A total of 16 courses are available, ditching one from 2007 and adding first timers like East Lake. These latest courses are graphical marvels, with detailed grass and trees that create a gap from the previous generations. Repeated courses remain untouched, and there are still numerous missing choices from the remnants of PlayStation 2 Tiger.
A massively increased in size Tiger Challenge mode now becomes the heart of the game, taking place on a grid that continually unlocks new features while powering up your personal golfer. This is wonderful, aside from a mass of glitches and impossibly aggravating rubber band A.I. Until a recent patch, the player was unable to pass a certain challenge on Carnoustie. A.I. is standard fare for Tiger, but is slowly becoming a game killer as the franchise moves on. This should have been fixed years ago, as it seems even the worst players can nail critical shots when they’re down even if their stats state otherwise.
Further compounding Tiger 08’s problems is sloppier overall game play. Swinging is choppier, with an off-putting split second stall as the clubface makes contact with the ball. Newcomers won’t notice it, while dedicated Tiger 07 players will find it jarring and impossible to get used to.
Tiger also has odd issues with ball placement. Don’t be surprised to see a shot that clearly landed behind a tree or in deep rough magically appear in plain view when the next shot comes around. This is a ridiculous, game killing problem for modes such as the otherwise addictive one ball where ball placement is crucial.
The odd year curse is over, with an even year EA Sports title breaking the streak of quality. There's still enough fun left over Tiger vets to play around with the new GamerNet challenges, but this is a decided downswing (no pun intended) for a typically strong golf effort. Maybe it's time for some shelf competition for Tiger.
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 is rated E (Everyone) by the ESRB for nothing, even though last year had a descriptor for Mild Violence. This game can also be found on: Nintendo DS, PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, and Wii.
Article comments
1 - Ken Edwards
Of all my complaints of Tiger 08, one of my biggest is this: why can't I chose "Concede" from the menu? When you have lost a hole, you are FORCED to play through it, including a non-shippable CPU.
2 - Matt Paprocki
"including a non-shippable CPU."
Yeah, those damn non-shippable CPUs. They make life miserable.
3 - Ken Edwards
Here is another major complaint. If you have to punch it out of the rough, the people in the gallery STAND RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU. EA, come on! I am sure you watch golf on TV, people get out of the way so that the golfer has a clear line of sight to the pin.