Re: AI inconsistent in Squad Battles/HUT
by davehoehn970Original Post
Hopefully @MarlieCash uploads some videos.
I have a new screenshot to share today, and before anyone just responds "dude, you're just not good at the game", OK, fine, if that's true, then tell me why there's such a discrepancy between Pro and All Star, when there's also a Superstar level above these. For those that play on this level, what's the secret? Because it's not "the AI teams play better hockey". EA has not built a true AI... they increase difficulty by bloating stats in the CPU's favor, and the amount of bloat is ridiculous. As stated previously in the thread, a mid-70s OVR team with no synergy should not at all be able to keep up with a 90 OVR, NHL-player stacked team on All Star. You want to give that much boost on the top level, it makes sense there.
From left-to-right in the screenshot:
Game 1: 76 OVR team with no synergies. On All Star, a 3-2 loss, with the 3rd goal against coming in the final minute of regulation. All three goals were garbage, but I get it, this is a video game, not the NHL. Stupid sh*t is going to happen in the name of "difficulty". This team had two NHL players, and maybe 2-3 more NHL 4th liners that are usually healthy scratches. One of the NHL players was Marc-Andre Fleury, so it's fine, he'll make some ridiculous saves. The guy is tanking his team's overall rating with his backup though, because MAF is no 72 OVR (tanking your rating like this is a rampant action in this community). Replay on Pro, 8-0 shutout, they had 3 shots for the entire game. MAF got pulled in the first period after giving up 5 goals, and somehow the backup stoned me until midway through the 3rd. How does this make sense? How is there this big of a gap between Pro and All Star?
Game 2: 81 OVR team with no synergies. On All Star, a 2-1 OT loss. This team at least had 3 lines' worth of NHL players, and some D-men, but nobody's ever heard of the goalie. Replay on pro, can only muster a 3-0 win, so the point gain suffers badly. No-name goalie continues to play out of his mind, their shots were somewhere in the teens for the game. Again, why such a gap in the two levels, but also why are we penalized so badly for not reaching "5 goals" in this scoring system? This was a dominating shutout, but I miss out on ~130 points. Any team would want to play this good of a game... the reward should be commensurate.
Game 3: 77 OVR team with no synergies. I honestly don't even remember where their two goals came from, aside from just chalking them up to "it's All Star... they're going to be given some goals". As we can see this time, however, the replay was not needed, because I managed to score normally. The major difference between this 77 team and the previous 76 team? No Marc-Andre Fleury. So we're saying, then, that just a goalie is that big a difference-maker on All Star? If so, ok, but I ask again, what's Superstar level even for? And then I would further ask, why doesn't my Patrick Roy also get this kind of boost? Yeah, I already know the answer to that one... it's how they make the game more "difficult".
Game 4: a 91 OVR with 4 synergies, IIRC. I don't bother trying these on All Star, at this point... I already know it'll make me want to destroy my controller. Only real comment here is again about the "5 goal" scoring. the 3-0 game was a far better game for my team, but this game scored better, because I got to 5. That's just nonsense... we should be rewarded for good defense. Defense wins championships.
Anyway, as I said before, I sit on the line between Elite 3 and Elite 2 in Squad Battles, and the reward gain just isn't worth the effort. I can accept if "this is how we built the game", rather than there actually being something wrong, but it would be nice to have an explanation on why this level gap is just so big. What are we supposed to expect? And for those players that have this "solved", care to share the tricks with the rest of us? This scoring system and this level gap are big reasons why I put most of my effort into Franchise Mode... there, I can customize the sliders better so that games on All Star "make sense" and "look like real hockey", and there's no downside for having good, close games, or *gasp* losing. Hell, you're supposed to lose. I know... losing isn't what this mode (or any of HUT) is about. Again, I would just like information on why this mode is the way it is (if there is, in fact, nothing wrong), and for "better players" to maybe help us figure out why they're successful where we're not.
I play all my games on Superstar and win the high majority of them. I don't chase the carrier, I cut off passing/shooting lanes and I manage my player's fatigue by covering the puck and making manual line changes. I also work the puck around in many cases before entering their zone. This frequently sets up good scoring chances since I'm not forcing my way through traffic.
The idea is that if you're winning by 5 goals, you're outplaying your opponent. As far as the issues you're concerned with, we'll need to see video. CPU players aren't granted boosted speed. They play according to their ratings.
The ratings aren't as important as how you play. Just because your cards are rated higher than your opponent, this doesn't guarantee you'll win. If you're giving your opponent good chances, they'll take advantage of them. We don't raise the ratings of AI teams just to keep them more competitive. They are playing according to their ratings. They are better at moving the puck than many humans due to most people playing very aggressively and giving them more open lanes.
Hopefully, video will be provided. I've been asking for this for years, but no one has been able to show where there is some form of AI cheating going on.
You'll need to provide video showing the issue. We really can't do anything without it since there are no known issues with lower rated players playing beyond their ratings. The computer players are excellent at making quick passes, but they don't gain any bonus.
I've been playing games today on semi-pro just to get shutouts for the 94 choice player. It's been incredibly easy whereas on Superstar I was struggling to get shutouts. If you're having a hard time on All-Star, I'd recommend trying a different difficulty.
No evidence has been provided so there's no proof of what you're saying actually existing. If you are struggling on All-Star when others don't have any problems with it, that doesn't indicate the game is forcing the AI players to play beyond their abilities.
