Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 13 Review (Xbox 360)
Submitted on: Apr 04, 2012 by Glenn Wigmore
This year's iteration of the Tiger Woods franchise brings with it a reliable simulation, but the developers have also experimented with a couple of key features. A few of these new modes and features don't quite hit the mark — and there's a mean-spirited setup to some of the unlockable courses — but the core gameplay is very strong, with lots of value to be found in the offline and online areas.
Gameplay
As covered in my impressions pieces, the way you play Tiger Woods this year will be a lot different, as the three-click control scheme has been removed in favor of an exclusively analog-based method. While the omission of the three-click is puzzling, it is great that the analog swinging and improved shot setup are totally worth investing your time into, as they provide a deep, rewarding golf experience, especially with short shots in the 10-50 yard range. The putting is also ripe for mastery, as the initial urge to overswing soon gives way to practice swings, better distance judgement and the ability to read the breaks with relative ease.
When you're swinging anything but the putter, it's really helpful having the “swing plane meter” for accurate shot feedback. Very quickly you'll be able to recalibrate future shots if you happen to be rushing your swings or hitting shots too hard. With the other elements of shot setup — stance, spin, sweet spot — all parsed out into specific parts, it makes the whole process of shooting functional and fun, with plenty of assists still there (caddies, putt previews) if you want them.
Also added this year are pin packs, which are a way to spend the in-game currency to buy boosts for your character. These are one-time use items that boost accuracy, ball lie and other stats, and they manage to give you an edge if you're trying to master challenges on the various courses.
The one area of the downloadable space that isn't as cool are the unlockable/downloadable courses. Basically, the developers provide 16 courses “on the disc,” and the other 19 are unlockable (time, effort) or downloadable (pay money). While it's nice to have an option to unlock pay content for free, it's troubling that so much of it is locked up this way. You can spend your in-game currency to buy rounds at these courses, or you can master each course to unlock it permanently, but the rub is that these unlock procedures are so extensive and arduous that it makes the whole thing just seem kind of lame. I'm all for a bit of DLC behind a pay wall and some gear to be unlockable, but there's no reason that over 50 percent of the courses should be held for ransom in this way.
As covered in my impressions pieces, the way you play Tiger Woods this year will be a lot different, as the three-click control scheme has been removed in favor of an exclusively analog-based method. While the omission of the three-click is puzzling, it is great that the analog swinging and improved shot setup are totally worth investing your time into, as they provide a deep, rewarding golf experience, especially with short shots in the 10-50 yard range. The putting is also ripe for mastery, as the initial urge to overswing soon gives way to practice swings, better distance judgement and the ability to read the breaks with relative ease.
When you're swinging anything but the putter, it's really helpful having the “swing plane meter” for accurate shot feedback. Very quickly you'll be able to recalibrate future shots if you happen to be rushing your swings or hitting shots too hard. With the other elements of shot setup — stance, spin, sweet spot — all parsed out into specific parts, it makes the whole process of shooting functional and fun, with plenty of assists still there (caddies, putt previews) if you want them.
Also added this year are pin packs, which are a way to spend the in-game currency to buy boosts for your character. These are one-time use items that boost accuracy, ball lie and other stats, and they manage to give you an edge if you're trying to master challenges on the various courses.
The one area of the downloadable space that isn't as cool are the unlockable/downloadable courses. Basically, the developers provide 16 courses “on the disc,” and the other 19 are unlockable (time, effort) or downloadable (pay money). While it's nice to have an option to unlock pay content for free, it's troubling that so much of it is locked up this way. You can spend your in-game currency to buy rounds at these courses, or you can master each course to unlock it permanently, but the rub is that these unlock procedures are so extensive and arduous that it makes the whole thing just seem kind of lame. I'm all for a bit of DLC behind a pay wall and some gear to be unlockable, but there's no reason that over 50 percent of the courses should be held for ransom in this way.
Presentation
Even though nothing has been mixed up drastically with how Tiger Woods looks, there is still a lot of good-looking courses, golfers and landscapes to see. Liberal use of depth-of-field effects and motion blur help hide some of the rougher textures and geometry (like the crowd and some trees), and the game still looks fantastic when showing you a close of up of the ball on the green.
