This is a VERY long post.
Think of it as a TEDtalk : Ideas Worth Spreading. It's just something for you to read during the "Long wait".
I suppose we all have our own thoughts about how a golf game should be and the type of gameplay we would enjoy coming back to daily. I tend to grab a PC game by the teeth and not let go until I've mastered it or I get bored (or disappointed with new developments). NASCAR, Grand Prix Legends, iSnooker, World of Tanks, War Thunder WW2 War Planes etc. but I've never really had a golf game that has held me for very long. The first one I liked was WAY back on the NES console I think and it was just a top down view of a course with a ball being launched (quite realistically) along a nicely rendered faiway. Unbelievably, it stayed at No.1 in my list of golf games I've played to the present day. Sure, Links was cool. I started with old Arnie Palmer which was probably 1998 but the Sergio one put me off. There was something that was tweaked that spoiled it somehow and not in a progressive manner. TWO had so much potential with the Unity engine making it look 3D and wonderful but the scoring was ridiculous. The micro transactions made shots so OP that, for someone who doesn't pay for those things, for me was completely disgusting. Once they started to have avatars playing golf in pearl diving suits and gorilla costumes I was out of there. I will never play another EA game - ever. What I did like about TWO was the career progression although it was too rapid and simply made the ability to hit stupidly low scores happen quicker. I did organise tournaments on Two and tried to hold back the scoring by restricting the progression and doing things like having 'no-grid' putting. It was a minor success. Then came WGT. I'm trying to think of why I left. I think it just had zero impact. The swing mechanics, the sameness of gameplay, even the dreadful forum setup I think. It's just a dull blur in my memory. No redeeming features.
Anyway, during all the hours (decades) I've been trying golf games I ponder what might have been and I'd have visions of the ideal (perfect?) game that would hold my attention, make me impatient for the next game, feed my need for personal development and allow me to become part of a community and even make firm friends. These things have happened before - most recently in World of Tanks. WarGaming has made a very good model with that game and most importantly continued development - issuing updates consistently and maintaining a strong player base. I believe certain clever and innovative aspects of all these games can and should be implemented in a golf game.
I'm going to base my philosophies on simulation golf. Making it as real as you can on, in my case, a PC. I want the game to replicate the decisions, the feel, the scoring, the emotions (elation, satisfaction, disappointment) that I feel on a golf course IRL. If you want an arcade style game then good for you. By all means play that way and have as much fun as you can.
Let me tell you a true story about a mayor in a city council. There was a problem with the rubbish bins in the CBD. At lunch time the office workers would buy their fast food meals and discard the wrappers and cartons and containers in the many, prominent and sizeable bins lining the streets. The problem was that the bins filled quickly and overflowed, making a dreadful mess and creating an eyesore in this beautiful city and the council workers weren''t able to empty them quickly enough or without disrupting traffic flow etc. My lateral thinking hero mayor took away all the bins. The problem disappeared immediately. So I finally waded through the forums here to give me an idea about the way people are thinking and the issues being raised. The main and longest thread was about the swing gauge, 1 click, 2 click, 3 click, 4 click, no click, RTS, pull back, push forward, slide left , slide right, sweet spot, ding late fade, ding early fade, ding late draw, ding early draw, fast, slow, small ding, diminishing ding, avatar swing, mouse, game pad, thumbs, fingers, straight edges, guides, large swing circle, small swing circle, no swing circle, moveable swing circle, dots, colours, flashing lights, swishing light sabres - have I missed anyone?
There is a problem. The bins are overflowing. You can see that there are so many differing opinions about the best way to implement the swing that you can never have an agreement. You can't please everyone. Not only are there different opinions about how to swing, you would also have thousands of different mouse(s) and game controllers, monitor resolutions, pings, reflexes, ages, arthritic conditions, states of mind (cough). So many that there can never be a level playing field. The solution is to take away the bins.
Let me put this another way. In your real universe you stand over the ball with a selected club in your hand. You determine the direction you will hit the ball. You address the ball and line up your feet. If you have played enough golf everything after that is sort of wired into your physics. You begin the backswing, the top of the swing or the start of the downswing is almost auto matic. Its when you feel comfortable whether its short or long. The stroke (it's not a hit) determines when the club face connects with the ball. That connection instance has almost nothing to do with your input (or click). It has been said by great coaches and swing doctors that your swing for a full shot should always be the same. My point, then, is this - why do we need a swing meter? Why do we put ourselves through that twitching ordeal of moving or clicking that cheap bit of plastic at exactly the right time or perfect direction? I would think that by simply starting the swing with a click of a button and letting the avatar go through the motions of the swing would be more than enough to simulate what goes on IRL. Of course you could pre-determine the 'power' of the swing or length of the backswing and other changes which is probably what you should do IRL anyway (with the risk/reward factors that come with that decision). The swing starts, the avatar does their thing, there is a result. You might say that it's too robotic or something. I'll debate that soon.
There is absolutely no way that I think you will agree with me.
I'm going to talk about some other issues later in this thread.
