The Fall of EA's NHL Series - What Happened?

[@SOFTDRINKTV]

I made a mistake! NHL 94 DID NOT have fighting. I apologize from the bottom of my heart. I also forgot to mention that 07 introduced the skill stick, a huge feature.

[@aariesharris7894]

@Fries Madden 08 had player archetypes/roles in franchise, and slightly better gameplay, but both aren’t much different tbh. Honestly, both are dirt cheap, but if you really can only get one I’d just get 08

[@ColeNollavook]

NHL 2003 for PC was actually the first game to have an ultimate team mode but it was called “EA Elite” and only had a one-time fee at the start. Clearly it wasn’t profitable enough because they scrapped it and rebranded it to be more micro transaction heavy in NHL 11.

[@jaheimmoultrie7584]

You forgot to mention that NHL 07, the year they went to the xbox 360 generation that introduced a major innovation called the skill stick, which is a huge feature. I want to see a retrospective of NHL 07 for the Xbox 360 retrospective video please. you also forgot to mention NHL 08, the second year of skill stick, combined with new skating engine, 1 0n 1 loose puck deking system, create a play, create a player, goalie mode, create a team, edit player, edit team, create a team, it also another insane jump from NHL 07, that feature none of this, other than the skill stick. I Really want to see a retrospective of NHL 08 for xbox 360 please.

[@ry-flix]

really interesting, thanks for makin this

[@aariesharris7894]

@Fries what platform are you getting it on?? Last time I checked Madden 08 is always 5-8 dollars at least

[@G_54-GMG]

EA Sports: It's In The Greed

[@DubberRucks]

EA Sports: Give Me Money

[@jkhiggin]

Spot on. Thats what happend to EASports... quality down across the board and its all about how much can we force people to pay past the initial purchase. Money > quality.

[@linklink9589]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/hpDNg6mffaZ-rJY

[@downsouthhustla]

No shit brother

[@Goat42049]

It’s in the grEAd

[@MattColbo]

man i remember buying NHL 15 for the 360 on release day only to discover it was literally the exact same game, in every single way, as NHL 14, just with Bergeron on the cover

[@bobduffy7744]

Lol yep

[@SylveonMujigaeOfficial]

But doesn't NHL 15 and NHL 16 have the NBC graphics?

[@p0tent49]

Still better than the Xbox One/PS4 version of NHL 15.... which is sad.

[@mattm5786]

@@SylveonMujigaeOfficial not on Xbox 360 and ps3 you basically just paid for a new roster

[@MrUnsuspiciousName]

And Waffleboard and a young girl from Shawinigan also I love your videos matt

[@thecanadian8719]

"A friend" working at EA in 2005 said there was a MAJOR shift away from quality. 2004 was the last time the word "fun" was a priority. It quickly became get it "shippable" This was at the end of PS2 XBOX cycle, add 360, PS3, even PSP. Too many SKUs. Bad products Top management was axed in 2004 (start of downfall), early 2006 10% of staff axed. Many vets. They've never been the same since.

[@bcrt2000]

Eh, I'd say that doesn't reflect the reality not the games. 2004->2006 was a downward spiral of quality. The folks in charge were more concerned about back of the box features than making a good game. 05/06 were particularly bad.

[@alexleveille5322]

Nhl 2005 is the worst nhl fall of the history, there is many things retired in the gameplay, like create players, a lot of elements when you create a team, a lot of things desapeared in dynastie mode like set practices, unlock things in the gm office, seeing results of investment on the team like unlock a plane for game on the road to upgrade players capacity, etc. You also lost the possibility to put a create team in the dynastie mode in the nhl 2005. Nhl 2005 were my first nhl game so its a must in the video game that i played in my life, but when i discovered nhl 2004 i realysed that nhl 2005 was a real step back

[@Rockhound6165]

Which is strange because NHL 2K5, like NFL 2K5, was such a great game(I still play it to this day) and NFL 2K5 was so great that EA spent a lot of money getting the exclusive rights to NFL properties but NHK 2K5 should have been a wake up call for EA as not only was 2K5 a much better game it was about $30 cheaper at $29.99.

[@bcrt2000]

@@Rockhound6165 the NHL 2K games had some polish issues with their UI and gameplay. Instead of working on those issues, they started to add fluff/arcade features, meanwhile the EA NHL games started to get their act together. There was no looking back after NHL 08.

[@Rockhound6165]

@@bcrt2000 according to this video there was because it looks like EA games started to suck.

[@cainhub3670]

I knew the AI was cheating, there is no way they score some of the goals they do. They also happen to score in the most crucial moments no matter what my defence

[@solidrockofjesuschristmini2423]

This same exact shit happens in Madden I could give you several examples

[@069element]

Ea needs to leave momentum out of it…let the clubs and players make their own momentum…ice tilt is retarded…they put it in the game so garbage players keep buying their game…same with all the auto stuff now all you have to do is be close enough to an opposing player and you steal it…ea got tired of hearing noobs say it’s hard or we can’t win and ea makes ice tilt and auto gaming to try and appease scrubs…go into the 3rd period up by three and you loose by one?!?! Against a garbage club yea that’s not happening…

[@zombievikinggaming4258]

@Tack Draas A common staple in all EA sports games

[@tevinmoss12]

That damn hurry up short pass bs they get away with on madden/espn 2k​@@solidrockofjesuschristmini2423

[@MikeJr9284]

The decline of both the Madden series and the NHL series are basically parallel to each other.

[@RandomnessMusician]

EA moment

[@CommanderTK9091]

NHL hasn’t fallen as hard though.

[@DubberRucks]

It's funny (in a tragic way), because I thought that exact same thing too as I was watching this.

