Basically the same game as NHL11. Still all the same bugs. Oh, but they've added goalie fights?
EA makes by far the best hockey sim out there. The version for 2011-2012 (aka NHL12) is great. It's just that I don't understand what they spend their time on out in BC when basically the same game gets released for the third year in a row and I *still* cannot comprehend how infuriatingly un-user-friendly their menu system is. And that's only my biggest pet peeve with this series.
They still don't have Vezina-winner and Conn Smyth-winner Tim Thomas's mask right, though they have many different ones available in the game. And while we're on the topic of goalie masks, I cannot believe that they have yet to implement paintable masks. Look at how popular the custom paintjobs are in Forza... and that's nothing new, it's been a feature for YEARS.
There's a lot that could be improved about the goaltending position in the game. I'm glad that they've stopped making the goalie a 3000-pound immoveable object and that he's now a real player. But how about adding in the different styles of the different goalies? Speaking of Thomas, if you saw him flailing around, frustrating shooters left and right, *that* would be a feature I could buy into in a second. (Dominic Hasek in the legends mode should be the same)
And playing as a goalie is kinda boring. I don't know what they can do to improve it, but it's just all positioning and high stress... maybe that's realistic.
But enough about the goalie, my second worst pet peeve is actually that my settings NEVER save between plays. What's the point of logging into my profile if the game can't remember that I want my controller set for "Always Up"?
Why hasn't the MyFace thing made it into the game yet? This isn't just a criticism of the NHL franchise, but I thought it was super-cool how I could create my own 3D face and the results are really really good. Unfortunate, soccer is only twice as exciting as watching paint dry, so you won't catch me using the face in FIFA.
Ok sure, there is a slight improvement to the look and feel of gameplay, and a couple of new bells and whistles (goalie fights: ok, I guess that's cool, but really that must have been a simple thing to add). If the last version you have is NHL09, then I would recommend upgrading. Otherwise, don't bother.