Favourite flawed EA NHL logic

Gaud

Registered User
May 11, 2017
1,471
549
There are millions and most of them are mentioned here but this takes the cake for me. Even if you set the strategies as defensive as possible, the offensive AI players just stand around near the blueline and spin around. It drives me ****ing nuts.

hahah yeah, i hadn't written that one down. For me its the icing that happens when a player goes to the bench mid-pass, or when your 2 on 1 fails because your teammate doesnt go to the net and stops midway between it and the blue line. Or when the game becomes a "stick lift" battle that is impossible to win.

if i tie up somebody on PK at the faceoff, the winger doesn't automatically go to get it. ive also noticed some cases where there's a "bubble" around a player that somehow lets him evade some checks. Or other times, a check that would normally tear a guy's head of but doesn't work because of specific situations (like when you turn against the boards and avoid the hit)
 

SlapshotTheMovie

Registered User
Jan 18, 2013
3,101
1,174
i like how they added simulation penalty option and it does nothing
The first year they put that option in i made a video showing it does nothing. I had a game saved and simmed 3 games with it on and was moved down a line. Same save just turned it off and simmed the same 3 games and was moved down. It does nothing. Rammer blocked me on twitter when i sent him the video.
 
Jan 21, 2011
5,237
3,883
Massachusetts
Currently have yet to play NHL20, since I'm finally finishing an old save of Franchise Mode NHL17.

Every year in FA, I always see players who are considered to be "Exact - Elite" but they never develop past being a 80-81 overall. I'll sign them for my team, sim a couple of months and no progress with the overall bumping up. Meanwhile, my 4th Round Med-Top6 D is an 87 overall D-Man.

I'm always confused at the EA logic here in these scenarios. Is the player Elite in that regard? Or are they just 'maxed' out due to botched development? You would think that EA would drop what the potential is - down to what they actually are.

The 87 D-Man who was drafted in the fourth round has high chemistry with his D partner, is considered a 'presence' in the room, but no further explanation as to why is overall is that high. CPU barely played him in the minors and had to call him up when everyone else was injured. (and he's Polish with a name Tom Jenkins :huh::laugh:)
 
  • Like
Reactions: Chompchompr

OB5

Registered User
May 2, 2015
5,582
3,998
When you press the block button and they go down on one knee and present their entire body to the shooter and the puck hits them wherever and suddenly they are made of vibranium.
 

Zen Arcade

Bigger than Kiss
Sep 21, 2004
20,308
2,216
Pittsburgh
Useless offer sheets seem to be way more prevalent this year.

Oh no, Buffalo, please don't offer sheet my player for way less than they were asking me for. That would be terrible!
 

belair

Jay Woodcroft Unemployment Stance
Apr 9, 2010
38,625
21,805
Canada
It's kind of embarassing when they mock the 'ice tilt' argument with their EASHL characters when it clearly affects the game physics specifically when you play against the CPU.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Nickmo82

tsujimoto74

Moderator
May 28, 2012
29,902
22,056
Here's one that's been growing on me: when you have a 2-on-1 break where one of the players is a D-man, so, naturally, instead of skating all the way to the net for a scoring chance, he drops back into coverage because of...reasons.

I also enjoy when I'm in the offensive zone, and, as I pass back to the point, the defensemen back out of the zone, so the whole team has to tag up to get back onside.
 

belair

Jay Woodcroft Unemployment Stance
Apr 9, 2010
38,625
21,805
Canada
Just deleted all of my save game files after year 24 in '19. I accidentally ran my cap too close to the floor and it absolutely ruins the game. Too many CPU teams run close to the floor and cap ceiling teams overvalue every living thing on their roster. Eliminate the cap floor if you guys can't figure out how to get it to work logically. It blows my mind that salary retention still doesn't get applied to salary being moved in trades.

I'm not sure I even want '20. Is it still the same garbage when it comes to cap management?
 
Jan 21, 2011
5,237
3,883
Massachusetts
Just deleted all of my save game files after year 24 in '19. I accidentally ran my cap too close to the floor and it absolutely ruins the game. Too many CPU teams run close to the floor and cap ceiling teams overvalue every living thing on their roster. Eliminate the cap floor if you guys can't figure out how to get it to work logically. It blows my mind that salary retention still doesn't get applied to salary being moved in trades.