[@ColeNollavook]

Not necessarily. Madden 2005 was awesome, NHL 2005 was the worst game in the series and got a bunch of EA higher-ups fired. Ultimate team did fuck everything though.

[@davew9642]

Better than ever

[@notdylancolley]

I miss NHL 14 so much. I had so many memories, and Gary Throne's commentary really gave off those old school hockey vibes. I still remember my first "Live the live" series. I made myself; A short, defensive, two way center who could deke, dangle, and snipe. I was young and didn't care about passing though lol, so one season I actually had 350 goals just as my created player. I also had an Old Sens series I made too, with Spezza as the captain. I had Taylor Hall on the team with him too. The chemistry with them was awesome.

[@jaheimmoultrie7584]

me too, i missed it a lot.

[@smilin_wanderer]

Have great memories of Gary Thorne's calls in '14

[@1stJBGaming]

Then buy it again 😂

[@ReifeErnteRacing]

One feature I really miss over years, because it creates so much atmosphere, are Entrance scenes from some specific teams. If I remember correctly, there were NHL titles where San Jose came up on the ice through a shark head.

[@himhim3344]

Yeah pre game nowadays is pure trash

[@TheOrangeCat2]

Yep. Small, but it's that lack of attention to detail that makes NHL so aggravating.

[@UserName-ts3sp]

or getting rid of goal songs. i wanna hear the whip when i score with my jackets at home, not some random song from the soundtrack. maybe they fixed that in the last two years tho, idk

[@standrick1214]

@@UserName-ts3sp facts!

[@UserName-ts3sp]

@Damar Fadlan this isnt even nhl 94... they had goal songs in the nhl games up until nhl 18 or so. at least most of them

[@commentarywithconnor]

I thought I was the only one who thought that the final 360/PS3 NHL(14) was the last great NHL. That generation made incredible strides year by year and 14 was phenomenal with all its game modes and its perfect gameplay. The perfect mix between realism and arcade.

[@Cipher_8]

Was same for NCAA football

[@trevordaigneault4159]

You really thought you were the only one? It’s a pretty popular opinion all around the internet that 14 was the last great game…

[@commentarywithconnor]

@NaPo7 just chose violence today huh

[@jaheimmoultrie7584]

i disagree.@@napo7866

[@zachmontminy]

​​@@napo7866its pure nostalgia. Everyone probably played the game when they were in high school with their friends, which causes them to completely block out any of the garbage that was also in those games. The game has been roughly the same with minor graphical improvements and random gimmicks added in since the skill stick was implemented.

[@VindictiveRaider]

From a 52 year old guy that has retired from playing hockey on EA a thank you for this video. It brought back tons of memories. It was so fun playing back in the 90s.

[@jonathanturbide2232]

NHL 94 was the greatest.

[@solidrockofjesuschristmini2423]

@@jonathanturbide2232 I wasn't a hockey fan and played the hell out of that game, had to be one of the funnest sports games I played

[@purwantiallan5089]

@@jonathanturbide2232 yes. NHL 1994, 1996, and 98 also.

[@purwantiallan5089]

@@solidrockofjesuschristmini2423 hi Mercy Grace.

[@Zeitgeist997]

The mark of a great documentary is to get someone to watch and care about something that they do t care about. I don't care about hockey nor do I care about hockey video games but I was enthralled by the documentary 👏.

[@bruin730]

2K NEEDS to start making NHL games again

[@mr.productions7084]

They don't want

[@lucasugafan4419]

2k6 nhl was goated

[@user-gm4kv2my4u]

Why? They are no better than EA at this point.

[@LetsGoPens528]

nhl 2k on ios was amazing, imagine like a nhl 2k game on a phone, with season mode and all of it

[@HookedonChronics]

@@user-gm4kv2my4u 2k ain't perfect but comparing their Madden games.to their NBA2K games shows how awful EA is. Basketball fans complain about 2K but it's no where near the shit show that Madden is.

[@halfclappertopchedda]

Dude I never noticed this before. The goal celebrations from nhl10 are the SAME animation at nhl22. WTF. EA is SO lazy. Holy man that is embarssing.

[@ADOSMOORINOS]

