John Daly's Golf (image: og-international.net)
I’ve often written at length of the success and failures of Tiger Woods golf games. But it wasn’t until I tried out the recent John Daly’s ProStroke Golf with PS3 Move that I realized just how good we have had it.
Although Tiger Woods 07 on the Wii was a rather shaky first step into the world of motion controlled video golf, the series has made great strides forward each year. So much so that even the Tiger Woods 11 Move Edition version of Tiger Woods golf struggles to live up to the high bar set by the Wii game:
Tiger Woods PS3 Move
Tiger Woods Move extends the Wii-mote motion in impressive style. But around this swing mechanic it fails to attend to a host of hard-won design decisions on the Wii version that turned a gimmick into a genuine sporting experience.
What we are lacking though is the sort of innovation that drives competition. Because EA have not really had a contender for their golfing crown, things have developed along more iterative than revolutionary lines.
This is where John Daly’s ProStroke Golf has a part to play I think. Although it’s unlikely to challenge Tiger directly in terms of sales, it brings some new ideas to the table I’m sure we will see in next season’s games.
John Daly's ProStroke Golf
ProStroke offers a nice first person view when you are taking a shot – as we have in Tiger Woods 11 Wii this year. There is a nice touch where you can press a button to glance up from the ball to see where you are hitting.
The swing view also provides a gauge that clearly shows the player how hard they are about to hit the ball. Of course the resulting power is a combination of this back swing and follow through, but it gives you a good starting point. It made me realize how odd it is that Tiger’s motion swing on PS3 and Wii don’t offer any sort of power feedback – particularly on the easier swing settings.
So although I struggled with John Daly’s ProStroke Golf, I hope it continues to offer Tiger Woods food for thought in the years to come. In the mean time, both this and the Tiger Woods 11 Move Edition have reminded me just how good the Wii game has got over the years.