I'm not sure I even want '20. Is it still the same garbage when it comes to cap management?


How does it ruin your game? I found that the cap used to jump up a lot more in NHL17 more than what NHL18 does now. My third season in Franchise Mode on '18 had Drew Doughty stay on FA all year because nobody could sign him.
 

belair

Jay Woodcroft Unemployment Stance
Apr 9, 2010
38,625
21,805
Canada
How does it ruin your game? I found that the cap used to jump up a lot more in NHL17 more than what NHL18 does now. My third season in Franchise Mode on '18 had Drew Doughty stay on FA all year because nobody could sign him.
My game wasn't like that. Very little quality left on FA every year. The majority left there are vets who fall off the Earth in terms of overall rating.

As a GM I focus on prospect development and end up with a very deep roster filled with productive players who for whatever reason don't cost me a lot to sign. They also aren't valued highly by other teams for whatever reason.

Production doesn't affect player value significantly and CPU teams will hang on to guys even if they fail to make their NHL roster well into their twenties. It's all very unrealistic.

In my situation running near the floor, it prevents me from freely moving players from the NHL team to the farm.
 
Jan 21, 2011
5,237
3,883
Massachusetts
My game wasn't like that. Very little quality left on FA every year. The majority left there are vets who fall off the Earth in terms of overall rating.

As a GM I focus on prospect development and end up with a very deep roster filled with productive players who for whatever reason don't cost me a lot to sign. They also aren't valued highly by other teams for whatever reason.

Production doesn't affect player value significantly and CPU teams will hang on to guys even if they fail to make their NHL roster well into their twenties. It's all very unrealistic.

In my situation running near the floor, it prevents me from freely moving players from the NHL team to the farm.

I had that happen a couple of times in 17. So I would just sign a 35 year old to a 1 year, 9 million dollar contract and let him be scratched for the whole season.

It's funny, I got to make my franchise a success in that mode due to teams dropping their 1st rounders that were labeled Med-Top6 in Free Agency and would build my team around that. Never had high rated players, but mid-80s. I would typically would give them a 3 year deal and go forward from there. In the modern-age of the NHL Franchise, I have yet to develop a first-rounder to a 92+ overall player.

The AI seems to be dumb and forgets that late-bloomers exist. I tend to hoard draft picks, so I'm not even sure how it calculates the trade value scenarios, but I've seen 5th and 6th rounders labeled higher than my first and second round choice when it comes to value. Ill just trade them off to a 'rebuilder' team and go that way.
 

SotasicA

Registered User
Aug 25, 2014
8,489
6,404
In 90's NHL games the computer insisted on line matching based on the numbers of your lines. No matter who actually played on those lines and for how much per game.

I could have Mario, Jagr and Kevin Stevens on my third line and they'd insist using their 4th line all game. They'd sit out their good players waiting in vain for me to ice my top six (even if it's all scrubs).
 

Ceremony

blahem
Jun 8, 2012
113,243
15,502
Back in NHL 09 I had a Be a Pro career as a defenseman. Since I kept winning Norris and Art Ross trophies, the game seemed to sign better defenseman to try and challenge that. You've got me scoring 70 goals paired with Trevor Daley, Drew Doughty and Brent Seabrook on the second pairing, Mattias Ohlund and Ed Jovanovski in the minors, with the 81 overall Chris Kelly as a first line centre.

(We'll also ignore Joe Sakic signing a 3 year deal with Detroit in 2010, wearing 19 and being made captain)

My favourite was kind of touched on a few messages ago, but I love the names in the generated draft classes. You find guys from South Korea named Joe Smith and stuff like that. I probably spend a good 15 or 20 minutes going through to find all of the ones that are just way off
Even Fifa managed to get rid of this. I still remember my hotshot Brazilian goalie from 09. Pavel Dyachenko.
 
Sep 19, 2008
373,675
24,717


m7b4u.gif


nZ0lBv3.gif
 

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Ad