Hello Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® fans, Greg Rinaldi here.  You probably know me best as the designer of the Photo Game Face feature in Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® 08 for Xbox 360 and PS3.  Yes, that was my ugly mug on the back of the box and in the game as an example that no matter how busted your grill is, Photo Game Face will make you a star in the game. ;)  OK, enough self-deprecating humor...that was last year, this year I'm acting as the Development Manager/Designer for Gameplay, Online and UI for Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® 09 All-Play on the Nintendo Wii.  In this blog, I'm going to give you guys an overview of some of the awesome features in our new party mode called Golf Party which is exclusive to the Wii version of the game.  This mode was created so that fans of the game of all ages and experience levels can play together and enjoy some friendly competition.  As you'll see, we've included a wide variety of mini-games and some pretty innovative new gameplay that is unlike anything else on the Wii.

The idea for Golf Party was inspired by the social aspects of the Wii console as well as the feedback we've received from you guys; our loyal and passionate golf-gaming community.  It seems like Nintendo's little white box has sparked a revolution (pardon the pun) in the game industry.  People who previously had little interest in video games are now flocking to the Wii.  The biggest eye-opener for me was when I brought my Wii home last Thanksgiving.  My parents, who haven't played a video game since Pong, were both able to pick up a Wii Remote and get into some serious competition.  The thing that really made me take notice was when my mom schooled me at Wii Sports Bowling.  She's a ringer in real bowling and it translated perfectly to the Wii.  In fact, my parents were so invested in the Wii by the end of the weekend that they begged me to leave it there until I returned home for Christmas.  That Christmas, my entire family (aunts, uncles, cousins, sisters, etc.) played together and it was a great experience.  It was actually the first time in my life that I was able to share my love of video games with everyone in the family.  So it just seemed natural for us to include a party mode in the game this year, because experiences like the one I described above were common amongst many of us on the development team.  So our goal this year was to give you, our fans, the same sort of "play together" experience in our game...the opportunity share your love of Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® with your friends and family.

Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® has been and always will be a game that attempts to simulate a real golf experience, but there's no reason why it can't be much more than that.  So with the inclusion of All-Play and Golf Party, we've lifted up the ropes so that those watching from the sidelines (your kids, your parents, your girlfriend, etc.) can step out onto the course and have some fun as well.  To that end, Golf Party includes 15 golf-themed mini-games that are quick and fun for everyone.   There's Ball Juggling, Range Cart Showdown, Speed Golf (one of my favs), Connect, Speed Connect, Shooting Gallery, Long Drive Contest, Closest to the Pin, Target, Capture the Flag, Rings, Putting Challenge, Own the Green, Speed Putting and Mini-Putt.  Each game presents its own unique challenge and each requires its own strategy and skill set.

Take Ball Juggling for example.  I'm sure many of you are familiar with Tiger's famous Nike commercial where he juggles a golf ball on the head of a club.  If not, you can check out the video here.  We felt that this would make for a fun little mini-game and so we created a 2D ball juggling game for Golf Party.  The goal is simple; bounce the ball on the head of the club for as long as you can to rack up points.  To up the ante, we'll drop an additional ball after seven consecutive bounces and we'll spawn pick-ups that will multiply your score.  It seems easy enough, but it can get very challenging when you're trying to manage multiple balls and hit multipliers without dropping any balls.

Another game I'm pretty fond of is called Connect and it's loosely based on the board game Othello.  The goal is simply to capture the most targets on the game board.  You'll be using the pitch shot to land your ball on one of 25 targets on the board.  The game is a healthy mix of both golfing skill and strategy.  Capture two targets in the same row or column and you'll connect the targets between them.  As long as they are all either neutral targets or all captured targets...any combination of neutral/captured will block the connection.  You can even steal targets from another opponent, but you'll need to nail a bullseye.  WARNING:  Stealing targets from certain friends or family members may cause discomfort and uncomfortable silence at future social gatherings.

The ultimate goal of Golf Party is obviously to be crowned the winner so that you can hoot and holler and strut around the room until you make a total buffoon of yourself.  And then your family and friends get really irritated by your cockiness and won't speak to you for a week while they sulk and wallow in their post-party depression.  Well, that's my goal anyway...but maybe you guys are a bit more lighthearted (and humble).  Either way, the game is based on points and those points are earned by winning mini-games.  The player with the most points at the end of 5, 10 or 15 mini-games wins (you can choose the number of mini-games before the party mode starts).

But mini-games aren't the only way to earn points.  So don't fret if you get owned by your 6 year-old cousin, Little Timmy because at the end of each mini-game you'll get to putt for a modifier.  These modifiers are great because they can really shake things up.  We have modifiers that add points to your score and modifiers that allow you to remove points from another player's score.  We also have modifiers that let you take away another player's modifier!  Also, you can earn Ball Battle Tokens here.  What's a Ball Battle Token you ask?  Heh.  Read on, friend.

During the process of designing the Golf Party we were a tad distressed by the fact that there were many times when the players who were not currently taking a shot were sitting on the couch, itching to get in on the action.  This is unavoidable since golf is essentially a turn-based game, but we wanted Golf Party to be action-packed for everyone in the room.  Our solution was an awesome new gameplay feature we call Ball Battle.  Here's how it works:  Let's say Little Timmy is really rocking you at Connect, he's nailing every target; quickly filling up the board with red targets while you maintain one lonely, soon-to-be stolen blue target.  Well, the next time Timmy takes a shot and tries to rob you of your only piece of real estate, you can trigger a Ball Battle by pressing A+B on the Wii remote.  This will cost you one Battle Token, but it's well worth it to see the horror on Timmy's smug little face as you join forces with Grandma Mabel and Aunt Gladys to yank Timmy's shot into the drink.  Timmy can try to defend himself, but your newly formed alliance (let's call it the "Coalition of the Losing") will ensure his defeat.  Tough luck, Timbo Slice!

Another great thing about a Ball Battle is that, no matter who triggers it, everyone in the room with a Wii Remote can participate.  The gameplay is best described as a sort of "Tug-of-War" over the golf ball as everyone attempts to point and grab the ball with their cursor before yanking it left, right up or down.  The person with the quickest reflexes is usually the one who can influence the ball the most, so don't hesitate.  Also, as in the above scenario, it may be best to align yourself with the other lose...er...folks in the room who may be falling behind in points.  Alliances aren't just for surviving a desert island; they're also handy when trying to reduce the excruciating lead held by certain snotty young family members.

Well I hope this sneak peek shows that Golf Party really is a blast to play with friends and family.  We've been having some heated competition here at Tiburon with the mode.  So I hope you guys take advantage of the party mode and get your buddies, your kids, your parents and your significant others together for some fun.  Just don't get mad if cousin Little Timmy teams up with your girlfriend to Ball Battle your longest drive into the spinach.  You've been warned.

Greg Rinaldi | Development Manager:  Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® 09 All-Play