HB Studios Next-Gen golf game: The Golf Club

[DChaps]

I'll try to pull them from memory here: I use Main Camera 3, Putting Camera 3, and Approach Camera 2, VSync OFF, Depth of Field OFF, I think my HUD offset is 14, but that will vary with your screen. Finally, I set the Follow camera to OFF. I love watching the ball from my golfer's perspective and this game does a great job of sort of moving the "head" to follow the ball. You can then hit the "A" button on the XB1 controller to shift to Follow cam and watch the ball reach its finish, at your discretion.

I'm not finding it much improved on the XB1 with Update 2 though. Yeah, it's nice to have the Depth of Field hold its setting from round to round, but the hinted frame rate improvement with Update 2 wound up coming in at around 10%, at best, where I was looking for something around 30%, based on what I was reading. The XB1 version is serviceable, but that's not how one would like to describe their next-gen console games. I like the audio and the color depth on the XB1 version better, and for a left stick swinger, I prefer the XB1 controller, but I've negated that advantage by buying a Titan One controller adapter so I can use my XB1 controller with the PS4 version. If HBS can get the XB1 version's res up to 900p and boost the frame rates on most courses to 30 FPS, or better, it will make a huge difference in the way the XB1 version looks and plays.

I just bought an Acer Aspire desktop system from Amazon, which has an Intel i5 4440 processor at its core, took out the 200 watt power supply it came with and dropped in a 500 watt EVGA supply (that cost me all of $39.99 at Amazon), took my Geforce GTX 750Ti out of my former gaming PC and dropped it in the Aspire, and now I've got a gaming PC tied to my home theater receiver and 55" LCD display. I'm now running the PC version at 1080p/High Detail, 8X Anisotropic filtering, 2X msAA, and I've got a number of other detail settings (object detail, high quality trees, high quality tree render distance) set above default, and it's running most courses at 30 to 35 FPS. It's going to be hard not to get spoiled by this BTW, this system ran the rFactor 2 demo with the graphics all maxed out, at 1080p, with frame rates varying between 60 and 70 FPS... not bad for a $575 dollar computer... well, it would be more like $720 if I had to buy the GTX 750Ti to put in it.

BTW, read my next message for some news that I think will change your play experience for the better with the XB1 version, hopefully next week.

Thanks so much John, that was very helpful. Looking forward to the next patch. Also, thanks for the tip on the budget gaming PC. I am trying to setup something similar with the hopes of running iRacing, Assetto Corsa, rfactor 2, and Project Cars on 3 screens.

[DivotMaker]

John or Tim,
Would you mind (at some point in your free time), posting your current preferred settings for settings, graphic options, controller settings, and particularly camera setup for the Xbox One? I have read through this thread multiple times and am just too slow to get it right. I recognize that some of this is personal preference, but from everything I am reading TGC is so much improved now on Xbox One, but I am just not feeling it. I managed to get one round in that last few days, but still having a lot of lag, stuttering, blurryness, stat problems, and lack of feel. I have verified that I have the patch/latest update. I will post a screenshot of my current settings when I have a chance, but I think I may just be messing something up. Granted, I have always been terrible at console golf, but just wanted to give this game the best "shot" possible. Thanks!!

Sorry for not responding. I have been in Singapore since last Friday and no access to my One. Hope John got you situated and if there is anything else I can help with, let me know next week as I return home late Saturday.....

[sportdan30]

New patch is out for PS4 and Xbox One.

♦Maximum course size indicator in the Greg Norman Course Designer.
♦Minor putting adjustments.
♦Various handicap interface fixes and adjustments (including ability to turn off handicap score on main screen).
♦Various Tournament interface fixes and adjustments.
♦Stability improvements (primarily console).
♦Increased max Tour duration to 180 days.
♦Updated the offline course list.
♦Fixed UFO shadow.
♦Tweaked the wood texture on selected Greg Norman Course Designer assets.
♦Fixed GNCD course testing crash when ball holed out.
♦Fixed local Match Play bug where match ended early.
♦Commentary tweaks and fixes in Tournaments.
♦Fixed removing Tee Furniture console bug which left the bag behind.
♦Various other small bug fixes and general tweaks.

[Naples39]

I finally played some rounds on this and I'm really pleased.

Good pace, and it just feels like golf. My shots are neither erratic nor overly accurate. Turn off the scout camera, read some distances, and watch your shots sail off and tap the follow cam just as it lands. Just what I'm looking for.

[dbdynsty25]

It's never going to be an award winner when it comes to graphics. I'm amazed at the difference in graphics quality between The Golf Club and the yet to be released, Perfect Golf, even though both of them use the Unity engine. I'm sure The Golf Club will see incremental improvements in certain areas of the graphics, but I can't see it ever getting close to Perfect Golf in that category.

