I just played NHL for the first time in a long time, and I was reminded of how downright terrible the AI is. And it's been the same for YEARS. I'm not kidding, it's seriously unplayable. How the **** this dog **** won sports game of the year ever, never mind multiple times, is literally the craziest thing I've ever heard. I can't even put into words how terrible it is.
Players just have absolutely 0 awareness whatsoever, especially in terms of where to skate on a breakout or entering the zone. Running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Unable to do the most obvious things, like skate to open space instead of crowding the guy with the puck (not supporting him, literally skating into him or just getting in the way).
I know mites with better hockey sense than the AI in this game, and these are supposed to represent NHL players. Just garbage.
I'm talking just basic, simple positioning 101. It's unreal how awful it is, and that it just has continued to be this bad for years now.
I'm fully expecting the same exact ******** in NHL 15. I'm betting that that's a massive reason why we've seen 0 gameplay. All of the focus has been on "presentation", aka the crowd and the new announcers that nobody gives a **** about and doesn't affect the gameplay one bit. The fact that they've been hyping up them putting the real Doc and Eddie in front of a green screen to put them inside the virtual world as one of the biggest things in the game, should be a gigantic, gigantic red flag to everyone.