Rory McIlroy is the headliner this year for EA's comeback tour, after 2014's title was absent for the first time since Tiger Woods became the cover star. You'd think given the extra development time as well as the delay would have produced a much better, more content rich game. While it has some redeeming factors, it flounders down the stretch like Greg Norman in the 1996 Masters.
Where it starts off is unfortunately the best part of the game. EA introduces us to some new mechanics like the different swing options we can choose to utilize, as well as the new courses which are complemented by the Frostbite 3 Engine. You remember those, right? The ones with the battleship crashing right through the damn fairway? Well, it looks like EA took the battleship's advice too literally as the overall product of Rory McIlroy PGA Tour crashed in a Grand Canyon of a bunker with no way out. The swings are the usual for a golf game with a triple button press system to start the swing, again at the top of your swing and finally at the bottom having to lineup in the sweet spot to ensure an accurate strike. Of course, the other oft used swing mode uses the thumbsticks pull down, push up mode. There's an arcade like option here just like the old Tiger Woods games used to employ, where you can change spin mid flight, which I personally hate because it's ridiculously unrealistic. The other is a more simulation type option where these bonuses and powerups are thankfully turned off to provide a more realistic approach.
There is a grand total of two game modes in Rory McIlroy PGA Tour; Stroke and Match Play. Compared to the latest version Tiger Woods 14', Rory no longer gives us the ability to do the most basic of things in the game. When you win a tournament or event in any sporting game, you normally are awarded some sort of reward, whether it be in the form of in-game cash, experience, a trophy or other remembrance of your spoils. There is literally nothing like this whatsoever in this game. In career mode you start on the tour fresh out of the gate. Q-school, amateur tournaments, leaderboards are all gone. You are offered no opportunity to view your career earnings, something you assume would be a staple of a CAREER mode.
The odd omission from the game is Battle Golf mode. You figure with Battleships crashing through the course and all sorts of other events, compliments of the Frostbite 3 engine, Battle Golf would be a mandatory mode. Nope. Try again. Skins and Best Ball are also gone so you can't even play for fake money anymore in single player against an AI or your friends in co-op multiplayer.
It's not all bad though. At least when you win a tournament, you get a cool trophy you can store in a trophy room, watch replays of your shots or look at your next few events in the online calendar. Oh wait, that's right. You can't. None of these options are included either. In fact you literally get nothing when you win, other than a 1986-esque point and click message saying something like "Hey, good job pal. Well done". When I saw my first victory message I immediately thought of the movie Big with Tom Hanks when he's playing that computer game in his room and types in "melt wizard." That's what EA's ground breaking new Frostbite 3 engine technology gave me, a 30 year old movie.
The new mode that was added is called Night Club challenge. It's more of a fun, arcade like mode similar to playing Powestar Golf with super balls and rocket clubs. It's a cool, little feature in theory with 150 challenges or so but in reality, it's nothing more than a distraction from a poorly executed golf game. You also can no longer create a player with anything more than pre-rendered templates and little customization and the hall of fame / ladies tour players are nowhere to be seen either. In the realm of courses and content, Tiger Woods 14' two years ago had a total of 20 courses included in the base game with 24 more optional with dlc and pre-order bonuses. Rory doesn't even scratch the surface of that with only 9 available courses at launch and four completely made up courses. When you head over to the players' lounge, Tiger Woods 14' had 40 playable characters while Rory only has a total of 12 golfers with an active Tour card. So after two years off, EA's newest installment has 70% fewer golfers and 79.5% fewer available courses.
What's sad is the stuff that actually is in the game isn't that bad. I expected a lot more out of the Frostbite 3 engine and its capabilities, especially seeing what it could do with destructive environments in games like Battlefield. Also, the manner in which the game was marketed also let me to the conclusion with EA touting an all new era in golf. Unfortunately, this was nowhere to be seen and the only all new era that was present was one which would make it seem like EA just doesn't care about their PGA Tour titles any longer. I know this sounds harsh but there is no easy reason for not including so many features that have been a staple of the franchise without replacing them with something worthy of current generation technology.
I'd cancel my tee time and head over to the 19th hole if I were you. After all, a bottomless pint at happy hour is more rewarding than a bottomless game. But hey, what's that slogan? "Gamers first."
