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Ray Ferraro remains the analyst “between the benches” in NHL 20, but the play-by-play announcing is now handled by James Cybulski, a radio broadcaster who, like Ferraro, lives in the Vancouver, British Columbia, area. While I love hearing Mike “Doc” Emrick and Eddie Olczyk call games for NBC Sports, their video game commentary starting in NHL 15 never lived up to the TV experience. I feel closer to the action thanks to NHL 20’s revamped broadcast package. This year’s update not only gives the virtual players the appearance of having situational awareness - allowing them to move and act more like real athletes do on the ice - it also means that I don’t see nearly as many plays that should be impossible or that make me think, That’s a glitch. Gone are most of the awkward, sometimes physics-defying transitions between stances or actions, which led to plenty of missed opportunities. Subban and Alex Ovechkin, which I appreciate as a superficial, but welcome, update.īut the studio’s work on animation blending for shots is a change that makes NHL 20 both look more lifelike and feel more like real-world hockey. EA Vancouver added player-specific shot styles for NHL stars like P.K. This goes hand in hand with the game’s new shooting animations. Ice hockey is all about speed and fluidity, which makes it a meaningful improvement that players in NHL 20 can receive passes in stride and make plays on the move.

It’s not just that players now make an effort to reach out for nearby pucks, but that they can do so without slowing down. After years of fuming at my TV as I watched players fail to grab pucks within their vicinity, I’m thrilled to report that that’s much less of an issue now.

New animation technology delivers a pronounced upgrade to puck pickups, a perennial pain point.

The improvements in NHL 20 are less immediately noticeable, but I started to feel their impact as I spent more time with the game. I called NHL 19 the best-playing hockey game in years, a reflection of the major strides that EA Vancouver made in two key areas: skating and collisions.