NHL 17

 PlayStation 4
User Score
5.7

Mixed or average reviews- based on 132 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 51 out of 132
  2. Mixed: 36 out of 132
  3. Negative: 45 out of 132
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  1. hack921
    Nov 14, 2016
    4
    The good first:
    1: UI is good, its clean and relatively responsive and shows off your team nicely
    2: the modes that the game has are fun, the draft is my favorite mode by far, but the ability to pick where you start in my career mode is awesome and in total that mode is also good. And now the bad: 1: The ai in the game is horrible to game braking, I've been in online games that where    The good first:
    1: UI is good, its clean and relatively responsive and shows off your team nicely
    2: the modes that the game has are fun, the draft is my favorite mode by far, but the ability to pick where you start in my career mode is awesome and in total that mode is also good.

    And now the bad:
    1: The ai in the game is horrible to game braking, I've been in online games that where late in the third only for the ai to slash or trip some one behind the play. They are also seemingly oblivious of the game around them some times. From defencemen going behind the net instead of covering the person in front, wingers refusing to move to the middle of the ice even though the puck carrier is already going up there, to many more like players leaving people uncovered in front of the net, and not being able to complete and simple slap shot dump if they are moving at all.

    2: getting called for penalties on hits that you cant control like elbowing or crosschecking (these things can completely change the momentum of games)

    3: Goalies are just awful, like i cant even describe some of the goals that have gone in.

    4: The game feels off, the players dont handle like they should and do some strange things like spinning away from the puck. Also just the ability to play the puck is awful, players will just refuse to play some pucks and the hitting feels awful, some times just getting little bumps from big build ups, and vise-a-versa, or just not hitting the person like there is a bubble around them you cant go in.    … Expand
  2. GoneSquatchin
    Dec 2, 2016
    3
    The outcome of online vs games are predetermined by EA. There is no skill, no glitch goals, and no sense involved in this game. At times you will hit every shot you intend and at other times the same shot will go wildly off the glass. I have played NHL almost exclusively for years and this is the first time I have considered dropping the series entirely. It is not luck, nor skill, norThe outcome of online vs games are predetermined by EA. There is no skill, no glitch goals, and no sense involved in this game. At times you will hit every shot you intend and at other times the same shot will go wildly off the glass. I have played NHL almost exclusively for years and this is the first time I have considered dropping the series entirely. It is not luck, nor skill, nor strategy, the game is simply determined by which player is allowed to get ridiculous goals as the other player's entire team is doing exactly the opposite of what would be expected. Examples: Defensemen randomly skating towards the boards/blue line when there is a potential breakaway, a breakout begins and all offensive players skate backwards, wide open players missing wide open passes for no apparent reason, straight up inability to take slapshots when nobody is in the area, nightmarish passing decisions, and the list goes on. Don't quote me, but in NBA 98ish the user could choose which defensive player they would like to control ... Here we are in NHL 2017 and you can switch players until your fingers bleed and never control the logical choice. Let me choose who I would like to defend with, let me choose which player I am intending a pass towards, and if not, make the AI somewhat reasonable. There is a gap between users and developers/programmers that is growing. The online vs game is becoming undesirable, to me at least, because it feels like I have no impact on the game and/or that the game is blatantly separate from any realistic hockey that would ever be played. Also, if I am trying to hit a guy and happen to take the puck during the hit, then why is the realistic outcome to fire the puck in the direction in which the hit is intended?… Expand
  3. PlaystationRyan
    Apr 2, 2017
    0
    Stop buying EA NHL games. The game gets more and more unrealistic each year and EA refuses to make improvements as they empty all your wallets with an $80 game and in-game purchases.

    The gameplay is HORRID. It's impossible to hit your player with a pass, every time you hit pass you should expect the puck to go all the way down the ice, even if your guy is wide open. Fair goals? Forget    Stop buying EA NHL games. The game gets more and more unrealistic each year and EA refuses to make improvements as they empty all your wallets with an $80 game and in-game purchases.

    The gameplay is HORRID. It's impossible to hit your player with a pass, every time you hit pass you should expect the puck to go all the way down the ice, even if your guy is wide open. Fair goals? Forget about it. There 6 or 7 ways to score in this game, and if you can't figure them out, good luck scoring. Goalies are incapable of stopping the simplest of shots yet somehow sprawl across and get a tiny piece of the puck on crazy hard one timers. The game is broken, it's not fun to play, it's unrealistic, not smooth, and overall another terrible game from EA Sports. What a disgrace of a company.    … Expand
  4. Drdoom666
    Feb 5, 2017
    0
    The difficulty level of this game is so completely unbalanced. **** this game. Ai is unrealistic. There's some depth to it, But seriously **** this game.
  5. SuomiSoldat
    Jun 17, 2017
    0
    I like to play NHL mainly offline, as I rarely have a chance to know I can finish a game without having to pause in the middle. The game is otherwise quite all right except the AI totally ruins it. Pro is easy as you might expect, but the problem I have is with the all-star AI. Yes, I can beat the AI most of the time on all-star, but there is no joy in that as the AI cheats like aI like to play NHL mainly offline, as I rarely have a chance to know I can finish a game without having to pause in the middle. The game is otherwise quite all right except the AI totally ruins it. Pro is easy as you might expect, but the problem I have is with the all-star AI. Yes, I can beat the AI most of the time on all-star, but there is no joy in that as the AI cheats like a motherf... you know. AI pulls of moves like you never could, it will defend against you with 2-3 players and most of the time keep scoring basically impossible, and then depending on your predefined luck a chance of 1-6 times a game to score on easy one-timer or so. The most-of-the-time amazing defense would be fine if you could get your own AI to doing something useful on defence, but instead you basically always end up on 1v1 situation instead of 2-3v1 that the AI does... And you also pretty much always lose all board-plays as the AI executes like the machine it is... Also really fun feature is that the AI also sticks like a glue on you when they shadow. And when they come for a tackle it is like a train, which you can't avoid, even if you quite often get to a situation that you really can't tackle. I can't explain it, the defenseman you are operating just won't tackle just instead skate next to the AI player in an awkward stance.