Well now that Perfect Golf made it to early release on Steam for 20 bucks, I jumped on it. It's definitely not as full featured as TGC, but damn it if the physics aren't actually right when approaching the green. And of course, as you mentioned, the graphics are a step above as well. It's nice to have a few choices in realistic golf games, that's for damn sure.

[DivotMaker]

It's never going to be an award winner when it comes to graphics. I'm amazed at the difference in graphics quality between The Golf Club and the yet to be released, Perfect Golf, even though both of them use the Unity engine. I'm sure The Golf Club will see incremental improvements in certain areas of the graphics, but I can't see it ever getting close to Perfect Golf in that category.

Well now that Perfect Golf made it to early release on Steam for 20 bucks, I jumped on it. It's definitely not as full featured as TGC, but damn it if the physics aren't actually right when approaching the green. And of course, as you mentioned, the graphics are a step above as well. It's nice to have a few choices in realistic golf games, that's for damn sure.

Interested, but I want to see some feedback on how the game runs on a MacBook Pro with i7/8GB Ram/512GB SSD/Intel 4000 graphics card first. Haven't upgraded my PC in 5-6 years and don't plan on starting now.....

[dbdynsty25]

Interested, but I want to see some feedback on how the game runs on a MacBook Pro with i7/8GB Ram/512GB SSD/Intel 4000 graphics card first. Haven't upgraded my PC in 5-6 years and don't plan on starting now.....

It runs like sh*t on my late 2014 Retina Pro w/ i5/8gb/256ssd/Iris Graphics...soooo...don't bother. i5 to i7 isn't noticeable in games. Had to run it on my beast PC at home.

[TCrouch]

It's never going to be an award winner when it comes to graphics. I'm amazed at the difference in graphics quality between The Golf Club and the yet to be released, Perfect Golf, even though both of them use the Unity engine. I'm sure The Golf Club will see incremental improvements in certain areas of the graphics, but I can't see it ever getting close to Perfect Golf in that category.

Well now that Perfect Golf made it to early release on Steam for 20 bucks, I jumped on it. It's definitely not as full featured as TGC, but damn it if the physics aren't actually right when approaching the green. And of course, as you mentioned, the graphics are a step above as well. It's nice to have a few choices in realistic golf games, that's for damn sure.

I almost made a different post about Perfect Golf. I've been blown away by that game so far, but I wanted more time before I touted it on here. Loving that game.

[DivotMaker]

Interested, but I want to see some feedback on how the game runs on a Retina MacBook Pro with i7/8GB Ram/512GB SSD/Intel 4000 graphics card first. Haven't upgraded my PC in 5-6 years and don't plan on starting now.....

It runs like sh*t on my late 2014 Retina Pro w/ i5/8gb/256ssd/Iris Graphics...soooo...don't bother. i5 to i7 isn't noticeable in games. Had to run it on my beast PC at home.

Thanks for saving me $20....if I ever decide to upgrade the PC, I'll give the game a look.

[J_Cauthen]

It's hard to say what hardware configurations will deliver a satisfactory look and feel with Perfect Golf, and which won't. Here's my case in point from two weeks ago. I posted this in the beta thread at Perfect Parallel (I was involved the late stages of alpha and the full beta test of PG):

I bought a new desktop PC (an Acer Aspire ATC-UR2A, with an Intel Core i5-4440 3.1 GHz processor), replaced the stock 200 Watt power supply with a 500 watt, and dropped my EVGA Geforce GTX 750Ti graphics card from my other gaming PC, and connected it to my Home Theater system with a 55" LCD HDTV. The significant upgrade was the i5 4440 over the AMD A4-3420 APU. Anyway, the difference this made in my Perfect Golf experience is staggering! I went from running 30 FPS at 1080p/High Detail at Crystal Pines, to 50 to 55 FPS at 1080p/Ultra High detail. It makes a HUUUUGE difference in not only the look of the game, but in the feel as well.

I'm in the middle of a round right now at Southampton, where I'm seeing 55 to 70 FPS at the ultra High detail setting... truly phenomenal! I guess I'm surprised that going from a dual core to a quad core would make this much of a difference, although there are other factors at play, like motherboard architecture, memory speed, and Windows 7 versus Windows 8.1 in the new system. OTOH, I only saw at 15 to 20% performance improvement with this same PC and The Golf Club.

And to follow that, here's what I posted in the Off Topic section of The Golf Club's forums, where Perfect Golf is being discussed:

I can see where folks are going to have problems with Perfect Golf, especially after seeing TGC, in a real time, 3D sense. There's a more compelling 3D sense conveyed by TGC, particularly with the ball. In TGC the ball looks and behaves like a 3D sphere when rolling, whereas in PG it seems to be more of a 2D blip being painted on a radar screen in segments. It's gotten better at this with higher frame rates, but the sensation is still there. Secondly, it uses some of Unity's terrain textures outside of the first cut of rough, and they really aren't flattering to the game. It looks very blocky and like something out of the 90's. OTOH, PG presents a very realistic picture with proper spatial orientation of the landmarks and objects. It seems to have a lot more variation in its trees and bushes and each course has a more distinctive look. At times it can be downright stunning.