They also take features out for no reason, only to introduce them back later as if they're something brand new, its a distraction to make people think they did more then they really did. There was tunnel intros (also anything else that was a part of the intro presentation), the national anthems, 3 stars, hipchecks, *suspensions(Whats the point in taking away suspensions)* , breaking the glass, goalie fights, the old skillstick from nhl 14 (alot more control over the players stick with the puck), Connected franchise, Be a gm Connected, season mode? (Not sure if thats still missing), hitting players into the bench, snapshot animation, stick breaking in EASHL, *Practice mode while creating a player (WHY!?)* , create your own plays, the 4-D pad celebrations or the LS goal celebration, live the life mode, All time franchise GM stats, Winter Classic mode, Be a GM officer customizer, *Custom Music (Another WHY)* , Custom audio, Ability to control all teams in Franchise mode, tap in animations from right infront of the net, International tournament mode, authentic goal songs, showing the live game scores of other games that are happening (Like in be a gm etc), Legends, skating through intro props, NBC authentic broadcast, Dynamic attendance (Just got re introduced for NHL 23), helmet numbers, many custom logos, a variety of goalie animations (They've improved this for NHL 23), authentic puck physics, all star game in be a gm, Stanley cup banner in franchise mode, trophy banner presentation in EASHL, the stick flex options, award winners commentary in franchise mode, Authentic Goalie helmets, ability to turn off retired numbers, the visual demonstrations whenever you used to choose strategy settings, ice used to effect the puck physics as the game progressed and ice got chippy, editing player positions in franchise mode, starting be a pro in the minor leagues, demonstrations of coach settings and types, being able to see over 5 years of past trophy and award winners, jersey physics (how youd see ripples and stuff), face protectors or bubble visors or jaw shields for injured players, assigning scouts to specific player positions, the mid net cameras, overtime winner celebrations, the custom camera option, winning a playoff series or the stanley cup the celebrations have now been made the same, mobile app removed, ability to see the amount of players online, favorite team option in the main menu, action tracker on all events, the variety of european arenas has now been reduced to one, advertisements on the ice of european leagues, I think the custom team captain european helmets have been removed, accurate NHL goal horns, players are all the same height now on cutscenes after scoring, they removed the custom color palette for goalie stick tape, playoff towels for every NHL team, Og collision physics, players fighting goalies, fans booing an opposing player who injured one of yours, HUT point rewards for playing any game mode, practice mode in franchise mode, HUT season length? (I think), predicting shots while playing goalie, gallery for your saved photos and videos, goalie helmets coming off, breakaway counter stat, enforcer system, feedback voting, numerous authentic jerseys, checking box scores of past games in franchise mode, ability to play "Todays matchups", relive the past mode, and lastly this is something I think I noticed. Since the puck passing is completely f**** in NHL 22, when you go on instant replay, I think they took away the part that shows what direction your analogue sticks were moving, so that you can't have proof that the passes misfire all the time, but I'm not 100% sure I'll have to check. Now a majority of these removed features I got from a reddit comment that was posted 1 year ago, there might even be some more removed features the guy didn't pick up on. Some of these features I didn't even know about, but it very well goes to show that EA will randomly removed a bunch of sh** from their game so that they can pretend its fresh and brand new later on. With every feature listed above, EA will slowly bring them back in, and since those features were already around before, it will be easy to implement them back on Next gen, and this list buys them like 5 years of time to be lazy and trick the fans into thinking all these features are fresh and have never been seen before. I think they're only removing things for no reason, to give themselves easier work and the opportunity to pretend like they're improving their game when in reality they're stuck on moving forward, so they have to take away things just to put them back in so that they can have at least something to work on and something they can say is a new feature, even though we all know it isn't new. Its depressing. Yeah the fact that the goal animations were from 12 years ago, embarrassing for sure. I heard from someone who analyzed the physics and animations of the game, that they still have animations/physics from 2007. Wtf, thats 15 years ago and were using powerful next gene consoles, why is there content from 2007 still in the game. Lastly, I realize that certain things I would've mentioned above as being features EA has removed, that in NHL 22 for that matter, some of those features might of been re introduced already as if they were new again. Like I think there's helmet numbers again, most of the goal horns are authentic again, I'm not sure if they've introduced the authentic goal songs again, I think the Legend teams are back, Skating through props is back I think, I think I saw trophy banner presentations in EASHL this year, but I think most of the other stuff is still missing or removed. So yeah, some of those things in the list might have already come back, but there's still so much that the old games used to already have, that have been stripped from the newer games for no reason, just to be brought back as if its new. It pisses me off.

[@chasewilliams3128]

The downfall of EA sports started in 2013 when Andrew Wilson became CEO of EA. After 2014’s Advanced Warfare Andrew saw just how Lucrative micro transactions can make. After that EA games have never been the same. EA sports now is in a period where they take away features, wait 5 years and bring those same features back and make it the main selling point for their yearly releases rinse and repeat. When it comes to sports games ONLY BUY USED. I don’t care if they’re selling it for the same price you can buy it new at Walmart. Never let EA see a penny from you

[@Radeo]

The NHL series was already toast by then. After 2004 it was just livor mortis that people mistook for actual signs of life.

[@solidrockofjesuschristmini2423]

It would stop if so many ppl would quit buying shit from ultimate team, I remember when it first came out I knew that was going to screw every sports game EA had their hand on, and it truly has

[@yustinaparjiah287]

@Damar Fadlan yes.

[@yustinaparjiah287]

@@solidrockofjesuschristmini2423 i still play NHL 1994 to 14.

[@yustinaparjiah287]

@@Radeo yup.

[@safejewel2072]

Ok hear me out: nhl 94, nhl 04, and nhl 14 were the best of the series right? Well 24 will be next year so there still might be hope?

[@vaagai9808]

Here's how good NHL 09 was for me- I played that game on my PC for more than a hundred hours in my teenage days and I hadn't even watched a single ice hockey match in my life.

[@adamh4h4]

Same here. Its the same for most pre-2009 NHL games. Ice Hockey isn't a thing in my country(its a humid place. Think of Florida) but when I boot up and played with my friends, we spent hours on NHL 06( PC). We don't know a THING about the rules, whos the best players, how to effectively score, etc,etc. Just know it was very fun slamming people's a$$ on the wall / clotheslining peeps and trying to score(personally, I went the one-two pass and shoot).

[@chadwellington2524]

i love this comment because i always thought nhl 09 was the best and ive played since nhl 98

[@shawklan27]

Remember that time when nhl 2k10 allowed you control a ice ring cleaner just because? Shit like that gave that game a great sense of personality something that is extremely lacking in todays nhl games.

[@codyssmith73]

2K10 on the WII had ROSTER SHARING. 12 years & two Nintendo consoles ago & EA is just adding it now.

[@TH__.]

that was my game and still is one of my personal favs of the nhl franchise

[@iBMcFly]

An ice RINK cleaner? The Zamboni?

[@PhoenixBlack_741]

2k NHL games were superior…And NFL.

[@JaredtheRabbit]

Iirc, that "82 features missing" thing mentions that... which was never in an EA NHL game.

[@saddler91]

2010-2014 was probably my favorite time with the game.

