EA Sports officially announces NHL 25 after trailer leaked

After a trailer leak Tuesday confirmed the game's existence, EA Sports went ahead and revealed NHL 25. The Hughes Bros. are the cover stars, and the focal point of the game's marketing. Quinn, Luke, and Jack Hughes are the first siblings to ever appear on the game's cover.

This year's EA marketing buzzword is ICE-Q. I'm not gonna lie, I'm here for the ice puns. Anyhow, EA is touting ICE-Q as a logic-driven animation system that responds to contextual events with unprecedented realism.

NHL 25 will contain skill-based one-timers, a new WOC live events structure, and a simplified, single-path XP progression across all of the game's Ultimate Team modes. The single-path XP progression sounds similar to some of the changes planned for FC 25. That series has been on the right track, so emulating some of its programs is probably a good move.

FC 25 has a sales advantage partially because it simulates the world's most popular sport, but it has put all of its competitors on the back foot. Look at how Madden NFL has benefitted from access to College Football 25's resources. If FC 25 can help EA's struggling hockey franchise, I'm all for it. Hockey's pace and scoring structure has a lot in common with soccer, after all.

EA is also touting big revamps to its Franchise Mode. This is a thing they just did with Madden, and from my experience a lot of it has worked. All they've revealed about these revamps is a streamline Franchise Hub with streamline navigation. That's - not a huge reveal, but EA promises more details are coming soon.

EA Play members will get a 10-hour free trial a week before launch. EA Sports NHL 25 launches Oct. 4 on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S. We'll keep you posted on all NHL developments. Who's ready to take to the ice?