They do a pretty good job with the player camera that can be tailored to cut to a reverse angle shot for the finish. Sometimes this camera is right on the mark, at others it loses the ball or winds up too far away for my tastes. It also cuts to some really awkward overhead views that are zoomed way too close for the putts finish, IMO. This shows again the weakness of the green textures when viewed from this close, and almost directly overhead.

PG has a lot of potential but what is going to cripple it for me at the outset is the lack of a real time swing interface. I can't do motion (mouse) control in non real time and feel fully engaged with the game. 3-click is also non real time, as one would expect, but 3-click hasn't done anything for my since 1999, real time or not. Once they get a real time swing interface, and hopefully one that uses a thumbstick controller like the XBox 360 wireless, I'll be on board with PG.

I played The Golf Club last night after struggling for a half an hour to get through 4 holes of Perfect Golf with two other players in online multiplayer (this game is PAINFULLY slow in online multiplayer). They each bailed on the game (thankfully), but it would have taken us over an hour to play 9 holes the way it was going. Anyway, playing TGC with a real time swing interface served to remind me how much I enjoy a real time, thumbstick interface!

[Rodster]

Does anyone know if Perfect Golf will have community made golf courses? Is the $20 price point the introductory price? I made the mistake of paying full price for TGC. Not doing that again.

[dbdynsty25]

Does anyone know if Perfect Golf will have community made golf courses? Is the $20 price point the introductory price? I made the mistake of paying full price for TGC. Not doing that again.

No idea about the created courses but yes it is the introductory price. Regular is 30 I believe.

[J_Cauthen]

Does anyone know if Perfect Golf will have community made golf courses? Is the $20 price point the introductory price? I made the mistake of paying full price for TGC. Not doing that again.

It already has one community made course; Willow Creek is a user made course. From what I read of Course Forge, it's not as cut and dry as the Greg Norman Course Designer in The Golf Club. As for the price, I believe the release version will come in between $30 and $35 dollars, but your $19.99 purchase has you in, as far as I know.

[Rodster]

Sweet, I'll jump on the $20 offer.

[MERACE]

The Course Forge (course creator) is still in alpha stage but it will be released with the final version of PG. It will be free for those who purchased the Early Release version of PG.


-MERACE

[Diablo25]

Played a nice course today...Old Turrmurra: 1878 HD. Fun course. What are some of your favorites? I'd like to play some new courses.

[vader29]

These are the unofficial courses I haved saved as favorites:

Pebble Beach Golf Links
TPC at Sawgrass Stadium Course III
Kobeoshi Royal
Valhalla Golf Club - PGA v2.0
Centennial Oak Golf Club - East/North
Pinehurst #2 (Blue Tees)
Country Club of Pennsylvania
Coyote Canyon (Tour Edition)
Springbrook Valley
The Golf Club at Hunter Meadows
Durham Springs CC
Castle Creek
Bluff Valley

[Diablo25]

Streaming a round at a Merace recommended course...The Garden at Castleberry Hills. Great course.

http://www.twitch.tv/epdiablo25

[FifaInspected]

Fellas. I see Perfect Golf was mentioned above. How is this for those of you who have played it? I have a 2013 27" iMac and am thinking about picking it up.


Also. Going retro... What was the best version of Tiger Woods on last generation?


Thanks.


Dave

[10spro]

Also. Going retro... What was the best version of Tiger Woods on last generation?


Thanks.


Dave

Personally I really enjoyed TW 10 and TW 13. There's PGA Tour also coming up sometimes this year.

[Naples39]

Fellas. I see Perfect Golf was mentioned above. How is this for those of you who have played it? I have a 2013 27" iMac and am thinking about picking it up.

I got it and played a few rounds.

It's a work in progress, but it's playable. For the moment Golf Club is more fun and fluid to play IMO, but Perfect Golf has a mouse swing, better graphics, and more convincing physics around the green. I would probably get it eventually and it's at a discounted price now, and I'm happy to have 2 golf games.

[dbdynsty25]

TGC is better overall, but the potential is definitely there for Perfect Golf. I'm glad I have it and I play a round or two here and there, but I still gravitate back to TGC just because of the social aspect.

[FifaInspected]

Thanks for the feedback guys, I appreciate it.

[DivotMaker]

Significant update to all versions of TGC today....

[MUTTS]

Gee I love this game. Just played Bay Hill 0.7 and Oak Hill rochester. What fun. I hope when the season mode is added (which to me is worth the $10 for the upgrade), we can choose the courses for our tours. That would be sweet.
Tony