So, EA Sports just put some new resinfo into NHL 26’s Be A Pro mode, and all we can say about the players’ reactions is that these aren’t smiles filled with applause. “Your play defines your path” might be an awesome concept in words, but gamers have raised serious and long-term concerns.
Basically, it’s a situation where you get more ice time for good performance and favorable trust from the coach. On the other hand, if you perform poorly, hide your face from short ice time, tough coaching talks, and relegation to the AHL. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? On the bright side, players say this is nearly the same situation they’ve had to face across many games in the franchise.
What kind of seems to permeate the comments is the absence of what ought to be viewed as basic features that ought to exist in any career mode in 2024. Well, 2025, whenever this does come out. Jeanluc took the words right out of my mouth: “We cannot see the composition of the lines, injuries, or trades, nor can we negotiate our contract. There is no all-star game.” How is that even possible? These are basic hockey career steps!
Then there are contract negotiations that Brandon Rohl asked about, “why can’t we negotiate a new contract after our contract ends and negotiate how much money we make and how long or short the new contract is.” And that is… the most basic thing a pro athlete gets to do, negotiate their deal? Well, apparently, no one gets to do that in NHL 26’s Be A Pro mode.
The PC crowd is thundering out loud with multiple comments begging for a PC version. Snackpack literally screamed, “WE WANT IT ON PC!!!!” Further echoed by a few others. Have you ever wondered how it is still wild that EA never thought of bringing the NHL series onto PC when every other major sports title has?
But wait, what was I saying? Oh, right, the big-money gameplay concerns. YuSoooSeriouz has pointed out that “The AI still needs to be worked on, AI teammates doesn’t do well on the forecheck and the Dmen still doesn’t pinch when the puck is low for the one timer.” So even if the career mode stuff gets fixed, the actual on-ice product might still have the same old issues that have been frustrating players for years.
Along with the pricing scheme. ProneShrimp201 told that last year, “Last year I bought the game in October for 79 euros. By the end of November it was discounted to 40 euros for a week or so.” That’s just an insane drop in price in less than a month! No wonder they’re unwilling to pay pouch price when the game is almost immediately discounted.
This leaves World of Chel players completely out in the cold. Jordan Rothschild went off in a sort of stream-of-consciousness rant: “We don’t f@$king cares about be a pro mode. Get ur shit together and focus more on EASHL mode where most of us wants to enjoy our free time and have a beer and slash each other on the pads in a fun random drop in games with real people playing their positions online in real time.” Which, honestly? Good point. If most of your player base is playing online modes, maybe spend some time on those rather than a career mode still sorely lacking in basic features.
The presentation is also getting roasted hard. Tim Schnitzel said, “no chl, no all star game, no full presentation. y’all are a pathetic joke.” The lack of CHL integration is especially painful for players hoping to start their careers in junior hockey before transitioning into the NHL.
And then we have the whole AHL scandal as brought in by downs_emma2720: “why are you making AHL seem like a bad place to be?! now you’re just hating on the actual players who are in the AHL so are you saying nothing matters in the AHL? championships are just worthless?” That does drive the point home- the AHL is a legit pro league, with their own championships and proud players, not some punishment for NHL players who aren’t cutting it.
PlayLooper studios/mainly mistent with updates that have done nothing to rectify the distant core issues that have plagued the series for years, say the general vibe of the players. As Devon put it: “Entire game is gonna be rinse repeat by the looks of it.” And with the game surely going on sale within weeks of release, the majority is aiming to wait rather than being payers at full fare for what seems to be just another trivial glorification.
So, NHL 26’s Be A Pro mode can have some new repercussions for bad performance, but judging by the community’s backlash, it looks like EA Sports may, in their turn, suffer some consequences if urgent enough are not met that the community has been begging them to attend for years. Pre-ordering for 7-day early access is now available, but judging by the comments, those players will more than likely be holding onto their money until they can definitively see some actual enhancements.
