Be a Pro Mode

[dropdeadjoey]

Am I the only person who finds the difference between Pro and All-Star to be rather extreme? Almost like someone said above where the other team goes to the higher difficulty but yours doesn't? I have been playing on Pro because I wanted to try the mode, and 7 games in I have 10G 10A, the next closest player in the league is under 10 POINTS still.... but when I turn it up to All-Star I get crushed by the AI. It just seems silly that there isn't something in between, I try to adjust the settings but I find I either end up making it too easy or it's still soul crushing lol.

 

[Chimpradamus]

Am I the only person who finds the difference between Pro and All-Star to be rather extreme? Almost like someone said above where the other team goes to the higher difficulty but yours doesn't? I have been playing on Pro because I wanted to try the mode, and 7 games in I have 10G 10A, the next closest player in the league is under 10 POINTS still.... but when I turn it up to All-Star I get crushed by the AI. It just seems silly that there isn't something in between, I try to adjust the settings but I find I either end up making it too easy or it's still soul crushing lol.

Welcome to EA. Pro = Coasting. All-Star: Are you kidding me?

Conclusion: They still have no clue and they don't care.

 

[ThorNton Apologist]

Am I the only person who finds the difference between Pro and All-Star to be rather extreme? Almost like someone said above where the other team goes to the higher difficulty but yours doesn't? I have been playing on Pro because I wanted to try the mode, and 7 games in I have 10G 10A, the next closest player in the league is under 10 POINTS still.... but when I turn it up to All-Star I get crushed by the AI. It just seems silly that there isn't something in between, I try to adjust the settings but I find I either end up making it too easy or it's still soul crushing lol.

I've never really noticed much difference. I play on Allstar in the Q and Superstar in the NHL.
My biggest problem I have that you posted is that most CHL players won't even hit PPG. The highest scorer not on my team was Beauvillier (81ovr) and he was barely PPG. I mean come on. I get the low scoring in the pro leagues but does EA have any clue about the CHL leagues.

 

[ThorNton Apologist]

Another thing is, why on earth does EA add the WCOH and not the world juniors? At least the world juniors would apply to the be a pro mode. I tried the WCOH and was disappointed that Ea wasted their time on this.

 

[MillanDynasty]

Be a Pro mode is way too clunky and unpolished on new gen. That's why I decided to create my pros and play with them in Franchise mode. That way, he doesn't get sent down or traded for a 3rd round pick once I reach age 35 and I can actually try to make the team that surrounds him better.

It's unbelievable how **** the GM AI is in this game. It literally does nothing to try and build just an average team around your pro, it just keeps the same roster for 20 years until everyone has retired. Lazy, lazy, lazy...

 

[flash46201]

Focus

I'm not sure if you can do this in BAP, but in EASHl you can turn off the focuses with X I believe(at least on Xbox one, not sure what the PS4 button is)

Yes, I'm aware I can turn it off, and have been tempted to do so, but what's the point of having the focus if it's impossible? I am hoping to do it by accident at least once, just to know what the hell I'm supposed to do. Hasn't happened yet...

 

[Igor Shestyorkin]

I personally finish a lot of focuses, and I play on superstar.

 

[oilers2k10]

Can you still only play 10 seasons in be a pro? What if I wanna break Gretzkys records?!

 

[flash46201]

Cover The Open Man

I personally finish a lot of focuses, and I play on superstar.

Ok, if you are such an expert, then answer the question I posted originally...you haven't been very helpful except to say how good you are...

 

[flash46201]

Another rant...