    Other things that are broken are the player editor. I dare you to try to change the potential likelyhood of any player. I dare you. Every now and then it might even show it changed, sometimes even to that color you set... but it didn't, it just seems like it until you go away and come back and the potential likelyhood is back on red or whatever it used to be instead of green or so you tried to set.

    The menu is also the most sluggish Ui that I have ever used. It's so slow it is really amazing. It's even slow on places where there actually should not be any reason to be sluggish. Let's say you want to save a franchise game... it will take 15-30seconds for you to be able to choose wether you'd like to create a new save or override... seriously, why did I have to wait for that? There is no need to do a expensI've read/write operation on disk for that. Especially since the menu will let you try to create a new save even if you have used the maximum save capacity for the game. So it didn't even check that's during that 15-30sec you waited... Terrible design by the team...

    The online game is actually quite fine when you get to play. Except when EA has problems with their servers which is surprisingly often when you think it is year 2017 and most of the competitors do not have that frequent issues...

    So why I still play the game, you ask? Because I really like hockey as a sport and I need my "fix". If there was any competition I definitely would give them a chance.    … Expand
  6. Armands
    Jun 21, 2017
    1
    worst passing i ever expired, golies are dumb
    The gameplay is HORRID. It's impossible to hit your player with a pass
    NHL games for such a long time and it's sad to say that this is the worst entry in the series. It is the only NHL game I returned. There is no difference from last years version other than the new modes which don't offer anything fresh
  7. price_
    Jul 29, 2017
    0
    I honestly want to know how this game got a 73/100. There are indie games that are MUCH BETTER than this recycled bullsh*t, honestly. Nothing in this game is new.

    - The "create-a-team" was already in previous NHL installments (I remember playing it back in 2008 in NHL 07), and in the NHL 2K series you could also customize your custom team's arena. - The "Be-A-Pro" is been the same    I honestly want to know how this game got a 73/100. There are indie games that are MUCH BETTER than this recycled bullsh*t, honestly. Nothing in this game is new.

    - The "create-a-team" was already in previous NHL installments (I remember playing it back in 2008 in NHL 07), and in the NHL 2K series you could also customize your custom team's arena.
    - The "Be-A-Pro" is been the same since NHL 09.
    - The passing is atrocious (for some reason it looks worse online). You can't do a successful pass EVEN IF YOUR TEAMMATE IS LESS THAN 1 FEET AWAY FROM YOU. Get rid of the "pass" and "saucer pass" button and rename it all of that crap to "DUMP PUCK", because you can't make a successful pass in this game. The player just throws the puck at any direction. It's absolutely ridiculous how disgusting the passing is on this game.
    - Playing online means you're going to get matched with R1/RB spammers (the poke-check button) and you're connection will be sh*t (I've done 10 HUT games today, and I couldn't even do a pass without lagging).
    - The player overall doesn't matter. The only you'll notice a little difference is on their speed. I has completely pissed off when I saw that MY 99 CROSBY was slower than a SILVER 60 PLAYER FROM THE DËL LEAGUE, my regular Gold EVANDER KANE with 89 HANDEDNESS couldn't even deke pass a 70 overall player and that regular Gold KRONWALL got injured just because a player with 69 CHECKING just bumped him. It drives me nuts. This is what really grinds my gears.
    - The poke-check it's way overpowered. You always get matched with a poke-check spammer every online game you go to. It's almost impossible to have a good match without those kind of assh*les.
    - The Franchise mode isn't that exciting as shown on EA's trailer (as always).
    - The Goalie controls/animations need to be redone. They are a total mess.
    - The UI it's clean but it's very unresponsive. Every little thing you do, you need to wait for a couple of seconds. Remember when on last-gen you could go to you settings right away without having to wait? Good times.
    - The A.I. makes me sick. I lose the puck just because the an A.I. player passes next to me? Seriously? You got to be kidding me.
    - I just bought this 2 weeks ago and I already found a ton of bugs in this crap: A.I. just freezes in a random spot after the faceoff, some pucks that I shoot, for some reason, they hit the post and then they bounce back at like 200 MPH, i've already lost a game because I tried to do a cross-crease and my shooter just froze...
    - The soundtrack... thank you PlayStation for Spotify.

