EA Sports has lifted the curtains on the latest entry in the venerable Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf franchise.
Pencilled in for release in the U.S. on March 29, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12 marks the first game in the series’ history to include the much-requested Masters Tournament, and includes a plethora of other fancy new features.
Among these include the Masters Moments, which allows gamers to play out historic moments against various golfing gurus plucked from the sports’ illustrious history. You’ll even be able to relive Woods’ four Masters victories and attempt to equal or surpass his scores.
Elsewhere, EA revealed that a caddie will accompany you throughout play and provide strategic tips, as well as detailing a new laser scanning tech: "Every tree, every azalea and every undulation in every green was recreated down to the smallest detail," the press blurb reads.
Commentary has been kicked up a notch, with all-new ramblings coming courtesy of Jim Nantz and David Feherty. The golfing sim will also include a fresh TV broadcast presentation package, a Fast Golf feature letting you dash through a full round in half the time, as well as a new save system allowing you to record your progress and resume the match at a later date.
Meanwhile, the game’s Career Mode has been tweaked to adhere closely to the journey of an amateur golfer’s ascension through the ranks as you pursue the prestigious Masters Champion accolade. Furthermore, those of you who triumphed in PGA Tour 11 will be able to transfer XP over to Woods’ latest outing to act as a springboard for your new career.
Players can expect over 20 professional golfers to pop up in PGA Tour 12, including the likes of Zach Johnson and Bubba Watson. 16 courses have been confirmed too, such as the Augusta National Golf Club, Royal Melbourne Golf Club (Australia), Atlanta Athletic Club, TPC San Antonio, St Andrews Links and Pebble Beach Golf Links.
PS3 owners will be treated to an exclusive Collector’s Edition of the game, which includes the Masters and an additional five courses, along with PlayStation Move functionality. The European version will launch on April 1, 2011, a few days after its North American counterpart. Expect to fork out £49.99 for the PS3/360 version.
EA Sports big cheese Peter Moore commented: "For more than a decade, the Masters Tournament has been the most requested and coveted feature for the Tiger Woods PGA Tour franchise among our fans."
"Pairing the number one golf video game franchise with the most prestigious golf tournament in the world is a perfect marriage and we’re thrilled to bring our fans this exciting opportunity to experience Augusta National Golf Club like never before."
"I am very happy and excited that the Masters Tournament is featured in the Tiger Woods PGA Tour game,” enthused Tiger Woods. "There are many new and unique elements in the game that will make everyone feel like they’re really competing at Augusta National. This is great for the sport and will connect a new audience with the Masters, a tournament I’ve been fortunate to experience since 1995.”
"Continually growing the visibility of golf is important to attracting newcomers to the sport, and I agree that showcasing the Masters Tournament in the game will bring an entirely new dimension to that approach,” he added.