Electronic Arts is pleased to announce in the following press release that EA SPORTS NHL 24 will be released on October 6, 2023 for PlayStation5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation4 and Xbox One.
Colorado Avalanche superstar defenseman Cale Makar, whose world-class on-ice skills embody the kind of hard checks and game-changing traits that will be part of EA SPORTS NHL 24, has been named the cover athlete for this year’s game.
NHL 24 has the feel of hockey, bringing to life the thrill and exhaustion of high-intensity games.
The new exhaustion engine Powered by Frostbite includes Sustained Pressure and Goalie Fatigue systems to give players moments of intense focus that hockey is known for.
The Sustained Pressure System rewards offensively oriented players who apply pressure in the attacking zone, triggering the Sustained Pressure Advantage, lowering their opponent’s attributes for a limited time and allowing more room for movement and play building. With the Goalie Fatigue System, the opponent’s goalkeeper experiences more fatigue the more pucks are shot at his goal.
This affects the responsiveness of the goalie as he degrades over time and up to 75 new goalie animations help bring this in-game storyline to life.
Thanks to revised physics and animations, Physics-Based Contact will revolutionize physical contact and offer realistic body checks. New animation-based reactions create big moments at any point in the game, allowing players to take advantage of more puck-capture opportunities through bigger checks. For those who enjoy physical play, players can now break the glass and bench their opponent.
“This is a game made by hockey fans for hockey fans, and bringing the full intensity of hockey into our gameplay has been a key focus for us this year in NHL 24,” said Mike Inglehart, creative director at EA Vancouver. “With the new fatigue engine system and gameplay features that truly capture the physical nature of hockey, NHL 24 offers realistic body checks and a deeper defensive toolbox full of more choices and tactics that bring a whole new level of immersion to the franchise.”
In addition to highly dramatic gameplay, EA SPORTS NHL is more connected than ever, with expanded cross-platform play introduced in NHL 24. Within Hockey Ultimate Team and World of Chel, players can now play against and against players on the same console generation from Sony and Microsoft.
With enhanced gameplay features allowing players to take their skills to a whole new level, there was no better cover star for this year’s game than the versatile Cale Makar, whose vision, dynamic puck skills and total control of the ball Ice to be represented in the improvements on ice in EA SPORTS NHL 24. One of the league’s most exciting players, Cale Makar has already achieved numerous accomplishments in his young career, leading the Colorado Avalanche to the 2022 Stanley Cup Championship and receiving the Conn Smythe Trophy, which ended up being his team’s most valuable player of the playoffs is awarded.
“I’m honored to be on the cover of EA SPORTS NHL,” said Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche. “NHL 24 represents everything I love about hockey – it’s fast, it’s physical and it’s a lot of fun. I can’t wait for fans to get their hands on the game and feel the intensity of NHL 24 for themselves.”
Powered by EA’s Frostbite Engine, EA SPORTS NHL 24 is packed with new features, including:
New Gameplay Features: A number of new gameplay features bring an unprecedented level of control to NHL 24. With the new exhaustion engine, players can experience a complete overhaul of the EA SPORTS NHL gaming experience that rewards long-lasting offensive events and attacking zone time, and a dynamic new layer of Adds authenticity and excitement to the game.
Once the in-game Sustained Pressure System is triggered, a visual indicator will show that Full Pressure is active, resulting in the beneficial adrenaline effect for the offensive team and the challenging pinned effect for the defending team. The new Goalie Fatigue System affects the goalie’s responsiveness as it decreases over time, encouraging players to constantly keep the pressure up and get more pucks on goal.
Total Control Skill Moves completely refresh the control setup, making highlight reel moves more intuitive and accessible, while the Vision Passing System remaps face buttons to teammates, providing more direct passing and the ability to pass anywhere on the ice at any time.
Updated human goalie controls make in-goal play more accessible and intuitive, with features like the new Tethered Control System, which allows players to move back and forth to make saves and then automatically return to central position. Additionally, the new Instinct system gives players the ability to guess the location of the shot for a bonus in their rescue attempt.
Hockey Ultimate Team: EA SPORTS NHL 24 introduced the all-new HUT Moments, allowing players to recreate and share classic moments in hockey history, as well as today’s biggest plays.
NHL 24 also introduces a new real-time goal tracking system based on item types, teams, players, and on-ice actions while updating player progression in-game. The new system allows players to actively pursue their quests and goals and focus on the exciting on-ice action.
World of Chel: This latest installment in the EA SPORTS NHL franchise also features the most dynamic Word of Chel yet, with improved cross-platform play giving players more ways to connect, better matchmaking, and improvements to the Creation Zone to give players more customization options .
An update to EASHL Playoffs introduces an authentic, streamlined 16-game path to the title, allowing players to earn ranking points as they progress through the bracket. NHL 24 introduces the WOC Battle Pass, allowing players to progress through action-packed seasons at both Free and Premium levels, and WOC Storefront updates give players even more items to outfit their characters, as well as access to exclusive new Premium Bundles of custom characters, player banners, and more.
Modernized presentation: With new presentation updates, players will feel more in the game of hockey than ever. This year’s presentation introduces Flex Moments, a broadcast more alive than ever with over 75 new goal celebration animations, camera angles, lighting effects and the ability for players to map the celebration to the controller so they can flex however they want when you want.
New waves of event reactions support significant disruptions, on-ice rushes, exhaustion engine spikes, and dramatic comeback moments, making this the most energetic Chel crowd yet. Also, Dynamic Rink Boards extend the augmented reality broadcast and communicate key on-ice moments, from delayed penalties to goal summaries, stat milestones to vanity backdrops to emphasize those big flex moments.
Fans who pre-order NHL 24 will receive a variety of bonus in-game content. EA SPORTS NHL 24 X-Factor Edition includes PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 or Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S versions of the game, three-day early access, 4600 NHL Points, exclusive Cale Makar player item, HUT Power-Up Icon of choice and WOC Battle Pass XP Modifier x5. Players can also take advantage of a pre-order loyalty offer to receive a 10% discount on pre-ordering the NHL 24 X-Factor Edition.
