NHL 23 will feature both male and female athletes and introduce changes to Franchise mode, HockeyUltimate Team, and the Frostbite engine.
EA Sports has revealed the NHL 23 cover the athletes appearing on the various editions of the upcoming Ice Hockey Simulator. The long-running hockey series began with the years 1991 NHL Hockey, and since then the franchise has enjoyed new installments on an annual basis. In recent years, the focus has been on female sports video game players, and NHL 23 will proudly include a women’s hockey icon on its covers.
Released October 2021, EA Sports’ NHL 22 moved the beloved series to the new Frostbite game engine. This advanced platforming paved the way for a graphical overhaul, with each player’s character model being rebuilt and new arenas being built to take advantage of Frostbite’s new lighting engine and visual effects. NHL 22 also introduced Superstar X-Factors, special abilities and animations that make well-known players feel truly unique to control. While the Frostbite Engine and X-Factors were widely marketed, NHL 22 also made small improvements to its intense ice hockey gameplay. Fans were particularly pleased with the improvements in puck movement in NHL 22 which gave players realistic ways to defend passes.
A press release from EA Sports shed new light on NHL 23 and its legendary cover athletes. Trevor Zegras of the Anaheim Ducks and Canadian professional hockey star Sarah Nurse will headline each edition of NHL 23, Nurse being the franchise’s first female cover athlete. The game will also allow men and women to play together in a personalized HockeyUltimate Team formation, allowing players to build a lineup of hockey stars. The Frostbite engine will create a new level of immersion with noisy stadiums and thrilling animations, and cross-platform matchmaking is planned for November 2022.
NHL 23 lets men and women skate on the same rink
While Superstar X-Factor’s abilities in NHL 22 made every superstar player even more powerful, NHL 23 promises to provide an even more personalized ice hockey simulation. Along with HUT teams made up of both men and women, the upcoming title will also allow players to adjust various aspects of Franchise Mode. The number of teams, games played, divisions, conferences and playoffs will be customizable alongside the league salary cap, making NHL 23 an even more personal experience than previous series entries.
Trevor Zegras and Sarah Nurse will reunite as NHL 23 cover the athletes, demonstrating the franchise’s dedication to representing both men’s and women’s teams. Ice hockey is a wildly popular sport, and leaving out Women’s National Team legends like Sarah Nurse would be a huge disservice to the game. In addition to exciting changes to Franchise Mode and HockeyUltimate Team, NHL 23 is shaping up to be the next generation of virtual hockey.
NHL 23 will be released on October 14, 2022 on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and PC.