    I've been playing every NHL video game religiously since NHL 2001 and I can say that the last one that I enjoyed playing it was NHL 10. The rest is completely utter sh*t... and it gets worse every year, since EA is recycling their video games. Removing content that was available on older installments and releasing them as "new features". You should be making FUN games. The recent sh*t you've been releasing it's horrible!
    I got this on a sale and I gave only $10, but I regret it. Buy another stuff with your money because this crap isn't worth any of your money and time.    … Expand
  8. MICHAL1
    Dec 12, 2016
    0
    EA Sport decide, who win the game. It´s crazy, but it is true. They didn´t understood, that "momentum" is worst idea they ever had and they are even proud on it. When I´m behind I don´t play as good as when I´m in front. I´m nervous my fingers don´t work as I want and when I´m in front, I play much better I can concentrate and everything is easier. But EA Sports programmed momentum to makeEA Sport decide, who win the game. It´s crazy, but it is true. They didn´t understood, that "momentum" is worst idea they ever had and they are even proud on it. When I´m behind I don´t play as good as when I´m in front. I´m nervous my fingers don´t work as I want and when I´m in front, I play much better I can concentrate and everything is easier. But EA Sports programmed momentum to make your player unreal skillfull and quick when I´m in front but is absolutely crazy, they programed that when I´m behind, my own players "sabotaging" my effort and my play. They skates allways in wrong direction, lose puck without reason, don´t hit wide open net, don´t reach easy slow passes, go change when I have breakaway, can´t pokecheck, can´t hit, stand or go in ofside position, do everything absolutelly wrong. But the worst is, that this momentum or support or what it is, has one team without any reason. Even momentum is stupid idea, but this decision is made without any reason. There is no reason to play this game. Would you watch sports if you know, that playeres can´t decide who win? Worst NHL ever, worst game ever. Actually, I want my money back. DO NOT BUY THIS SH.T. MICHAL… Expand
  9. SellingBlahBlah
    Feb 4, 2017
    5
    On standard PS4.

    Be a pro mode is ridiculous now. I don't know why they felt like making the player suck by default but I was surprised to keep seeing a green good timing or well aimed shot only to be followed instantly by toss up or poorly aimed shot. It's like there is a new algorithm that says, "check player skill level" before it allows anything to happen. Giving all the ties to the    On standard PS4.

    Be a pro mode is ridiculous now. I don't know why they felt like making the player suck by default but I was surprised to keep seeing a green good timing or well aimed shot only to be followed instantly by toss up or poorly aimed shot. It's like there is a new algorithm that says, "check player skill level" before it allows anything to happen. Giving all the ties to the AI is annoying but what makes me angry is the minus skill points and the negative coach feedback. So the game is going to default everything to the AI and then punish my pro for it?

    Then there are the usual complaints from EA NHL games.

    The timing is way off on everything just a fraction of a second between hitting the button to when the player does what you want. By the time the action actually happens it's too late. Miss a lot of openings, shots, and passes just because it happens to slow after pressing the button.

    The AI on your team are stupid and therefore do stupid things like passing across the front of the net through traffic. Half the goals against are because the AI on your team did something stupid.

    The "Hit Stick" EA's favorite development in their sports game. I admit the hit stick was a good idea unfortunately, now they've begun mapping everything to that stupid stick. EA would be happy with a joystick and no buttons. If you nudge the stick at the wrong time you will screw yourself up by trying to body check, switch your grip, aim a shot, shoot, aim a pass, etc.

    Of course the worst thing about this and all EA games is the incredible, long, load times. EA requires everything you do to be tracked on their server and that adds to Playstation's already long load times.

    The few points I grant this game is that it's better than NHL 2015 which was truly the worst hockey game with no features. But 2016 fixed most of that stuff and was also better than 2017. I suggest picking up 2016 on the cheap if you want a better experience. Although, none of the last three years has been much fun because of all the problems the games have had.

    All this said. Storage space has become a commodity and while this game isn't awful it doesn't deserve the hard disk that it takes up.    … Expand
  10. CReviews
    May 26, 2017
    4
    Welcome to EA Sports Rec Hockey 17! We have included many new and fancy features that make NHL players look like your drunken uncle playing in a pond hockey tournament.

    Key Features: To make the game realistic, we've made sure that over half your team will be unable to catch a pass or make a pass. They also won't know how to play positions and seemingly follow each other around playing    Welcome to EA Sports Rec Hockey 17! We have included many new and fancy features that make NHL players look like your drunken uncle playing in a pond hockey tournament.

    Key Features:
    To make the game realistic, we've made sure that over half your team will be unable to catch a pass or make a pass. They also won't know how to play positions and seemingly follow each other around playing herd hockey like children. Want more? Oh you got it. We've made the goalies this weird mix of inhuman god/blind grandmother. This way, it's easier to score shooting from the red line than completing a perfect cross ice one-timer on a 2 on 0. Like big hits? We sure don't. Many rec hockey leagues are none contact so we've followed suit by removing any hit power that NHL players would have. Don't forget to work out your pointer finger before playing the game as you'll spend more time spamming poke check than actually skating. Seriously, just skate around tapping R1 on defense. Or, don't even play defense and watch as your defenseman seemingly block every pass and shot regardless of skill level. However, our favorite new feature involves the addition of weird rubber-attracting magnets to each player's stick. In this way, the puck will randomly stick to the wrong player at all times. You'll never know where it's gonna go! Much exciting! So real!

