We delve into all of NHL 24's new features as EA gets ready for another year, including a suite of new gameplay features that connectivity of the game.

Cross-play in HUT and WOC

Now, you can finally compete with or against your friends, on same-generation consoles. This vastly improves matchmaking quality and shortens wait times, so you and your crew can make the most of your time on the ice. This is a literal game-changer.

Exhaust Engine

The Exhaust Engine lets you feel the intensity of hemming an opponent in the zone, forcing you to make strategic decisions like choosing to establish puck possession, or attack on the rush. Exhaust Engine is made up of the Sustained Pressure System and the Goalie Fatigue System.

Sustained Pressure System

The Sustained Pressure System rewards extended offensive events, such as shooting, passing, and checking in the attacking zone, with the pressure gauge. The offensive team will gain a boost in stats due to the adrenaline effect, while the defensive team gets a decrease in stats due to the pinned effect. This change makes real hockey plays effective. The dump and chase can be used to wear down the opponent and retrieve the puck.

Full Pressure strategies, like peppering the goalie from all angles to tire them out, are now effective and cause authentic goal scrambles. And cycling the puck to build sustained pressureopens up new opportunities to attack the net. On the defensive side, you now have to choose between making the safe boards-and-out play, or risk turning the puck over in the slot.

Goalie Fatigue

EA have also added the Goalie Fatigue feature, add over 50 new goalie animations, including a brand-new desperation save package. Goalies will now tire as you increase attack zone time, move the puck around, and most importantly, get shots on net. As the goalie tires they will make more errors, causing rebounds and absolute chaos in the crease. Take the body, take the game.

Physics-based Contact

The Physics-based Contact feature revolutionizes checking in NHL 24, bringing more physicality to the game and ramping up the fun and authenticity of defensive plays.

Now, if you land a big check, your opponent will re-enter the play slower, creating more turnovers and counterattack opportunities. But if you don't connect, you'll be left out of position. This really increases the risk-reward factor and makes gameplay incredibly exciting.

Landing a clean, solid check on the opponent will result in new physics-based and animation-based reactions, creating tons of new wow moments in every game. A quick push on the Right Stick will allow you to shove the opponent, creating quick puck separation with lower penalty risk.

Plus, EA have also introduced a new gameplay meta that adds dedicated reverse body check control. This allows the puck carrier to protect the puck with their body, to impact full effect and to make akk of that even sweeter. You can now send players into the bench and break the glass. Showing off your skill has never been this fun.

Total Control Skill Moves

Total Control Skill Moves introduces a whole new control setup that makes highlighting real moves more intuitive and accessible. Botton map moves give you more options, but timing the play right and reading the ice will be the difference between success and failure. However, if you prefer legacy controls, you'll still have that option, plus, a new ability to fake, pass or deke out of every move also adds a dynamic new offensive layer to the game.

Vision Passing System

Vision Passing puts tape-to-tape play with your teammates at your fingertips, offering quicker direct passes to keep puck possession, and mount that all-important pressure. Bying mapping the controller's face buttons to your teammates', Vision Passing doesn't just allow more efficient passing, but opens up different opportunities like disguising a pass on a PP, to set up the perfect play. This also unlocks stretch and breakaway passes, giving you new ways to attack the net. But hitting the correct button alone won't guarantee a perfect pass. Gameplay components and player attributes all factor into a successful play.

One-Touch Passing

Plus, EA have added One-Touch Passing, which lets you quickly move the puck around the ice by tapping the Pass button as the puck is in transit. All together, this creates so many more exciting passing opportunities and ways for players to get creative on the ice.

Human Goalie Controls

For brick walls out there, an update to our Human Goalie Controls makes playing goal more accessible and intuitive. Historically, the game's controls made it easy to lose the net, creating frustrating empty-net goals and a steep learning curve.

Tethered Control System

So, in NHL 24, EA have added a new Tethered Control System. As you slide back and forth to makes saves, you simply release the Left Analog Stick and your goalie will auto-return back to the center position.

Instinct System

EA have also added a new Instinct System. This allows you to guess the location of the shot, for a bonus on your save attempt. Guessing wrong increases the chance of a goal. It's a nice addition for our veteran goalies, and really breathes new life into the position. From high pressure plays that will leave you sweating, to sending your friends into the bench, NHL 24 steps the game up to give you those authentic hockey feelings.