Nothing in the audio jumps out as terribly memorable, especially since the same sparse commentary library is being re-used, as are the most of the sound effects. The soundtrack gets the job done, but a lack of licensed tracks or memorable beats is a shame.
Even though nothing has been mixed up drastically with how Tiger Woods looks, there is still a lot of good-looking courses, golfers and landscapes to see. Liberal use of depth-of-field effects and motion blur help hide some of the rougher textures and geometry (like the crowd and some trees), and the game still looks fantastic when showing you a close of up of the ball on the green.
Nothing in the audio jumps out as terribly memorable, especially since the same sparse commentary library is being re-used, as are the most of the sound effects. The soundtrack gets the job done, but a lack of licensed tracks or memorable beats is a shame.
Career Mode and Tiger Legacy Challenge
The career mode will provide a good amount of play time as you level up your golfer, touring him around the various tournaments and circuits. You're basically trying to earn coins to buy more pin packs and gear while earning XP to boost up your golfer's skill. You can acquire various sponsors for clothes and equipment, and you'll be able to unlock more of their wares by sporting their gear during play. Some of the challenges you play before tournaments can be a bit annoying, especially if they are match play or something similar, as you can find yourself repeating a few tasks when you just want to be moving on. Overall, the career mode provides a solid way to experience the courses and level up your virtual pro.
The Tiger Legacy Challenge is a really cool idea, but I do wish it had a bit more substance to its presentation. Since you're reliving key moments in Tiger's career, there's lots of fodder for phases of his life and important moments. What I really liked about the mode was the wacky non-game stuff, like when you're practicing in Tiger's backyard. I think the mode ultimately provides some fun, with good voiceover from Tiger himself and lots of content, but I just thought presentation of all of the big moments was a bit wooden, lacking context and emotion.
The career mode will provide a good amount of play time as you level up your golfer, touring him around the various tournaments and circuits. You're basically trying to earn coins to buy more pin packs and gear while earning XP to boost up your golfer's skill. You can acquire various sponsors for clothes and equipment, and you'll be able to unlock more of their wares by sporting their gear during play. Some of the challenges you play before tournaments can be a bit annoying, especially if they are match play or something similar, as you can find yourself repeating a few tasks when you just want to be moving on. Overall, the career mode provides a solid way to experience the courses and level up your virtual pro.
The Tiger Legacy Challenge is a really cool idea, but I do wish it had a bit more substance to its presentation. Since you're reliving key moments in Tiger's career, there's lots of fodder for phases of his life and important moments. What I really liked about the mode was the wacky non-game stuff, like when you're practicing in Tiger's backyard. I think the mode ultimately provides some fun, with good voiceover from Tiger himself and lots of content, but I just thought presentation of all of the big moments was a bit wooden, lacking context and emotion.
Online
Taking the action online with Tiger Woods adds a great deal of value, and it's a pleasure to see an EA Sports release that is not only stable online but that also isn't encumbered as much by the spectre of EA's servers needing to constantly bother you.
You can participate in various online tournaments to boost your coin total, and these are set up in such a way to encourage players of all abilities to try them out. Usually the window to play a tournament is several days long, and you can attempt the round a couple of times in order to improve your score. This works great as a passive form of online play, with your quest to unlock more stuff from the store driving you to focus in. The tournament play eliminates the ability to ask caddies for advice, which means that a baseline of skill is required in order to set up shots. You do get to use putt previews liberally, though.
Standard online play allows the various game modes — Best Ball, Skins, Battle Golf — to be played against up to four players, and the time I have spent online in these modes has been totally smooth and lots of fun. I had some particularly close matches with a few players, requiring me to really hone in on my short game in order to hang around. In addition, there is a country club feature that allows you to group up with friends in order to gain "status," which allows you to earn more coins as well as participate in EA Sports special events.
Taking the action online with Tiger Woods adds a great deal of value, and it's a pleasure to see an EA Sports release that is not only stable online but that also isn't encumbered as much by the spectre of EA's servers needing to constantly bother you.
You can participate in various online tournaments to boost your coin total, and these are set up in such a way to encourage players of all abilities to try them out. Usually the window to play a tournament is several days long, and you can attempt the round a couple of times in order to improve your score. This works great as a passive form of online play, with your quest to unlock more stuff from the store driving you to focus in. The tournament play eliminates the ability to ask caddies for advice, which means that a baseline of skill is required in order to set up shots. You do get to use putt previews liberally, though.
