EIGHT years since EA Sports last released a golf game PGA Tour is now here.
The developer, best known for series such as FIFA, NHL and Madden, has been in the sports gaming scene for a long time.
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However, the company decided to take a step back from the series and sold the license in 2018.
But now PGA Tour is back and bigger than ever, with 30 courses that have been mapped out using lasers and drones for extreme realism.
GLHF had the chance to sit down with gameplay designer Craig Penner and producer Ben Ramsour to talk about the latest features.
Technology has advanced hugely since EA Sports last made a golf game, and the team wanted to include all the latest techniques.
This includes using apps such as Shotlink and TrackMan that connect to pro golfers to record their swings.
Pros tend to be perfectionists, and many record every swing so they can see how they can improve their shots.
EA Sports then used this information in order to make the in-game pros as close to the real thing as possible.
Remsour explains: “TrackMan was just small and little the last time we made a game, and now it’s used by every pro to finetune their shots.
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“We’ve been able to take that data and update our physics so that the balls roll like they do in real life and the courses react like they do in real life.”
EA Sports uses data like this to build a number of their sports games, accessing data from footballers and hockey players.
However, PGA Tour will take this use of data one step further, allowing them to add Master Challenges into the game in real time.
Ramsour says: “We’re tapped into the data sources that Augusta has provided us that will help us create [content in] real time.
“Right when the tournament ends, almost within a day, we’ll have the top five shots from the day before, as an example.
“So we’re leaning into the real world of golf and allowing users to recreate these awesome rounds.”
The team intends to take incredible shots from golf’s most influential tournaments, and allow players to recreate them in game.
Speaking of Tyrrell Hatton’s performance at the Players Championship 2023, Ramsour notes: “We could have – using Shotlink – looked at every single shot that he took and recreate that challenge so that users can come in and be just like Tyrrell.”
PGA Tour will have new content drops added to the game periodically after launch.
This includes new courses such as the Los Angeles Country Club, new gear, tournaments, and pros.
These new challenges will put you in the shoes of your favourite players, and allow you to see if you could have overcome the challenge.
Hopefully, this feature will sneak into EA Sports other games to keep its players connected to the real-life action.
EA Sports PGA Tour was released on April 7, 2023, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.
Written by Marco Wutz and Georgina Young on behalf of GLHF.
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