The inner chaos of a web guy's mind.
Tiger Woods PGA 2009 Review – XBox360 *UPDATE*
Aug 30th
Well the much awaited release of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2009 is out and now that I have my X-Box 360 copy and have played my way through a portion of it, I figured it was time for a review. The game applied an update to my system in order to play the game. (No need to download from server, update was on the disk).
Graphics
The graphics seem to have gotten an update and are more realistic than in previous versions. I still find that the graphics are lacking vs. the PC version with better anti-aliasing and color reproduction. The characters textures are a little more detailed than I have seen in previous versions. The water is terrible however, with today’s technology you would expect that the water in the game would be of much higher caliber.
The course graphics and textures seem to be a lot more photo real however there are still shots that show really bad detail such as texture stretching and pixelation. Certain views have a close up of the planar mapped trees with the low quality alpha channeled edges in the forefront of the camera. The grass geometry is lacking in closeups, on the PC versions their seemed to be much more grass detail all but hiding the polygon surface making up the ground.
Animation and sound is much better than previous versions, the sounds are less annoying and the clubs strikes are more accurate sounding than I have seen in other versions.
GamePlay
This is where the major changes were made in the game with the inclusion of the instructor with custom drills, automatic attribute adjustments and club tuning. The AI seems to have been left the same as it was in 2006 till now. The same feeling of predetermined outcomes during certain events on balanced mode. An easy shot to win the whole during the Tiger Challenge and you strike the ball perfectly on the swing plane. The ball does not follow a proper ball flight and ends up out of bounds or in a sand trap, only to have the CPU opponent make an unbelievable shot to win the hole. The opposite also happens when you miss hit a ball so badly but it takes the right line and drops for an unexpected birdie. The A.I. gets even more annoying as you progress through the game into the higher opponents when making that shot is even more important.
*UPDATE* Now more than 50% into the game I have never seen such terrible A.I., it is completely inconsistent and illogical. More and more shots are just completely off what the physics of golf should be. The putting line that you can use one time is all but useless on a lot of putts. For example it tells me the ball is going to go 20 feet past the hole if I hit it full power. I drop the power to a leave it short of the hole because it is down hill and the ball still rolls all the way off the green and down the fairway 200′. The slope on the green was not even that much. The same thing happens the next round on that same hole the ball travels the same distance yet I reduced the power to nothing more than a tap. Mario Golf has better A.I. (Physics) at times than TGW2009. I feel like EA is just going through the motions on this one and releasing the same game with some very minor updates each year.
Overall Impressions
I am not really impressed with the latest release in this franchise although I am enjoying playing it on the X-Box. I think that has more to do with the big screen LCD and being able to lounge on the couch while playing than it does with the game play itself. With some real effort needs to be put into this this franchise to make it become photo realistic and more accurate simulation, in the near future. Some real though however does need to be put into the A.I. Or maybe EA just needs some competition in this genre of game?
Glitches/Problems
I have found no glitches other than those listed in A.I. review. However I did find that the game would freeze once in a while during loading events in Tiger Challenge causing me to have to restart the XBox360. *After some more testing I found that the freeze occurs when you are offered the drills after a round and you complete one or more but not all of the drills. If you only complete a portion of the drills listed and then press “B” to get back the previous menu the loading will freeze.
I would give the game a 5.5/10 there are some things that are just not as nice as the PC version. And I cant get over the rubberband illogical A.I.
Welfare recipients should be urine tested
Aug 12th
I love to post interesting emails that I receive, when I agree with the message in them. This construction worker makes such a profound statement in this message that I felt it needed to be spread around a little more. I completely agree with everything he states in this message, being from the west coast we have so many able bodied bums on the street that refuse work when it is offered them.
If they choose this lifestyle for them selves then why are we the hardworking tax paying citizens expected to support them. To make things worse I can’t even walk downtown without getting accosted by them asking for more money. Many of them have apartments and receive a welfare check on top of the large sums of money they collect by panhandling.