    The good side:
    Many of the modes that were in past NHL games are now present again. The roster of players is quite comprehensive. Gameplay in this iteration is atrociously bad at times but more slider options have made it somewhat fixable in offline modes. That's unfortunately about it... I gave this game a 4 because it's at least playable and the offline modes can be fun. Seriously EA, please remove your heads from your buttholes and realize that this is the least accurate NHL game yet. Next Gen has not been kind to many EA sports franchises and NHL is no exception.    … Expand
  11. effeasports
    Oct 25, 2016
    4
    The puck drops, you win the faceoff and start skating down the ice. Time to make a simple pass, uh oh, the accuracy is abysmal. The player you were trying to pass to was right next to you, and you aimed the left analog stick right at them. It's not your fault, it's EA Sports' fault for making the puck go elsewhere, whether it be to the player directly behind you, or basically anywhere elseThe puck drops, you win the faceoff and start skating down the ice. Time to make a simple pass, uh oh, the accuracy is abysmal. The player you were trying to pass to was right next to you, and you aimed the left analog stick right at them. It's not your fault, it's EA Sports' fault for making the puck go elsewhere, whether it be to the player directly behind you, or basically anywhere else besides the player you were aiming directly at. About half of the passes do not go where they are intended to go. It is very frustrating. You work hard to get down the ice, and it should be an easy cross-crease one-timer goal, but the pass goes to the goalie as if you were trying to pass it to them for some reason and not the guy that is wide open and right next to you. So the passing is dreadful, but the shot accuracy is even worse. Yes, real NHL players cannot hit the same little corner every single time, but they also don't miss the net by five feet every single time. Besides the passing and shooting problems, a new aspect of the game is that your player will now lose the puck for absolutely no reason whatsoever. You're just skating down the ice, not even making a move or anything, and whoops, there goes the puck. To add on, the overall game does not react fast enough to any given controller input. When I press a button, I want it to happen that very instant. Your AI teammates are made to be drooling vegetables, but the opponent AI is perfect. Seriously, they are a mirror to your every move, at least on the superstar setting. Congratulations, the game is finally more difficult but in all the worst ways possible. This is not a fun game to play if you like having total control over the games you play. You might as well just watch the computer play itself. It's as if EA Sports programmed the game to be this way, because top game developers would not let any of this happen on accident. They made a bad game on purpose. This is a franchise game, it's not like they're starting from scratch.They do not care at all. They put zero effort into making a decent game, and then they profit. This company cannot be taken seriously. EA Sports needs competition, especially for hockey. You should only buy this game if you want to waste money supporting a deplorable corporation that knows most people are dumb enough to pay whatever for total crap just because it's the latest version. I had high expectations, but I've learned my lesson now: I should expect EA Sports to dish out pure junk next time. This is one of the worst games I've ever played. Don't let the decent graphics fool you.

    *aims both middle fingers at EA Sports headquarters*    … Expand
  12. jason2123
    Oct 13, 2016
    1
    I'm a big fan of all the NHL games but NHL 17 is probably the worst one by far. Too many penalties are called, the other team just plows over the goalie and nothing is called. You cant make contact with anyone or anything without falling over and stumbling. There's just way to many setting you have to change if you want the game the way you want it. Also the music during the games are notI'm a big fan of all the NHL games but NHL 17 is probably the worst one by far. Too many penalties are called, the other team just plows over the goalie and nothing is called. You cant make contact with anyone or anything without falling over and stumbling. There's just way to many setting you have to change if you want the game the way you want it. Also the music during the games are not good and you can barely hear them. I think they need to stop focusing on how a created player looks and focus more on the game play.… Expand
  13. RollTide1307
    Oct 11, 2016
    3
    Let me begin by saying that I am a HUUUUGE fan of the NHL series by EA Sports. I have been devoted since the PS2, but I must say this is one of the worst NHL games. Is it worse than NHL 15? No, because this game actually has some depth to it. I am not knocking the depth or modes to the game; those are fine. I'm ripping on the game play, which is arguably THE most important.

    Here is what    Let me begin by saying that I am a HUUUUGE fan of the NHL series by EA Sports. I have been devoted since the PS2, but I must say this is one of the worst NHL games. Is it worse than NHL 15? No, because this game actually has some depth to it. I am not knocking the depth or modes to the game; those are fine. I'm ripping on the game play, which is arguably THE most important.

    Here is what I absolutely hate about the game:

    1. Hit-stick is now circle instead of triangle on Hybrid controls and it can not be changed (I play on hybrid so probably doesn't affect players with different controls)

    2. The skating is just miserable. Ok now without this sounding funny, the skaters feel like they are on ice. I know that sounds stupid, but let me explain. You can not make any cuts like in NHL16 and the skating is slow so the game moves at a turtles pace. The skating was fine in '16 and should not have been changed.

