f13.net

This sounds incredible (http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/897/897903p2.html). The 3x3 online MP pickup games from 08 were a blast- this will be 10x better if they can get it to work lag free. I would have bought 09 anyway (08 was fantastic), but this completely seals the deal. CANNOT WAIT.

That looks pretty incredible. I hope they do that for basketball because there aren't dead positions in basketball. It would suck to be the goalie if your team is wrecking shit... Now that I think about it, I couldn't imagine it ever being really fun to be the goalie.

I was thinking the exact opposite, being a goalie would be the first position I would want to try.

That does sound pretty cool and I don't even like Hockey.

Too bad a baseball version of this doesn't make a lot of sense.

Damnit man, what is wrong with you? You're going to force Oban and into beating some taste in to you.

Fascinating. Unlikely to gain traction, but fascinating. I'd love for it to make a splash - mostly because of basketball.

You're so out of touch with hockey. This will draw a lot of attention from people who have given up on hockey games or hockey in general, and obviously the people who already play NHL. Being able to setup plays with other competent people is a god damned gift from God. BAH! You're touched in the head sometimes.

You are canadian. And on that note, NiX, how many copies is this gonna sell? Just ballpark that shit.

Edit: Like I said, I want it to gain enough traction that shit transfers over to other sports. I'm just not deluded enough to think that it will. You can't prove otherwise, but EA can.

What about being able to setup plays with retards who fuck up then call you a fag? Who is that a gift from?

Microsoft.

Baseball? Fuck that noise.

Hmm, I'll have to be sure to give a copy of this game a spin this fall.

So who's gonna be up for some hockey?

I'll be good for it, though I've never played any of the earlier iterations online before. Would give me a good excuse to reactivate my gold account so I can stream Netflix too.

Unless we can scare up 20+ people for a team (so there are always teammates on), I will probably join up with the 2+2 (http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/showthread.php?t=274901) folks. If I can somehow be on more than 1 team, that would be ideal.

I'm sure I could be scared up.

I'm plenty scared for this.

So... do we grind for Rink Points and save up for Brutal Gladiator Composite Sticks or.. how does this work? Where's the grind?

No way, I'm using wood sticks - don't need them breaking on crucial face-offs.  :grin:

So, the demo is up on XBL...

At the very least, it kicks the shit out of 2k9. I have no idea wtf they think they're doing over at 2ksports.

And the new Play a Pro (or whatever) feature seems very interesting.


And a big plus; they didn't fuck with the controls too much. They changed a few little things, but apparently for the better.

I still want to grind for months and months to save up points for a Brutal Gladiator Composite.

But there should be a rating for the shoulderpads. They're the most visible part.

That sounds amazing.  I'll wait to see how it pans out for the PS3 version, but if things go smoothly I'm down.  This will probably be the first hockey game I buy since NHL 95.

(http://hfboards.com/image.php?u=13164&dateline=1205098373)

I have been playing the everloving crap out of the demo. BAP mode is a blast, and will be like chocolate-covered Robot Jesus when I can track my stats. I am a part of an EASHL team from 2+2 (poker site); we have ~20 members so far. If possible, I would like to get an F13 team together, but I fear we may not be numerous enough to have teammates online most of the time. If we can have multiple online characters, I would love to do multiple teams.

I plan on going to pick this up early tomorrow morning (telecommute FTW!!). I can play and still monitor work stuff pretty easily. I will post the specifics on the EASHL stuff as soon as I figure them out.

Oh shit, this DOES come out tomorrow.

Fuck.  :awesome_for_real:

We can use created players, right? And are they finally going to put back in the whole "skill point limit" thing from earlier games? There was no reason other than "rp'ing" to not give myself straight 99's in past games.

As I understand it, there are some ridiculous number of skills, and a limited number of points to bump them. The higher they go, the harder they are to improve (according to the IGN review (http://ps3.ign.com/articles/908/908166p1.html)), so I doubt you can crank everything to 99, at least in online play.

My first player is going to be a Bertuzzi-type power forward (#44, of course). I hope I can make a bunch, because snipers, danglers  and playmakers are fun to play as well.

Sorry, he's #7 now. I always knew you were a closet Flames fan.

You are a cruel man.

Also, in stores 9/10...BOOOO   :drill:

I can't tell you how bitter I am. Every other goddamned game I have seen is available in stores ON its ship date from EBgames/gamestop/other online retailers. I telecommute Mon/Tues, so it was PERFECT! Even had my buddy come over so we could play all day. We ended up playing 08 instead.  :ye_gods:

Gonna grab it at lunch today. If it is not available by then I may go on some sort of violent spree.

Well I've already got my copy sitting here beside me while I wait for work to end.  So I'm assuming you should have yours today considering I'm in Canada and we usually tend to get things late.

Yep, I am in the same boat. My copy is sitting in my car waiting for me to drive it home and play it until my thumbs fall off.

Doing some reading and watching Olbermann before I play.

Got in 3 or 4 games last night with my online team (we didn't win any, but they were close!). This is going to be really fun.

If you want to join the club, register at http://eashlforum.com and post in the recruitment forum. Mention that I invited you to join. The more the merrier, since we couldn't quite field a full team last night. Ideally we would have 3 or 3 games going at one time!

