I posted my impressions when the beta came out and I was greatly disappointed. I have loved this series for 20 years. Put thousands of hours into each title. Put over 5,000 hours into out of bounds alone and played it all the time for 5 years until they shut the servers down. I was one of the better players on the International server.
I'm shocked and outright disappointed this is the product they put out though most people seem to like it. I have always been hardcore about the mechanics and the math that went into these rounds. In the past when we had playable characters with different stats it also brought a uniqueness to it as some had natural fades, draws, or were straight shooters. They also had a natural trajectory of low, medium, or high.
When choosing a golfer it would depend on the course whether maybe you would sacrifice some power for more spin or control depending on their base stats. This was important for instance if you wanted not only the higher stat for that course but it might let you activate a homing shot on a 5W where as a lower spin rated character would need an iron. Having the different S, A, B, C, D, E ratings all be different with different people meant something and brought a unique challenge to using different golfers and knowing their strengths and weaknesses.
Some mind be good in sand or rough, others might be bad. And if you were using advanced shots you had to get used to their different swing style. On the ones I was good with my PI averaged 60 to 80% a round. On the ones I couldn't get the timing as well it was low like 30 to 40%. All of these things brought a lot of skill and critical quick thinking out.
We all know a 9 iron hangs in the air a lot more than say a 3W and will be impacted by wind more. Then you also had to account for their distinct trajectory in the math. And even further out of bounds had ball degree lie numbers. Not lie percentages but red or blue degree numbers similar to elevation. Depending on the degree it really changed the math quite a bit.
And finally the golfers all had that charm and personality. Their own celebrations, and just felt so much more full of life.
These generic avatars look lame to me. I miss the preset playable characters. I don't want consumable balls. I don't want to pick stuff up off the course. I want trajectories, lie degree numbers, fades/draws natural to the swing. I want advanced shots that felt fluid and natural and brought even more challenge when trying to hit something in that 70% range.
To me this is a watered down version with the core mechanics stripped out to make it appeal to a wider, and more casual audience.
Eventually everyone will have the same max stat golfer and will just be a different skin.
I liked playing novice or intermediate tournaments as it brought a fresh approach to each hole and course. I liked seeing people choosing different characters for their own personal preference. One person may favor control, another may favor spin and take someone with a control of C. Now eventually everyone will be essentially an expert with an S rating in every category as it will be maxed out.
I'm happy for the people who like this game. Truly. I'm not one to normally rip a game. I'm generally pretty satisfied with most things. I love this series. I wanted to love this game but I can't even bring myself to purchase this. After the demo and confirming all these changes it just saddens me to see this hollow shell when it comes to the core mechanics of my beloved series.
