Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004 Review





Developer: Maxis Publisher: EA
Release Date: June 24, 2004 Also On: GBA

At the system’s launch, Nokia promised online gameplay. So far though, we’ve seen a lot of scoreboards with N-Gage Arena. EA follows through with Nokia’s promise by releasing Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004, an online enabled game, which uses N-Gage Arena to play against other N-Gage gamers in real-time. It’s not recommended to play at 4 a.m., when there is literally only two other people on.

Disclosure: We may earn a commission from links on this page

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004 has four game modes: practice, career, versus, and arena. Practice is where you can get a quick game on without it counting. Career is where you unlock items, earn cash, and find the bulk of the game. Versus is a mode where you can play up to three friends on the same unit. This means that you will have to pass the unit around when it is someone else’s turn. Using Bluetooth technology, you can play one other friend. Arena mode allows you to post scores, unlock levels, and play people online. The best part about it is, you play real-time. The only downside is not all that many people actually logon. There’s a noticeable amount of lag, but nothing that will cripple your ability to play.

Career mode is broken down into three different sections. The main mode is the tournament mode, where you will compete in a qualifier, then move on to tournaments that you unlock from there. Each tournament will have a different amount of days, and you’ll have to make the cut in order to win some cash. Challenge is the other mode in the career section of the game. Here you will challenge yourself to different scenarios. This is a place to earn a quick dollar. Complete the challenge in x amount of strokes to earn bronze, silver, or gold. You can unlock challenges and players here, along with earning money.

The controls are simple enough. Press 5 to go into an over-head view, which I like to call “the map�, since the amount of detail is relative to a map more than it is to a 3D sports title. Depending on your back swing, the ball will either sail high or sag low. To swing the club, press down on the directional pad, and then press up.

Be wary of the wind speed and direction when swinging, since it will greatly affect where your ball will land. The position of the ball is the greatest concern that you should have. Set up your shots so that it lands on the fairway and green, when possible. Risky shots, such as going over an extended area of a lake, cost you precious strokes. Water hazards and sand traps are the single most annoying aspects of the game, though you don’t lose strokes with a sand trap.

I don’t have many complaints with this game. I like the way that they set up the hitting system, so that you must view the map to find the position on the course that you want to hit the ball. The swinging takes getting used to, but it works well after some practice. The game’s replay value is increased dramatically with the addition of online play, but the lack of gamers online deters the fun factor. It frustrates you to see no one logged on, then once you get a game started, your connection is lost. Playing offline, there are no problems, which is why this is easily a recommendable title to purchase.

Graphics: 9.5
Sound: 5
Gameplay: 10
Creativity: 9
Replay Value/Game Length: 10
Final: 9.2
Written by Kyle Review Guide

Leave a Comment