"It's been special," Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews said. Someone walking by your television could briefly mistake a video game for the real thing.CHICAGO - As the Chicago Blackhawks celebrated their 2010 Stanley Cup championship against the Philadelphia Flyers in June of that year, they reveled in knowing they had ended decades of frustration with their first Cup in 49 years.īut it was just the beginning of what would be an outstanding stretch for the Blackhawks, who were voted NHL franchise of the decade by NHL.com and NHL.com International staff members. You play them and you can see beads of sweat on a player's face.
#NHL 20 ONLINE FRANCHISE FREE#
One year later and that still applies when comparing "NHL 19" to "NHL 20." And, yes, I am still open to accepting a free Toyota Corolla.įrom a vanity standpoint, there's a major lack of texture and detail to the in-game graphics, especially when you compare them to EA Sports' other offerings like "Madden" and "FIFA." Those games are currently miles ahead of the "NHL" series. (This review is not sponsored by Toyota, but if they want to send me a free Corolla I will not object.) It's still a Corolla, meaning it's not going to turn many heads on the street, but it's a whole lot more fun to drive. But while they look the same from the outside, the NHL 19 Corolla is supercharged under the hood.
Let's break it down this way: If NHL 18 and NHL 19 were cars, they'd both have the same, relatively unassuming base body model. Here's what I wrote about the graphics in last year's review: This year's game looks pretty much the same as it has for the past few years. "NHL 20" may play better than ever, but it hasn't exactly taken any major steps towards being a visual treat. That issue seems to be sorted out this year, thankfully.įolks, 2015 called and it wants its graphics back. Sure, it's an unfortunate reality in the real-world NHL, but it doesn't happen nearly as much as "NHL 19" would've led you to believe. Way too many of the clear attempts - both on the human and CPU side - would fly out of play and earn a penalty. One of my biggest frustrations with last year's game revolved around clearing the puck out of the zone. Many star players have personalized windups and shot motions that help the user feel like they're actually playing with that player rather just some generic digital unit wearing their jersey. There are more save animations (with several of them helping to keep the game in motion rather than frustratingly bringing it to a halt) but goaltenders are still a bit too anchored, jittery and inhuman.Ī long overdue addition to gameplay is the inclusion of signature shots, which bring some much-needed character and depth to gameplay. Goalie play, while still far from perfect, is improved. Contextual shots boost realism and help eliminate frustrating, brainless whiffs. Puck pickups are pretty damn seamless, which allows for cleaner transitions and end-to-end play. Those changes opened the door to a more fluid and authentic experience, which "NHL 20" builds off of.
"NHL 19" took a significant step in the right direction by revamping the skating, which made a world of difference. There's no major overhaul when it comes to gameplay, but that's because one wasn't really needed. Simply put, this year's game plays pretty well. Gameplay continues to smooth out the kinks Though some of the replay angles make it difficult to really appreciate your hard-earned highlights, there is a sweeping new slow-motion replay format that showcases goals.
It takes up too much unnecessary space at the bottom of the screen and its animations can be a bit distracting during play, but it brings neat goal summaries.Īnother minor improvement in the presentation department comes via in-game replays, specifically after goals. With the death of the NBC branding also comes a new scoreboard ticker, one that may take a little getting used it.
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