Must buy XBOX360…

How is the skating, have they improved it so it doesn't feel like my dudes are going in slow-motion (I missed last season release and my last taste of EA NHL was on NHL07 on PS2 and XBOX)…?

The past two versions are LIGHT YEARS ahead of the old stuff. Totally different feel, and the Skill Stick stuff is outstanding.

I need to get this immediately. I keep forgetting the games I'm going to trade in and I need to just say 'fuck it' and pick it up.

Just knock over knock over a display or pile of games or something and stick a copy of it down the front of your pants in the commotion. Aren't you in Canada? I don't think they could even technically charge you with a crime for stealing a hockey game. It is your birthright!

Dude, they have stick lifts now...STICK LIFTS!!

Also, one-handed dekes, changing forward and D lines independently, the return of the flip dump...

Oh yeah, the Be a Pro mode. Full of Fucking Awesome.

I've also played the 2k9 version; complete trash.

This is GotY-type stuff again.

As long as I apologize after I steal it, it'll be ok.

Never thought I would see an NHL thread in the mmo forum. I need more game impressions, don't know if I should spend money I don't have on this or not.

Ok, here's one:

(single player BAP mode)

Made my player, fitted out his gear and such, chose "sniper" as his "class". Assigned him to the Flyers.

OH, but since I am a rank newb, and I don't have world-class stats yet, they assign me to the Phantoms, third line.

I do my best with my time there, trying to make every shift count, and try to take the coach's feedback into account (stay in position more, be more careful with the puck, etc). Recently, I've finally gotten myself promoted to the top line, to see what I can do. I'm getting a decent number of points early in the season, but I need to puck-hog less and not give it up as much.

It really is like being there...or at least as close as we can get currently. You ride the bench while resting, or angst while watching from the sin bin.


You could try renting it if you're still on the fence.

Besides BAP, there are other new gameplay features that have finally arrived, like fucking Stick Lifts (my personal favorite when playing RL hockey), flip dumps, changing D and forwards seperately....it's great.

Already on the 2p2 team, nice.

I play it every chance I get. I am having so much fun playing the online games that my offline Be A Pro character is being neglected. Really cool thing about BAP online- you can respec whenever you want. Everything gets refunded, and you can spend the points again. I have gone from Power Forward to Playmaker to Sniper, and from RW to C to LW, depending on which of my teammates is online.

Also- I have GM powers for the 2p2 team, so holler if you get the game and want to join a team.

UPDATE:



AWESOMESAUCE!!  :drill:

I can't stop playing, despite some giant flaws in the online game. If EA patches it, I may have to quit my job and find a way to play for a living.

I'm actually having a lot of fun analyzing the other team as we play, and finding the best methods to defend against them.

ALSO- been playing random team games when no 2p2 is online....puckhogs SUCK. As do brainless puck chasers. FFS, you don't need to dangle for a pointless shot from below the goal line every time you get the puck - GIVE IT TO THE GUY CAMPED OUT IN THE SLOT!!  :drill:

Wow, just played a 2p2 game....lit up a full squad 9-1, with my one teammate as a goalie.

The key? Good defense and Forecheck. It absolutely SHREDS sloppy everyone-chase-the-puck teams. :drill:

Should I be buying an Xbox 360 for this?

Is it really that great?

Does you be liking hockey?

I'm not a big hockey fan but even I have to say that it is pretty compelling, at least the Be a Pro mode. I also enjoyed the same sort of thing in Power Pros. It does feel more personal and role-playing to just be one guy and stick with him on defense, on the bench, etc. Controlling one guy is just totally different from controlling a team. You spend 90% of your time doing stuff the computer normally does for you.

I'm going to finally get a personal 360 and maybe this game this weekend, might try to join up with some people.

I'm finally getting the hang of playing Goalie...and it's scary fun when you get the hang of it.

Also makes opponents want to pull their hair out.

What is your team name? I am a total Live newb.

Can I get an invite to the team?  Live name is GodlessEndeavor.  I am a n00b goalie, but I love it.

I will send one next time I log in. If I forget, msg me to remind me =)

Once you are on the team, please join up at http://www.eashlforum.com and use 2p2 Jopkers as your team. Lots of good info in the forums there, so take a look when you have time.

Finally picked this up the other day, I'm having a blast playing goal in single-player BAP. Going to have to stop being lazy and get my 360 back online so I can join in the festivities.

The more the merrier, especially if you are a good goalie. The team gets a ton more ranking points for using a human goalie, and it also eliminates the 'cheese goals' that are basically holes in the goalie AI.

Sent PigD an invite last night.

Sounds cool

I have this weird feeling that 10 years down the line, nearly every single game will have qualities that we currently ascribe to MMOs. The social generation of games is going strong.

What if I'm a terrible goalie? :grin:

This is exactly what happened with single player RPGs. Now nearly every game has "RPG elements" and the RPG genre itself doesn't have a whole lot to offer over other genres. If you want to buy new gear or gain levels or upgrade stats you can do that in half the games on the market.

This looks awesome but I have no console, this game is going to be released on PC as well right???  :drill:

Practice in the Online Community games- you get credit for games played and stats accumulated, but it doesn't hurt our already dismal record. Just take your headset off if your random teammates start bitching  :grin: