NHL 11 brings some new and interesting gameplay elements to the table this year, but remains true with some old favorites that will keep new and existing fans glued to their TVs even more so than before. EA has to be loving the success of their 20th addition of the NHL series.
The newest and most exciting game mode, "Hockey Ultimate Team," allows you to create your own team and get random players added to your roster by opening packs of "cards." You can get more players, and stat-boosts to put on players who need some extra help in their stats. You create the best lines for chemistry and get to scratch players if you deem it necessary. This new feature will add hours upon hours of gameplay to keep NHL fresh thanks to the chance element put in. This mode can also be played alone or against other created teams online.
Fan favorites, Be a GM, and Be a Pro return, but with a few added features to both. In Be a Pro mode you can now start in a junior league that makes up the CHL if you wish. In Be a GM mode there is the addition of restricted free agency, six seasons worth of draft picks, and a revamped Rookie Generation system. These new features succeed in refreshing and adding more length to these existing modes.
The core gameplay receives a few major additions too. Players can now either drop or even break their sticks in gameplay and be forced to either pick up, or get a new stick. Other skaters can also lend the stick to the player who lost theirs. The new physics engine allows every body check and shot to be different instead of having an old-school animation-based system. The new face-off system allows the player to change their grip on the stick, and even tie up the other centre skater, allowing the wingers come in and get the puck. The passing system has also been changed to allow you to control the amount of power on each pass, by having the pass trigger at the release of the trigger button.
Visually the game looks incredible. The player models all look very close to their actual pro likeness. The animations are almost flawless and there is no choppy moments in the motion, unless of course, you're online but that's always to be expected. As always, the rinks are realistic, but nobodies here to see the rinks, right? |
| The CHL teams are a neat addition... If you're a Canadian like us. |
The audio for NHL 11 is pretty good. The sounds on the ice are very life-like. Whether it is the puck hitting the boards, players crashing into said boards, or the puck hitting a post, it is clear the developing team put lots of hard work into making sure all the sounds are just as they would be if you were at the game. The only downside to the audio is the damn announcers. It's not that their voices are terrible or anything, it's just that the amount of dialogue is extremely limited. Just like every other NHL game within a few games you find the announcers saying the same things. Their play-by-play isn't bad until they start talking about players or where the game is held because they only have one fucking thing to say about everything.
So overall, NHL 11 brings fun new game modes, a great new phyics engine, tons of new features. If you're a hockey fan, you'll find hours and hours of content to enjoy. Just try not to pay much attention to the announcers as they might cause immense amounts of rage. If you want some awesome new hockey action, run out and get a copy for your Xbox 360 or Playstation 3.
-Jeremy M.
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