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31 August 2009
Hank’s NHL 2K10 conference call impressions:
The end of summer is nearing and the weather is turning cool and crisp. This can mean only one thing; hockey season is nearly here.
This is my favorite time of year. Not only will the NHL's rookie camps begin soon, but the latest console hockey games will be hitting the shelves shortly as well. On Friday, August 28th Console Sports was invited to take part in a conference call which featured a number of developers involved in creating 2K Sports NHL2K10.
Last year NHL2K9 was released to mixed reviews. While the game featured some of the best goalies and puck physics ever seen in a hockey game the product felt more of a work-in-progress than a polished work-of-art. This is because former developer Kush, responsible for the series from 2K4 till 2K8, was replaced half-way through the development cycle in favor of in-house development team Visual Concepts.
At this point, the good folks at VC felt the need to start from scratch and give the series a complete facelift. NHL2K10 is the result of what the team envisioned 18 months ago.
During the conference call over 60 questions were asked and answered and I'm happy to report that a great majority of what held 2K9 back has been fixed.
First off, the visuals of the game have been completely overhauled. The arena's look absolutely gorgeous. At times, I was forced into a double-take as I believed what I was looking at was a real photo of the RBC Center or the Saddledome.
The player models have also been polished to a high degree. Small details like sock tape, wear and tear on pants and even cover boy Alexander Ovechkin's signature yellow laces have found their way into NHL2K10. Not only that, but a majority of the NHL players look nearly identical to ther real-life counterparts.
However, it doesn't matter how pretty the game is (and make no mistake, 2K10 is gorgeous) if the gameplay isn't solid there's only so much make-up you can lather on a pig.
Luckily for us hockey fans, Visual Concepts spent a lot of hours on the play on the ice.
In last years game, while the goalies and puck physics created an incredibly organic experience, the CPU's AI was too one-dimensional in it's approach on either side of the puck.
It's main strategy was to crash the net, or attack the puck carrier. Since there seemed to be no bearing on who was delivering or receiving the hit, the results were almost always the same, with a body on the ice and the puck going the other way.
The producers of 2K10 have promised us that this has all changed. The AI will no longer crash the net with abandon regardless of what defensive strategy the human employed. You will now see the CPU cycle the puck and look for an open man or rebound opportunity.
When trying to enter the offensive zone, depending on the team you're playing, they will either dump the puck in or regroup before trying to gain the blueline.
On the other side of the puck, the CPU will still attack the puck carrier but more emphasis on player attributes will determine how that player reacts. Speed, size, aggressiveness, defensive attributes will all be taken into account in how the CPU will approach the puck carrier. No more 5'9” Paul “Kariya laying out 6'8” behemoth Zdeno Chara.
You also won't have to worry about teams playing the same as each other. Thanks to the new “GM Personalities” each team will play according to how they are managed in real life. So if you're playing against the New Jersey Devils expect a tight defensive affair where getting through the neutral zone will be as difficult as scoring on Allstar netminder Martin Brodeur.
Conversely, the next night you might face off against the Atlanta Thrashers where scoring opportunities won't be as difficult to generate.
Another bone of contention for fans last year were the controls. 2K10 promises more liberal stick handling and more options for the user in all three zones.
On the defensive end, you will now have the ability to lift an opponents stick and use your lumber to stop-gap passing lanes or poke check an attacking forward. Using something called "Live Stick" you have complete control over what you can do with your stick in the defensive zone to shut down the CPU or a friend.
For those worried that these new defensive controls will stymie the offensive wizards out there, have no fear. VC has countered with less restrictive analog stickhandling, stumble shots and Ovie dekes.
While you won't have complete 360 degree range with the right-analog stick, you will be able to drag the puck between your skates, far out in front of you or the traditional east-west movements.
In 2K9, when attempting a shot only to be hit with a body check, the shot would be negated entirely. To counter this, the developers came up with 'Stumble Shots'. Now, when you're in the process of firing a puck on net and a defender applies the body, depending on your players offensive attributes and the physical positioning of your player and the defender, you may get off a Stumble Shot. It can be as subtle as a weak off-balance wrister that misses the net, or it could result in the incredible Ovechkin, behind-the-back-while-sliding-on-the ice goal he scored against Phoenix from a few seasons back. For those that haven't seen it, it's one of the greatest plays in sports history and now thanks to 2K10 you can recreated it on the virtual ice as well.
In one-on-one situations the user has an array of pre-defined dekes and moves that are mapped to the controller to help slip the biscuit past those pesky goalies. There is the regular set of dekes and then there are the "Ovie Dekes". The Ovie Dekes are predictably more spectacular than the regular dekes.