[@ThatDrunkQuebecker]

Yep, and not only for the NHL games

[@SavedAndConfused]

The nhl games became my absolute favorite sports videogames when I was a kid and single handedly made me hockey fan. I'm hoping soon we can get back to something on the level of 14

[@andrew9131]

I'm from the UK and growing up, the NHL Games introduced me to Ice hockey. I now play for a team and am a huge fan and watch loads of games. However, the quality of the games does cost EA. I took up following the sport because I enjoyed the games. I had friends who got hold of nhl games and played them for 15 minutes before getting either bored or annoyed and game errors and that was probably the last chance EA NHL had with them. Good games bring people back so it would pay for them to invest and make continually good games. Another thought I always have - NHL HUT im pretty sure is way more expensive than fifa! Lastly, if EA brought NHL to PC They'd double their sales. Im still on NHL 20 because I'm holding out for a PC Game. I only play NHL on my xbox and no other game but I'd probs buy every year if was on PC! Cool video tho, can't disagree with anything!

[@chrismac5560]

NHL 94 - Great NHL 04 - Amazing (best game ever) NHL 14 - Great Good news, we should only be two years away from the next great NHL game

[@stuartmcnair2783]

Great except the glitch scoring. Sorry but if you can't score without that cheat then you suck at the game

[@jIvEztImE]

@Danny P lets not act like he wasnt on florida like 2 years ago! But yeah ur point is still valid

[@figo7ronaldo]

Don't get your hopes up bud. NHL 24 will be garbage.

[@purwantiallan5089]

@@jIvEztImE NHL 23 maybe the last OK NHL game.

[@purwantiallan5089]

@@figo7ronaldo yes. EA would stop releasing NHL games after Nhl 23.

[@matthewbless3335]

The NHL 01 intro still gives me goosebumps. Heavy by Collective Soul banging in the background of hard hits and fast paced hockey action was *so* cool back in the day

[@supersasukemaniac]

I remember a cool realism thing from NHL 14. Depending on what in game day you where playing, the NBC branding on the boards changed.

[@himhim3344]

Reminds me of the old ncaa football games where the commentators would make reference holidays based on the system date

[@paulsbernards1142]

Hey, i know it has been a long time since you uploaded this vid, but i have story: Me and my family we love hockey, and when me and my brothers were little we played nhl 06 i think, on PC, and it was amazing we played almost everyday for a long time we had so much fun. Since i wasnt a console player iv never had a console, i saved some money and built my self killer gaming pc, not a long time ago i was slowly feeling nostalgia from all the youtube videos and so i bought the new xbox series x. Finally i could play nhl again… that was the day before i bought my new xbox of course i bought the gamepass and was fired up to play nhl 21 and…. It didnt feel the same the graphics are insanely bad, i am playing on a 4k uhd tv and i can still see the pixels in the net, helmets, sticks the characters in replay look bad, overall the game is fun with friends. But it lacks so much and right now i dont want to spend 65€ on the nhl22. Anyways conclusion i didnt reach my expectations, didnt get the nostalgic feeling. P.S sorry for a lot of grammar errors I am from europe and english is not my native language.

[@hartingjonbalaj2699]

Imagine a company that has basically monopolized sports simulation games and instead of revolutionizing the gaming industry they have literally regressed in ways that one would view as unfathomable unimaginable 15 years ago.

[@Skumtomten1]

Well, thats what monopolization will often do in the long run. No competition, no incentive to improve.

[@lukepelton2180]

@@Skumtomten1 yeah and EA as a whole just doesn't seem to publish good games. They have ruined some of the best gaming companies ever and gaming franchises

[@Basegud]

I had been playing NHL 21 for a while, but then I decided to take a little trip down memory lane and popped in NHL 15. I immediately noticed that the graphics and shadows were a lot better, and I was kinda confused to see this better output coming from an older game.

[@TheMostCursedSportsShowPeriod]

That's even worse considering 15 is ass

[@KyreeseAlford1999]

I played NHL 94 on the PlayStation 2 via NHL 06! I had a great time playing that game! I highly recommend everyone who haven’t played it yet, play NHL 94 when you have the chance!

[@psuley1977]

100% Worth getting an old Genesis for

[@ryanduray1]

I grew up playing the original NHL games on Sega Genesis. Good old days.

[@youngjustin82]

I play 96 on Genesis emulator on my ps vita . It's addicting to say the least

[@Al-jq6yp]

The one thing is you don't get the whalers an nordiques but they replaced by another name, they still get the city name Hartford an Québec

[@davew9642]

😂

[@gvrry]

Outstanding video man, NHL is a mainstay in my library and it sucks seeing it go so far downhill.

[@imallfordabulls]

At least NHL still has a decent GM mode and you can actually create a team!

[@DubberRucks]

Don't give EA ideas on what else to take out; they're good enough at doing that already! 😆

[@linklink9589]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/hpDNg6mffaZ-rJY

[@bigdaddytrips6197]

Season mode is good to. You can use how many teams as you want in a season.

[@mcj88]

I'd go as far to say that create-a-team is the _one_ thing that the current-gen NHL games have actually _greatly_ improved on the past-gen installments. Being able to create my own 32-team league with everyone having unique logos and jerseys rules

[@flaviusfake271]

Yes that is what I yearn when I miss and long to play hockey...to be the manager dealing with all the problems

[@Xavier_Coogat_the_Mambo_King]

Tried playing '20. The difficulty options were "win by 10" or "lose by 10". Didn't play for long

[@yourordinarytwathere8789]

My problem is that even on superstar, i win by 10. Makes offline boring. Hut i won’t touch and my friends don’t play so eashl isn’t giving me anything. I want to play nhl but there isn’t a single gamemode i can play for longer than a game or 2.

