Players animate more smoothly when transitioning from full motion to shooting, which aggressive offensemen can take advantage of to great effect. Though it may not sound like much on paper, in execution, this helps open up the scoring opportunities on the offensive side of the puck, dramatically.

The action is faster and smoother than ever before; A fresh commentary team makes all the difference in the world; New settings and modes for CHEL helps to expand on an already great experience

Feels like a collection of incremental improvements instead of genuine innovation; Not enough new elements to make upgrading a must; Eliminator doesn't feel like it is that different from random matchmaking

The life cycle of sports games on any generation of gaming consoles is a funny thing. At the beginning, the developers haven't yet grasped all they can do with new hardware, but toward the end, it feels like they run out of ways to drastically push things forward.

Even more modes in an already packed selection; Presentation has been refreshed; Franchise Mode even got a little love

Be A Pro is definitely dusty by now; New commentary team not a huge upgrade; Player models showing their age

You'd have been forgiven for feeling slightly underwhelmed when the NHL 20 reveal trailer emerged back in June. It all but confirmed th...

Presentation has received a necessary overhaul; Shooting feels more satisfying than ever; Boasts an exhaustive amount of content

Goalies still allow some soft goals; Be a Pro is in need of an upgrade

NHL 20 balances out the fun with the competitive better than any previous entry. It has some excellent modes in Ones and Threes, a staggering amount of content, and a solid set of mechanics.

Buy NHL 20 Some things never change - not much, anyway. It's time for the annual refresh of EA's sports franchises. While FIFA, Madden and NBA are some of the highest-grossing candidates, NHL falls by the wayside once again.

The NHL pre-season is just about to start and that means the regular season is only a few weeks away as well. Everybody is ready to see if the St. Louis

Sports have had a huge following for years, even making their way to the video game format. Whether it be football, baseball, basketball, tennis, or hockey, you've got avenues to experience them in person and digitally.

Engaging; skill-based gameplay; Plenty of modes to choose from; Fluid movement; online and offline

Several modes are essentially the same thing; Gets as repetitive as the typical sports video game

EA Vancouver has been working hard to begin to push the NHL franchise towards a proper simulation experience. Their effort has really paid off in this year's iteration. The game is more fun than it's ever been thanks in large part to RPM Tech truly changing the look and feel of the game in ways fans...

Game Plays Better than Ever; RPM Tech Works as Advertised; New Broadcast Package; World of Chel; Franchise Mode Improvements

Game Still Lacks Emotion; Exasperating Soundtrack; Frequent Immersion Breaking Moments; Exploit Goals Still a Problem

NHL 20 is that team that didn't make moves in the off-season beyond conditioning its current players and adding mid-tier free agents. After going big last year with a new skating and physics engine, NHL 20 dials back by focusing on refinements and smaller improvements.

EA Vancouver has long been one of Electronic Arts' most reliable studios having put out everything from the later Fight Night games to the entire SSX series and NBA Street , so it shouldn't come as a surprise that NHL 20 is yet another swell hockey game.

Better animations than last year; Classic teams and players; Wealth of accessibility options

You can't unpin CHEL; No big new feature; Tags