The goalies have been vastly improved to react quicker to shots, which is both a blessing and a curse depending on whether you’re attempting to score or defending the puck. Fellow players get into space and pay close attention to the positioning of the puck. AI has been vastly improved across the board.
It’s simple to pick up and play, but learning the nuances of movement up the ice, power plays, and shooting will take a bit of time. Most players, whether familiar with ice hockey or not, can jump into NHL 23 and get something out of it. Thankfully, a multitude of improvements have made gameplay a wonderful experience.
Like any sports game, though, if the act of playing isn’t great, then all these changes are for nothing. The variety of animations when scoring, fighting, or even during the opening moments of a game have all been built upon, heightening the immersion and dropping you in the heart of the action through all these small yet important changes. The commentary is also strong this year, making games as close to the real thing as they’ve ever felt. The fans will react to your performance, and it’s more noticeable than it has been before. They’ll roar as you approach the final moments, cheering you on and counting down the final seconds. Player animations are much improved, as are the venues themselves, and with a more active crowd cheering you on and becoming a much needed factor in your journey to victory. The ice is covered in scratches and scuff marks from the action taking place on top of it, with the lighting glaring down from above to highlight how detailed everything is. The actual games are intense, with visuals that make full use of the technology on offer. EA Vancouver has built a game that fans of the sport are going to thoroughly enjoy, making up for the lacklustre title players have spent time with over the last year. NHL 23 is far from the infancy it was in 2021’s release, now making full use of the engine and bringing a solid experience with improved visuals, tighter control on the puck, and easily the most authentic ice hockey entry to date. It saw the implementation of the Frostbite, but with those baby steps in place, it wasn’t harnessing the advantages of EA’s flagship engine as well as it could. To call last year’s entry underwhelming would be an understatement.
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