[@lukepelton2180]

@@yourordinarytwathere8789 Imo the only game mode worth playing is 3v3 eashl. Versus play and Hut just dont feel like they play well at all and havent since 2014

[@brianspellburgio5702]

I know it can be very frustrating however played with the sliders enough and finally figured out a perfect happy medium All Star level

[@yourordinarytwathere8789]

@@lukepelton2180 yeah i 100% agree with you. Problem is, i rarely have anyone to play it with.

[@yourordinarytwathere8789]

@@brianspellburgio5702 and then you grind and grind the game untill max sliders + superstar is easy. Then the game’s dead. We NEED more difficulties. I feel like this isn’t talked about enough.

[@Mickelraven]

Fantastic video, and this is really well researched! And as an offline player, I'm very disappointed every year how little the Be A Pro mode gets touched (including 22). I bought NHL 21 excited, because it promised a revamped Be A Pro mode in years, only to get very disappointed. But bought 22, because I played the beta and the 10 hour EA Play trial and was genuinely surprised how well it played on ice! It may not have anything new to do outside of the rink, but I have to give EA a thumbs up because they managed to make gameplay really great, update graphics thanks to Frostbite, and make a smooth console generation transition, unlike NHL 15. The only thing plaguing this game is how buggy this game has been on launch, and features that are still missing that were removed in NHL 15. The future of the NHL series looks really unclear, because we're on the Frostbite engine now. This series can only get better if EA can keep the momentum, or worse if the bugs keep getting worse over time, like with Madden.

[@djohns9295]

“Fans have no other options.” That’s what happened. NHL 15 took away the ability to sim periods in franchise mode too, which made the game unplayable for me because I dont have the time to play 82 full games for a season.

[@rorster27]

Awesome video man. Been playing this since NHL 2000 and I thought later on in the future this game is gonna be amazing. Boy was I wrong 😑

[@jere9090]

I got same thoughts but I was wrong unfortunately😬😬 -09 was last good NHL game to me🙄 after -16 I give up and after that I didnt play any newer nhl games 😅

[@powers1av3]

I can’t believe they don’t even have winter classics or any outdoor games in 22. It’s been YEARS

[@ImGilbertTF]

Nice new logo color 😎👍

[@SOFTDRINKTV]

New logo for a new era! Lots of new content coming on a ton of different games

[@VoidedEyelids]

@@SOFTDRINKTV definitely my favorite sports video game channel! The logo is great and the new 1 I love!

[@gabingston3430]

@@SOFTDRINKTV This is completely unrelated, but if the NCAA Football series had continued past 2013, how do you think it would've developed? I think it would've remained great on the PS3 and 360 (NCAA 16 or 17 would've been the last one on those consoles), but would've declined on the PS4 and Xbox One.

[@SOFTDRINKTV]

Yeah there was a mode with NBC game of the week or something. There wasn't an NBC scoreboard and broadcast until the next year though

[@dylanmarcusclark]

94, 04, 14… we just have to wait for 24 for the next great game in the series!

[@jkp5045]

I don't watch hockey personally but this is nicely done

[@ajevans1422]

To be fair I don’t watch that much hockey but I would watch a game or 2 to see how you like it. If there is even a local hockey team go to it, I went to a local team and it was general admission and I really got into it. Take into account I’m from Alabama where the closest hockey team is Nashville.

[@RandomnessMusician]

Hi Jamari

[@OfficialBugBoi]

You’re missing out

[@jkp5045]

@@ajevans1422 I'll look into it

[@ajevans1422]

@@jkp5045 free advice: stay away from Arizona and Buffalo.

[@johnnyroberts3761]

A lot of people really like NHL 2004, but I do think NHL 2005 is a very underrated game. I think because ‘05 was the lockout season, that the game doesn’t get the respect it should.

[@Oxmen33]

It's simple, gambling addicts are lured to EAs approach to HUT, and confuse going to a casino with ruining a great game by unnecessarily spending hoardes of money to open packs. Therefore EA doesn't need to add or do anything new for each new release. And it painfully shows in every area of the game.

[@mrillis9259]

Could you imagine, degenerate gambler parent runs into your room as a teenager, gets you to help them enter the game cards, then buys 50 packs an opens them slowly. Where's the pay off lol

[@APawlack]

13:30 I have not seen this intro in years Made me smile, great memories as a kid 😢

[@David-wc3de]

I had the same reaction, took me back the second I saw it

[@DarkManX16]

Is it a coincidence how Madden 04, NHL 04, and Live 04 are considered some of the best games in their respective franchises?

[@GarlicPudding]

I guess 4 is the magic number, not 3. (Props if you get the reference).

[@therobro5089]

Nah it’s the 05 season that was the best Live 05, Madden 05, NASCAR 05 chase for the cup and fifa 05

[@dustman820]

@@therobro5089 NFL 2K5 stole Madden's thunder that year with the $20 price point and it being a great football game as well. NASCAR 2005 was an awesome NASCAR game. The only thing wrong with it was it did not have Pocono Raceway, meaning the NEXTEL Cup Series was missing two races.

[@therobro5089]

@@dustman820 Yeah Nascar Thunder 2004 was good and nfl 2k5 is the greatest nfl game, but 05 had mvp baseball 05 which imo will never be topped plus madden 2005 was a great game

[@therobro5089]

@@dustman820 Also Nascar 06 total team control is the best

[@mikejennette8478]

Ultimate Team is a cool concept when a company isn’t absolutely predatory about it. SDS has nailed Diamond Dynasty in MLB The Show. Very easy to field a great team in a few weeks FTP playing 1-2 hours a day

[@mcj88]

For me I'd say the last great NHL game was either past-gen 15 or Legacy Edition; games that took what 14 had and polished it, fixing stuff like wonky puck physics (dump the puck into the corner from the neutral zone and you'll see what I mean) and a low-scoring sim engine. I still play Legacy Edition more than the PS4 installments!