However, it should be noted that everything that has been mentioned is contextual and mirrored closely with the players specific individual ratings.
So if you're a 4th line grinder, you won't have the Ovie Deke's at your disposal and any attempt at a stumble shot will most likely result in you falling flat on your rear to the delight of your opponents.
The same should be noted for the defensive controls. When attempting a stick-lift, the players defensive awareness and discipline attributes come into question. So if you're controlling perennial Selke Trophy candidate Pavel Datsyuk and you attempt to strip the puck from a defender, your chances of success are far greater than say Flyers forward Dan Carcillo who is undisciplined and not as adept at the art of defensive play.
This leads us to the new animations that have been introduced in NHL2K10. Animations are also contextual depending on the players skills and their physical positioning on the ice. For example, if you try a stick-lift from behind with an undisciplined player, instead of a stick-lift animation you might see a hook resulting in a penalty. If you were controlling a well disciplined and skilled defender, you would see a perfect stick lift, or tie-up animation that results in a turnover.
The developers mentioned several times how 'organic' their hockey game feels, and they believe that with all of the changes they've introduced, gamers will never feel they've played the same game twice.
And to keep the game fresh, they've worked equally as hard on their Franchise and Online modes.
Every mode will have a quick link to jump online. You can even invite friends to partake with or against you in their franchise.
But why limit yourself to only one friend? Up to 16 players can join a team's guild where you can enjoy 6-on-6 action. You can even have multiple teammates on one console when jumping online.
The PS3 offers the ability to have up to seven players playing on one console while the Xbox 360 and Wii consoles allow four users at once.
For offline gamers, Franchise mode will remain as deep as it's always been with an added new wrinkle. You can choose to play with the regular salary cap, or you can choose to be shackled with a team budget. The budget will be determined according to the teams attendance, performance and financial well-being. So now NHL fans can feel the same restraints as real general managers who don't have the same financial resources as the Detroit's and Toronto's of the world.
In conclusion, with the improvements to graphics, presentation, AI, online modes and controls, Visual Concepts believes they've achieved what they started when they took over hockey operations a year-and-a-half ago; built a true Cup contender.
Scott Hemphill’s NHL 2K10 conference call impressions
It’s really hard to add anything to what Hank already stated from the call, but I know I walked away with it looking forward to the NHL 2K product moreso than I have in several years. Last year’s game was met with a great deal of nervousness from the fans with the news that dev teams switched for NHL 2K9. I know last year, hockey gamers were thinking “Oh no, a rebuilding year”. This year, things seem very up-beat as that transition is now in its second year and we are hearing about the nitty-gritty of features and implementation of features and fixes.
The biggest highlight of the call- for me- was related to the AI. To this date, no hockey game maker has really given me the feel that the actual teams play the way they do in real life. That includes both EA and 2K’s offerings to date. About the only thing I’ve ever noticed in the past is that in some cases, star players are more likely to beat your goalie with a fast/hard shot and/or one-timer. However, the actual offensive and defensive schemes seemed too simplistic for the AI and not tied to the way the real teams play. (Example, the corner cycling the Penguins use, and the team-based puck cycling to the point that the Red Wings use). Well, this year, from what we learned on the conference call, NHL 2K10 is looking to change that.
And, let’s face it, if they do pull that off as stated, that alone could be the biggest advancement that the video-game representation of the sport has seen since right-stick controls. True-to-life "team-based" AI is, in my opinion, the last -yet most complex- frontier in sports gaming, and the hardest to "get right". It will be interesting to see how 2K dives into that dynamic.
It also sounds like 2K is also looking to further differentiate the NHL’s elite players from the 3rd liners with what the players can and will do on the ice, which has been something the competition has struggled with, so I’m glad to see 2K is playing to that strength as well. Obviously, a goon like Hal Gill should not be able to stick-handle like Sid Crosby, and for NHL purists such as myself and Hank, that’s a big thing. Ben and the devs at 2K seem to really “Get that” part of the game. Heck, even the GMs are said to have true to life personalities in this game.
It looks like NHL 2K10 might just usher in an era of sim-hockey that many of us have been craving for a while now. I know I can’t wait to get my hands on it. Also, it looks like the more casual fans of hockey won't be disappointed with some of the pick up and play options 2K will have, particularly on Wii, but also on the other systems.
Both Hank and myself are looking to have some early impressions of the game once it arrives. Stay tuned.
(PS: Hey Hank, you better have those Wings of yours ready, Sid and Co. await..)
*Special thanks to Chase and the guys from 2K Sports for inviting ConsoleSports to the call.
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