    3. Passing is brutal. good luck finding a lane because all you have to do is poke check or be in the vicinity and your puck gets taken. If you find a lane then your pass rarely goes where you want it. It's so terrible and not fun at all.

    4. Poke check. if you want the puck, just press square on the hybrid controls and your opponent will lose the puck almost every time. its awful.

    5. Players are constantly falling all over the ICE to the point where its overkill.

    Some of you may not agree with these, and that is fine. if you enjoy the game, then great. It's just not for me. I almost returned it after a week and i have well over 100 hours in NHL16. I do NOT recommend    … Expand
  14. heatonx23
    Oct 2, 2016
    3
    I have been giving EA the benefit of the doubt the past few years as they have adjusted to the new generation of consoles. But come on guys, enough is enough. The graphics are good, game modes are back to where they should be. But the AI is god awful.

    What NHL goalie lets a defenseman blast a snap shot from the blue line right by them with nobody in front of the net? No one. Every game    I have been giving EA the benefit of the doubt the past few years as they have adjusted to the new generation of consoles. But come on guys, enough is enough. The graphics are good, game modes are back to where they should be. But the AI is god awful.

    What NHL goalie lets a defenseman blast a snap shot from the blue line right by them with nobody in front of the net? No one. Every game my goalie is just flat out embarrassingly bad. This area of the game gets worse every year, and it's especially disappointing after EA supposedly revamped it for 17.

    And it appears like the AI players have magnets on their sticks. Go anywhere near them and the puck is off your stick magically without so much as a poke check or a stick life required. But of course your poke checks and stick lifts against them do nothing or knock the puck to their teammates 98% of the time.

    Because of the above, it's just not fun to play. I want a challenge but don't want to play against a cheating AI. I wish this weren't the only hockey game available.    … Expand
  15. Oldtimer75
    Oct 7, 2016
    5
    Played all the NHL games since 91-92? Then follow me!

    This year's version is a mix of the original NHL game where you can out speed the goalie with lateral moves easily and NHL 2000 where the deflections were coming out of nowhere. Except this time, you will lose the puck for no reason, you will be poke checked and hooked and lose the puck without even seeing where it came from (no    Played all the NHL games since 91-92? Then follow me!

    This year's version is a mix of the original NHL game where you can out speed the goalie with lateral moves easily and NHL 2000 where the deflections were coming out of nowhere. Except this time, you will lose the puck for no reason, you will be poke checked and hooked and lose the puck without even seeing where it came from (no animation needed, just a 3 feet radius when the CPU is around and that's it).

    The animations are nice, game looks nice, but gameplay is far from the 93,94 and 98 versions of the game. If you dare play in the junior leagues on be a pro, be prepared to miss the net 4 out of 5 times, even on close range. The checking system is meh, the fights are the same as previous years (Mindscape Faceoff in the old PC days still have the best ones imo) and the contact physics are so buggy that you won't really have a chance to be creative on the powerplay.

    If you really want to invest 80$+ on a game, you should really consider NBA 2K instead.

    EA needs competition in the hockey market again, just like for Madden...    … Expand
  16. shaun8pickles
    Sep 16, 2016
    3
    What a disappointment... EA has proven, yet again, that it doesn't deserve to make hockey games. I've played NHL games for such a long time and it's sad to say that this is the worst entry in the series. It is the only NHL game I returned. There is no difference from last years version other than the new modes which don't offer anything fresh. The AI are dumb and don't know how to playWhat a disappointment... EA has proven, yet again, that it doesn't deserve to make hockey games. I've played NHL games for such a long time and it's sad to say that this is the worst entry in the series. It is the only NHL game I returned. There is no difference from last years version other than the new modes which don't offer anything fresh. The AI are dumb and don't know how to play defence, I had the AI team score on me 3 times in 3 shots all from the blue-line. It is so frustrating when you have 40 shots and 3 goals and the AI team has 10 shots and 3 goals. The faces in this game need to updated, we're going into the 4K era and players faces look horrible and barely look like the players in real life. I have passes that go astray so often as well, especially on two on ones. WCH is the same just with different jersey's. Franchise mode is alright, but it's not earth shattering stuff. I really hope that they can get back on track with these games, I want to enjoy an NHL game again. I rate this game a 4 based on the new things it offers because the rest of the game is a carbon copy of last year. It is mad that someone can playtest this and enjoy it. I am a hardcore hockey fan and no I don't suck at the game, let's just admit the series needs an revamp.… Expand
  17. elsiphono
    Sep 18, 2016
    5
    I can't give more than a 5 to that game. Why ? Let's start with the positive: good graphics and sound effect. The gameplay is good and they improved the hitting (like the hipcheck). The Franchise Mode allows to relocate and manage your team budget... Ok, they don't get any points for "bringing back" something that was in previous NHL games (managing the budget). Create a Team is back, butI can't give more than a 5 to that game. Why ? Let's start with the positive: good graphics and sound effect. The gameplay is good and they improved the hitting (like the hipcheck). The Franchise Mode allows to relocate and manage your team budget... Ok, they don't get any points for "bringing back" something that was in previous NHL games (managing the budget). Create a Team is back, but again, EA doesn't get any points for that because they were no reason to remove it in previous installment from the first place. But, they do get points for allowing us to customize the arena of our created team.

