You would think: new year new edition new improvements....Wouldnt you.

I’ve never really been a huge fan of Golf games in the past. However ever since playing Mario Golf for the Gamecube, the sport has caught my interest. When the Wii came out I was hooked on Wii Golf and then Super Swing Golf. I never got the chance to play Tiger Woods for the Wii but now that I do, I can say one thing. Not Bad.

                Just like other Tiger games, the game allows you to create your very own character. However if you can make it past create your character mode then Congratulations, you finished half the battle. Of course you can always click on Random but what’s the point of playing the game with someone who doesn’t look like you at all. When creating a character you will find yourself fumbling around the options. The Wii does a great job of motion sensing but in this part of the game it does too much of a great job. You can select the perks of your character by pressing the D-Pad on the Wii or moving the Wii-mote to the left and right. Doing this However will fast forward all of the perks making it very hard to select it. A single move to either side will move your selection 4 sides to whatever direction you are pointing it to making it difficult to select a feature. This is done through every single feature of the game and cannot be modified.

                After you get through this annoying part of the game you will move on to what you bought the game for. The Tutorial is played when you pop the disc in for the very first time. This will give you an idea and teach you how to play the game before you get out there on the field, figuratively speaking of course. There are 2 options for game play: Play Now and My Career mode. Play now is basically just play any game on any course. My Career  Mode is where the big bucks are. The reason why I say big bucks is because you will have to earn money and sponsorships in order to unlock in game items such as clothing, putters, balls, etc.

                My Career mode features different challenges as well. Tiger challenge is where you challenge the top golfers in the world to a one on one and prove yourself. PGA Tour Season is of course season mode. Playoffs is when you skip the entire PGA Season and just move on to the playoffs which of course leads to the finals. The new feature’s added to the game are: Confidence where your player shows how confident he is of making the shot by the showing of a blue meter on the top left. The more Confident he gets the more the meter will rise and the less confident he gets the meter will drop. Taunting is mainly a Multiplayer type of thing, where you can throw off you opponents interrupting them before they shoot the ball. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 also features multiplayer where up to 4 players can compete against each other.

                The game is not pick up and play, in fact in order to get a good score you will need a lot of practice. At times the game play does get frustrating because you’re losing. The shots don’t go where you want them to go and even though you plan your shot it may sometimes end up in a bad place or out of bounds. One of the problems with the Game is that is does not capture your shots correctly. If swinging from far away during the process you may tilt the control to a certain direction without knowing it resulting in the ball steering to the right most of the times, Also if you swing real slow the game still swings at full pace. This can cause problems when swinging from close range because the ball will just go past the green.  The more and more you practice the better you will become at playing Tiger Woods PGA tour 08.

                I don’t know if it is the Wii or the game because the graphics could be better. When you first pop in the game and see the EA Sports logo come up, you’ll be telling yourself what the hell. Yes the graphics are pixilated and at times it can look ugly. This is a problem that is said to have happened in TWPGA 07 and from the look of things they didn’t bother fixing them. While the graphics do suck the frame rate is solid. There’s no Lag on the game that I know of because even though I was looking at the screen about 33% of the time I was looking at the ground trying to line up my shot.

                The sound I can say it is truly amazing. No distorted sound effects, real time announcers and the crowd while it will repeat itself over and over again sound great. At times every time I heard an airplane pass by I thought that it was coming from the outside but it actually turns out that it is an in game sound effect. I was amazed by this because it really does sound like if there’s an airplane flying around outside.

                This game offers a lot in the form of a great golf experience but so do other versions of the game. One great addition that I’m hoping EA would implement on next year installment is Online play against other players. Even online tournaments would help and make things even more interesting. Those seem to be big in 2008 when people play for cash and prizes online via Xbox Live or PS3. But a man can only dream.

Closing Comments:

Golf games on the Wii are always the great to play. However Why spend $50 bucks for a game that just has some updated rosters and 2 extra features that really don’t do anything for the player. If you are a golf nut and must have the latest golf game the TWPGA 08 is for you. If you just want to try out a golf game besides Wii Sports there are other options out there.

Game Play: Great Golf Action although create a player could be better, Way Better. 8/10

Graphics: No Improvement overall from any of the Gamecubes TWPGA.5/10

Controls: Great golfing controls but when will the developer learn that you don’t really need to use all of the Wii’s innovation for every single detail in the game. Case and Point Create a Player. 6/10

Sound: Probably one of the games strong points. While the soundtrack may suck the sound effects are great. I actually thought there was an airplane flying around my house until I realized 3 days later that it was just the game. 8/10

Life Span: So much to do in this game from buying gear to competing in tournaments to challenging your friends. Online Play would have been a great addition this year but here’s hoping to it being added next year. 8/10

Total Score: 70% =C

Verdict: This game is a rent because there are no real major improvements from last year’s game. If anything you should buy the 07 version because it features the same style of golf and create a player. That plus its probably only $20 or less.