[@AwesomeNuke]

Yep, NHL14 was the very last good NHL games. I miss these weekend nights spent with 3 great friends I've met on there, playing EASHL until early in the morning. Good times

[@Nashvillecoug]

Love the quality put into every video! You have a lot of talent!

[@danfabbs]

My favorite feature of NHL 22 is that whenever there is a short cinematic, EA added in this nice feature where everyone in the entire stadium starts T-posing, the game freezes and then crashes. Arguably the best feature in any NHL game to date

[@ADOSMOORINOS]

Hahaha

[@KidTonyGaming]

You know NHL 94 transcended history when every hockey game after had an NHL 94 control scheme

[@flippy7035]

Eh… not all of them. They only added it back in NHL 09.

[@primer44]

Ugh it absolutely breaks my heart that everything you said in this video is pretty much true. Every year i spend my money to play a sports game and every year we’re given this soulless cash grab

[@KyreeseAlford1999]

I love NHL 2004! It’s one of the best hockey games I’ve ever played! I have played it for Xbox via Xbox 360! And I’m planning to play it again on my “modded” PlayStation 2 on my hard drive!

[@KrisVic91]

How? I have two copies to play of nhl2004 to play on my 360, but they play so glitchy, it's unplayable. The crowd glitches in and out constantly. Do I need to change a setting?

[@KrisVic91]

@@KyreeseAlford1999 i have 2 copies! Haha. I dont think can change resolution unfortunately.

[@KyreeseAlford1999]

I think you should change the resolution to 480p or buy another copy of NHL 2004 for Xbox if both of your copies scratched. You’re welcome, dude!

[@KrisVic91]

@@KyreeseAlford1999 i dont think they are scratched. Maybe it cus im in europe or something.

[@edenjung9816]

There is a Huge modding comunity for that Game on PC. With updated rosters and graphics. Give it a try.

[@trevorstewart7133]

The downfall happened once EA owned the rights to make the hockey game. With no competition from 2K, EA puts zero effort into this game. Its insane how this game gets worse every year. Nhl 23 might be worst one in last 10 years. Now every shot goes in. Bc thats fun. Requires zero skill to play this game anymore shoot from anywhere it goes in.

[@xtlm]

2009 was greatly reviewed. It introduced the stick movement. That was revolutionary. 2011 had full 6v6 online team season play. That was also revolutionary. Those along with 96 were my favorite NHL games (Making full custom teams in 1996 was just amazing for the time...and you couldn't max stats either on created players which was another +)

[@Tomn8er]

No it was 07 that introduced the skill stick. Which remains the single most important gameplay mechanic upgrade in the franchise IMO.

[@st3veee77]

yes and introduced the EASHL I believe. it has to be considered one of the best ever. top 3 easy

[@eshoosca]

If NHL 24 isn’t the 4th best NHL game I’ll be unhappy

[@michaelkeller5927]

How do you just gloss over 98?? It had the most epic intro of the entire series and was an absolute breakthrough in gameplay

[@keithcarlson7267]

That was the most insane shit I’ve ever seen! 17 years old back in ‘97 when I bought that game and I have never been so pumped to start a video game. ‘99 had an insane soundtrack.

[@chadwellington2524]

I was 7 and first nhl game i got was NHL breakaway 98, im guessing you talking about nhl 98 with forsberg on cover

[@leafsking]

In my opinion what ruined the NHL series is HUT AND GWC

[@ericjames19]

NHL series from 98 to 2002 on the PC with a 3D graphics accelerator card was legit the best sports gaming of my life

[@michaelkeller5927]

And he BARELY talked about 98. I was hoping he'd at least show the 98 intro video

[@PWDcarrioN]

NHL02 on PC was the shit, played it with my older brother alot. All the funny shit it included was the best, bouncing pucks, big heads etc. Wish they added that in the single player again, collecting all the funny shit was so much fun.

[@chaunceystewart9960]

@@michaelkeller5927 NHL 98 was a huge upgrade in gameplay and presentation from NHL 97 on the Playstation.

[@GoodOldDaysGaming]

Just started replaying NHL 2004 and 06 purely for nostalgia and to save money. 2004 is a flood of memories: Back then I created all of my closest school friends and a custom team and went through a whole season to the Stanley Cup, and it was awesome. I do think 06 has better passing AI, though. 2004 auto line changes can make for moments of empty ice with nobody to pass to in the middle of a rush - but you can always turn them on manual mode. I've played 10, but never owned it; I wish I had access to that and 14.

[@RedCometXIII]

LORD KARNAGE! The omnipotent hockey playing deity. CGR's review of 11 was the GOAT video game review.

[@ActNasty5]

Holy shit i had my guy named lord karnage way back then too😂😂😂😂😂

[@sjeangilles1]

Great video so far. I’m at 5:08. You most definitely could not fight in NHL 94. You could in the previous and the later versions but fighting was not included in that one. However, we didn’t care because that game introduced one-timers.

[@MATTDALOR1AN]

GLAD this was made! Can't do Madden and not do present-day EA NHL. NHL 22 is decent, though. 20 and 21 were horrid

[@anthonypastore8378]

When I was probably about 11 I had NHL 2003 and I played that game until probably NHL 2006 came out and yes 2004 had a lot of great improvements that changed the way the NHL games were made at that time but I swore in NHL 2003 when you won the Stanley Cup your players would skate around with the cop and you would have a team picture at the end and the music would be either sweetness or no one knows or something along those lines like I swear that was done in 2003 but that’s just one singular blemish I can say from an amazing video! Always enjoyed and even watch them multiple times because I love seeing your take and seeing those games played again. Keep it up!?