Half way through my final junior season. It's only taken me 5 months to this point. Here are the top things that P!$$ me off to no end:
1) MY goalie has the reaction time of a snail. The other goalie? I have gotten one timers down to a science now, so am constantly blasting shots from the slot. THEIR goalie makes saves that would make Domink Hasek blush. MY goalie? Can't stop a 20 foot floating backhand with no screen. And who gets the -10 or -20 defensive penalty? Yup....me.
2) It's hard enough to take the puck off the other team most times. Stick lifting and poke checking are effective, but sick of penalties from this. My biggest beef is when I absolutely destroy the puck carrier with a 'big hit' and there appears to be some sort of force field around the puck, because even though the other guy should be in the 'quiet room' at that point, I am unable to pick up the puck, and he jumps up like a jack in the box and roars off with the puck. WTF???
3) Powerplays, or offensive pressure in general. Especially on powerplays, my defensemen are useless. I am carrying the puck, and my D are ten feet OUTSIDE the blue line! IN REVERSE! I pass it back to them, instant offside. OR...I make a nice, slow, lazy pass along the boards back to the blue line, and they have their a$$es to the boards, so the puck will just float past them and back into my end.
4) Wingers are no better. I am busting my A$$ behind the net to stick lift, poke check, forecheck in general, and what are my wingers doing? Standing back at the blue line!!! It's like the four of them are forming a wall at the blue line, while I work like an idiot to free up the puck. I wish to hell there was a slider to increase aggressiveness with my team, because right now they play like a bunch of pu$$ies.
5) Since I started my career, I have put 100% of my training into skating. In 2 1/2 years, I have just cracked 90 on speed and acceleration. This puts me well into the fastest skaters in the NHL. Top 100 at least. And yet, I am playing against OHL players who are somehow able to skate BACKWARDS as fast as I can skate forwards. I am sure in the NHL there are only maybe 20-30 defensemen who are capable of keeping up with a forward in full flight, while skating backwards. In the OHL? MY GOD! They are ALL NHL quality!

It's little details like this that burn my A$$. There is no authenticity, and it's all cut and paste technology. And just to make a point (I don't know if it's laziness, or an attempt at humour) I have seen an OHL player in my 3rd year, with the surname 'McMuffin'. Really? What's next, guys called 'Keyboard' or 'Mouse' or 'Lampshade'?

Ok, rant over...

 

[flash46201]

Awesome Idea!

Another thing is, why on earth does EA add the WCOH and not the world juniors? At least the world juniors would apply to the be a pro mode. I tried the WCOH and was disappointed that Ea wasted their time on this.

Wow, that's probably the best idea I have heard so far. Would be awesome to have my pro invited to the WJC. But then again, I wasn't even allowed to play in the OHL All Star Game this year, for whatever reason...even though I'm leading the league in every category you can imagine (even PIM and giveaways)

If only EA was listening...

 

[flash46201]

Finally

After game 36 of my 3rd OHL season, I have finally hit 90 overall. That means approximately 160 regular season games (a few simmed along the way, but not many), maybe 10 playoff games (I sim a lot of them as it seems like the difficulty is ratcheted up to 'impossible to win' in the playoffs) and 8 Memorial Cup games. I think that's the definition of a 'grind' just to get to that point, with no real benefit other than getting my trophy. Even my 'agent' can't be any more specific other than 'you are projected to be drafted somewhere in the first round'. Wow, there's something to look forward to. Best player in the OHL and I'll get picked 30th overall.
We will see what the next 32 regular season games, playoff games, and Memorial Cup games will bring. I just want to get to draft day.

 

[MillanDynasty]

After game 36 of my 3rd OHL season, I have finally hit 90 overall. That means approximately 160 regular season games (a few simmed along the way, but not many), maybe 10 playoff games (I sim a lot of them as it seems like the difficulty is ratcheted up to 'impossible to win' in the playoffs) and 8 Memorial Cup games. I think that's the definition of a 'grind' just to get to that point, with no real benefit other than getting my trophy. Even my 'agent' can't be any more specific other than 'you are projected to be drafted somewhere in the first round'. Wow, there's something to look forward to. Best player in the OHL and I'll get picked 30th overall.
We will see what the next 32 regular season games, playoff games, and Memorial Cup games will bring. I just want to get to draft day.

I found a way to counter that in NHL 16. Not sure if it stills works in 17.

Basically, I would play the first few games of any given season and absolutely dominate them. Putting all my categories at A+. Once they would all reach that mark, I would just simulate the rest of the season and I would always get messages saying I was a Top 5 pick for sure, even though I had only scored 30 points since those early games. Similarly, if you do not dominate these first few games, you'll always be stuck playing catch up it seems. One of my pro started cold, took 7 games to register a point but then proceeded to score 170 the rest of the season. However, my agent kept telling me that I needed to up my game or I wouldn't be drafted at all. This is with all my categories at A+.

