Golf video games differ from other sports games in that the experience is driven by the “Create A Pro” feature and attempting to win the PGA Tour as that golfer, or achieve online greatness in the multiplayer suite. As such, meaningful changes in PGA Tour 2K23 are usually geared toward the individual player experience rather than the managing a team in Franchise Mode in other sports games. Subsequently, changes in PGA Tour 2K23 often revolve around gameplay, new courses, and new modes, making them more impactful than in other games.

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Topgolf Comes to PGA Tour 2K23

Founded in 2000 in the United Kingdom, Topgolf is coming to PGA Tour 2K23 and bringing its arcade-style driving range with electronic scoring for accuracy and distance. Players will take aim for the targets, with some being worth more points than others, and rack up as many points as they can with the ten golf balls they are given to use in each round. The farther away the target is, the more points it is worth, and the closer to the bullseye a player gets, the more points they earn, giving players another mode to play aside from the PGA Tour 2K23 career mode.

In PGA Tour 2K23, the Topgolf mode will take place at a recreated version of the Las Vegas location, which is also Topgolf’s flagship location. Probably the best aspect of the addition of Topgolf to PGA Tour 2K23 is that the mode isn’t just a single-player offline experience and offers the ability to compete online via matchmaking or private matches. Topgolf’s addition as an option in the online suite gives players a less serious, more arcade-like option to play when they are looking for more of a quick match or something a little less serious than the unforgiving simulation play PGA Tour 2K23 is known for. There is no word yet on if there will be leader boards or rankings for Topgolf online competition, but the addition adds to what was a somewhat lean PGA Tour 2K21 online suite.

During the early months of the pandemic, a golf event called “The Match” paired professional golfers Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson with football players Peyton Manning and Tom Brady for an 18-hole match play event. Since then, the event has continued with NBA stars and other athletes from the world of professional sports taking part, and the popularity of The Match will carry over to PGA Tour 2K23 with the inclusion of Michael Jordan and Stephen Curry. While they come from different eras, both players are known for their love of golf when they’re not on the court, and their inclusion in PGA Tour 2K23 makes a lot of sense, especially with the NBA’s involvement in cross promotion with brands like Call of Duty and Dr Disrespect.

Michael Jordan is considered by many to be the greatest basketball player of all time, and his passion for golf and competition is well known by sports fans everywhere. In PGA Tour 2K23, Jordan will be a pre-order bonus and can be used in the career mode of the game, although his attributes are not known as of yet. The same can be said for Curry, who holds the NBA record for 3-point shots made in a career, and will presumably be joining the PGA Tour 2K23 roster on day one when the game hits store shelves.

Tiger Woods Returns to Golf Video Games

After gracing the cover of Electronic Arts’ golf series for years, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 14 was the last time fans saw Tiger Woods in a golf video game. Woods was replaced on the cover by Rory McIlroy in EA’s Rory McIlroy PGA Tour in 2015, and signed with 2K Sports in 2021, virtually guaranteeing that he would be on the cover of the PGA Tour 2K series going forward.

Woods has seen his play decline in recent years, but he is still the most recognizable name in golf in the past 30 years and will generate a lot of interest in the new game by name recognition alone. That, along with the fact that Woods was on the cover of EA’s series for so long in the past, might give fans a sense of familiarity when deciding whether to buy PGA Tour 2K23 when it releases. Some fans might even get the impression that PGA Tour 2K23 is a continuation of the previous Electronic Arts series, not knowing EA has their own golf game releasing in 2023.

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New Swing Mechanics

HB Studios is known for making a true simulation golf game with touchy controls that can be unforgiving, and PGA Tour 2K23 controls and difficulty should be no different from The Golf Club games or PGA Tour 2K21 in that regard. Controls might get a little easier for some players this time around though, with PGA Tour 2K23 adding in another way for players to swing their golf club that might appeal to some more than the standard analog swing.

The analog swing requires the player to have a smooth swing with the thumb stick, keeping it in a straight line and not going too fast or too slow to keep the shot straight and true. PGA Tour 2K23 gives fans another option however, with three-click swings making their debut and allowing players the chance to use the button controls to execute the swing. Players will need to hold the A/X button to generate power in the backswing, then have two precisely timed presses of the same button to execute a smooth swing and hit a straight shot. While it’s not a monumental change in gameplay, offering players more choice in how they want to swing the club in PGA Tour 2K23 is a good thing, and should keep more players engaged by having a control scheme that feels more natural to them.

Brand New Licensed Courses

Golf courses are the lifeblood of any golf video game, as each individual course has more of its own personality and uniqueness than the playing surfaces and venues in any other sport. A good selection of recognizable licensed courses is always sure to get more players interested in the game at launch, and PGA Tour 2K23 has included a healthy 20 licensed courses at launch, with more to come in free post-launch DLC.

Several mainstays like TPC Sawgrass and TPC Scottsdale make their return in PGA Tour 2K23, but a handful of new courses are included in HB Studios’ latest installment as well. Joining the course roster this time are The Renaissance Club, St. George’s Golf and Country Club, and the South Course of Wilmington Country Club, giving players some new fairways and greens to attack on top of the 17 courses returning to PGA Tour 2K23 from the previous game. If that still isn’t enough for players, PGA Tour 2K23 also features the return of the Course Creator, which allows fans to create unique courses or play on the creations of members of the PGA Tour 2K23 community.

PGA Tour 2K23 is scheduled to release on October 14 for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

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