Gameplay Refinements
There’s also quite a few subtle gameplay refinements that I feel help make the game much more complete.
For this, I think I’m going to have to channel some nostalgia: remember 2K4? Remember how many people felt it was a huge disappointment in comparison to 2K3? And then remember how 2K5 had such subtle improvements (skating had extra weight to it, the use of the right stick to control the player’s stick for defensive purposes, etc.) to make it so much more of a complete game in comparison to 2K4? From what I experienced, it seems that 2K10 is an improvement over 2K9 in the same way.
The stick lift system gives you more defensive control and adds a realistic new dynamic to the gameplay
Stick-lifting feels awesome, and, in my opinion, works very realistically. The deke animations appear smoother and more believable. The drop pass is awesome, and is something that should be included in every hockey game. The hitting isn’t over the top. The cycle game is apparent. Defensive poke-checking works the way it should, and just looks much better (which is more important than it sounds).
I noticed no glaring issues with any gameplay functions. Granted, I only played a handful of periods, but generally speaking, things that seemed wrong with 2K9 seem right in 2K10.
About The Stumble Shots
Of these many gameplay refinements, stumble shots are a very cool addition, and they don’t seem to be gimmicky in any way. In the 4+ periods of hockey I played, I witnessed only two or three. None of them were goals, so you can imagine how awesome it would feel should one of them hit the back of the net.
It was also explained to me that the effectiveness of a stumble shot is dependent on the skill of the player at hand. So someone like Sidney Crosby might be able to put a little more power in a stumble shot than someone like Donald Brashear. While I was playing, Dan Cleary attempted one only to have it whisp off the end of his stick.
Also, the stumble shot took part in a very cool goalie crease scrum I witnessed: a Sharks player had gotten to a rebound and shot in on net, only to be denied. He was then bumped and performed a stumble shot, which was saved as well. After that, he got another whack at it to finally have it go in. It was great to see a battle like that in front of the net, and I guarantee stumble shots are only going to enhance the gameplay in that manner, especially if you decide to get physical with an opposing player in front of your own goaltender.
Improved Right-Stick Control
Another thing I felt was great was the new feel of the right-stick manual dekeing. Whereas last year the function felt much choppier and had somewhat of a stutter and lack of control, this year’s implementation is probably the best I’ve seen in a hockey video game to this point. While this feature has been in hockey video games for quite some time, it has rarely ever been done correctly, and that’s in regards to both 2K and EA.
It’s usually the backhand position that is done unrealistically, with players awkwardly gliding with the puck about four feet to the side. For anyone who plays real hockey, you know that dekeing a goaltender from left to right does not cover a 12 foot span regardless of whether you’re one of the world’s greatest players or not. The guys who changed this function for 2K10 took this into consideration, as players will now tuck the puck closer to their body on the backhand than on the forehand.
Dekeing and right-stick controls are much more accurate and responsive
Additionally, moving from left to right isn’t as slow and choppy as in 2K9; you can now shift from left to right with quick ease, the same way a player with quick hands should be able to.
At one point, I was playing as San Jose against Vancouver in my own defensive zone. A Vancouver player had passed the puck to a defenseman at the blueline only to have the pass deflected, and next thing you know, Milan Michalek is all alone on a breakaway. I moved from forehand to backhand, back to forehand, and scored low on the goaltender.
A goal like that in any of the previous 2K games would not have felt this good, and it’s all thanks to the new manual deke function. It’s a very subtle and slight touch, but something I felt was huge in terms of adding depth to the gameplay.
