EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

[jbd345]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

I wonder if they actually used the extra year to work on the game.

Or was the team simply reassigned to other work that was needed sooner?

That what I’m starting to think with these delayed games. It’s a “pause” rather than delay under the guise of more time is needed. When we probably would’ve gotten the same game. A delay doesn’t always mean a better game. People have to stop thinking that *coughs cyberpunk coughs*

[lions67]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

This. Polished games are the way of the past. Ever since developers realized they could fix their games with patches, games have released with more and more bugs just so that they can hit a release date.

The problem is doubly exaggerated in the sports genre because of the yearly release model. By the time most of these games receive their final patches and play “the way they were supposed to play”, the season is over and we’re only 4-5 months away from the next game. The problem? Most of the things they “fixed” over the course of the last game don’t make it into the new one, so the cycle repeats itself until your left with a shell of a game.

This is 100% all the way!
Sports games in this day and age really don’t need to be doing annual releases anymore. Support the game(s) with patches/tuners throughout the cycle up to 6 months before launching a new game.
Sports games can easily live through 3 years between with proper support. 2 for sure!

[fsufan4423]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

This is 100% all the way!
Sports games in this day and age really don’t need to be doing annual releases anymore. Support the game(s) with patches/tuners throughout the cycle up to 6 months before launching a new game.
Sports games can easily live through 3 years between with proper support. 2 for sure!

Companies would never do this, they would be giving up 2 years worth of sales, just to make games the best they can be for the consumer! Hell, I'm usually ready for a new game in 6 months, I couldn't imagine waiting 3 years on a new release.

[bigkev]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

That what I’m starting to think with these delayed games. It’s a “pause” rather than delay under the guise of more time is needed. When we probably would’ve gotten the same game. A delay doesn’t always mean a better game. People have to stop thinking that *coughs cyberpunk coughs*

I believe you're right. The IT projects I've been part of, they had a development budget and I would guess it's the same for games. Like that much $$$ allocated to develop and support this game.

[lowpaiddonkey10]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

It’s highly possible that EA had three click in the game but pulled it when they realised it didn’t compare well to HB’s spin on that old school mechanic. (Which I think is the best I’ve played on any golf sim, it’s just let down by framerates).

It’s damaging for an IP to release unfinished like 2K’s game & I hope EA do not follow the same path. I don’t want the game delayed but if that’s what it takes just let me know sooner rather than later.

EA will never be able to implement tempo into the 3 click putting mechanic. It is impossible. They might as well just go with the Hot Shot 3 click type since it's gonna be an after thought anyway. Very few people even use it anymore. I do but I'm in the minority and it will most likely be the reason I won't even buy the game until a deep sale if at all.

[lowpaiddonkey10]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

One wonders if this should be delayed..
It won't be though (due to Masters/Augusta timing tie in)

Augusta I'm sure is ready to go, so even if the rest is half cooked, they'll bank on "fixing it later".
Let's just hope they actually do that..

(ahem...."Rory")

This is exactly how you start the spiral of "it didn't sell well enough initially" (because it's half baked) and then they start cutting the budget based upon that flawed rationale.

The game looks to be so Augusta centric that it is raising red flags to me. Appears we will get a game that appeals to a more casual fan. See the 20 shot types. Might not be a bad thing but it might end up dial a distance with a pretty picture.

[lowpaiddonkey10]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

Companies would never do this, they would be giving up 2 years worth of sales, just to make games the best they can be for the consumer! Hell, I'm usually ready for a new game in 6 months, I couldn't imagine waiting 3 years on a new release.

Really all you end up with is a roster update. Even the 2 best sports titles of the past decade or more really haven't improved much if at all except possibly slightly better graphics. There is very little reason for a golf franchise to release much more than once a console cycle. But they'll put this in the game take it out put it back in. They ever made the perfect golf game they would never sell the next iteration of it now would they?

[RIFRIG]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

EA will never be able to implement tempo into the 3 click putting mechanic. It is impossible. They might as well just go with the Hot Shot 3 click type since it's gonna be an after thought anyway. Very few people even use it anymore. I do but I'm in the minority and it will most likely be the reason I won't even buy the game until a deep sale if at all.

What do you mean Tempo on the putting for 3 click?

Would like to see EA do a real time 3 click that’s synchronised with the actual CAG’s movement.

[lowpaiddonkey10]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

What do you mean Tempo on the putting for 3 click?

Would like to see EA do a real time 3 click that’s synchronised with the actual CAG’s movement.

So far they are claiming there is a tempo component in the analog putting stroke. As I said there is absolutely no way to implement that in a 3 click interface. All you can do is power and line of the putt.

[scagwi]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

So far they are claiming there is a tempo component in the analog putting stroke. As I said there is absolutely no way to implement that in a 3 click interface. All you can do is power and line of the putt.

Are they saying there is something different than the under/over swing that's been in all their golf games for a while?

I never know what people are really referring to when they say tempo in this context.

[lions67]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

Companies would never do this, they would be giving up 2 years worth of sales, just to make games the best they can be for the consumer! Hell, I'm usually ready for a new game in 6 months, I couldn't imagine waiting 3 years on a new release.

Well if you think about it like this:
As it is, these sports games come out at full price on launch for a couple of months then get out on sale, 2 maybe 3 times each time getting slightly cheaper up u tip they actually give it away free.
If you support your games knowing that you won’t release a new one for 2 years or 3, that would allow the game to stay at full price for much much longer. I would argue that this way would bring in more revenue for that game. But the support has to be there 100% during the cycle.

[lowpaiddonkey10]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

Are they saying there is something different than the under/over swing that's been in all their golf games for a while?

I never know what people are really referring to when they say tempo in this context.

I guess what they will be looking for is a fluid stroke not a jerky quick motion with the analog stick.

[fsufan4423]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

Really all you end up with is a roster update. Even the 2 best sports titles of the past decade or more really haven't improved much if at all except possibly slightly better graphics. There is very little reason for a golf franchise to release much more than once a console cycle. But they'll put this in the game take it out put it back in. They ever made the perfect golf game they would never sell the next iteration of it now would they?

I'm viewing this from a company's perspective. They can capitalize off yearly sales or release a game every few years and lose money. The last time EA made a golf game, they had a run of 15 consecutive years of Tiger and Rory game releases.

I would think the causal gamer wouldn't look at a game and say, hey...lets get that golf game that came out 8 months ago and its still $69.00 no matter if EA is still supporting it or not. The hard-core sports fan will usually get it day one. 8 months in, I'm looking to spend less than half.

In a perfect world, these games would be released with great visuals, great performance, and full of modes that would keep the average gamer playing for years. In my experience, that's not the case. As great as the Show is, and it gets the most praise on these forums, by the time I get it on sale, I'm already waiting on the next version to see if it will be the one.

I think what you're saying has merit. Games just improve enough even after 2 to 3 years. We can be disappointed every year or every few.

[lowpaiddonkey10]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

The Show is basically the same game save for improved visuals since they introduced custom cameras in 2009 I believe. Same clunky pitch animations same chained fielder animations. IMO.

[Ronoko]

Re: EA Sports PGA Tour Interview with Development Team - It's All About Gameplay

The only sports game that truly looks next gen is 2k basketball on next gen consoles. Sad.

Compared to 2ks golf game this game has a chance but the frame rate is a bummer for console players.