By Shane Willoughby at thegamingliberty.com
The Tiger Woods PGA franchise is one of great stalwarts of the sports videogame genre. Not only is it recognised as one of the best sporting videogame monopolies but the franchise has forever pushed the boundaries of realism in a sports title, with the developers EA Sports always finding the right balance between innovation and familiarity for each addition to the game.
When a game becomes an annual institution like Tiger Woods has, you could almost forgive the developers if the odd outing is somewhat superficial and essentially a rehash of the previous year’s version, albeit with a new year slapped on the front of the box. Thankfully for fans of the series, such fears of complacency are groundless and do not apply with the 2011 version. EA have once again delivered with a game that comes packed with enough fundamental refinements and tweaks to justify your purchase.
It’s no secret that Tiger Woods has had a pretty rough twelve months. His off-the-course antics saw him being ditching by multi-million dollar sponsors, taking a sabbatical from the game and since his return, struggle to find the form that made him the almost infallible golfing juggernaut he once was. EA made the decision to stick by Tiger and why wouldn’t they? There is only one golf game out their worth talking and that game needs Tiger as much as anything else.
Tiger Vs Rory
However, in a rather questionable move that many cynics will suspect is something of a slap on the wrist for his public infidelity, Tiger shares this year’s cover with our very own Rory McIlroy, the first time he’s ever shared the golfing spotlight with anyone else. But let’s not take anything away from Rory. Tiger Woods 11 is all about the Ryder Cup, with Tiger the face of the U.S and Rory the face of Europe
So what does 2011’s iteration have to offer? Well, as I’ve mentioned, there’s a particular impetus on Ryder Cup association this year with a new emphasis being placed on online play and team play. You can build your own Ryder Cup team and whether you decide to do this by yourself or with a friend, you will be able to jump online and try to win the cup for your respective continent of choice (that’s Europe for you and me).
There’s also a couple of fundamental gameplay additions this time out in ‘True Aim’ and a new ‘Focus’ system. The ‘Focus’ system is probably the best new feature – a systemic risk incentive that’s been added to your pre-existing shot selection regime. Focus grants you more control of any situation, and if used at the right time, you can achieve greater accuracy with your shot, put some additional spin or power on your ball, or, best of all, preview your putt before you take it.
However, you can’t just fleetingly use focus when you’re in a tight spot. That would be too easy. Instead, you are limited to just how often you use it. Playing strategically and conservatively is essential in order to best utilise focus. The ‘True-Aim’ camera system gives you a golfer’s-eye view after you take a shot and is another notch on EA’s realism belt.  Although these additions are hardly revolutionary, they are notable and do enhance the experience.
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it
The actual gameplay of Tiger Woods 11 is very much a case of ‘as you were’ from the 2010 iteration and this can only be a good thing. If it aint broke, don’t fix it. EA, to their credit, have tagged on a number of additional advanced shot mechanics all of which never impinge or erode the tested, rudimentary gameplay we’ve come to expect of the experience from the years previous. Innovation is important when it come to Tiger Woods PGA, but certainly not as important as familiarity. You’ll also spend hours earning XP and gaining new attributes, everything you’ve come to expect from a Tiger game.
The overall presentation of the title is also excellent. Graphically, the game is impressive, with all of the actual courses themselves recreated to glorious perfection. Character models also look great although some of the animation at time can be somewhat cumbersome and awkward, but that’s just me being picky.
It’s hard to find faults with Tiger 11. Sure, it’s not exactly the most innovative of games you’ll pick up this summer, but if you’re a golf fan, then I really can’t see why you’d decide to give this year’s version a miss. With 24 players online, the Ryder Cup endorsement and a bunch of neat additions, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2011 is a game for both the veteran golfing purist and the golfing new kid on the block. Definitely worth a look.
Format: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, Wii; Developer: EA Sports
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