EA Sports today officially announced NHL 15, the latest entry in the critically acclaimed professional hockey simulator series. The game launches this fall for Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4. You can watch a teaser trailer below. The Xbox One and PS4 versions of NHL 15 contain a number of features not found in their Xbox 360 and PS3 counterparts. First, the next-gen versions include real-world physics for all 12 skaters. Every player on the ice is governed by the physics at all times, EA says, noting that this is a first for any sports game ever.
NHL 15 for Xbox One and PS4 also boasts a “completely rebuilt” puck physics system that EA promises will bring a “more realistic” feel to every puck interaction. What’s more, EA says every part of the ice–including the surface itself–is “live,” which will lead to the kind of unpredictable puck spins, rolls, and bounces that you’d expect to see in a real NHL game.
EA also promises more authentic NHL player models for NHL 15 on Xbox One and PS4. Player models now have three unique layers–body, equipment, and jersey. Each layer interacts independently, which makes for even more realism, EA says. Player likenesses are also getting a boost from the power of the Xbox One and PS4.
“NHL 15 delivers groundbreaking player likeness, emotion, and animation,” EA says. “From the strides a player takes to get up the ice to the emotion on their face after scoring a game winning goal, the players are as real as they’ve ever been.”
EA has also overhauled the Skill Stick feature to give players even more control, and updated the arenas with a new level of detail “not possible on the previous generation.” This includes over 9,000 individual crowd models and 4x the animation fidelity of the past generation.
Lastly, EA and NBC Sports have partnered up to bring new commentators to NHL 15 in the form of Mike ‘Doc’ Emrick and Eddie Olczyk. TSN analyst Ray Ferraro will add game insights from the ice level. All of this combines for a level of authenticity that EA says blurs the lines of the real world of sport broadcast and the game.
Meanwhile, the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of NHL 15 are getting the new broadcast team, an updated collision physics system, an NHL 94 Anniversary mode, and a fantasy element in the form of Hockey Ultimate Team.
EA has also announced that fans will get to decide which NHL hockey star will be featured on the NHL 15 cover. Eight players have been chosen to compete for the cover, and you can visit NHL.com/CoverVote to make a decision. Voting ends June 1 and the winner will be announced during the 2014 NHL Awards on June 24. Choices include:
• Erik Karlsson
• Logan Couture
• T.J. Oshie
• P.K. Subban
• Drew Doughty
• Phil Kessel
• Matt Duchene
• Patrice Bergeron
