NHL 25 isn’t built for newcomers, but it eventually fit into my little hockey world

After several years of watching hockey only during the Stanley Cup finals, I became a bonafide hockey fan during last year’s regular season. I watched the Boston Bruins’ opening night game against the Chicago Blackhawks last October, and I’ve missed only a handful of Bruins games since. I spent my birthday in the Hub on Causeway, watching the Bruins beat the Toronto Maple Leafs in a tense shootout win. But it isn’t only the Bruins: I became consumed by the National Hockey League. I still am. Somewhere in the middle of the NHL season, I put on my very first pair of hockey skates and got on the ice myself. Ten months later, I’m on a beer league team and I play hockey at least two times per week. I fell in love with the complexities of hockey: It’s both elegant and abrasive, subtle yet explicit. Hockey’s a beautiful game.

But there is  one part of hockey culture that I hadn’t touched yet: Electronic Arts’ yearly NHL video games — the latest of which is NHL 25, which was released on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X on Oct. 4. And that makes sense, because the game is not beginner-friendly in the slightest. You’re dropped into the game and its complicated user interface with little instruction on where to begin, let alone how to play. I understand why this is the case; I don’t have the sense that a ton of entirely new players are buying every iteration of the NHL games, which come out annually like other EA Sports games, typically with iterative changes and incremental visual upgrades.

But, at the same time, interest in hockey is at an all-time high: TV ratings have increased, attendance at arenas is up, and revenue is at its highest ever, an estimated $6.2 billion, according to the Associated Press. NHL business development vice president Kyle McMann said there’s been an influx of “female fans, diverse fans” watching hockey games. That interest and growth extends to playing the sport, too. The AP reported in 2024 that youth hockey participation is up in the United States (though it’s down in Canada) with an increased push to bring new players in, especially those from marginalized communities. Hockey programs across North America are reporting an increase in the number of girls playing the game.  USA Hockey reports that it’s seen an increase in girls’ participation by 65% across the United States over the past 15 hockey seasons. If there ever was a time to embrace a new generation of hockey fans and integrate them into the sports video game community, it would be now.

But NHL 25 is not the game to do that. It’s not a bad game — in fact, it’s a good game! — but it’s not a game that’s easily accessible to new players. While there is no dedicated tutorial, there are systems in place that help players learn the controls of the game, like the on-ice trainer. This mode, which can be toggled on and off alongside several other accessibility options, adds several UI elements that remind you which buttons do what in opportune moments, and also highlights players you should consider defending against or areas of the ice to protect. For example, when you’ve got a good passing opportunity, an icon will appear over your player’s head. When the puck is dropped at center ice, that icon will tell you when to react. And if you’re playing as a right winger in the defensive zone, the ideal area of the ice you should play in will light up, and a game interface will point you to a player to defend. The training tool is most helpful in basic strategy and positioning, if that’s what you need. But I found myself struggling the most to get used to the controls; in particular, knowing exactly what I wanted to do in the game, but not knowing which controls would get me there. Once you’ve learned the controls, actually playing hockey in NHL 25 feels good. The pace of the game feels right, and there’s a lot of room for strategy and skill moves.

After a few hours in Be A Pro, which is a story campaign where you start as a junior or early-career hockey player working your way into the big leagues, I stopped being frustrated and started to have fun. Once you’ve got the basic building blocks down, there’s room to actually pay attention to some of the tips; now that I know how to shoot and pass, I can try simple skill moves, like slapshots, poke checks, or stick lifts.

Be A Pro doesn’t appear to be much different than it was in NHL 24, according to more experienced players, but it’s the best introduction to the game NHL 25 has to offer. I appreciate all the small details you can change about your character. I can play as a woman, despite participating in traditionally men’s leagues, like Canada’s junior Western Hockey League or the NHL. I can also choose to use clear tape to secure my shin guards the exact same way I do in the locker room. Hockey gear and the way it’s worn can be really personal, and EA clearly understands that. Either way, Be A Pro proved to be the best low-stakes entrance into NHL 25 as a newcomer, with a mix of light management, team dynamics, and game time. (However, as a Bruins fan, I was quite insulted when my Be A Pro player got drafted by the Montreal Canadiens.)

Beyond Be A Pro, there’s Franchise mode for players who are interested in running a team from the management perspective as well as hitting the ice. It seems to have more management elements, allowing you to work through contract negotiations, roster moves, arena management, conversations with management and coaching staff, analyzing stats, and, of course, game time. The difference between Franchise and Be A Pro is that you’re playing as an established team, managing both the NHL and AHL affiliates, instead of as a single player. The perspective shift from Be A Pro to Franchise Mode is interesting, but I personally don’t see myself playing a ton of this; I’m less interested in building a team as a general manager and more set on the fantasy of me playing in the big leagues.

World of CHEL, which is something of an online arcade mode in NHL 25, is probably the most fun of everything I’ve tried. (I’ve not braved the separate Hockey Ultimate Team mode, where you build out teams from unlockable cards.) This mode is essentially an arcade experience with a battle pass, where you play within different rulesets (like three-on-three) to unlock gear and build up a player. 

My best moments in NHL 25 have been just getting my player on the ice; I don’t need all that extra stuff around it. I love how the game looks and how the players move on the ice. You can see that a lot of care has been taken to get those things just right. But what I like most about NHL 25 is that, as a beginner hockey player, I feel like I’m learning a lot about the game of hockey. 

Yes, I’ve watched a ton of it and taken classes, but NHL 25 forces me to think about positioning in a unique way, and to directly see how my body and skillset impact the players around me. The top-down perspective of NHL 25 gives a fuller scope of the area of play than I’d otherwise get in the league games or practices I’ve been a part of. Powered by what Electronic Arts calls Ice-Q, its new hockey artificial intelligence program, the overhead visual feels like my own personal coaching whiteboard: OK, if this player moves into that zone, I’ve got to move here, else I risk giving the other team a scoring chance. And the artificial intelligence players react to me in the same way. Positioning and strategy feel like they adjust naturally to what’s happening on the ice. It’s a big reminder of something I always remind myself: If you only chase the puck — looking down — you’re going to have a bad time.

What I’ve learned as an adult trying to learn new things (I took beginner’s swim class a few years back when a lifeguard suggested I should stay out of the deep end at my local pool, too) is that a bit of struggle is OK. It’s why, I think, I was able to let go of the frustration of NHL 25’s lack of tutorial or introductory mode. Despite its steep learning curve for a newbie, NHL 25 fits naturally into my little world of hockey.

NHL 25 was released on Oct. 4 on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. The game was played on Xbox Series X using download code provided by Electronic Arts. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These do not influence editorial content, though Vox Media may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links. You can find additional information about Polygon’s ethics policy here.