With the busy fall sports season approaching, EA Sports has kicked into gear with multiple franchises readying annual titles. FIFA 23 has already received multiple trailers detailing new features and changes coming to what will be the last EA Sports entry with the FIFA branding. EA welcomed its newest annual football title recently as well with Madden NFL 23 releasing last week. Now, EA Sports is taking to the ice as NHL 23 has officially received its first trailer.

The trailer presents itself as an NHL 23 livestream with online hockey personalities including Anaheim Ducks mascot Wild Wing playing an online match in NHL 23, with cover athletes Sarah Nurse and Trevor Zegras joining in. The trailer features several shots of the newest NHL's gameplay as well as introducing new features coming to NHL 23. Gameplay segments show off the new "last chance puck movement" mechanic with a player able to get a shot in while falling. The trailer also reveals NHL 23 will support cross-platform online gameplay, a first for the NHL series.

NHL 23's reveal trailer doubles down on EA Sports' recent efforts to push inclusivity within its games. NHL 23's popular Hockey Ultimate Team game mode will feature mixed-gender teams for the first time, with NHL 22 previously introducing women's national teams. EA Sports' FIFA franchise has featured women's teams in the annual games since 2016 with many fans pushing for more content for women's soccer. Players have been able to create female players in EA's NHL games since NHL 11, but NHL 22 saw the first fully female teams in the series.



The video description for NHL 23's first trailer also confirmed the release date for the newest NHL game, traditionally launching alongside the start of hockey season. EA Sports revealed NHL 23 will release on October 14 for both current and next-gen PlayStation and Xbox consoles. The description and NHL 23's official website also tease further changes to the NHL franchise, including an "overhauled strategy system" and increased customization for the game's Franchise mode.

NHL 23 comes as EA Sports is on the cusp of several major changes within its other annual sports franchises. EA has been confirmed to be moving on from the FIFA license following the release of FIFA 23, with the franchise continuing under the name EA Sports FC. EA's attempted return to golf has also seen a rough road in recent months with EA Sports confirming earlier this year that EA Sports PGA Tour would see its release delayed into 2023. NHL 23's release in October will look to be a bright spot amidst ongoing difficulties for EA Sports' sports game dynasty.

NHL 23 is scheduled to release on October 14 for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

Posted: Aug 29, 2022 11:25 am
Related Forum: Gaming Discussion

Source: https://gamerant.com/nhl-23-first-trailer/