They really need to fix this game mode. While I do think Franchise Mode needs a lot of meat and refinements to its core, it's at the very least competent. Be A Pro is just pathetically sad at this point. There's no bravado, no sense of accomplishment. You don't feel as though you're making your mark on the National Hockey League and leaving a legacy behind for generations of players. How cool would it be to have lists of every possible statistic and have your pro's stats updated on them in real time? Imagine if they updated it WITH the players currently playing. You're in 2039 and while you're busy trying to catch up Wayne Gretzky, one of your teammates has just put himself as 10th on the all-time points leaders, showing the list as you play a game. As it is right now, every playthrough feels the same, except for goalies, but that's *****ed beyond repair.

They should bring back trade requests, and make it work this time. The AI management should give out contracts based on production, not overall. The AI should also try to make the team BETTER and not just sit on his ass for 2 decades, while my team is rotting away. But they shouldn't trade away great players either when we're still a championship caliber team. I've had 92-95 overall teammates traded away for grinders and depth defensemen because they were 33-34 years old. At least trade them for picks, idiots! It's also a bit ridiculous how I only get 4 contract offers at a time. I'm sure if a 6''2, 215 lbs, 99 overall playmaker center who already has 1500 pts to his name at 25 years old, would warrant a lot more than 4 offers if he tested the market. He'd also get more than 10,000,000 x 5.

I could go on and on about why this particular game mode fails but it would just be a rehash of things that we're said dozens of time before.

 

[flash46201]

Tried That.

I found a way to counter that in NHL 16. Not sure if it stills works in 17.

Basically, I would play the first few games of any given season and absolutely dominate them. Putting all my categories at A+. Once they would all reach that mark, I would just simulate the rest of the season and I would always get messages saying I was a Top 5 pick for sure, even though I had only scored 30 points since those early games. Similarly, if you do not dominate these first few games, you'll always be stuck playing catch up it seems. One of my pro started cold, took 7 games to register a point but then proceeded to score 170 the rest of the season. However, my agent kept telling me that I needed to up my game or I wouldn't be drafted at all. This is with all my categories at A+.

They really need to fix this game mode. While I do think Franchise Mode needs a lot of meat and refinements to its core, it's at the very least competent. Be A Pro is just pathetically sad at this point. There's no bravado, no sense of accomplishment. You don't feel as though you're making your mark on the National Hockey League and leaving a legacy behind for generations of players. How cool would it be to have lists of every possible statistic and have your pro's stats updated on them in real time? Imagine if they updated it WITH the players currently playing. You're in 2039 and while you're busy trying to catch up Wayne Gretzky, one of your teammates has just put himself as 10th on the all-time points leaders, showing the list as you play a game. As it is right now, every playthrough feels the same, except for goalies, but that's *****ed beyond repair.

They should bring back trade requests, and make it work this time. The AI management should give out contracts based on production, not overall. The AI should also try to make the team BETTER and not just sit on his ass for 2 decades, while my team is rotting away. But they shouldn't trade away great players either when we're still a championship caliber team. I've had 92-95 overall teammates traded away for grinders and depth defensemen because they were 33-34 years old. At least trade them for picks, idiots! It's also a bit ridiculous how I only get 4 contract offers at a time. I'm sure if a 6''2, 215 lbs, 99 overall playmaker center who already has 1500 pts to his name at 25 years old, would warrant a lot more than 4 offers if he tested the market. He'd also get more than 10,000,000 x 5.

I could go on and on about why this particular game mode fails but it would just be a rehash of things that we're said dozens of time before.

