Your chance to win NHL 11

I have an early copy of NHL 11 for the Xbox 360. I will draw after I receive 50 followers through google friends connect (in the left column, under followers), and if that's not attainable I will draw by September 6th. For your chance to enter, all you need to do is follow Etownhockey.


What's new in NHL 11?

NHL 11 brings an in depth dynasty mode called "Ultimate Team." The EA sports ultimate hockey league uses a trading card system. You will begin this league by being dealt a deck of player cards. Playing games earns you Ultimate Team currency which is in the form of pucks. You can then use your EA Pucks to purchase new cards, which you will have to do as your starter deck of cards are players who are only under contract for a certain number of games. This is an addition similar to what has already been seen in past Madden and Fifa games, of course NHL 11 has a way of making the feature like it's own.

Other notables that make Ultimate Team dazzle:

• There are over 4,100 players from 10 different leagues in the game to collect and use in creating your NHL 11 Ultimate Hockey Team. NHL, American Hockey League, Canadian Hockey League, and various European leagues are available.
• There will be monthly NHL 11 Ultimate Team seasons with playoffs and tournaments.
• Play with your NHL 11 Ultimate Team in either online contests against other human opponents or offline CPU opponents.

Ultimate Team unfortunately is the only mode that has been added in this years game. The other modes that were seen in NHL 10 have gone untouched for the most part. So it's a good thing EA decided to add some new in game features. Broken sticks is one of the coolest new additions, seeing a player skating into the slot about to rip a shot and then having his stick break brings a new tempo to the game.

Other new in game features includes an over haul on the faceoff - there is now more to it then just simply smashing buttons. Another new in game feature is the ability to score a filthy goal, and then only be teased as you watch the referees disallow the goal. Another feature that makes it's return is a speed burst, holding down the left stick will give you a quick burst of speed for a short time. The checking engine is new to this years game as well, you will see more realistic hits and a variety of reactions coming from the receiver of the check. Passing has also been tweaked, and it has been seen in older versions of NHL. In order to whip a pass with any kind of speed, you're going to have to hold the pass button for a half-second longer than normal. This offers a more realistic approach as not all passes should be of the same strength.

The drawbacks on some of these new additions to the game would be a more overall sluggish feel. They slowed the game down and it now feels like you are always playing online even when you are playing the computer. The deaking has gone untouched from last year, I was hoping for new moves but it's basically the same as it has been the past 2 years. The commentating is the same recycled pieces used in the last 2-3 years. Another major nuisance is the passing feature. Yes it's great you have the choice to make slower or harder passes; but what it comes down to is way too many slow passes in this game. Not only are the passes slow, but if you want to make a hard pass...holding down the R trigger for 2 seconds can be 2 seconds too late in many cases. Their are rarely slow passes in the NHL. It's just another sluggish feature brought into this game. What they should have done was use the R trigger to it's potential, if you hold it down a quarter ways you only pass at 25 percent of your strength, half way 50 percent and so on. With the PS3 and it's touch sensitivity, the harder you push the button the harder the pass, lighter you push the button and lighter pass. Pretty simple, and this wouldn't interfere with the speed of the game.


All in all, this installment of EA's NHL series is another minor improvement to the overall game play, but the EAUHL league and the addition of CHL hockey really sells the game. EA's NHL 11 will offer the best hockey gaming experience that is available once again.

So there you have it, follow Etownhockey and this game could be yours.