NHL 15 Post-Launch Content Update

[bad_philanthropy]

Quote: Originally Posted by EASPORTSNHL

We had a very legacy codebase which made it difficult to add new game modes features. A big part of rebuilding the offline modes that made it into 15 was rebuilding the code base so that we are set up to build bigger and better features on this generation in a more efficient manner because of a better technical base. (apologies for the run on sentence) -rammer

I can respect that, and appreciate the explanation. It seems a bold decision for the NHL team to actually bite the bullet on this. Given the legacy issues, and annual minor detail-related shenanigans I've groaned about with that rickety base the guys down at Tiburon used/still use forNCAA/Madden (which I know damn well has stuff dating back to the PS1 days), I can appreciate the move, and the risk taken to produce a better game long term.

I'll buy 360 this year to get my annual fix, and maybe see where your gen 4 offering is at next year. Love the work you did on the 360/PS3 all these years as I've really been able to use sliders, and various others tools provided like manual passing, no hitting assist to get a satisfying sim experience.

[KomicJ]

Oh, and honest question here...could you explain what causes the different menus and Be-A-GM simulation to be so slow ? I kinda understood with last gen, but on new gen ? Will it ever go back to a much more reasonable loading time ?

[CongoJack]

I don't see anything to get excited about in that list it's still mostly stuff all the older games over the past few years have had and that draft was doable in the older games if a hack like this rammer guy wasn't in charge of making these them.

[jes5ant]

I saw on a gameplay video of the 360 version that the BAGM mode is much improved with player progression. Will the next gen version operate the same way once the draft is implemented? Also will I have to re start my Franchise? And I also have to ask if AHL will become playable again?

Thanks

[twelveone]

Quote: Originally Posted by jes5ant

I saw on a gameplay video of the 360 version that the BAGM mode is much improved with player progression. Will the next gen version operate the same way once the draft is implemented? Also will I have to re start my Franchise? And I also have to ask if AHL will become playable again? Thanks

Excellent question, I was wondering the same.

[bigwill33]

Rammer, with how much was not able to be included in this first iteration of the series on PS4 and Xbox One what is the rough timetable for the game to be "fully featured" as to what the customers of this series have come to expect from the last generation versions of the game?

With the team seemingly playing catchup now after this first release how long might it be before we see some of the legacy issues that have plagued this franchise addressed, if ever? I am of course speaking to the ways that the goalies have largely remained the same since NHL 07, as well as the ways to score goals in the game by both the users and CPU AI players. Not to mention the easy access into the zone on the attack that has become mundane and monotonous over the past half of a decade. Will these situations ever be addressed with how much work there is to do just to get the game up to par with what we had prior?

Furthermore, you have stated that there was only one year of development time to work on NHL 15. Can we, the consumers, inquire as to why that was the case? Was there no foresight allotted to your team in preparation for the upcoming next generation of consoles? Were you not given the development kits ahead of time? And why did you state last year at this time that moving forward without an next gen game on year one of the consoles allowed for your team to work on this sku for a longer period of time? Did the situation change or was it something else?

And finally, with the release of NHL 15 on both the Xbox 360 and PS3 seemingly being very similar to prior versions of the game, what exactly is the priority of the crew in Vancouver? Was the team simply overtaxed and underpowered, thus resulting in the shortcoming of time (as you seemingly indicate)? Or is something going on behind the scenes that we would just not be aware of? I understand that you cannot delve into the inner-workings of your job, but coming from our perspective you must sure see why we might have so many unanswered questions as to why things are now the way they are with our beloved franchise. And does any of the aforementioned points have any relation to the lack of communication from the EA development team to the consumers, or the lack of media and content that was certainly in contrast to prior releases of the game? If not, could you touch on the reasons as to why everything concerning the game has been so heavily shrouded and kept under wraps until so late into the development cycle?

Thank you for your time and openness in any response that you may offer.

-Patrick

[bad_philanthropy]

Just want to make one more comment here. I've always been impressed with the NHL team's willingness to add clever small details like facial damage/jaw protectors resulting from fights, pucks to the face carrying over for multiple games in season modes.

I hope the team brings this stuff forward, and continues adding more of these small details to complement the big stuff. Playoff bears one of these years!

[lions67]

thank you for taking the time to address these issues with us.
question for yo.
once OTP is live in October will we have a lobby to use?
I ask this because running an NHL/AHL/CHL/EURO league(s) would require one.
i await your response.
thank you