If yearly updates for sports video games irritate you, meet Tiger Woods 08. In less than a few months after the release of Tiger Woods 07, the franchise continues on the Wii in improved form. If you were suckered into the 07 edition, congratulations - you’ve been lowered to the level of a beta tester, and had to pay for the privilege.
EA Sports has addressed nearly every complaint the public had with the premiere Wii Tiger. The swing, obviously the main draw for the hardware, is smoother and less touchy. Whereas last year a flick of the wrist at the top of your swing registered as a full downswing, it’s almost impossible to mess up in 2008.
Putting mercifully has a meter to gauge power, actually making it easier to sink whatever is put in front of you. While the default putter is ridiculously powerful, you’ll soon master the touch needed and begin draining the toughest slopes. The putt preview now lets the player take a full swing and see the results within a set time limit. This also increases the enjoyment of the Wii exclusive mini-putt game.
Time was properly spent evolving the swing system, including multiple styles. If you’re truly a gamer, you can appreciate the sit down swing. Since standing goes against the hardcore gaming lifestyle, you have this option to make a simple back a forth motion to send the ball flying. An analog swing also allows for use of the nunchuck as in any other edition of the game, though it’s impossibly inconsistent in terms of distance. Consider it a lost cause.
Minor improvements elsewhere bring over features from the PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360 Tiger 08. The massive Tiger Challenge mode beats out other next-gen counterparts in terms of the amount of available contests. You’ll move up a grid-like series of events, increasing stats, purchasing items like the ever-popular +3 club shaft of power, and eventually take on Woods himself. With the ability to skip the shots of CPU golfers (and your own once off the club), this is also a faster process.
Game Face returns, but brings with it one of the largest and all encompassing issues with Wii Tiger. Menus are simply impossible to navigate. Trying to make small adjustments to your golfers face is needlessly complex as the cursor also scrolls through more sub menus. A small move downward could be registered as a menu change instead of an eye alteration.
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