I guess they NHL video game guys feel that the Blackhawks can sell since they just won the Cup and Chicago is a huge market. But, does anyone know why Crosby hasn’t been on the cover? He is used to sell so many things…I’m surprised he’s yet to grace a video game.

He is on the cover again!?!

That is BS.

And Sid should have been on the cover. He never has!

And Sid is much nicer to look at, thank you very much.

I think Sid has endorsment deals etc that prevent him from being on the cover. Ya gotta figure he woulda been on a cover of a game at some point in his career. The only explanation is it’s his decision.

I attended the EA Community Event in May representing Operation Sports; my username there is Qb. I’m doing my best to answer questions — the non-disclosure agreement is a pain — and so far I can talk about the new collision physics, broken sticks, quick dekes, and new faceoff system.

I should be putting up a post with some hands-on impressions in the near future. Should’ve had it up already to tell you the truth, but work & home life are conspiring against me. If it’s cool with the powers that be, I can try to do some fanposts to keep you guys in the loop. Don’t want to seem like I’m plugging OS though. Let me know…

PS – An EA source candidly told me off the record why Crosby hasn’t been on the cover. It is his (or his representation’s) decision and it’s based on the great motivator…

Regarding broken sticks, I know a lot of people are concerned about frequency. For offline guys, don’t worry, there will be an on/off option, as well as a frequency slider. We were told the build we played was tuned so they’d happen more frequently for demonstration purposes (as were hits and the E3 build is similar). Still, I can’t say that I was ever “annoyed” when it happened, but maybe that was just the novelty of it. They will be a part of online play — including EASHL — and it should provide some entertaining moments…

I say that because the NHL team did a great job of implementing & integrating the idea, which is something they stressed when asked why it took so long to see broken sticks — don’t do it if you can’t do it right. It’s not just a visual gimmick — not only does it impact the stick-less player, the stick pieces remain on the ice until the next stoppage in play and are live. Pucks can deflect off of them and you’ll seem them move when a player skates into them (not sure if they can cause a player to fall). As for the unfortunate skater, he’ll have several options:

1. Skate to the bench for a new stick
2. Play without a stick (kick the puck, even hand pass in defensive zone but nowhere else)
3. Receive a teammate’s stick if he chooses to give it to him (there is a button to do this and left/right does matter!)

It’s worth noting that players can also lose their stick from a big hit, leaving them with the same choices. AI players will make their decision based on the situation, but for humans, it’s up to them to decide what the best play is. I was really impressed with the depth they crammed into something that can be mistaken for a “simple” addition. Like I said before, it should provide some very fun moments in OTP…

Frank, if you’re a “huge video game nerd”, you should check out Operation Sports (if you haven’t already). I spend a good deal of time in the hockey forums there and I’m trying to answer what questions I can (damn NDA!). Also, if you want to play some NHL online, let me know.

Now that is a doozy of a bug! Can’t say I’ve ever seen that one…

As for dropping the stick after a big hit, there was an animation in previous game in which the player dropped his stick for a brief second or two. But he would always quickly pick it back up — with a bit of warping — when he recovered from the hit. Now that they’ve added some real physics to the equation, the sticks are their own entity, so to speak.