Review for PGA TOUR 2K21. Game for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Google Stadia, the video game was released on 21/08/2020
HB Studios has begun to manage the gaming market of golf games since Electronic Arts, back in 2015, he had decided to abandon the production of golf titles. With The Golf Club 2019, the software house had managed to demonstrate their talent, despite the fact that the title had failed to have a huge impact; so after two years, HB Studios is ready to show everyone its skills with a new incarnation: PGA Tour 2K21.
PGA Tour 2K21 can be defined as a 360 ° mature sports simulation, in addition to presenting the license PGA Tour, 2K Sports managed to obtain the image rights of the American golf star: Justin Thomas. Within the title we also find a dozen professional players such as Sergio Garcia, the presence of about fifteen fields of the PGA tour - of which eight are totally unpublished - and an articulated career mode with different online tournaments that lead you to compete with all players in the world.
Last but not least, we find an interesting editor, which will allow you to create your game avatar and create golf courses that you can play alone or in company.
On tour!
As our avatar, the player will find himself playing against twelve PGA pros throughout his career. Starting our journey from Q-School to competing in the PGA, the player will have to complete thirty or so annual events, a number far greater than the previous title. In fact, compared to past incarnations, in PGA 2K21 there is an improved career mode with the addition of several official paths where the game time is now finally realistic and we also find four game events per round. Furthermore, the difficulty can now be customized as desired: in addition to the difficulty ranking, in fact, you can choose the consistency of the opponent's behavior during the event.
Another novelty introduced and very welcome is the variability of the game avatar development and let's not forget the managerial part that will see the player looking for prestigious sponsors. In addition to the main challenge that leads the player to face the twelve PGA professionals, the player will be able to engage in numerous sponsor challenges that make the career mode more complex and interesting than ever.
The care of the career mode is not only seen in the innovations introduced above, but also in the presentation of the tournaments. We find a new graphic design and the presence of Luke Elvy and Rick Beem at the commentary with John McCarthy on the field. The two are certainly a fresh and fun addition, too bad that after the sixth or seventh time the commentary begins to tire due to its repetitiveness, a problem that is found on balance with most sports titles. As per tradition for 2K Games titles, also in PGA 2K21 there are virtual coins but within this production the coins are used "only" to buy clothing / gadgets for your avatar.
If the career mode of PGA Tour 2K21 it is well articulated and offers the player a substantial gaming experience, the same cannot be said of the tournaments present in the title. The lack of major tournaments within the HB Studios production is felt, although it can be partly circumvented by the presence of the course editor that will allow the player to create the legendary golf courses. This problem can also be further compensated with the arrival of DLCs - information already confirmed by HB Studios - the latter will introduce legendary greens.
HB Studios has managed to pack a truly complete product as regards the game modes. In addition to the aforementioned career mode and the ability to play online and offline tournaments, the player can play games locally and online; the possibility of varying the format and rules of the game; finally there is also a really fun mode called "scramble", a nice 2 vs 2.
In PGA Tour 2K21 the player will find a hybrid title between simulation and arcade. Some aspects of the game such as drives, irons and putts, faithfully follow the sport but at the same time the player finds too simplified mechanics that make the game experience improved compared to the previous incarnation, but too simplified for those looking for simulation. Surely those looking for a simulation experience, will have to put their hand to the game difficulty and set it to the maximum difficulty, deactivating some aids / features. Some of these aspects have clearly improved compared to past editions and are more realistic, including the "backswing" and "flight trajectory", while the trajectory of the ball in rebounds still has some defects.
Through thick and thin
In addition to the positive aspects, the game also has flaws: among all the excessive slowness of the uploads stands out. Once the game has started, the player will have to wait almost five minutes between loading the game servers and loading the title itself before being in front of the main menu. Arriving at the main menu and choosing the game mode to start, it will take about three more minutes to load the game match. These excessive and very slow uploads ruin the gaming experience.
Another flaw that we at EpicTrick found during the review phase is the physics of the ball; in some circumstances it takes a strange, very unrealistic trajectory. There is the “splash” shot, which allows you to exit the side bunkers of the greens, a great addition despite making the experience less demanding near the green. At the moment in the review phase, the cross-play function is missing, a feature that we felt the need to have, given the nature of the title.
PGA Tour 2K21 from a visual point of view it is a more than discreet product, it thrives on ups and downs, certainly one could have dared more. The care of the green, the greens or the construction of tall grass or fairways is truly exceptional. Unfortunately, however, the ponds, the public, the bunkers and the foliage are not well done; these aspects suffer from ups and downs and the quality of the game textures is not always treated in the smallest detail.
The construction of the courses is overall good, but unfortunately the animations of the golfers and the public, including the facial animations, are quite basic.
A good job has been done with the televised graphic presentation of the matches, significantly improved compared to the past edition, but still far from other sports productions. Instead, the audio component of the game was sufficient, the commentary of the matches was entrusted to Luke Elvy e Rich Beem, funny commentary but in the long run too repetitive; Note that the game commentary is entirely in English, while menus and on-screen texts are completely localized in Spanish.
With this we do not want to penalize the production of HB Studios, which overall is a more than good product, but unfortunately we could have expected something more from a technical point of view.
PGA Tour 2K21 thanks to the excellent work done by HB Studios, manages to stand out from past editions. The title still suffers from some shortcomings, such as the lack of majors and excessively slow loading. PGA Tour 2K21 despite having some minor flaws regarding the visual component of the title, the overall gaming experience is really good. HB Studios thanks to the excellent editor and the implementation of numerous game modes, make PGA Tour 2K21 a surprising and interesting title. The title is recommended for all those who are passionate about this sport and for those looking for a quiet sport.
► PGA TOUR 2K21 is a Simulation-Sport game developed by HB Studios and published by 2K Games for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Google Stadia, the game was released on 21/08/2020