I have tried simming multiple games at a time, but I tend to get dropped down a line when that happens, and it annoys the cr@p out of me til I can get back to the first line. As mentioned, I tend to sim a lot of playoff games...usually the first four to see where my team lies, then finish off the series. Any more than 5-6 games simmed and I get dropped down a line 'for not showing enough interest' or some such nonsense.
I just managed to finish ONE game after six hours of play time. Kept restarting it over and over again because I refuse to accept the pathetic goals scored against (at least with ME on the ice) and I suddenly can't make a hit without getting a penalty. A new thing that has popped up is the computer giving me a 'roughing' penalty after the whistle. I am standing in front of the net, waiting for the next faceoff, and the defenseman is wailing on me. I'm not touching ANY BUTTONS but for some reason, it gives ME a penalty. Not even coincidental ones, but just ME. And the kicker? -74 discipline for not doing anything. Great, huh? Don't know if anyone else is having this issue.
You are 100% correct. The format is broken, but there is no alternative other than to not play.

 

[flash46201]

As Well

On the other hand, junior is when you are supposed to be earning your XP, so simming games robs you of that. I may sim more games in the NHL (if I ever get there) but we will see. Right now I am trying to max out every XP point I can get.

 

[MillanDynasty]

EA has far too much faith in the lifespan of its game.

Playing 82 games a season (most of the time 98+ because I always qualify for the playoffs) for 25 years? Who has the time for this **** ? Let's take into account that a game takes about 25-30 minutes to play. That's 51,250 minutes! 854 hours! Over 35 days! For 1 ****ing pro. Let's also consider how dull the game mode actually is because:

1) It doesn't offer fluff on the base game like Franchise Mode does.

2) It's overly restrictive. Be it the fact that you have to rely solely on yourself to win and succeed (most of the time, so does your team) because your teammates are absolute mindless buffoons. You cannot be traded, you cannot ask for the salary or term you think you deserve, you cannot see your career stats. Hell, there's not even an end screen once you're forced to retire, it's just game over. Thanks for your 35 days, idiot, now go buy NHL 18! Your character is not a pro, it's a poor soul, trapped in the overly complicated and evil world EA has created.

 

[flash46201]

EA has far too much faith in the lifespan of its game.

Playing 82 games a season (most of the time 98+ because I always qualify for the playoffs) for 25 years? Who has the time for this **** ? Let's take into account that a game takes about 25-30 minutes to play. That's 51,250 minutes! 854 hours! Over 35 days! For 1 ****ing pro. Let's also consider how dull the game mode actually is because:

1) It doesn't offer fluff on the base game like Franchise Mode does.

2) It's overly restrictive. Be it the fact that you have to rely solely on yourself to win and succeed (most of the time, so does your team) because your teammates are absolute mindless buffoons. You cannot be traded, you cannot ask for the salary or term you think you deserve, you cannot see your career stats. Hell, there's not even an end screen once you're forced to retire, it's just game over. Thanks for your 35 days, idiot, now go buy NHL 18! Your character is not a pro, it's a poor soul, trapped in the overly complicated and evil world EA has created.

Wow...nailed it. Awesome post! Are you listening, EA monkeys???

 

[flash46201]

Pathetic

Does ANYONE out there know how to do this??? I have had this 'focus' for about 50 games now, and have not managed to do it even once. I even turned on the stupid coloured circles and boxes so the computer can tell me who I am 'supposed' to check, but nothing works. I have tied up guys in front of the net (I'm a centre), I have gone into the corners to check the guy I'm 'supposed' to check...it seems I have to cover all 3 forwards and at least one defenseman, because if ANYONE on the other team scores, it's apparently MY fault.
If anyone knows how to do this, I would appreciate it, as I'm SICK of seeing it (and might even learn something that will make the game better...haha)

Ok, this is really starting to burn my a$$ now. Even when a defenseman scores from the point (winger's responsibility) I get nailed for 'not covering the open man'. Just had a goal scored on us when there were about 6 guys in a bunch in front of the net, the puck was bouncing around like a superball, one of their guys taps it in at the side of the net, and I get -24 'missed assignment'. Apparently I am meant to cover all 5 of their guys. Had another goal against where the defenseman was mugging their player in front of the net, their player flips a ten foot backhand (!) over my goalies shoulder and I get -20 'not covering the open man'. I am always taking an open guy in front of my net, but it never seems to matter, it's ALWAYS my fault! This game sucks donkey balls. Gee, can't wait for NHL 18.

