
While on our trip to EA Tiburon in Maitland FL myself and a couple of other community leaders got a chance to play Tiger Woods 08. Here are my thoughts and impressions after spending about 4 or 5 hours with the game.
Graphics- Tiger looks great the courses are rendered to an almost photo realistic quality and the water effects are some of the best I have ever seen in a video game. Last years game looked damn good, but the courses took a back seat to the golfers. Its certainly not the case this year although some of the trees still need some work this is most defiantly the best looking Tiger ever. The game looks outstanding nuff said.
Controls- I personally love the pull back push forward swing action. You actually have to take into account the golfers body posture and swinging motion to get it right. But little Paul who is 13 years old may not see this the same way I do or maybe you just don't like swinging the club with the right analog stick at all. Have no fear the 3 click method is here for you. Instead of using the R-Analog stick to swing the club you can now use the 3 click methond. (ONLY ON THE LOWER LEVELS) I never used the 3 click method, but I'm sure its a welcome addition a ton of fans will use this year.
Create-a-golfer- Outside of the create a player in NHL 08 this maybe the most robust create a player engine I have ever seen in a video game. There are literally thousands of combinations. Also new this year is the ability to scan your face to put onto your golfer. After you scan your face (its going to take you about 2 or 3 hours to get it right.) you can then add accessories as well which is a nice touch. Want sunglass check you like to wear hats check you get the picture. The number of options in create a player is mind boggling.
Put preview- (Ideal put is dead) I love what it has been replaced with, but now you can only use it once which makes it more sim. You can view your put trajectory only one time then after that its all up to your memory and putting skills. (However you lose put preview all together on the highest difficulty level)
Gamer Net- If you have already read the IGN, and TeamXbox previews (which I'm sure every Tiger fan has) you already know about this feature. All I can say is it works great and adds a lot of longevity to the title. I had a blast trying to hit a tree skip off a persons head and then land on the green good luck beating that. (I did not have any luck.)
Shot confidence-

What shot confidence basically represents is a gophers ability to consistently land his shots where he wants them to land. (Simple enough) The more shots you land on the green and/or in your target area. The more confidence he/she has the further he can hit the ball and with greater accuracy as well. Tiger's shot confidence is through the roof, but your create a golfer is not. So even if you have the perfect swing you will not be able to compete with the elite golfers in the game until your shot confidence reaches an elite level. Add to this that your gophers ratings are extremely low to begin with and now you have a challenge to climb the ladder and eventually attempt to over take Tiger's hold on the green.
When you are planning your shots there is a circumference circle that tells you where your ball could land. The inner portion will change color depending on how much you draw (blue) or fade (yellow). The circumference of the circle is the important issue here the more shots you make the smaller the circle gets insuring you that your shots have a much smaller percentage of going astray. That is if you strike the ball with good accuracy to begin with of course. While I'm on the subject of draws and fades, now its much easier to do (in theory) just hit R Bumper button to pull up the meter. Then just move your cursor to the desired spot now all you need (draw or fade) to do is land a solid swing accurate swing.
Now things become interesting in the game and it now forces you to use a variety of clubs. Because you may not enough shot confidence circumference with your 7 rion to use in that situation in contrast to a 9 iron. Basically if you want the best shot possible you must use different clubs through the game not just the same 3 or 4 over and over again. The really cool thing about shot confidence is that it follows every single shot you will ever make in the game. From your fist tee off after you have created a golfer until the time you finally play Tiger head to head in an attempt to take his crown as the best golfer of all time.
Bottom line and recap- (I would have loved to get more information, but only so much can be done in less than 5 hours with a new game) If it isn't broke don't fix it thankfully thats what we have here with Tiger 08. From a game play stand point the biggest changes are the inclusion of shot confidence and put preview. Both of these new features actually makes the game harder, more dynamic, and expands the game play just enough without re-inventing the wheel. The game also sports 61 total challenges and plenty of mini games to learn the new mechanics of shot confidence. From a graphical stand point the courses look almost photo realistic and there are plenty of options to from to make your cyber golfer stand out online. Speaking of online gamer net is the future of the series and it will change the way people have played the game for years. I like to think of Gamer Net as the youtube of Tiger Woods 08 and thats exactly what it is 100% user created content people are going to love it. I have already uploaded a 54 yard put with Tiger on a nasty bend can you beat it?????????????
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