Ask an NHL player to reflect on his first hockey memories, and you鈥檒l likely see his eyes light up and a smile come across his face before he reminisces about long days spent on an outdoor rink.
For many Canadians, those casual pickup games lay at the heart of their love for the sport.
EA is trying to capture that essence in the latest instalment of its NHL video game franchise.
Outdoor Ones makes its debut in NHL 鈥�19, available on Playstation 4 and Xbox One Sept. 14.听
The gameplay pits online players in a one vs. one vs. one match lasting only three minutes. If you win, you get to move up from a basic parking lot rink, through three other increasingly prestigious and challenging rinks until you find yourself at The Ring听 鈥� a mountain resort set rink inspired by Lake Louise that the game鈥檚 creative director, Will Ho, describes as 鈥渢he pinnacle.鈥�
There, a tournament champion will be crowned daily and rewarded with special cosmetic rewards such as jackets, pants and sticks to change the appearance of their player. On first day after a beta version of the game was released, the daily winner played 174 games 鈥� meaning she or he logged nearly nine hours of continuous play.听
The rewards allowing players to change their avatar鈥檚 wardrobe isn鈥檛 always about looking good, Ho explains. Sometimes it鈥檚 just about standing out.
鈥淚t can be ugly,鈥� he says. 鈥淵ou can be silly.鈥�
EA Sports developers churn out a new version of the game every year. It鈥檚 hard to imagine how, given their workplace resembles a brand new university campus more than a typical workplace. With soccer, beach volleyball and basketball facilities 鈥� not to mention cafes and restaurants 鈥� the company鈥檚 1,600 local employees seem overwhelmed with potential distractions.
But, Ho said, the NHL team is able to get its work done every year, motivated by a desire to make the popular game better. And, he said, their efforts have been unusually effective this past year.
Ho said many players who got a taste of the new game in the beta release are already hailing the latest instalment as the biggest improvement in a decade.听
While Ho may have been reciting slick marketing copy for this reporter to eat up, it appears he wasn鈥檛 fabricating the claim. Many video game reviewers seem to back him up.
The NHL games have been rolling out annually for more than 20 years, but Ho said it鈥檚 not hard coming up with new ideas.
鈥淲hat鈥檚 great is our team is really passionate about hockey. So we have no shortage of ideas, it鈥檚 just a matter of when is the best time to actually bring it to the game.鈥�
NHL 鈥�19 will also have a completely revamped system for skating control and player collisions.听
Ho said the new features will mean players can skate like Connor McDavid and hit like P.K. Subban.听听
鈥淭hat really renews the gameplay,鈥� he said.听
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