 

[MillanDynasty]

I gave up on Pro until they thoroughly revamp it. Now if I want to create a player and live out his career, I do it on Franchise Mode. Less hassle, much more convenient and fun. Also makes it so I can manage an organisation AND take the reins of the 'next superstar', instead of watching everything burn around me.

 

[Chimpradamus]

We can just conclude the mode is completely broken and a complete joke. It seems they haven't even playtested it, or simply ignored the input. There are dozens and dozens of reasons why you don't want to play this garbage mode, which are very blatant and incredibly annoying for ANYONE playing it. Some problems have been in there for years and years.

Compared to the 2K franchise, EA is about a decade behind in development and effort. It's just a lazy, LAZY mode that shouldn't even be in the game at its current state. It's simply put TERRIBLE and you will just feel frustrated and empty playing it.

I had more enjoyment playing career mode in 2013, which is 4 years ago (and it was still really, REALLY flawed). I played about 4 seasons. In 2017 I will call it quits after two seasons (CHL and winning the cup once), because it's just ****ing brutal on so many levels.

EA has just regressed in this mode to the point that I will not buy another EA game for a long, long time (or PRAY 2K will make a hockey game). The ONLY way to enjoy this game is to not consider it a hockey game, but a challenging game. Kind of like troll levels in Super Mario Maker.

It's a troll mode. There's nothing else to it. I don't like troll modes. End of story. Who is in charge of the "development" of the career mode on EA? Some drunkard they needed to keep busy away from all the important stuff?

edit: This is quite a snicker, I tried to create a list of all the huge flaws of this game mode in this post, but the HF browser didn't think it was appropriate to time out when I spent an hour writing it. Lol. This pretty much sums up this game mode. If you want to create a list of all the huge flaws, the browser and the people reading it will fall asleep.

 

[Chimpradamus]

Nevermind this game has the stability of a Romanian donkey on crack. Whenever you have played a game, SAVE. You never know when the game will hang or crash at any given moment (trying to brag about stability).

You would think such a simplistic game with the minimal information it has to process would have some stability to be relied upon: NOPE. You cannot trust the game to run smoothly at all.

Just to troll me at the end of my career (my second season) where my team finally managed to beat Washington and I managed to keep my team in the Stanley Cup playoffs in a 2-3 defecit against Washington, the game decided to stop working after the game was finished. Guess who have to babysit the entire team, every game and it will still not be enough? I felt so satisfied I still managed to keep my ******** team in the series and the game just gave me the finger at the worst moment possible.

**** YOU EA and the horse you rode in on. I will uninstall this ****ing **** as soon as I have finished this playoffs.

I wouldn't recommend my worst enemy to play Be a Pro in ANY EA sports game. That would just be too cruel and inhuman.

 

[MillanDynasty]

I sometimes wonder if EA purposefully releases patches to destroy copies of the game to force players to buy newer editions. My copies of NHL 13, 14 and 15 (Digital) on last gen are all unusable because every single time a cutscene happens, the game freezes. Every cutscene. Be it the intro cutscene, stoppage of play cutscene or even goal celebration cutscenes, my game is unable to render them and suddenly and ultimately crashes. Why is that a thing ? It's not like my CDs are scratched or anything, they're actually in pretty good condition. My NHL 15 copy is digital, how/why does this happen? And they've all started doing that in the July-September area, immediately right at the moment where the next NHL is getting heavily promoted.

I'm not a big fan of conspiracy theories but, it seems pretty shady and timely that three different games from the same developer (on two different format) die just as a newer (and crappier) version comes out.

Anyway, back on topic.

 

[Chimpradamus]

It seems EA follows progress of my vomiting of this mode on this forum, because every second game I play crashes now, without exception. It is now automatic, I kid you not. I save every game I manage to finish, because I never know when it will crash at any given moment. I suspect it has something to do with me trusting their new updates to actually work. I guess I will have to revert back to older patches, if only I knew how. How naive of me to believe things they release would actually work.

I thought the whole point of console games would be they would be stable. Nope. It is now becoming an aggravating task even finishing two games in a row with this crap. Game 3 crashed, game 5 crashed, game 7 crashed (in the Stanley Cup playoffs). **** you EA. Like the game in itself wasn't bad enough.

