The NHL 24 hype train will kick off on 16th August as EA Sports will reveal all the details at 11:00 AM ET.
Well, traditionally this includes revealing the cover athlete(s), announcing the release date, and opening registration for the closed technical test.
However, EA Sports has already revealed Cale Makar as the cover athlete for NHL 24 and showcased the covers for both the Standard and X-Factor Editions.
In the 2021-22 season, Makar guided the Colorado Avalanche to a Stanley Cup win, clinching the Conn Smythe Trophy for playoff MVP and the Norris Trophy for best defenseman.
The new Exhaust Engine in NHL 24 rewards extended attack zone time and includes two different systems.
The Sustained Pressure System, the more pressure created the more “adrenaline effect" for the attacking team, which will increase its passing speed and accuracy.
Conversely, defensive skaters start getting heavy legs, and their stamina depletes faster as the offensive pressure increases. It"s called the Pinned Effect, and it challenges a defensive team to change tactics to defend its own goal and attempt to clear the zone.
Mike Inglehart, senior design director at EA Sports and one of the architects of NHL 24, said the Exhaust Engine brings more realism to the game.
The aspect on which they have focused on in this edition is momentum.
Those elongated shifts in which one team is on the attack, and the other team is on its heels, desperately trying to clear the zone or get a stoppage.
The goalie fatigue system creates more ways for the puck to go into the net. As the offensive pressure builds, the goalie gets worn down.
They leave more parts of the net open, encouraging shots from more angles. But it also increases the chances for goalies to make spectacular, desperate saves.
“What makes the highlights at the end of the night are those improbable saves. When you have shooters looking up to the hockey heavens wondering how that [shot] didn"t go in," Inglehart said. “Goalies will be broken down over time, but they"ll have their heroic moments."
Here"s a look at some of the other significant changes in this year"s game:
Physics-based contact
The game has overhauled its checking technology to make physical play more tactical.
“Poke-checking has long been the biggest defensive weapon, almost to a detriment because people have often called it the ‘poke-checking game" on defense," Inglehart said.
Defenders can now quickly shove skaters to try and separate them from the puck, with a lower chance of earning a penalty for it than on a hit.
But the hitting isn"t going anywhere: NHL 24 has a new checking system where one pulls the right joystick back on the controller to load up the weight of the player and then pushes up to deliver a hit that saps the stamina of its target.
There are also hip checks along the boards, hits that send opponents onto the benches, and hits that shatter the rink glass.
Stamina being a theme for this edition of NHL, the checking system “created a direct relationship between hitting and stamina," Inglehart said.
Passing accuracy
NHL 24 has a new vision passing system that incorporates the distance between two players into the accuracy and speed of the pass. There"s also one-touch passing so teams can better break out of their zone.
Goalie Instinct System
For those users that like to control the goalie, we have good news: Your actions will no longer leave a gaping net open into which your opponent pumps pucks. A new tethered control system allows the goalie to slide back and forth and then auto-return back to the center of the crease.
There"s also a new optional “game within the game" called the Instinct System. Goalies can now “guess" where the next shot will target. A successful guess increases the chances of a save; an unsuccessful guess increases the probability of a goal.
Crowd noise
In its never-ending quest for realism, EA Sports has added a critical new aspect to its crowd noise library: Fans will now scream “shoooooot!" during the game, such as near the end of a power play.
There"s also now a surge in crowd noise during odd-man rushes and more attention paid to what the crowd does during stoppages late in games — Inglehart calls them “hype up moments" where the crowd tries to energize the team.
Dynamic digital boards
The NHL debuted digitally enhanced dasher boards last season, essentially overwriting the advertising displayed inside the arena with digital ads for the viewers watching over the TV.
That technology offers other opportunities beyond an animated SUV driving around the corner boards during play: They could allow for everything from real-time stats to tailored goal celebrations during the game as well.
They"re also going to use the boards for goal celebrations in NHL 24, partly inspired by how NHL used those boards during the 2023 All-Star Game.
For the last few years, NHL games have been released on the second Friday of October. It will be no different this year, with the NHL 24 release date being Friday, 6th October.
Those that qualify for early access are likely to be able to get on the game as soon as Tuesday, 3rd October.
Platforms
NHL 24 will be released across current-gen and next-gen consoles on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.
NHL 24 hasn"t been available on the PC and the Nintendo Switch due to a lack of demand.
The next-gen versions will have superior graphics, exclusive gameplay mechanics, and game modes.
Compared to the older consoles.
There will be a Standard and X-Factor Edition of the title, each offering different rewards if pre-ordered.
The differences between the two in the past have been the X-Factor Edition comes with NHL Points, dual entitlement, and early access!
If you want to get on NHL 24 as soon as possible, the pricier X-Factor Edition could be for you, as it should allow at least three days of early access.