[@GG9]

Another banger SD!!! Personally, my favorite NHL game of all time has gotta be...NOT EA made in Wayne Gretzky's 3D Hockey 98 😜

[@youngjustin82]

Man Gretzky on psp is awesome also i think it came out in 06 .the gameplay is fast paced awesome arcade style gameplay

[@ejf0255]

great job. as a owner of almost 100 NHL games. You nailed EAs total lack of effort. They stopped trying when 2K stopped making them. Sadly EA will NEVER care again.... Greed took over pride and it is not getting any better.

[@puckingrufus56]

As someone who has played NHL games since 1994 this was an amazing trip down memory lane.

[@hrshy491777]

NHL 04 absolutely holds up. Dynasty is loaded the teams are awesome. The C stick for Gamecube shows the first of the rendition of skill stick. Its so much more playable than the current gen games.

[@stephengazzola1025]

I was so bummed when they took out hockey hugs. Just made the game feel less realistic. Celebrating with your teammates literally happens after every goal in real life!

[@martinalther6661]

I actually really like NHL 97 and NHL 98 on PC. I can’t speak for the console versions of either game, but 97 to me feels like the classic DOS-based hockey game EA wanted to make since 1993 but couldn’t until then due to technological limitations. While NHL 98 had faster and more frantic gameplay than other NHL games. I’d argue both actually hold up better than 99, 2000 and 2001 (which, today, just feel like lesser versions of NHL 04).

[@xman777b]

I get that. However, NHL 98-2001 was a technical achievement on the PS1, and for that reason it deserves acclaim.

[@tdemko30]

NHL22 is actually pretty good this year. Hopefully they can build off this years improvement.

[@brettshepherd5240]

Yes 22 is very good

[@bartholomewesperanza3442]

The gameplay really is a lot better. Still a long ways to go but it’s a decent start

[@Joemamahahahaha821]

Swear I’m the only person who played 22 and literally couldn’t tell any difference to 21

[@theold4734]

@@Joemamahahahaha821 well there isnt that huge difference. But its still better. The gamplay feels more realistic and i wont even talk about the graphics which looks 10x times better. When it comes to be a pro and be a gm i would say theres basically no difference. They just added xfactor to that and thats all.

[@martinneumann6054]

@@theold4734 LGRW

[@krenwregget7667]

I agree, the series peaked with NHL14 and has never recovered. I never played most modes so I didn't care about them but I loved BaP and Season Mode, creating teams with all my friends to go after the cup. I bought NHL20 for super cheap a few years back and it's a constant frustration with broken AI, ridiculous ice tilt and those fucking awful sound tracks. Not being able to import and create your own play lists is a big turn off because I used to LOVE hearing my own custom tracks while playing.

[@jaheimmoultrie7584]

same.

[@homelessinpeckham1094]

"What happened?" It was them not bringing the game to PC is what happened. Karma!

[@jukkaramo3351]

Maybe you should buy a console😁😜

[@homelessinpeckham1094]

​@@jukkaramo3351 I own one but the problem with console is that once the next-gen consoles are released, people cannot continue playing the same sports game on the newer consoles. On PC people can play mostly any games from any year without needing to change hardware, something console user can't do without hoarding their older consoles, which is someone I don't like doing.

[@whyme7302]

TBH I see why EA does not care about nhl because the sport has low interest compared to other sports such soccer football and basketball. U dont hear people talking about hockey alot unless you live in Canada.

[@gocawot4165]

I am croatian living in Germany and love nhl hockey since i was kid. My brother also. We are watching it since 90'😁

[@tapetotapegame]

This video is the exact reason why we're working on a NHL 94/14 inspired game. You can check the gameplay here : kzbin.info/www/bejne/fYHYiGech5ejndE

[@josephperrier1199]

It's because there isn't any competition, they can do whatever they want and people will still purchase it .

[@derrickpavlovic4605]

NHL 21 was bad gameplay and even graphics wise but I feel like that was the year they improved on depth as making changes to be a pro and adding a trade deadline to franchise which makes it very realistic and has to make you hurry up before someone else gets that player NHL 21 was set up so that they can make the gameplay and graphics better for 22 and I am really happy about that

[@supersasukemaniac]

I think by 21, they pretty much stopped working with the Ignite engine due to the impending switch to Frostbite, and just worked on some backend stuff, like the improvement to GM mode.

[@NecroericYoutube]

My fav features in the xbox 360 era was being able to assign specific playlists for Goals and wins and intro. also custom Menu music! wish i could have those! Great vid!

[@geneadams8930]

I miss create a play. I've always wondered what was the reason for removing that feature.

[@felixfranzen7318]

I think it's weird that the ice still looks like it's from an air hockey game in 2024 in these games.

[@jace9965]

i was waiting for this to come out just made my day 10x better

[@uwrfcoop]

Well said. You should send this to EA.

[@misterx6276]

They basically hit a peak and then coasted to cut costs. Amazing u named NHL14 bc I thought of that one too.

[@iBMcFly]

14 is so good I still play a few games a week!

[@stevez4068]

I've been a hardcore fan of the series my entire life. I mean since the Sega days. This release gives me hope and the series definitely seems to be going in the right direction to me! The timing of this video is weird lol, we had so many dark years there that I would've appreciated it more.

[@skiltonjackmusic]

Nostalgia is one hell of a drug.

