For Lovers Of Swing

Sydney Morning Herald

Saturday January 22, 2005

Jason Hill

Jason Hill turns course designer and legend as he bunkers down with the tigers of the golfing world.

Game of the week

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005

Runs on: Xbox, PS2, GameCube, PC

Price: $89.95

Classification: G

Rating: **** 1/2

Tiger Woods has few equals on the golf course, and this superb simulation deserves the gold jacket. You will have a ball, whether you are a budding professional or a weekend hacker.

Most sports simulations have terrific long-term appeal, but few will keep you playing as long as Tiger 2005. It is incredibly comprehensive.

The new Game Face system lets you create and personalise your golfer, with the flexibility to create a lifelike image of just about anyone. You can even customise your character's swing.

Once players have created their champ, there are enough game modes to keep you playing until next year's inevitable sequel.

As if the 10-season PGA Tour mode was not addictive enough, a new Legends mode lets you battle some of the biggest names in golf, such as Nicklaus, Hogan and Palmer. Success enables you to customise (Tiger-proof) the fantastic courses, making them as tricky as you wish, including tighter fairways, massive bunkers and deep roughs.

You can also play exciting scenarios, lucrative special events or traditional competitions such as Strokeplay and Stableford. For quick fun, arcade modes include timed challenges, target hitting and battles against mates.

Prize money won in all modes can be spent on upgrading your character's abilities, golfing equipment and apparel.

There are 14 highly detailed courses, including eight new locations and two fantasy courses. Best of all, the ball physics and controls are impeccable and include the ability to alter your stance. You can play rounds in very quick time.

The only problem is that despite the tweaks and new modes, owners of the superb 2004 edition might feel little incentive to upgrade. Xbox owners will also be aggrieved there is still no online support, although it is offered overseas.

Endgame: An approachable, entertaining and comprehensive golf simulation that will keep you swinging for months.

Call of Duty: Finest Hour

Runs on: Xbox, PlayStation2, GameCube

Price: $99.95

Classification: MA15+

Rating: *** 1/2

After countless World War II shooters, surely we have killed every Nazi who ever goosestepped across Europe? PC's Call of Duty was dazzling, but Icon still found it difficult to summon the enthusiasm to tackle yet another WWII game.

Publisher Activision has stressed Finest Hour is a new game, but a console conversion of the PC hit might have been a better option. Many of the original's best elements have been removed, leaving a generic shooter missing the cinematic grandeur of its predecessor.

Missions such as the battle to reclaim Stalingrad lack the scale and impact of the PC game. Although the missions are well designed and the combat often intense, it is far less imaginative, with fewer memorable sequences.

Rather than follow one character throughout the war, Finest Hour puts you in the shoes of a number of soldiers. Protagonists include a spirited British veteran, a Russian conscript, an African-American Black Panther and a female sniper.

You are usually fighting alongside squad mates and the game provides the feeling of being just one of countless soldiers in the terrifying fray. But occasionally it can feel too difficult and frustrating, especially when you are forced to replay large sections.

The characters allow you to sample different settings, but the stories are undeveloped and you feel little sense of attachment to the heroes. More pleasing is the variety of action, including the chance to man gun turrets, control a lumbering tank or battle across the North African desert.

Online modes, including Deathmatch, Capture the Flag and Assault, add to long-term appeal for Xbox and PS2 owners.

Endgame: A competent, intense shooter that lacks the splendour of the PC version.

Jason Hill

© 2005 Sydney Morning Herald

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