    Neutral: World Cup of Hockey. It's a tournament, but nothing special there. The Tournament mode in previous games let you create your own "world cup" in the past. So nothing new here.

    The Bad (please note that I use the Default Sliders of the game to review the game as shown by EA Sports and I play on Superstar difficulty): The soundtrack... the kind of music in menus are not the kind that you associated with hockey. Please, please remove the commentators from NBC ! They are just awful ! Bring back Jim Hughson. Still a buttload of problems from previous games that are still present in this game: if you do a lot of hitting in a game you will get a video at each stoppage of play showing the 3 last hits of the game all the time (gets on your nerve after the 3rd stoppage of play), unnatural AI (I'll get back on that), Tilted Ice system still present, players attributes still doesn't have a lot of effect against AI opponent, the goalies are worst than last year (especially yours) and LOTS of BS moments in game. For exemple, the opponent goalie makes a bad pass in the center of the ice (very slow pass that stays on the ice, easy to intercept), I put my player directly on top of the pass (stick, body and everything) the pass just goes right through your player 95% of the time (again, I'm playing against the AI here) ! I have Carey Price in my franchise (the best goalie in the NHL), I sim most of the games and play the important divisions one. I am mid-2nd year of the franchise and Price having difficulties putting an above .900 save percentage (which is ridiculous !), when a nobody like Marek Mazanec gets an above .930 save percentage (what the hell ?!?). In a non-sim game, he will allow some very bad goals all the time: unscreened wrist shots from the blue line, will get away from his post on wraparound, moves to the wrong side of the net (a shots goes on the right of the net he moves to the left) and the list goes on. Something I notice too, AI defenders can backskate as fast as your fastest skater, which gets extremely annoying because my team is build around a good mix of speedy scorer and power forward. Zdeno Chara can backskate as fast as Dylan Larkin in that game. On Superstar difficulty (I play that difficulty because All-Star is extremely easy), it is extremely difficult to pokecheck or lift the stick off the opponent. That's ok, but when you are clearly touching the puck with your stick on a pokecheck (I watch on Replay) and the AI just keeps going likes nothing happened, it gets frustrating. That goes with unrealistic puck physics. I'm going full speed ahead with a player, gets pushed in the back... where does the puck goes ? Does it follow your forward momentum like it should ? Nope. It stops dead in the ice or backspin behind to the opponent (still trying to comprehend the logic here). Same goes with pokecheck, you pokecheck an opponent from side, the puck should go sideway... Nope. The puck will: stay on the stick on the opponent like nothing happened or will go backward to another opponent or sideway only if an opponent is near (Tilted Ice ?). Others smalls annoying gameplay problems: quasi-impossible to one-time a puck on a rebound from the goalies (might get it one time out of ten) it seems more appropriate to try to deposit the puck gently in the net. The height and weight of your players doesn't have any effect. I have Brian Boyle in my team and he gets easily pushed around by players like Mats Zuccarello, David Desharnais and Tyler Ennis.

    I can go on and on with all the problems in the game. I can't give it something below 5, because it's still a decent game. But I cannot give it something over 5, because they are still a LOT of work to be done to get a GOOD NHL game and I don't think EA is the answer. I suggest waiting and buying it when the price drops under 20$. At full price, it's a ripoff... like most EA games oh snap ! (I'm glad my friend just give it to me for free because he had an extra copy).    … Expand
  18. nceagle869
    Sep 28, 2016
    2
    I waited a while and played NHL17 a lot before feeling compelled to write my first video game review ever. Unfortunately, I feel I have been totally ripped off with NHL17. I have played EA's NHL for years now and while the new modes such as franchise are a nice addition this year, the gameplay and AI is by far the worst ever - and that makes the modes meaningless. I mainly play theI waited a while and played NHL17 a lot before feeling compelled to write my first video game review ever. Unfortunately, I feel I have been totally ripped off with NHL17. I have played EA's NHL for years now and while the new modes such as franchise are a nice addition this year, the gameplay and AI is by far the worst ever - and that makes the modes meaningless. I mainly play the online HUT mode (nearly 2000 online games last year alone) as it has always been my favorite. I upgraded my HUT players early this year but it seems to make no difference - and this is a HUGE problem when players work and spend money to upgrade and find out it was time / money wasted. Players with high ratings just aren't differentiated from players with lower ratings - doesn't matter if you are controlling the player or the AI is. One timers have basically been eliminated, passing is delayed and makes the game frustrating and most players score using soft moves and passes into the goal (that score way too often) rather than actually shooting. I'm hoping there are others that feel the same and are still playing NHL16 which was much better as far as the gameplay goes. Otherwise I'll be looking for a new game to satisfy my video game cravings. Oh, and next year I will wait a few weeks at least before even trying the game or wasting time / money on building what is supposed to be a good team.… Expand
  19. jcortez84
    Oct 10, 2016
    4
    I can sum this game up in a very basic fashion, which is also the best way to describe the game. The problems are very amateur. The AI is unbelievably clumsy for the past 3 years this game has been a disappointment. The dynamics of the game are messy. The ice skating, and the overall timing of the movement is off. EA needs to let America get a crack at creating the NHL game. EA Canada hasI can sum this game up in a very basic fashion, which is also the best way to describe the game. The problems are very amateur. The AI is unbelievably clumsy for the past 3 years this game has been a disappointment. The dynamics of the game are messy. The ice skating, and the overall timing of the movement is off. EA needs to let America get a crack at creating the NHL game. EA Canada has already blown it, and stolen my money for three years straight. Every year I have high hopes, and I almost gave the game a solid month till I gave it a review. I really want to love this game cause I love hockey. The game modes are great, and getting better but what does it matter when game play sucks? Sure you can customize the AI, then wheres the challenge? The AI should already emulate that of a professional player. I feel like Im one passionate hard core player with a team of mentally challenged players.… Expand
  20. HeavyDthomas
    Sep 19, 2016
    0
    by far the most disappointing game I have ever played, seems that they just dont care about there products and just keep re releasing garbage games like they are new and yet same old **** with a couple new things added in to make it seem new and interesting, more of a money grab from the public, never again ea sports you have died in my books. Very much the worst game I have played inby far the most disappointing game I have ever played, seems that they just dont care about there products and just keep re releasing garbage games like they are new and yet same old **** with a couple new things added in to make it seem new and interesting, more of a money grab from the public, never again ea sports you have died in my books. Very much the worst game I have played in years. Only can your computer geeks think this is the basic fundamentals of a hockey game when the players don't respond until they are way past you. pathetic you company is trying to monopolies garbage wrapped in more garbage.… Expand
  21. MADRICKY97
    Sep 13, 2016
    9
    For those who wait a long time for this game, time is up!

