1comment Posted Mon 16th Aug 2010 12:39am by Gavin Lowe

 

A great addition to the series with innovative character building and XP systems, a superb focus mechanic for fine-tuning shots, well rendered globally renowned courses, and numerous game modes. Includes Ryder Cup for the first time. If you like golf, you’ll love this game.

 

 

As one who tries to keep a certain standard in his writing, I often look down my nose at the use of smutty comments and innuendo to peddle articles. As such, regardless of the common knowledge and much publicised troubles of a certain golfing celebrity, you will not find in this review a single reference to “Tiger getting his hole”, or “Ping creating a club named Elin – guaranteed to beat tiger”, or of the rumours that “Tiger is to change his name to Cheetah”. No, not ever will I stoop to such a level for a cheap laugh.

  

 

Unlike many sports titles, whose annual update often consists largely of a few name changes and graphic tweaks, PGA Tour 11 is a mighty stride forward in terms of gameplay and game modes. Granted this is the 11th instalment of a popular brand (not including the much loved Tiger Woods Online), but the whole package feels like a breath of fresh air for console golfing. Even the game’s controls feel somehow more involved, with the use of the analog stick giving a feeling of measure and control normally only found in golf games on the Wii.

 

Players can take to the course in the guise of their favourite professional, or create their own golfer and progress him/her through the ranks. The character creation tool is easy to use and it has the wonderful option of GameFace, allowing you graft a photo of your own face onto the avatar to truly put you in the game.

 

As you begin you are offered the chance to play through a tutorial, and doing so is recommended as it not only helps to get to grips quickly with the new game but also introduces features such as the focus mechanic. In previous titles players have been able to add power and spin to any shot as often as they please. PGA Tour 11 limits this bonus ability in a clever way by providing players with a limited amount of “focus” metered in a dial surrounding the shot icon. Adding power, spin or accuracy depletes the focus, forcing players to pick and choose their shots. The focus recharges if players make shots without using focus. The only problem with the system is that top golfers have exactly the same quantity of focus as amateurs.

 

Arguably the best new feature is the option of playing in “True Aim”. True Aim only shows a golfer’s-eye view of the course, so that when selecting shots and judging distances the choices you make are more realistic. Unlike the arcade options of regular play, True Aim doesn’t allow players to look at a top view of the hole and select where they would like to aim their shot. This can make the game more challenging without the requirement of increasing the difficulty level, and success in this mode feels all the more sweet.

 

XP is earned for completing various challenges as well as in-round actions such as getting near the pin, making the green, scoring birdies, and making other well placed shots. At the end of each round XP can be spent on bolstering your golfer’s skills, so you can concentrate effort on improving the aspect of your game that suffers most. The level of modification available for player-generated characters almost takes PGA Tour 11 into the realms of the RPG, and points can be reallocated later if you find your choices have been unwise. This aspect especially should appeal to the meticulous nature of golfers. XP can also be spent in the pro shop on new clubs or flashy garments to make your golfer look snazzy.

It takes a long time to progress a player-created character on par with the likes of Mr Woods, but the variety of courses and game types prevent this from becoming repetitive or boring. In professional career mode you can take your created character through various competitions, building your XP and honing your skills to knock Tiger off his perch and become number one. The rounds play out over some of the finest courses in the world, including the home of golf, St Andrews.

 

One of the biggest new additions to the series is the inclusion of the Ryder Cup mode. Players can lead the European or the US team as they strive for the golfing Holy Grail. As team captain you pick your squad and jump in and out of holes taking control of different players as required to steer your team to victory. Players are forced to watch the shots of non-player characters; this serves to add a feeling of tension to the proceedings, although the ability to skip shots would be a nice option to have.

 

Online play and multiplayer are effectively games in their own right with the ability to play in daily, weekly and monthly online competitions or teaming up in groups of up to 24 to play Ryder Cup modes. Unfortunately the vagaries of multiplayer mean that you rarely get a group of more than 12 together without at least one person leaving. Another nice touch is that the game is linked online to the Weather channel, so real time weather updates govern the conditions experienced on the courses when in single or multiplayer gameplay.

 

Courses are accurately re-created in beautiful detail and take on different moods dependent on the weather, which is handled well and impacts the game environment notably. A wet green will cause a ball to kick up a trail of spay as it rolls towards the hole, slowing it down markedly. Clouds and sunshine feel realistic and trees sway convincingly in the wind.

 

The stars of the golfing world are well rendered and instantly recognisable. Animations are largely lifelike but sometimes overdone, for example, a very angry reaction to bad shots which feels extreme and quickly becomes repetitive. One aspect of the visuals, however, is simply poor: spectators. Boring crowds act and react in unison giving the impression that they’re all attached to the same puppet master’s strings. This one lazy choice in the otherwise excellent visual effects serves to spoil what could have been an immersive experience. However, the crowd does provide moments of hilarity, for instance when a wayward tee shot results in a spectator creasing up, grabbing his groin and groaning painfully.

 

The camera work is generally good and often feels like the scenes you see at actual golf tournaments, although on occasion the camera choice is odd, obscured or simply poorly positioned with the result of players having to listen to the cheers or jeers of the crowd to gauge the success of their shots

 

This is a golf game: clubs go thwack, balls go ping, and crowds cheer. The audio doesn’t go much beyond that, although the voiceover commentary is more appropriate than in previous incarnations of the title. The prattling of pundits Scott Van Pelt and Kelly Tilghman is largely in keeping with the mood of the game. Comments aren’t repeated too often and they actually give a lot of useful advice and background as you progress through your round, but they lack a sense of occasion. Even when playing as Tiger in the final of the Ryder Cup, with the hopes of continents on your shoulders, their commentary remains unchanged in tone and cadence from a practice round.

 

When creating a character you must choose from a selection of rubbish nicknames that are subsequently yelled unrealistically and inappropriately by the droning crowd. “Go Shooter!” has, more than once, made me want to take my club to the head of the spectators, especially after a bad shot.

 

Environmental background noise, generated by weather and crowd, form a peaceful ambience that golfers will recognise. A subtle stroke of genius lies in the far off cheers of crowds at other holes as your rivals sink puts out of sight.

 

Playing this game for just two days caused me to pick up my clubs and return to golfing in the real world after an absence of 10 years. It is that good. It isn’t perfect, far from it, but it is the most intricate and enjoyable golf simulator I have ever played. The sheer number of gameplay options, modifications, and style subtleties ensure that even after many hours of play the game doesn’t get tired. Multiplayer and online competitions add an extra level of challenge to proceedings and the RPG-style development of created characters makes the player feel much more involved.

 

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 is a must buy for gamers who like golf. Those who don’t may still enjoy it but may be bored by the intricacies of the character development. That said however, they could always just play as Tiger and avoid the whole “training to be the best” thing.

 

The Lowdown

Single Player: 8.5/10 Multiplayer: 8.5/10 Originality: 8/10 Value 8/10 Visuals 8.5/10 Audio: 7.5/10

Total Score: 8.2 / 10 Standard Score Single player Multiplayer Genre fan Casual Gamer Graphics Focused Great golfing action in an accessible console format

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