go into a slump. I played three games last night and lost 5-1 and won 2-0 and 5-2. Take away the last cheap goal I got when the CPU shouldn't have pulled a goalie down 4-2 with 20 seconds left and the aggregate score was 7-7 with great goal variety.
I do agree that the CPU makes poor decisions at times by passing back to the point and that is probably the biggest thing that needs work.
Leebo33 wrote:I do agree that the CPU makes poor decisions at times by passing back to the point and that is probably the biggest thing that needs work.
True, but I'll live with it because this is the first year that the 2K series has involved defensemen in the even-strength offense, both for the CPU and human team.
In past years, the non-human controlled defensemen often would be on the blue line or behind it, so a pass back to the point would result in offsides. This year, D men hang inside the point by default and pinch to the tops of the circles if you call for the defensemen to pinch in On The Fly playcalling.
Combine that big-time AI fix with the icon passing, and working the puck around the zone when playing even-strength or a man up is a joy.
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
The great thing is that I have made very few adjustments. I am playing on All-Star, momentum off, and 7 minutes accelerated periods (8 is OK as well). I used simulation slider settings as a base, but I have speed at 2 clicks, CPU speeed bursts matching human, and I think I may have the offensive skill matching human as well.
I'm getting good variety as well. I'm enjoying it the more I play. I briefly played 2K5 to compare the two and I see a totally different game from last year. This year its quicker without being arcade, the penaltys are fairly even, I made a few minor tweaks to the sim settings; I'm adjusting to changing lines on the fly. I'm tinkering with the icon passing on/off. I think it's a nice addition just not sure how much I want to use it. Good gameplay results thus far.
These were posted by Venom, a "hockey slider guy". Pretty realistic.
Controller Settings:
Current Profile: Yours (of course!!)
Controller: ADVANCED
Goalie Control: USER DECIDED
Pass Aim Assist: 1 click (out of 10 clicks)
Shot Aiming: MANUAL
Auto Puck in Air Grab: USER DECIDED
Player Lock Type: USER DECIDED
Preferred Start Position: USER DECIDED
Puck Protection: MANUAL
Icon Switch: USER DECIDED
Vibration Feature: USER DECIDED
One-Timer Passing: OFF
Rules:
Skill Level: ALL STAR
Period Length: 10 Minutes
Penalties: ON
Offside: Tag-Up
Icing: Auto
Two Line Pass: Off
Overtime Type: Auto
Net Off Moorings: On
Game Clock: Accelerated
Clock Type: Auto
Last Minute Real Time: NO
Freeze Puck Time: 5 clicks (out of 16 clicks MAX)
Goalie Freeze Puck Time: 0 clicks (out of 16 clicks MAX)
Puck Friction: 16 clicks (out of 16 clicks MAX)
Ice Friction: 0 Clicks (out of 16 clicks MAX)
One-Timer Difficulty: HARD
Penalties:
Goalie Outside Crease: ON
Custom Penalty Length: OFF
Here’s where things get messed up… If you go from left to right, there are 35 clicks to each penalty slider. However, if you go from right to left, there are 30… So for sanity reasons, the penalty sliders depicted bellow are done from left to right
Game Speed: 3 Clicks (out of 16 clicks MAX)
Home Line Change: USER DECIDED
Away Line Change: USER DECIDED
Momentum: OFF
On the Fly Coaching: ON
Enforcers: OFF
Pinning: 16 Clicks (out of 16 clicks MAX)
Speed Burst After Fight Win: OFF
Fighting: 8 Clicks (out of 16 clicks MAX)
Players who Fight: FIGHTERS ONLY
Referee Collison: ALL
Glass Breaking Frequency: 8 Clicks (out of 16 clicks MAX)
Gameplay – HUMAN/CPU:
Goalie Skill – 3 clicks (out of 10)
Offense Skill – 4 clicks (out of 10)
Defense Skill – 5 clicks (out of 10)
Speed Burst Effect – 3 clicks (out of 10)
Speed Burst Time – 5 clicks (out of 10)
Speed Burst Recovery – 10 clicks (out of 10)
Fatigue Effect – 10 clicks (out of 10)
Fatigue Recovery – 1 click (out of 10)
Fatigue Time – 9 clicks (out of 10)
Hitting Power – 0 clicks (out of 10)
