Real golf doesn\u2019t lack thrills \u2013 watching a player sink a delicate chip-in generates no shortage of excitement. But in the context of a video game, it needs some extra energy. A pizazz. An added enthusiasm, even if it\u2019s when browsing a menu, just to keep it from becoming something you can sleepwalk through. PGA Tour 2K23 lacks that. It\u2019s silent, it\u2019s calm, it\u2019s bland, it\u2019s so\u2026 proper.<\/p>\n
PGA Tour 2K23 (and previously, PGA Tour 2K21) was born of HB Studios\u2019 fanatically accurate simulation The Golf Club, and the change in name hasn\u2019t changed much about the underlying philosophy behind it. The actual shot mechanisms, ball physics, and standard frustration when sinking into a bunker retain their dazzling authenticity, and yet, even with a year off between editions to rethink things, HB Studios has produced another plain, stuffy, elitist golf sim with as much personality as a white polo shirt. 2K23 makes minor strides towards loosening up the pomposity, but lands inches from dropping in the cup. <\/p>\n
2K brings the points-based FedEx Cup into focus as the central career goal. That\u2019s fine, although the PGA draws more attention for the Masters, US Open, and other high-profile events \u2013 the stuff EA licensed in the past for its golf projects. PGA Tour 2K23 doesn\u2019t have those, or their most famous courses, like Augusta National. That means the career mode feels like filler as it works around licensing restrictions and takes us through second-tier courses like the Detroit Golf Club and TPC Southwind. That\u2019s an issue when it\u2019s the primary way to play, and here there aren\u2019t a lot of other options.<\/p>\n
The career mode feels like filler as it works around licensing restrictions and takes us through second-tier courses.<\/p>\n
Taking to the course, the major publisher influence from 2K becomes evident. There\u2019s an effort to streamline things, including an optional three-click swing system. That\u2019s new, but brutally difficult to master, and not the accessible feature that was expected. This method involves holding the swing button to set power, releasing to begin a spinning meter that needs to be stopped twice to determine swing accuracy. If you\u2019re anything like me you can expect botched shots on the regular before reverting to the smooth, clean, and precise analog stick swing.<\/p>\n
HB Studios mastered this analog method, thankfully. Other golf games have tried \u2013 and even succeeded in their own ways \u2013 but HB\u2019s quest to mimic the feel and challenge of a real club pays off. It\u2019s an appropriately fragile existence off the tee or from the fairway, as stick speed dictates a slice or hook. Even when well practiced, the possibility always remains to botch a shot \u2013 as it should be. Plus, 2K23 adds needed shot types like punches to squeeze the ball under hazards, furthering PGA Tour\u2019s repertoire and strategy.<\/p>\n
Selectable golfers include NBA stars Michael Jordan and Steph Curry.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s an attempt to add charisma to this series, but it comes across as half-hearted. Selectable golfers include cover star Tiger Woods and other known PGA names, but also celebrities like NBA stars Michael Jordan and Steph Curry. In the equipment section, a hockey stick is offered as a putter choice, giving necessary nods to Happy Gilmore. That\u2019s it though, and those celebrity players exist only in side modes or versus play. Say what you will about the defunct Tiger Woods PGA Tour series, but maintaining golf\u2019s central appeal while driving with Happy Gilmore\u2019s walk-up swing was a delight, with no gameplay cost.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s also TopGolf, a party-esque challenge founded in 2000. Now it\u2019s digital, and a passable substitute for when short on time with friends, if also an uneventful target practice event unlikely to earn any long-term engagement.<\/p>\n
PGA Tour 2K21 is the most flexible and enjoyable golf game since EA\u2019s Tiger Woods series was at its peak. While its career mode could have done with some spit and polish to its presentation and featured more meaningful rewards, it nonetheless serves as a solid 20-hour straightaway to what could prove to be the most thriving part of PGA Tour 2K21\u2019s dance floor in the long term; the online societies. As far as establishing a new sports franchise goes (on the shoulders of the three Golf Club games that came before) this might not be the strongest shot off the tee, but it\u2019s ended up in a very playable lie. \u2013 Tristan Ogilvie, August 20, 2020<\/em><\/p>\nScore: 7<\/h2>\n