Tiger’s got his game back, and it’s on display
After a 30-month drought, Tiger Woods won his 72nd career PGA Tour victory at the Arnold Palmer invitational last Sunday, and the only ones more relieved than Tiger are the executives at EA Sports. He completed the comeback just in time for the release of the game, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13.
Irrelevant or not, Woods’ messy and humiliating divorce and his golfing slump thereafter led to a drop in sales for the franchise. Now the game has made strives to rejuvenate the franchise with several new features.
Most notably among the 33 playable courses is the return of the Masters tournament with the beautiful 18 holes of Augusta Na- tional Golf Club. The legendary course should have been in the game years ago, but Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters was the first time EA included it.
Among the other new features is a more sophisticated swing control. The new “Swing Meter” allows full control of your drives, pitches and putts. The days of setting up the shot and swinging away are over, every subtle motion on your controller’s joystick matters. Initially, I found myself slicing and shanking the ball into the woods, just like my real golf game. Yet the technique is fairly intuitive and within no time you’re hitting the green, feeling like you have really controlled the shot. Along with the new swing meter, there is a helpful guide to your optimal swing. With the guide, you can practise your upswing on a drive or get the perfect weight on a putt. (The game’s also compatible with PS Move and Xbox Kinect.) Though it may seem overly technical to some, it’s gratifying seeing your character go through the pre-shot rituals like a real pro. Another new feature is “Tiger’s Legacy Mode,” where you get to play as Tiger throughout the different stages of his career. Starting as the 2-year old prodigy on the Mike Douglas Show putting in front of a live TV audience, all the way to the future Tiger winning his record-breaking 18th major title. (And no, there isn’t a level where you escape from a club wielding wife in an SUV.)
The novelty of the scenarios is fun, for a minute, but you can only tolerate so much. Why not have greatest moments in PGA history instead of reliving every little accolade on Tiger’s well-documented career?
The motion graphics, however, are as good as they can be for this generation of consoles. The simplicity of the movements allow for a great deal of detail, though it seems that the developers spent more time perfecting each blade of grass than the rest of the natural surroundings combined.
Another issue with the graphics is the smoothness of the game. The screen transitions can be choppy and the game froze on one occasion.
The game has nonetheless managed to improve from previous years. The new swing mechanics incorporate a technical aspect that hasn’t been explored in previous editions . . . and playing The Masters never gets old.