    I ve played all night and i can tell you this: graphics are almost the same, animation still the same, game play a little bit better and overall A.I. better than ever! EA took what was the best from NHL 16 and incorporate some more realistic (speed and pass timing)dimension to the game! So it s harder to put a pass on the    For those who wait a long time for this game, time is up!

    I ve played all night and i can tell you this:

    graphics are almost the same, animation still the same, game play a little bit better and overall A.I. better than ever!

    EA took what was the best from NHL 16 and incorporate some more realistic (speed and pass timing)dimension to the game! So it s harder to put a pass on the tape and easier to get a speed burst!

    Also i ve notice that the game in front of the goal is cleaver than ever , more easy to take a rebound and a lot more chances to score from this area in this situation!

    Overall i ll give it a nine for the more realistic hockey game ever made!

    bye, Ricky from QC    … Expand
  22. vieri32
    Sep 16, 2016
    10
    Franchise mode is awesome. The AI gameplay tweaks have done the trick. Career mode and create a team are huge, detailed features. This game is as close to perfect as you can come, in my opinion.
  23. Pikesburgh
    Sep 15, 2016
    10
    This is the best NHL game yet. Right off the bat, the new sliders are terrific. They offer so many different types of game play opportunities. You can have a sloppy, physical, grind it out type game, or a flashy, fast, high scoring one. Online, (I've only played EASHL) is awesome. Players can no longer deke through the entire team. You have to PASS the puck to win in EASHL. I got so tiredThis is the best NHL game yet. Right off the bat, the new sliders are terrific. They offer so many different types of game play opportunities. You can have a sloppy, physical, grind it out type game, or a flashy, fast, high scoring one. Online, (I've only played EASHL) is awesome. Players can no longer deke through the entire team. You have to PASS the puck to win in EASHL. I got so tired of the little selfish idiots who held onto the puck nonstop and would glitch goal time and time again. Now, cycling, net front battles, screens, deflections, and rebounds all play a huge part in winning. This is a very quality game. Be a Pro gameplay is so fun as well. Definitely worth the $60.… Expand
  24. Maksus1983
    Sep 24, 2016
    3
    Отвратительно!!! что Вы сделали с вратарями!....пасами!...Мне просто непонятно чем команда разработчиков занималась целый год, намного интереснее играть в NHL 2009 в сравнении с этим.
    P.S. Вот что делает полное отсутствие конкуренции...жесть.    Отвратительно!!! что Вы сделали с вратарями!....пасами!...Мне просто непонятно чем команда разработчиков занималась целый год, намного интереснее играть в NHL 2009 в сравнении с этим.
    P.S. Вот что делает полное отсутствие конкуренции...жесть.
  25. Loxantrel
    Sep 13, 2016
    0
    Note: I'm a hardcore player since 2007.
    Not many upgrades in the gameplay.
    Relocation is ok, but i can't take existing jersey (vintage Nordiques). No play by play name for Nordiques, only Nordiques Blizzard! EASHL No experience progression in eashl kills me! A.I. in defense when it has the puck is absolulty worst than ever. Players can miss the puck when it's on the ice    Note: I'm a hardcore player since 2007.
    Not many upgrades in the gameplay.
    Relocation is ok, but i can't take existing jersey (vintage Nordiques).
    No play by play name for Nordiques, only Nordiques Blizzard!
    EASHL
    No experience progression in eashl kills me!
    A.I. in defense when it has the puck is absolulty worst than ever.
    Players can miss the puck when it's on the ice motionless.
    However they fix some connections issues.

