NHL 24 Review – Under Pressure

Incremental changes are par for the course with yearly sports titles. Minor updates are marketed as major revamps, and we see this every year from EA Sports in their marquee games FIFA (now FC24) and Madden. Whilst NHL 24 is no exception, the minor changes for this year’s edition have contributed to a deeper feeling of physicality resulting in a closer replication of the ice hockey’s intensity, more so than last year’s iteration.

"During high pressure moments, goalies become sluggish too, ambling across the crease in laboured movements."

Principal of these gameplay enhancements is what EA are dubbing the Exhaust Engine, which in fact is a two-pronged system: Sustained Pressure and Goalie Fatigue. Pinning defenders in their own end, being aggressive on the forecheck, and rapidly cycling the puck across the offensive zone are effective ways NHL teams create attacking opportunities. Prologued periods of sustained pressure result in player exhaustion, opening shooting lanes as defensive skaters run out of puff, desperate for an escape back to the bench. Keep the puck penned into the offensive zone beyond the blue line in NHL 24, and a segmented pressure meter appears in the centre of the ice. This meter can be more rapidly charged by launching pucks towards the net or landing a massive body check on a defender looking to clear. Once the meter is filled completely a full pressure moment is triggered, giving attacking players an adrenaline boost of energy whilst defenders become sluggish. The system is reset when defenders escape beyond the blue line.

During high pressure moments, goalies become sluggish too, ambling across the crease in laboured movements. Their energy status is indicated by a meter below their skates, and during high pressure moments it’ll often operate at less than a quarter full. Quickly cycle the puck around the offensive zone and you’ll see the goalie’s energy levels dwindle as fatigue sets in. Out of the two systems that make up the Exhaust Engine, Goalie Fatigue is the more noticeable of the two. In fact, both only provide slight boosts or depletions depending on which side you’re on. EA Sports are clearly aiming to give an edge to the attacking team during these situations, but it’s an edge only. They’ll still have to work to establish an opening and opportunity for a goal. For the goalies though, their ineffectiveness is quite apparent. A few tame shots have petered into the net during my time with NHL 24 during high pressure moments.

A worry with this system is that EA Sports might be aiming for unrealistically high scoring games, the rationale being lots of goals equals more excitement, but to be honest it seems so far that they’ve got the balance right. In my experience, games haven’t ended up with some mad 10-all score just yet, although the ineffectiveness of the goalies might need to be tweaked in future updates.

"NHL 24 also brings across the Battle Pass from other EA Sports titles, giving players more opportunity to chase those vanity items with absolute certainty."

Another concern is that online players might un-sportingly hog the puck in the offensive zone to artificially run up the pressure meter. When playing in World of Chel’s 3v3 and 6v6 matchups this hasn’t been a widespread problem. A handful of attackers have skirted around the edge of the blue line, but their nefarious tactic is obvious and can be nullified with an aggressive defence, forcing them to manoeuvre the puck deeper into the offensive zone, thus presenting greater opportunity to steal the puck back.

Speaking of World of Chel, this mode of course returns in NHL 24 and for the most part it’s a carbon copy of previous iterations. There are a few innovations though, such as the new World of Chel store for players to spend their hard-earned coins on the gear they want rather than relying on the randomness of hockey bag rewards. EASHL Playoff Games have been introduced too, with EA Sports Hockey League teams needing to win a best-of-seven round to progress just like the Stanley Cup finals instead of the elimination format seen in previous years. The hope here is that every game has significance, meaning the grind for apparel and gear will be somewhat more enjoyable. It certainly spices up each game.

NHL 24 also brings across the Battle Pass from other EA Sports titles, giving players more opportunity to chase those vanity items with absolute certainty. The first Battle Pass is free too, although as things stand in the early days every skater is wearing the same stuff when they hit the ice. My experience so far has me lining up alongside players and teams that are closely matched too. The only issue is the player stock is extremely low, even with NHL 24’s enhanced crossplay capability. It oftentimes took upwards of 3 minutes to find enough players to fill each team, if a team was even filled at all before the matchmaking timed out. For the most part though, online connections are smooth with only minor moments of lag occurring, although there are strange blocky blue squares that would momentarily glitch onto centre ice during some 3v3 matches on my PS5, but to be honest these were only a minor distraction.

Be a Pro and Franchise Mode return in NHL 24 too, but for all intents and purposes these are exactly the same as previous versions, even down to the script and character animations. In my review for NHL 23 I spoke of EA Sports needing to refresh some of NHL’s game modes, and these two are the primary offenders. Minor iterations that bring in a tactical consideration such as the new Exhaust Engine are all well and good, but the periphery game modes need a refresh too, even if the gameplay is arguably better compared to last year.

Another innovation for NHL 24 is something EA Sports are calling Vision Passing. An embellishment of the lines drawn across the ice to signal the end location of a pass, now an icon mapped to your controller’s face buttons appears above a teammate’s head, enabling surgically precise passing during key moments. In practice this system works fine during breakout moments, where you’ll have chance to take stock of the play in front of you. However, within the sharp end of the rink the action unfolds at breakneck pace; the fraction of time it takes to observe the icons above your teammate’s heads is sometimes all it takes to give defenders enough opportunity to body check you into the boards. Also, Vison Passing was a thing in mid-oughts NHL titles, so it’s not exactly a new feature and certainly something we haven’t needed for the past 10 to 15 years.

"Last year I gave NHL 23 a 7 out of 10 score; is NHL 24 worthy of an 8 out of 10? Well, some required presentation improvements and refreshes to certain game modes aside, the on-ice action does feel better than last year, so 8 out of 10 it is."

The enhanced game night atmosphere established in last year’s iteration has taken a step up with NHL 24. Pre-match light shows were contained to certain arenas last year whereas now it appears every match has some sort of hype before the puck drops. These moments still only last five-or-so seconds though, so it’d be nice if there was a bit more atmosphere to absorb instead of EA’s insistence on quick play, because what they have created is something electric and very much akin to being there in the crowd yourself. Crowd chants and cheers are more closely tied to the happenings on the ice too, thanks to the Exhaust Engine. Should the home team find themselves under pressure, the crowd raise their voices to urge them out of the defensive zone. Likewise, should the home team find themselves trailing by two or more goals in the final minute of the third, the atmosphere is flat; the crowd seem to accept their team has lost. It’s more immersive for sure, and something you wonder if EA could have implemented it sooner.

Some things I’d still like to see to improve the overall presentation even more: better, more reactive crowd animations in the front row, more unique light shows for each arena, and replays for every big hit and epic save and not just for goals (although the slomo goal replays it must be said are exceptional), and full pre-match presentation; locker room interactions and playable warmups, that sort of thing.

The new control scheme on offer in NHL 24, whereby skill moves are tied to face buttons instead of thumb stick manoeuvres, certainly makes it easier for lesser players to pull off between-the-leg shots and toe drags. As a lesser skilled player myself, I appreciate the chance to pull off a lacrosse shot without sending the puck wayward, but purists will certainly prefer the Skill Stick configuration. Thankfully, the settings menu has both control schemes selectable.

Last year I gave NHL 23 a 7 out of 10 score; is NHL 24 worthy of an 8 out of 10? Well, some required presentation improvements and refreshes to certain game modes aside, the on-ice action does feel better than last year, so 8 out of 10 it is. Is it worth the asking price if you bought NHL 23? Well, no… annual sports titles never are. But if you haven’t taken to the ice recently then NHL 24 is a valid entry point.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.