Standard online play allows the various game modes — Best Ball, Skins, Battle Golf — to be played against up to four players, and the time I have spent online in these modes has been totally smooth and lots of fun. I had some particularly close matches with a few players, requiring me to really hone in on my short game in order to hang around. In addition, there is a country club feature that allows you to group up with friends in order to gain "status," which allows you to earn more coins as well as participate in EA Sports special events.
Kinect Support
I've talked about the Kinect support for Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13 in my previous impressions, and although I still feel that it really is a proof of concept for something really cool down the line, it does actually work adequately as is.
This game doesn't fix what the Kinect has notoriously had trouble with — poor menu navigation, the odd missed voice command, some spastic character animations based on your inputs — but it does manage to make the act of playing with the your whole body somewhat viable. The voice commands do a decent job of getting your shot prepared, and the ability to zoom in by placing your hand above your (virtual) visor is actually pretty cool. The swinging itself generally works, even though you have to directly face the television. The margin for error is softened to accommodate for the odd bit of wackiness, which is probably for the best.
There are some stuttering animations on the backswing, and trying to set up your shot by menu navigation is way too finicky, but these are elements that could be easily iterated on and improved for a future release. Also, for what it's worth, the Kinect has the benefit of not risking you flinging a motion device out of your hands when swinging.
I've talked about the Kinect support for Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13 in my previous impressions, and although I still feel that it really is a proof of concept for something really cool down the line, it does actually work adequately as is.
This game doesn't fix what the Kinect has notoriously had trouble with — poor menu navigation, the odd missed voice command, some spastic character animations based on your inputs — but it does manage to make the act of playing with the your whole body somewhat viable. The voice commands do a decent job of getting your shot prepared, and the ability to zoom in by placing your hand above your (virtual) visor is actually pretty cool. The swinging itself generally works, even though you have to directly face the television. The margin for error is softened to accommodate for the odd bit of wackiness, which is probably for the best.
There are some stuttering animations on the backswing, and trying to set up your shot by menu navigation is way too finicky, but these are elements that could be easily iterated on and improved for a future release. Also, for what it's worth, the Kinect has the benefit of not risking you flinging a motion device out of your hands when swinging.
Final Thoughts
While the exclusion of three-click swinging and some annoying DLC maneuvering will be off-putting to some, the core gameplay of Tiger Woods remains very good, and it has been improved with the new swing mechanics. Online modes offer great value for players looking for a challenge, and the Kinect support, while not quite fully realized, is actually a viable way to play.
Learning Curve: There's definitely a degree of challenge with the new analog swing mechanics, especially in the short game and putting, but you can alter difficulty or apply pin packs to make things a bit breezier.
Control Scheme: The new analog swing and stance preparation are quite realistic in how they force you gauge power, and the Kinect support, while not perfect, does work.
Visuals: The presentation in this franchise could definitely use a new direction, but the courses, player models and depth-of-field effects all look good.
Audio: Nothing really stands out here, and the commentary is particularly sparse.
Value: There's plenty to do offline and online, with career mode, legacy challenge, online matches, daily tournaments and lots of course mastery to unlock gear and courses. That said, the unlock structure (and DLC baiting) went too far.
Score: 7.5
While the exclusion of three-click swinging and some annoying DLC maneuvering will be off-putting to some, the core gameplay of Tiger Woods remains very good, and it has been improved with the new swing mechanics. Online modes offer great value for players looking for a challenge, and the Kinect support, while not quite fully realized, is actually a viable way to play.
Learning Curve: There's definitely a degree of challenge with the new analog swing mechanics, especially in the short game and putting, but you can alter difficulty or apply pin packs to make things a bit breezier.
Control Scheme: The new analog swing and stance preparation are quite realistic in how they force you gauge power, and the Kinect support, while not perfect, does work.
Visuals: The presentation in this franchise could definitely use a new direction, but the courses, player models and depth-of-field effects all look good.
Audio: Nothing really stands out here, and the commentary is particularly sparse.
Value: There's plenty to do offline and online, with career mode, legacy challenge, online matches, daily tournaments and lots of course mastery to unlock gear and courses. That said, the unlock structure (and DLC baiting) went too far.
Score: 7.5
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