With all the by-laws popping up here and there why is it that the precious government won’t pass a pan handling law making it illegal to sit on the side of the road and beg for money. The worst part of it is people keep feeling sorry for these people and keep giving them money. One summer a local farmer strapped for workers rented a bus and drove downtown asking all the unemployed street folk if they wanted jobs making over minimum wage to help on the farm for the summer. The farmer came back with NOT A SINGLE WORKER. All of the “BUMS” (not politically correct but OH WELL THAT’S WHAT THEY ARE) refused the work and continued on their pan handling ways. Now come on people are we really that duped by the street people that we are to believe they all are “IN NEED”, “DOWN ON THEIR LUCK”.
I was once down on my luck and stuck on the street. 2 months and 2 Welfare checks to get on my feet and pounding the pavement till I got a job and blammo I was back in the game again. Working supporting myself and moving forward in life. If these people really wanted to be off the street then they would be. There is plenty of work, especially here on the west coast. To those that say they are too proud to work at McDonalds or Tim Hortons I say BULLS___T you are not too proud to beg for money on the side of the road, you are just too lazy to get a job.
That’s my Rant for today, I’m heading on vacation for 2 weeks but I will post again as soon as I return.
THIS GUY MAKES A GOOD POINT
This was written by a construction worker in Fort MacMurray- he sure makes a lot of sense to me!
I work, they pay me. I pay my taxes and the government distributes my taxes as it sees fit. In order to earn that pay cheque, I work on a rig site for a FortMac construction project. I am required to pass a random urine test, with which I have no problem. What I do have a problem with is the distribution of my taxes to people who don’t have to pass a urine test. Shouldn’t one have to pass a urine test to get a welfare cheque because I have to pass one to earn it for them? Please understand — I have no problem with helping people get back on their feet. I do on the other hand have a problem with helping someone sit on their butt drinking beer and smoking dope.Test positive for dope or booze, no welfare cheque! Could you imagine how much money the provinces would save if people had to pass a urine test to get a public assistance cheque? Please pass this along if you agree or simply delete if you don’t. Hope you will pass it along though, because something has to change in this country, and soon !!!
Web Developer Woes
Aug 8th
In a previous article I wrote about Web designers that rip off clients where I rant about some of my clients that have been ripped off in the past with web design.
I have just taken on a new client that is in the same situation. They have a poor site that they paid far too much for and I am now cleaning up the mess for them. My rates are not “cheap” and nor is my work but when I hear from people how much they paid for their sites it disturbs me. Where is the customer service? Where is the drive to maintain a long and prosperous client relationship?
My company Mk2 Business Solutions has been running since 2006 and in this time we have never lost a client due to poor product or service. Myself I spent many years working in customer service both in sales and management so I learned how to make sure my customers were happy.
The more time I spend in the industry the more I want to effect change in how we deal with our clients. They rely on us to help them grow their business. It is not in anyones best interest to “grab the money and run” providing poor quality work. My clients are able to reach me (except when on vacation) anytime. I respond to emails as soon as I get them and many minor edits on text etc. I do not charge them for.
Here is some of my clients sites if you are interested in viewing them. My company also offeres a referral payout to anyone that refers busines our way. So if you are impressed with our work and know someone that could use the service we offer please pass on our name.
wildernesstrekking.com | avocet3d.com | yourgolfstats.com | ditomassogroup.com | funnyguy.ca | gann.ca | zensport.ca | internationalalpacas.com | sukkhothai.com(in progress) | craigwalters.net | speakwell.com | ezfi.com | commercialpropertyloans.com | animaxdesigngroup.com | guttersuckers.com | adventuretech.ca(in progress)
We are currently taking on new clients. I will be on vacation from August 14th to 29th but someone from the office will be able to take questions and information for my return. As the founder and president of the company I make sure to meet with every client personally before moving forward on a project.
If you need HIGH quality and efficient work then contact us.
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