![]() NHL 23 promised more than just a prettier presentation - though there is that too - with new features like desperation moves, more goalie animations, the inclusion of IIHF women’s national teams and a custom franchise mode. AI improvements were noticeable, but so too were the bugs that Frostbite seemed to bring with it. The once spectacular Be a Pro story, first added inside NHL 21, was merely copied over from the last year. NHL 22 was a solid release, but nonetheless seemed rather soulless - an emphasis on the move to the Frostbite engine meant for better visuals and lighting, but that’s not all that a game needs to succeed. The tradition, it seems, has been broken. A bit of a falter onto Frostbite last year should have meant that this year’s NHL 23was a must-buy, but I’m afraid I’m left to recommend people pick that up instead of this new iteration. Like Star Trek feature films, the NHL franchise generally has a good year followed by a bad year as I’ve generally advised, you can usually save yourself a lot of frustration (and cash!) by sticking to that purchase cadence. Long standing (or is that suffering?) fans of the franchise have seen it all, from a rocky start onto last-gen consoles, to being left behind as other franchises moved to Frostbite, to eventually getting onto EA’s fancy (slash beleaguered) engine itself. The black sheep of the EA Sports family, NHL is the low-budget, low-resourced franchise that speaks to Canadians and lovers of the sport alike. EA Vancouver has polished its yearly title in some aspects and dulled it in others.
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