Shot Accuracy – 1 clicks (out of 10)
Pass Accuracy – 3 clicks (out of 10)
Pass Speed – 5 clicks (out of 10)
Pass Interceptions – 8 clicks (out of 10)
Rebound Distance – 6 clicks (out of 10)
Shot Blocking – 4 clicks (out of 10)
Puck Retention – 10 clicks (out of 10)
Puck Control – 2 clicks (out of 10)
Goalie Anticipation – 4 clicks (out of 10)
Goalie Cover Depth – 10 clicks (out of 10)
Goalie Saves – 5 clicks (out of 10)
The great thing is that I have made very few adjustments. I am playing on All-Star, momentum off, and 7 minutes accelerated periods (8 is OK as well). I used simulation slider settings as a base, but I have speed at 2 clicks, CPU speeed bursts matching human, and I think I may have the offensive skill matching human as well.
Thanks, I appreciate it!! I've been using 8 mins, but I'll check my other settings.
how do you save the updated rosters? It just updated during online but when I went back to the main menu I still had the old rosters.
I really am impressed by the game. I played it all night and it's so much more of what I expect from a hockey game. From the start you can sense that the cpu plays a good game of defense, especially after playing nhl06 last week. Love all the options and game modes too.
I know many people overlook create team features but the create a team is pretty solid in the game this year. They have over 100 different logos plus nhl logos if you want to create some great nhl teams from the past that aren't in the game.
Played one game of online and it was a thriller where I won by a goal. Random guy I played played a good game too, no cheesing.
I am very happy with this game. There are so many settings that even if you're not into sim hockey you can make it totally arcade or have a mix of sim/arcade. Good deal for 20 bucks.
you have to go to download section and it will ask if you want the offline roster...i just got it, looks pretty good but i'm waiting for the season to start for the rookies
Action Replay rosters already have top new rookies like Crosby created. They also have proper lines, captaincies, etc., so I would go with AR until the season starts, if you own one.
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
PK,
I'd be interested to know what changes you have made to the sliders.
[url=http://sensiblecoasters.wordpress.com/][b]Sensible Coasters - A critique of sports games, reviews, gaming sites and news. Questionably Proofread![/b][/url]
kicko wrote:you have to go to download section and it will ask if you want the offline roster...i just got it, looks pretty good but i'm waiting for the season to start for the rookies
Still can't get it to work on the xbox verison. It downloaded the rosters when I logged in, but when i go back to the main menu and go to download section, it says no downloadable content.
JRod wrote:PK,
I'd be interested to know what changes you have made to the sliders.
John:
I'm still messing with a bunch of combinations. All are good, but the bar was set so high by Grog last year with his All-Star sliders. So I'm looking for something approaching that.
P.S.: I tried Grog's sliders from last year's game, since the slider increments are all pretty much the same. No dice -- it doesn't feel anywhere the same, which indicates that Kush did tweak the game engine this year despite people's claims to the contrary.
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
How are finding the general difficulty of the game?
Although I feel like I've pretty much solved the CPU's offensive woes (a house rule that actually makes the game more entertaining for me: on recognized breakaways I grab the goalie and try to play the shooter with the right stick - the CPU skaters react better to my aggressive positioning - and I think I'm about 1 for 4 in stopping them), I'm still finding their response to me gliding down the wings lacking. It seems the CPU defense's first instinct is to retreat, which either allows me an open look for a wrister (and subsequent rebound), or a chance to cut into the slot.
