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Video game:Sony PlayStation 2 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004

Sony Computer Entertainment America2003

The Strong National Museum of Play

The Strong National Museum of Play
Rochester , United States

In 1998, Electronic Arts began releasing annual golf simulations which highlight professional golfers such as Tiger Woods. The first game, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 99, received praise from both critics and players. With this series, EA targeted first-time players who love golf rather than experienced gamers. Available on consoles, handhelds, and mobile devices, players can choose to act as either a professional golfer or their own custom avatar. Pro golfers have high-level fixed stats, whereas a custom golfer begins low, but has the potential to greatly improve with practice. The Game Face editing tool allows players to change an avatar's appearance and even alter their swing. These games offer many different modes of play with multiplayer options, minigames to test a player's skills, and a career mode, in which players enter tournaments, earn experience points and work toward monetary prizes and sponsor deals with companies such as Nike, Adidas, and Ping. The higher a player's level, the more skill-enhancing equipment they can unlock from the pro shop. Each new Tiger Woods game contains new amenities that keep its fan base interested and engaged, and oftentimes games include extra downloadable content online as well. The majority of the series features Gary McCord and David Feherty providing commentary, with the addition of Jim Nantz in 2011. The games all feature an analog swing mechanic, where an avatar's swing is determined by the player's use of the joystick, or in some cases, the Wii remote or PlayStation Move controller. For the first time in the series, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 14: Legends of the Majors provided access to all four Major tournaments� the Masters, U.S. Open, Open Championship, and the PGA Championship�and introduced new historic modes in which players can compete against golf icons and on courses throughout time. The main menu is displayed as a timeline, so that players can, for example, play on the 1934 version of Augusta National or against Jack Nicklaus, recreating historic shots or attempting to meet or better 18-hole matches from six distinct areas of golf history. Developers at EA employed special physics and graphics in an attempt to be as historically accurate as possible, giving each player their own strengths and style, which provides challenging and ever-changing gameplay. Furthermore, in 2011, Tiger Woods games began utilizing live weather feeds for accurate course conditions and time of day. Country club functions within the games encourage communication and competition, giving players the chance to create club tournaments, play with friends, and chat with other players around the world. Some other unique features that both critics and players cite as making this series exceptional are the true-aim control system, the player focus system, and the addition of caddies as controller assistance. True-aim focuses on difficulty and realism. It makes most of a player's on-screen aids disappear, with only a few indicators of trajectory, range, or elevation to help a player's decisions. Player focus forces strategy. The system allots a certain amount of focus to a player that is depleted when strength, accuracy, preview, or spin features are used to help a player. Focus is replenished slowly, so this limits the amount of aids a player can use throughout the game. Finally, caddies give players different shot options that range from safe to aggressive, giving the player more choices and chance for strategy rather than simply one automated outcome.

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  • Title: Video game:Sony PlayStation 2 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004
  • Creator: Sony Computer Entertainment America
  • Date Created: 2003
  • Location: USA
  • Subject Keywords: electronic game, video game, Sony, Sony PlayStation 2, PS2, sport, golf
  • Type: Console Games
  • Medium: plastic, printed paper
  • Object ID: 109.26500
The Strong National Museum of Play

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