I sometimes wonder if EA purposefully releases patches to destroy copies of the game to force players to buy newer editions. My copies of NHL 13, 14 and 15 (Digital) on last gen are all unusable because every single time a cutscene happens, the game freezes. Every cutscene. Be it the intro cutscene, stoppage of play cutscene or even goal celebration cutscenes, my game is unable to render them and suddenly and ultimately crashes. Why is that a thing ? It's not like my CDs are scratched or anything, they're actually in pretty good condition. My NHL 15 copy is digital, how/why does this happen? And they've all started doing that in the July-September area, immediately right at the moment where the next NHL is getting heavily promoted.

I'm not a big fan of conspiracy theories but, it seems pretty shady and timely that three different games from the same developer (on two different format) die just as a newer (and crappier) version comes out. Do NOT update to their latest patch, it ruins the game, trust me. It has killed the suspension of the last bit of love I had for the game. I just want to finish game 7 so I never have to touch this "Be a Pro" garbage ever again.

Anyway, back on topic.

As EA is well known for being the Haliburton or Goldman Sachs of games, this wouldn't surprise me at all whatsoever. They hate game development, they love $$$ by screwing the customers. That it would be a conscious choice from them to **** their customers over whenever they have a choice of doing so that is. My respect for EA as a company is at a negative number. I will boycott them from now on, because they turn gold to **** with the touch of a finger. Whenever a respectable game company is bought up by EA they turn to **** in an instant.

 

[flash46201]

Agreed

Nevermind this game has the stability of a Romanian donkey on crack. Whenever you have played a game, SAVE. You never know when the game will hang or crash at any given moment (trying to brag about stability).

You would think such a simplistic game with the minimal information it has to process would have some stability to be relied upon: NOPE. You cannot trust the game to run smoothly at all.

Just to troll me at the end of my career (my second season) where my team finally managed to beat Washington and I managed to keep my team in the Stanley Cup playoffs in a 2-3 defecit against Washington, the game decided to stop working after the game was finished. Guess who have to babysit the entire team, every game and it will still not be enough? I felt so satisfied I still managed to keep my ******** team in the series and the game just gave me the finger at the worst moment possible.

**** YOU EA and the horse you rode in on. I will uninstall this ****ing **** as soon as I have finished this playoffs.

I wouldn't recommend my worst enemy to play Be a Pro in ANY EA sports game. That would just be too cruel and inhuman.

I am having the same issues with crashing...and I OWN THE DVD! It is now habit to save every game I want to keep (few and far between) as playing more than 2-3 in a row will end with a crash. As it is, I am now spending 2-3 or more hours playing each game with all the restarts (bull$hit penalties, bull$hit goals against) so wasting even more time with crashing isn't worth it. There is also the bug/crash where you play your first shift, then the next shift everyone is standing against the boards and you restart the game at 18:33 every time. The game has been out for six months now...and it's still doing this $hit???
Seriously, EA, you robbed me when I bought this game...I can hear you all laughing now...

 

[flash46201]

Agreed?

I sometimes wonder if EA purposefully releases patches to destroy copies of the game to force players to buy newer editions. My copies of NHL 13, 14 and 15 (Digital) on last gen are all unusable because every single time a cutscene happens, the game freezes. Every cutscene. Be it the intro cutscene, stoppage of play cutscene or even goal celebration cutscenes, my game is unable to render them and suddenly and ultimately crashes. Why is that a thing ? It's not like my CDs are scratched or anything, they're actually in pretty good condition. My NHL 15 copy is digital, how/why does this happen? And they've all started doing that in the July-September area, immediately right at the moment where the next NHL is getting heavily promoted.

I'm not a big fan of conspiracy theories but, it seems pretty shady and timely that three different games from the same developer (on two different format) die just as a newer (and crappier) version comes out.

Anyway, back on topic.

I have never bought a digital copy of anything, only the hard discs, so it's hard to judge, but I would tend to agree with you. I think they went through the same thing with The Sims where people were sharing/swapping discs and EA decided to crack down. Not that NHL has the same fan base as The Sims, but it's a fairly die hard group. I would suggest buying the disc, if you ever play to buy another EA game (I wouldn't suggest it).