[@mike91mdk45]

Would love to see a video on the nhl hitz series. Those games were fun as hell. As a fairly novice hockey fan, it was great pickup and play madness just like the other arcade-y sports titles midway released back then

[@jaheimmoultrie7584]

that would be amazing, along with NHL 2k5, NHL 2k6, NHL 2k7, nhl 07, nhl 08, nhl 10 retrospective.

[@ajevans1422]

To be fair I just play NHL 19 I mean yeah it’s a tad outdated but for gameplay I enjoy it and do a expansion dynasty with the Atlanta Thrashers. I’m a super casual for NHL games

[@smoothiemaster6800]

I also play NHL 19 as well and probably won’t upgrade until something drastic changes. It’s also the last one with NBCSN in it so that’s also why I enjoy it.

[@rjwood6314]

I still play 19. Its ok but its been downhill at least since 11. 22 is a copy paste with x factor added. every player on early access said so.

[@BalockaySlots]

I bought NHL 24 the other day and man its just not the same as like back when I played like NHL 14 and 15, everything feels harder and just not even fun

[@ryanh3784]

As someone who’s hated these past couple NHL games I’ve actually enjoyed 22 a ton

[@seikoshinohara3084]

Also it needs to genuinely be ILLEGAL to have literal gambling in a game with children playing. EA needs some rich kid gambling addict to have his parents sue their asses.

[@inc2000glw]

It will be hidden or overlapped by loading screen, found by no clipping

[@kreamykyle5350]

I remember when HUT first came out. I actually quite enjoyed the game mode. It was something different that had a cool concept. Unfortunately EA realized that it started to become very popular and started to test the micro transaction market. It became very lucrative for them and since NHL 15 it got really bad and the HUT community shoveled money right into their hands. The worst part for me is that even when facing a stacked team, the other player still chooses to use glitch goals. Anyways, this was a well done mini doc!

[@martinalther6661]

Great vid! Although I kind of disagree about the NHL series stagnating between 96 and 2004. The graphics and gameplay improved tremendously in the mid-5th gen. New modes were added. The presentation ramped up. And so on. I’d even go as far as to say NHL 99 is still one of my favorite games in the series.

[@chadwellington2524]

yes nhl 99

[@TheEgganator324]

NHL 2K5 retrospective please

[@EJB3III]

I loved 04 even as a kid. I remember doing everything to upgrade the team transportation and stadium upgrades in the Dynasty mode.

[@Mr2k71]

I'm so glad someone is saying something about NHL I feel all the attention is on madden that everyone forgets that NHL is just as bad if not worse its legit the same game every year its crazy

[@davew9642]

Better every year

[@zeldadahedgehog]

NHL 99 will always be my favorite, the music, the menu sound effects, the first NHL game to have the Predators, when the Avalanche had Sakic, Forsberg and Roy, the FMV’s of the Arenas before the games started and my introduction to hockey

[@MBF120]

I miss the winter classic, the hits through the glass, hitting injured players as they skate to the bench, a more in depth career to

[@supersasukemaniac]

The Career mode is pretty in depth still.

[@supersasukemaniac]

I don't remember hitting Injured players on their way off Ice though.

[@MBF120]

@@supersasukemaniac maybe im thinking of hitting goalies as they skate to the bench

[@Nokia3310do]

'NHL 98 was very similar with some small improvements'. What?!! It was an entirely different game! Everything had been remade or massively upgraded. It set a new standard for 3D hockey games.

[@xman777b]

yup. 98-2001 were gold on PS1

[@justinganz1173]

I think NHL has always had a good game. But the only think that's missing is correct goal songs and horns as well as new old school logos for Create A Team along with other NHL stadiums for it

[@MetalCharlo]

They got the horn and goal song correct for Montreal in 22 but I wouldn't know about the others.

[@guitarrocksX21]

Oh for sure, the game is perfect, feels next gen and needs almost no improvement! Just missing some horns and songs! They're so close to perfection!

[@Joemamahahahaha821]

@@guitarrocksX21 are you joking?

[@guitarrocksX21]

@@Joemamahahahaha821 obviously lol

[@Joemamahahahaha821]

@@guitarrocksX21 thank god. I thought so but I had to make sure.

[@DjFIL007]

I've ignored Ultimate Team, but you can tell it's where the development attention goes and the rest of the game suffers. I also personally don't care for the right thumb stick controls. Now I just revisit the old titles, which for me is NHL 94 (rom with roster/team mods) and NHL 2K5 (my personal favorite from that generation).

[@Xhunterdead9154]

Ahh nhl 15, got it a week after launch, My 14 year old self was so excited, as a primary Gm Mode player(I only play GM mode on all sports games by EA, as I love being able to control and run my team how I want.) anyways I loaded up a gm mode, see how fucking awful buffalo was that year, me being me say I'll fucking fix it. Get to the end of the season, alright McJESUS time baby, I click on the draft day and it just sims through the draft. I was so confused, I reloaded the save, re did the year. got the first pick again and it sims through the draft. again, I come to find out they removed the fucking draft and we had no control on who we draft, Instead of Conner McDavid I Got some dude named Marley who was a 59 medium top 6. went and bought old gen the same day.

[@SylveonMujigaeOfficial]

I only turned 14 in 2018, so I was roughly borderline 11 when that game came out.

[@BakingPizza]

I’ve been playing NHL since 94’ but to me prime EA NHL was 09-14. That jump to Xbox One/PS4 really messed everything up. I didn’t care for HUT in the beginning and legit loved grinding for cards/packs because it was worth jt. Felt worth it without spending a dime. EASHL was perfect. But once again everyone had to cry because they got the game later than release and their player wasn’t Legend 3 yet. 23 is a step in the right direction but X factors really ruin it as well. Konami or 2k need to step up so EA can get off their laziness.

[@ManuelGraham]

EA has to be the worst company of all time