What if PGA Tour 2K23 was my new favorite sports game? We started strong, I know, but here we have to take into account that the skill of a FIFA or the demand of an NBA 2K ceased to be part of the equation a long time ago. Disenchanted with the world of football, the truth is that what I’m looking for in a sports game now is very different from what I wanted from the genre 20 years ago.
But if we leave the world of driving out and focus on the now instead of absolute gems like the Mario Power Tennis from Gamecube, the abandoned franchise Fight Night Championor the Table Tennis that will never, ever have a sequel… Is it PGA Tour 2K23 my new favorite sports game?
A game that I will continue to enjoy
The first hours with him could have served as the perfect sequel to a PGA Tour 2K21 that he had already completely forgotten about. So much so that I hadn’t even realized that last year they didn’t have a second edition (fourth, if we count that this is actually an evolution of the saga The Golf Club from HB Studios).
My situation with the game after writing this review, on the other hand, seems completely different from what I experienced then. Not only do I want to continue playing, but I have found in this PGA Tour 2K23
Although PGA Tour 2K23 is far from being a perfect game, then we go into that in more depth, between the improvements added and a formula that already worked like a charm they have managed to put together a round experience.
One that could already give me a good season based on 20 golf courses and a career mode that deserves its own section, but that by adding a scenario editor and the possibility of playing what others have created, can give me moments of disconnection and letting myself go almost for life.
Fun for beginners, demanding for professionals
With the possibility of changing the classic hitting mode as a great novelty, from one that simulates the swing of the club with a vertical movement of the joystick to another of just three touches to mark strength, precision and hitting, PGA Tour 2K23 is one of those games that can end up being as easy or as hard as you want.
Added to the control system are dozens of accessibility options designed to make the experience more complex or simple, not only in the basics of hitting the ball more easily or not having to worry about the direction and strength of the wind, but also removing some of the challenge of reading the terrain by showing you a line that indicates where the ball will move at any given time.
I, who greatly enjoy that calculation on the last shot but I choke on moving the joystick with precision, I have been able to adjust my game to the golf that I want to enjoy
A customization that adds even more weight in a career mode that, far from limiting itself to letting you change the doll’s clothes or trying to make its face look like yours, adds an RPG layer that comes in handy for any fan of the menus of numbers and bars.
An RPG-style career mode
Being able to choose between different stat schemes, from the golfer with pinpoint accuracy but clumsy in everything else, to the one who can hit the ball directly into the hole from a greater distance but has a crooked arm and always leaves it farther than it should, your statistics will not only improve with the equipment you get.
In PGA Tour 2K23 A skill tree is also introduced that, tournament after tournament, will allow you to gradually model the characteristics of your character and his dexterity in all areas, either because you want him to have the precision of a surgeon in the last blow or because you want me to be able to perform effects without batting an eyelid.
Although it is true that for those of us who are outside the world, it can be done a bit uphill to guess what each item is forthe idea of improving your golfer and seeing how the hand is passed over the face of the greats of the sport based on challenges is a great addition to a game that did not need much more to get away with it.
It is no less true that the prizes, because of the convoluted nature of some challenges, especially when it comes to improving your relationship with brands and sponsors, are often a bit pointless. A polo for beating Sergio García may end up making someone excited, but I don’t think you should understand a lot about golf to say that he knows very little.
iGamesNews’s opinion
Whether it’s playing a game in Top Golf mode or continuing to complete challenges in the different courses available, PGA Tour 2K23 It is one of those titles that aims to stay installed on the console for a good season after publishing this analysis. It is not an honor that many games can enjoy.
Its graphics are far from the quality level of NBA 2Kat the level of golfer’s licenses it may fall short and, ultimately, it falls short of what the perfect golf game should be, but today it is the one that has come closest to reaching that milestone and, for those who we just want to disconnect for a while hitting a ball and see how it goes in the first time, that’s more than enough.
PGA Tour 2K23
| platforms | PC, PlayStation and Xbox (reviewed version) |
|---|---|
| multiplayer | Yes |
| developer | HB Studios |
| Company | 2K |
| Launch | October 14, 2022 |
The best
- Fully customizable difficulty
- The RPG roll of your career mode
- Infinite tracks thanks to its editor
Worst
- Visually, it could use a boost.
- Missing important licenses
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