    My opinion, don not buy this game at full price!
    Wait they cut it down to half!
    I score the game 0 because the game doesn't get any better than nhl 14.
    Some modes are still missing after 3 years in a next gen game!

    Live the life!
    GM Connected    … Expand
  26. lunaris76
    Sep 22, 2016
    5
    After 2 really horrible years (I use to play k's of game per year, and i'm buying it since the 1993 super nintendo version!! last 2 years I played like 100 total before I sent the game back to store. I even had pre-ordered and didnt opened like 20 packs of HUT... just to show how much I was disgusted), I decided to wait and finally borrowed a game from a friend to see what it worth.After 2 really horrible years (I use to play k's of game per year, and i'm buying it since the 1993 super nintendo version!! last 2 years I played like 100 total before I sent the game back to store. I even had pre-ordered and didnt opened like 20 packs of HUT... just to show how much I was disgusted), I decided to wait and finally borrowed a game from a friend to see what it worth.

    First of all, the good point. It's a huge step from last year. Dynamics feels more like real hockey.Goalies, who couldnt stop a beach ball last year, are way improved, They could still get better, esoecially ours who have tendencies to give soft goals.

    Hitting is back. And it's a good thing. You can again knock opponents off the puck. No more figure skating in opponent zone.

    The parts they didnt improved are still quite... unpleasant. Penalties taken from lifting the stick prevent anyone to ever try to use this option. We cant really control our sticks with the buttons. So please if you add an option, make it that players use it wisely and dont slam their stick in your opponent's face everytime. Same goes with poke check, who seems to too often makes opponent trip.

    Also, players ratings still doesnt mean that much. Whenever you play as Patrick Kane or an obscure junior 4th liner, the difference isnt really felt on ice. Which is quite sad.

    I havent tried all the other features to be honest. I just wanted to see how the game was played on ice. (New modes are always cool but if the on-ice play isnt good.. all worthless).

    My verdict is that even if the game is way better than last ones, keep your hands of from it. With a bit of luck, EA will listen to us and next year's version will worth the price. Or if you really wanna buy it, get a used copy (which are already sold ) or boxing day's rebates.    … Expand
  27. lizardking420
    Oct 13, 2016
    7
    Needs a otp kick vote for s*** like Jordanbrak. Eashl and online is where it's at. Sports game don't care gbghu8i66666666666666666666666666666666666666666788898862122i.
  28. inthecrease31
    Oct 4, 2016
    7
    Good game, but not great. Best NHL on next gen, but that's not saying much because 15 was awful and 16 was average. Still not as good as NHL 10-15 on last gen.

    EA continues to release unfinished NHL games with massive first day patches. Buy it used or when the price drops on Black Friday.
  29. Kyle_Katarn92
    Nov 15, 2016
    8
    As usual, the gameplay feels very smooth. The customisation options are great this year. Its still missing some features, such as the "international tournament".
  30. TatsMcGee
    Sep 8, 2018
    5
    What sport is it?

    Its a hockey game. Was it fun? No, huge disappointment. Are there any similar games? Yea, its like the other hockey games Would you play it again? I keep trying to play it and like it but I just don’t. Any complaints? Yes, I hate the skating engine in the game. Its like you’re skating in molasses, you can’t stop easily, it takes way too long to    What sport is it?

    Its a hockey game.

    Was it fun?

    No, huge disappointment.

    Are there any similar games?

    Yea, its like the other hockey games

    Would you play it again?

    I keep trying to play it and like it but I just don’t.

    Any complaints?

    Yes, I hate the skating engine in the game. Its like you’re skating in molasses, you can’t stop easily, it takes way too long to initially get moving and good luck turning.

    Now onto my next complaint, the passing. The passing engine doesn’t work well either. If you’re lucky, 70% of the passes go to the right person. Sometimes the passing, locks onto the wrong player and sometimes and does its own thing. What annoys me is that, I have turn assist off but its still obvious that it is still on.

    Finally, I hate the momentum based system. It makes come backs very difficult. A lot of fighting games have systems, to give the player a chance to come back with Marvel, “X” Factor or the V-Trigger system in Street Fighter V but with the NHL series, its difficult because you may not have given up but the players you’re controlling clearly have. They’re skating slower than before, they’re hitting their passes and often times the AI is just standing around and watching.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

83
#83 Best PS4 Game of 2016
69
#69 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2016
82
#82 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
78

Generally favorable reviews - based on 26 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 26
  3. Negative: 0 out of 26
  1. Playstation Official Magazine UK
    Nov 21, 2016
    80
    NHL 17 plays and feels as great as always, but the improvements plateaued some years back and this year's gameplay tweaks...are welcome but largely inconsequential. [Dec 2016, p.80]
  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Nov 7, 2016
    60
    One is tempted to cut & paste last year's verdict, but while the last year was fixing the mess, this one just polishes the well-frozen ice. [Issue#267]
  3. NZGamer
    Nov 1, 2016
    81
    Functionary and solid.
    Read full review
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