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Jimmy Fallon beats Tiger Woods at his own game

by Griffin McElroy { Jun 25th 2009 at 11:00PM }

Fresh-faced late night host (and Engadget superfriend) Jimmy Fallon recently trounced golf superstar Tiger Woods in a Times Square showdown round of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10. Just as aging classic rockers are incapable of grasping the musical mechanics of Rock Band, it seems Mr. Woods was unable to translate his real-life adroitness to the virtual greens -- Fallon bested him by "a large margin," according to MTV Multiplayer.

Try not to take it too hard, Woodsy. We're sure you could beat him at Don't Laugh During Every Freaking Sketch During Your Six-Year Stint on Saturday Night Live 2010.

EA and Tiger Woods make viral video magic (again)

by David Hinkle { Jun 23rd 2009 at 6:30PM }

It's tough to follow the Jesus Shot, EA's viral video for Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 and tongue-in-cheek reference to a glitch found in Tiger Woods 08. But, we must say, EA has managed to strike rich, comedic gold again, as the video after the break for Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 featuring Rocco Mediate is pretty damn hilarious. Like, grandpa-with-an-open-fly hilarious.

Oh, and some of you may notice something at the end of the clip, to the tune of EA awarding someone with $50,000 for their own viral video. For more details on that, check out the official site.

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Pangya: Fantasy Golf trailer showcases characters, multiplayer

by Andrew Yoon { Jun 1st 2009 at 10:00AM }

It's been a long time since PSP fans had a good original golf game. Unless Sony announces another Hot Shots Golf game at the upcoming E3 press conference, PSP fans may want to pay attention to Pangya, a Korean-developed golf game that's being translated for PSP release. The gameplay mechanics are similar to those found in Clap Hanz's games, but the cuteness level is cranked up to dangerous, heart-melting highs. This trailer showcases all the rather-standard features of the game, including 8 player multiplayer.

Gallery: Pangya: Fantasy Golf

EA reveals Tiger Woods PGA Tour Online

by Justin McElroy { May 29th 2009 at 9:59AM }

When you just read the name of EA's newly-announced Tiger Woods PGA Tour Online, you were probably hoping for the same thing we were: a massively multiplayer golf/RPG hybrid that rewards Magical Big Bertha drivers for completing timed raid instances.

Sadly, it's a golf game that you'll be able to play through your web browser on courses such as Pebble Beach, TPC Sawgrass and St. Andrews. There's no pricing announced yet for the fall release, but we know it will have a "multi-tiered subscription structure" and beta sign-ups are open now.

It sounds neat, but we can't help but be bummed we'll never get to putt grind for our epic golf cart.

Wii Sports Resort features ... golf and table tennis?

by JC Fletcher { May 18th 2009 at 1:00PM }

Nintendo of Japan's new commercials for the Wii MotionPlus and Wii Sports Resort use some very slick high-speed camera footage to illustrate the realistic motions used in, among other things, table tennis and golf. New in-game footage found in the commercial reveals that two of Resort's new minigames will be retreads of things seen in previous titles -- table tennis was covered in Wii Play, and golf, of course, appeared in the original Wii Sports.

Nintendo must be very confident that MotionPlus improves these games significantly. We still don't know how many games will be included in Resort, but if two of them are going to be encore presentations, there had better be a lot of games. We totally understand Nintendo wanting to take a second crack at table tennis, we must admit, because Wii Play's version is not where it's at.

Gallery: Wii Sports Resort

[Via N-Europe]

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Joystiq hands-on: Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10, now with frisbee golf!

by Kevin Kelly { May 11th 2009 at 7:00PM }

We took Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 through the paces recently -- Wii MotionPlus included -- and encountered a fair bit of confidence from product manager Randy Chase, who said, "You know ... I just realized that this is going to put those really expensive digital golf swing analyzers out of business." Actually it's not quite that accurate, but it's getting there. Perhaps one day you can look forward to suckering golf wannabees out of thousands of dollars by charging them for "lessons" from Tiger Woods himself.

Randy took a few swings with Tiger Woods back in March, and we're happy to echo his sentiments. It's very rewarding to switch over to the MotionPlus and watch your golfer avatar follow along pretty darn precisely with your swing. It not only makes the game feel more intuitive, but (amazingly) coaxes you off the couch. No slumped flailing here!

Before you go on, let us point you to some additional media

Xbox 360 and PS3 screenshots
Videos: Wii and Xbox 360 / PS3.

Gallery: Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 (Wii)

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Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10: The video tour, Wii edition

by Kevin Kelly { May 11th 2009 at 7:00PM }

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 will be hitting all major consoles and handhelds, but the Wii MotionPlus really makes it stand out on Nintendo's flagship game unit. It offers a greater degree of club control than we've ever seen in a game, though don't expect it to make you a better golfer ... unless you can somehow graft a Wiimote onto your club. You can check out Tiger's WiiMotion Plus in action here, and then head after the break to see new videos depicting the Live Tournament mode, as well as the new golfers and courses in the game.

Gallery: Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 (Wii)

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Joystiq hands-on: Pangya Fantasy Golf

by Andrew Yoon { May 8th 2009 at 8:15PM }

Ntreev needs to pull all punches for its upcoming Pangya: Fantasy Golf. It's not like PSP is without a fantastic golf game. In fact, Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee 2 may have been so complete that fans may never need another golf game ever again.

