Review: EA Sports PGA Tour

It’s been a few years since EA took to the tee with a new entry in the  calmest sports game on the planet. In that time, competitors have arisen, providing different takes on the sport in both realistic and authentic attempts. However, what EA’s latest instalment seems to have done is go back to the drawing board with their long-running franchise and make it feel as though you’re ready to learn the sport all over again. While not everything lands, what we have is a solid foundation that lacks in some areas but sets the stage for an impressive comeback, if they can keep the support consistent and not start to integrate it’s possible predatory monetisation.

One of the first things that stands out about EA Sports PGA Tour (2023) are the visuals.  From the first tee to the final putt, the game immerses you in the world of golf like never before. The lush greens, rolling fairways, and stunning landscapes are all rendered in exquisite detail, with vibrant colours and impressive textures that make each course feel unique. Even the flyovers from each hole capture the sense of natural beauty that has been missing for a number of years.

However, one thing does hold the title back in the visual department and that is in the performance. I have been playing this game on and off for over a month now on PC. While I enjoyed the sense of the gameplay, the performance has consistently been underwhelming. Each time a new patch would drop offering better performance, I would notice some improvements from the transitions to the first frames following camera cuts, but it still doesn’t perform to the extent you expect for a full-priced title on the hardware I’m running it on (RTX 3080Ti, AMD Ryzen 9 5900X).

a phrase I said to myself multiple times when playing this game: “not right now”

Of course, no matter how beautiful a game looks, it’s the gameplay that really matters. In this regard, EA Sports PGA Tour (2023) does not disappoint. The controls are tight and responsive, allowing you to swing your club with precision and accuracy. While I played this on the PC, a controller is definitely recommended. This is a game series that has always had consoles in mind and that continues here. To be honest, it’s the most immersive way to play with the movement of the analogue stick replicating the swing of the club. In this iteration more than ever, momentum and timing are as vitally important as accuracy. If you pull back too slowly, expect a less powerful show, same with the follow-through. It’s simple, it makes sense, but it can drastically affect your shot if you’re not in tempo with the swing. There are enough visual cues on screen that keep you aligned the entire time. Following the release, EA did release a patch that brought back the three-click shot approach but it’s just not nearly as immersive of fun to play as using the actual analogue stick. The addition of new swing mechanics, such as the “Focus Shot” and “Swing Tempo,” adds an extra layer of depth to the game, giving players more control over their shots than ever before

The freedom in your approach play is better than ever as each shot is viable depending on the style you play. Whether you want to approach with spin or let it run on the green, you can approach each shot your own way. However, as the game currently stands, the run-on from shots on the green just doesn’t seem right. Every shot where you come on to the green with a run-on sees the ball continually glide across the green like it’s on ice and will almost always either keep going to the fringe or even further in a lot of cases. While this definitely feels like a way to show the player low stats and how that will only get better as you level up, it’s just not fun when it just feels so unrealistic.

Probably the most impressive part of the game though is the sheer choice of courses on offer. With up to 30 to select from, this is possibly the most impressive collection of real and fantasy courses ever seen in a simulation golf title. Every course can look and feel different making it an excellent option to just play a round of 18 on your favourites if the career mode is just not doing it for you right now.

And I think that’s a phrase I said to myself multiple times when playing this game: “not right now”. What EA Sports have provided is a solid foundation that somehow made the game feel slightly fresh again, even though not a ton has changed on the surface over the past couple of decades. But regardless of that, I couldn’t help but feel like this game is just not complete.

There is a very small selection of golfers to choose from and none of the fan favourites are here. This is largely fine since you should be playing mostly with your created golfer but there’s just a sense that the simulation engine isn’t there yet. I have swung perfectly fine shots only to see it veer way off in one direction, even after compensating for the wind, just didn’t add up. I also cannot express how frustrating it is with how much the golf ball just seems to glide when on the green. It makes approach shots a frustrating nightmare at times.

EA Sports PGA Tour is a welcomed return. However, despite the content on offer including a full career, hundreds of challenges, and dozens of courses, I can’t help feel like the engine just isn’t finished. Like I stated before, the visuals are great but the performance just doesn’t match what you see. There is hitching in transitions, stutters at random times, and some scenes suddenly tank the framerate only for it to return to normal on the next scene.

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