| Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2009 PLATFORM (Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, Wii) PUBLISHER (EA) PRICE $60 ESRB RATING (E fo Everyone) PLAYERS (1-4) Many reviewers have called Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2009 the best realistic golf game available on the market. While this statement may be true to a degree, it is also much less of a compliment when you realize that Tiger Woods '09 is the only simulation stlye golf game to release this year. It is not that hard to be number one in a field of competition of exactly one player. Now, I am not trying to say that EA has put out a bad version of Tiger Woods this year, as a matter of fact the game features many changes an improvements that make it a better game then last years version. What I am saying is that many of these improvements are in the game more to provide EA with bullet points for advertising then they are marked improvements in to the core game in place here. Good improvements are features like simultaneous play online, which has players teeing off whenever they are ready. This keeps the flow of online play at a much steadier pace, and also has the added benefit of being able to see your competitions drives as they are performing them. Another great improvement is the way there is a diagram that shows your swing as it is in progress, and this helps teach you why you may be slicing the ball, and shows you how to combat this. On the flip side of this there is the lame introduction of Tiger's coach, Hank Haney. After a mind numbingly dumb introduction, this addition only serves the purpose of giving you repetitive drills in which Haney offers no sort of tutorial on why your actions are leading to negative results, and players wind up simply trying the drill over and over again until hopefuly stumbling into the correct result. The biggest loser of an addition is the new Dynamic Skills. While previous entries had you accruing points to become a near perfect golfer, '09 actually penalizes you for bad play. This is a great idea, but if this affect was not as drastic then this feature may not have actually penalized the fun of playing the game. If you are desperate to buy a new golf game, then Tiger Woods '09 is a sure bet. If you just want to dabble and are not already an invested golf game player then I think you are just as fine buying '07 or '08 and saving your hard earned money. If you like this, you might also like these. Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds PLATFORM (PS3) PUBLISHER (SCEI) PRICE $60 ESRB RATING (E for Everyone) PLAYERS (1-4) THE QUICK AND DIRTY : I called this cartoony golf game "one of the most zen and layed back golf games ever created." in my review for the Link earlier this year. Golf: Tee It Up! PLATFORM (Xbox 360) PUBLISHER (Activision) PRICE $10 ESRB RATING (E for Everyone) PLAYERS (1-4) THE QUICK AND DIRTY : This downloadable golf game is actually pretty good, and the cheap price makes it a great buy for less than hardcore golf fans. |