Pangya doesn't really change the way golf is played, but its super-cute graphics and adorable story mode should help it stand out. The story of Fantasy Golf is rather trite, and its mere existence is an interesting oddity. Characters are shaped from the same cliche anime molds we're familiar with, but the stunning art really makes these characters come to life.

Gallery: Pangya: Fantasy Golf

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Pangya: Fantasy Golf coming to PSP this summer

by Andrew Yoon { Mar 18th 2009 at 11:45AM }

Is Hot Shots Golf not cute enough for you? Tomy is bringing the Korean PSP golf series, Pangya, to PSP this summer. The game will offer thousands of character and equipment customization options and 18 playable characters. The release of Pangya: Fantasy Golf will be Tomy's first foray into the PSP scene here in the States.

Check out a Japanese language trailer after the break.

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EA formally announces Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10

by David Hinkle { Mar 12th 2009 at 2:42PM }

In a surprise to only dead people, EA has announced a new installment in the Tiger Woods franchise, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10. Releasing for every console under the sun (sans the DS), Tiger Woods 10 will not only be the first title in the series to feature the number 10, but also the first to include the U.S. Open, a USGA championship, and the USGA's Rules of Golf. EA isn't stopping there with the firsts, either, as the game will also include real-time weather, allowing the game's weather to match "that of the current weather conditions." Does that mean we won't be able to play during a lightning storm?

This year's Tiger Woods will also feature a "broadcast style presentation," which EA reveals includes "Instantaneous updates" from new commenting duo Scott Van Pelt and Kelly Tilghman, from ESPN and The Golf Channel, respectively. Oh, and in case you had forgotten, the Wii version will use MotionPlus.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 getting MotionPlus support

by Griffin McElroy { Feb 19th 2009 at 1:00PM }

A recent dispatch from Electronic Arts promoting its EA Sports Season Opener event teased us with the promise of new information regarding its major athletic franchises -- though the nature of these new pieces of intel were absent from the message. One phrase did catch our eye, however -- while listing off the games which will be showcased at the event, EA mentioned Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 will be "featuring Wii MotionPlus." We can't wait to see the implications this will have on gameplay -- hopefully, when we fling our club into the crowd of jeering onlookers after our fourth consecutive double bogey, it'll travel on a startlingly realistic trajectory.

We'll also get our first look at EA Sports' yet-to-be-named, MotionPlus-infused tennis title at the event -- hopefully, we'll get a chance to chuck a few rackets in a similar, McEnroe-esque fashion.

VC Friday: Tee up and club some Monsters

by Chris Greenhough { Jan 23rd 2009 at 9:00AM }

Yours truly has hazy memories of spending an entire summer holiday glued to Mario Golf, unlocking Metal Mario, and jumping on the bed after fluking a hole-in-one (shamefully, I was nineteen at the time). And now, it's the fifteenth N64 game to appear on the PAL Virtual Console. Hell yeah! It might suffer heavily from the N64 fuzz, but for our money it's still the best in its respective series. It's accompanied this week by Wonder Boy in Monster Land.

Mario Golf -- Nintendo 64 -- 1,000 Wii Points
Wonder Boy in Monster Land -- Master System -- 500 Wii Points

Videos of each follow the blue text.

Gallery: Mario Golf (Nintendo 64)

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VC Friday: Fun! Fun! Strong Bad!

by Chris Greenhough { Jan 2nd 2009 at 10:55AM }

With our shelves and Wii fridges creaking under the weight of new games from the holidays, Nintendo has generously given PAL gamers a week to catch their breath -- at least, we think that's the idea. Both WiiWare titles this week probably only appeal to a handful of people. The fifth and final episode of Strong Bad Episode 5 is great, obviously, but only if you're in the teensy minority who grabbed the first four instalments.

Meanwhile, Fun! Fun! Minigolf is allegedly so fun that maker Shin'en felt the need to tell us of its fun-ness twice over. But is a zany-looking chibi minigolf game really the title to stop us from getting our fingers gooey? Hint: no.

Strong Bad Episode 5: 8-Bit is Enough -- WiiWare -- 1000 Wii Points
Fun! Fun! Minigolf -- WiiWare -- 900 Wii Points

Gallery: Strong Bad Episode 5: 8-Bit is Enough

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EA uses Xbox 360 graphics to sell Wii game in the UK

by David Hinkle { Dec 17th 2008 at 2:32PM }

Tsk tsk, EA. It seems you've done a very naughty thing.

Apparently, over in the UK, EA has been advertising Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 in a very shady manner. They've been using the Xbox 360 version of the game in the ads, claiming it's gameplay from the Wii version of the game. Luckily, the UK's Advertising Standards Authority caught them.

What could ever make EA do such a thing? Apparently, the images from the Wii version of the game weren't "broadcast quality." Sure thing, EA. Sure thing.

[Via Joystiq]

Voice chat patch now available for Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 15th 2008 at 3:30PM }

Though common golfing etiquette dictates that respectful silence should often be observed whilst "hitting the greens", Clap Hanz has included voice chat functionality in the latest patch for Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds -- a missing feature which many reviewers were none too happy about. While many of you will likely see this as a chance to jeer your opponents with finely honed "smack talk", we urge you to respect the cordial nature of the game. Perhaps your newly afforded vocality could be used for good -- by commending a fellow player on a nice shot, warning players ahead of an incoming ball with a resounding "Fore!", or by sharing the story of when you caddied for the Dalai Lama. Gunga Galunga!