Following the early release last week, Tiger Woods' face graces the front of the latest golf game from 2K Sports as it hits the shelves this Friday. We were lucky enough to get our hands on it last week and we've lad a lot of fun trying different aspects of the game - you can read our full review of the game here.
As I checked social media to gauge what the general consensus of the new game, I couldn't escape the conversation comparing it to the EA Sports PGA Tour game released two years ago. I also got me thinking - are EA still the kings of the golf game market like they are in football, soccer, hockey and more? Or have 2K managed to steal top spot in what is an ever-increasing rivalry?
Having religiously playing the EA game upon it's release in 2023, I booted it up this week alongside my copy of 2K25 to compare and contrast the two games, putting them head to head to decide which one I think is better. For the sake of this head to head, I've divided the comparison into three distinct areas - gameplay, game modes and courses/golfers before giving my opinion at the end.
So without further ado... let's get into this.
Gameplay
The gameplay is the shining light of the new PGA Tour 2K25 game. The newly installed EvoSwing mechanic is the best I've ever used in a golf game, complimenting the player's own rhythm and dexterity to better simulate the feeling of swinging a golf club. The different difficulty settings in relation to the swing mechanic can be fine tuned and adjusted to the nth degree to provide a real challenge to those who seek it.
The Perfect Swing setting allows a more arcade-like experience for those who just want a bit of fun, scoring birdies and smashing course records, but the option for a proper, realistic golfing experience is also on the table.
The same cannot be said for EA's PGA Tour, unfortunately. No real tutorial is present for new players to learn the swing mechanic which is made harder by the slight lag between input and on-screen action completely removed my sense of control. This is a particular issue when we weren't hitting full shots like knocked down wedge or iron shots into greens.
Without sounding big-headed, I'm pretty good at these golf games. This comes from plopping myself in front of my box TV, grabbing my Playstation 2 controller and playing EA's Tiger Woods video games religiously as a child. Therefore, when I play these games as a young adult I like a genuine, realistic simulation challenge. Even with the difficulty ramped up on EA's PGA Tour, I found I'd near mastered the game relatively quickly and could win big tournaments in career mode with relative ease. I find the difficulty settings in PGA Tour 2K25 a lot better in this department thus far - on the difficulty level I play on, hitting good shots is a genuine challenge unlike with the EA game.
One area the EA game excels is the visual package - it's absolutely stunning. Even though 2K sports have made a big leap forward in the graphics department since the previous 2K23 game, EA's PGA Tour still takes the title for best graphics. The visuals are beautiful, colorful and detailed, particularly at the signature tour stops like Augusta National, Pebble Beach and Liberty National.
Game Modes
I'll focus primarily on Career Mode here as the mode is the primary gameplay feature of each game - named MyCAREER in the 2K series.
In MyCAREER you're almost bombarded with options, which is a good thing, but some frustrating features begin to rear their head early on. The 'rivals' feature, in which a PGA Tour players challenges you to beat them during a tournament, feels a bit forced and unfulfilling. The lack of up-to-date equipment and clothing is also disappointing, as is some of the simulation leaderboards from tournament to tournament which rarely feature bunched leaderboards but rather players winning by 10+ shots all too regularly.
Apart from these small and largely inconsequential critiques, MyCAREER is enjoyable and having three of the four major championships licensed is a great improvement compared to PGA Tour 2K23. The new player creation is a lot more detailed than that of previous 2K games and better than EA's efforts on their PGA Tour game.
Although one could argue MyCAREER is deeper than EA's PGA Tour 'Road to the Masters' career mode, I'd argue the latter is more well-rounded. Obviously having the licensing to The Masters is a huge plus, meaning they hold the rights to all four majors. They also really nail the 'big sports event' feel around these events, particularly the first major of the year. I found the simulation of leaderboards more realistic in EA's game, whilst the broadcast presentation was also better even if the gap has tightened thanks to significant improvements from 2K23 to 2K25 games.
As for other game modes, online is similar in both games but unfortunately so is the reliance on in-game currency and micro-transactions. Both games rely on loot box mechanics, rewarding in-game achievement with random packages of cosmetic goods and XP boosts which can also be acquired with real life purchases. Disappointingly, this is the way video games have trended in recent years and there will likely be further progress down this distasteful path.
Finally, a big win for the PGA Tour 2K25 game is the presence of the course creator mode - a game mode which doesn't feature at all in EA Sports PGA Tour. 2K have given their players the platform to create the weirdest and whackiest courses they can and share with the world and will doubt prove an enjoyable feature like it has in previous games.
Golfers and Courses
Despite a valiant effort from 2K in this department, most notably with their graphical enhancements from previous editions, EA take the crown when it comes to in-game licensed players and courses.
28 licensed courses are available to play on EA Sports PGA Tour including the infamous Augusta National. There is a decent amount of crossover with 2K25 in terms of courses with both games featuring the 'TPC' courses, headlined by TPC Sawgrass.
2K25 features 26 licensed courses, with The Old Course at St Andrews set to be added in the coming weeks after launch.
In terms of playable golfers, EA wins at a canter with double to number of licensed players on their roster when compared to 2K25. Scottie Scheffler, Patrick Cantlay, Xander Schauffele and Tony Finau headline the roster on the men's side, whilst World #1 Nelly Korda leads the way on the women's side along with Lexi Thompson, Jin Young Koe and more.
2K make headlines with Tiger Woods spearheading their playable roster, albeit at a questionable 99 overall (Scheffler is the highest rated player on EA Sports PGA Tour at 92 overall). Max Homa, Matt Fitzpatrick and Justin Thomas are the other most notable names on the men's side whilst Lydia Ko, Rose Zhang and Brooke Henderson feature on the ladies' side. Bizarrely, the female players compete against you in PGA Tour events during your MyCAREER.
Verdict
I'll start by saying two things - this is a tight, difficult choice. Both games are good, not amazing, but still thoroughly enjoyable. It means there is still plenty of room for improvement for both companies, but if you think where golf games were say five/six years ago, we've come a long long way.
What also excites my as a golf-loving gamer is that there is actual competition now within this space. My optimistic hope is that 2K Sports and EA Sports will go tit-for-tat in the coming years trying to outdo the other and secure their name at the top of the golf game mountain, something that will only benefit us as fans of both the games and sport. Competition breeds better products and the 2K25 game is proof of that.
I'm not going to sit here and say buy one game and not the other - rather, I'd say to buy both. EA Sports PGA Tour will be a lot cheaper given it's a few years old now but 2K25 is also worth spending a few more bucks on because of how enjoyable the gameplay is.
I'd argue the gameplay on 2K25 is slightly better - it's more challenging and for me that makes it enjoyable. However, especially when we consider the clean sweep of licenses the EA game possesses (all four majors rather than just three), it feels like the more well-rounded game, especially if you're a Career Mode junkie like I am. If you're more of an online golfer, 2K25 is probably better for you. All in all, if you're an avid golf fan and gamer, both are worth the purchase.