I'm playing CPU defense at 10 (I've been messing with speed burst and find less of this problem with it at 1, but still there), alternating between All Star and HOF. I've got the goalies boosted a bit, so I'm not scoring too easily - but I feel like I get too many good chances without CPU intervention.
How do you have puck retention and puck control set? I've found that setting those very low will make it much more of a challenge when you have the puck in the neutral zone and when you're crossing your opponent's blue line.
Then again, maybe you're a pucks god! If you're playing on HOF, you must be pretty damn good! I'm still an All-Star schlub.
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
No, I'm not that good. I'm losing because the CPU offense is now torching every mistake I make - and I'm making about 4 or 5 a game if the scores are any indication.
I'm just looking for more of a struggle keeping the puck. I'll check my retention and control. My guess is I've got it at 2 or 3. I'll try 0.
I'm still enjoying the hell out of this game. I was playing 2k5 up to the day I bought 2k6, and I imagine once every slider is tweaked perfectly I'll be doing the same again.
This does a great job of simulating rebounds and second scoring chances, to the point I've learned to set up my offense with rebound chances in mind.
my band schedule doesn't permit me to play a ton of games any more but i did pick up 2K6 last week and for the most part am enjoying it for all the reasons that have been stated before. its a good game and well worth 19.99. but i am finding some things that are really pissing me off. again, the cameras suck (imo)....i'm playing with 3/4 camera but it sure isn't what i like and i have no clue why a customized camera can't be implemented ala the NBA or NFL series. heck, EA's doesn't have one either. the Gretzky series has the best cameras, imo. in 2k6, both the rink action and rink cams are complete wastes of space because both are useless. why Kush puts them in the game is beyond me. grrr...
also....let's see......i've played about 10 games into a Kings season. actually, i've played about 17 games but lost 5-7 games because after the game is over and i go to save my season the damn game keeps locking up.
so....i enjoy what's here for the most part though i honestly wish the 2K series would be turned over to the guys at Next Level Games as i think those former Radical Entertainment/Blackbox Games hockey vets could do the best sim ever! 2K6 is a good game, though, other than the poor camera choices, lack of atmosphere (again) and the fact that the game seems a bit too easy. yeah, the faceoff bug sucks....but its the fact that i can play a beautiful game and when i go to save it i lose the entire game and have to restart the XBox that really pisses me off.
haven't tried NHL06 on PC yet but i will soon. i know it won't be as realistic but i plan on giving it a shot as i'm sure the atmosphere will be great and the PC upgrades are always kinda cool to look at and enjoy.
well, since my previous post i just had a thrilling game in which i lost 4-3 in a shootout. i wanted to make mention of some things i really enjoy in 2K6. the pinching d-men, the backwards skating with puck which really lets you "walk" the blue line in the attacking zone with your offensive defensemen and opens up a whole new dimension to the game. i love hearing cole and neale's voice. it might not be the best commentary in the world but it reminds me of hockey night in canada which is always good. lying the stick down on the ice is very sweet and there are a lot of nice additions both offensively and defensively making the game pretty in-depth control wise.
that being said....after that great shoot out loss i just had in which i really enjoyed the game i went to save and guess what....
another lockup. lost the game. ridiculous. 2 forward, one back. there are things i love about the game but these freezes are making me want to shelve it. i hope this doesn't continue as there are lots of nice things to the game in which i enjoy but its becoming very aggravating.
Last edited by hrudey32 on Sun Sep 18, 2005 8:34 am, edited 1 time in total.
Well the good news is that I haven't seen any lockups or freezes and I've got an Xbox that is literally on it's last legs. It could go at any time...so I'd just swap out the disc and get a new one if possible Hrudey. It's worth a shot.
Since I've stopped chasing people down looking for hits, my defense has improved. I'm sure the hit numbers are close as well. I'm also getting better at not settling for poor shots and I probably draw an extra penalty or two a game just by keeping possession longer than I used to.
