As winter sets in, the golfing hardcore continue to make their way out onto the courses, determined to have a nice day and hit a low score. I, on the other hand, will be joining them in spirit only, for I am blessed with an awesome thumb and aye for a good shot in Tiger Woods 2004. It's that time of the year again where last year's EA games are dusted off and given a quick spit and polish, placed on the shelves ready to be sold to us as a new game. Tiger Woods 2004 is different. Tiger Woods 2004 is more than an update. Tiger Woods 2004 is...well, read on to find out.

I hated Tiger Woods 2003 when I first played it, I found the control system completely alien and it didn't seem to have as much fun or charm as say, Mario Golf. I stuck with it though and quickly progressed to a good player, able to hold my own in multiplayer matches and shot a low score of 47 on TPC Scottsdale. The only disappointment came in completing the game, there was a lot to do but it seemed a bit disjointed and over too quickly. I couldn't wait for the next Tiger game and I didn't expect much more than a few new courses and maybe a new tournament mode. How wrong I was. The Tiger Woods franchise has had a complete overhaul with the release of the 2004 edition. Absolutely everything has been refined to create the most complete and comprehensive game of digital golf you can buy.

For starters, the World Tour mode replaces the old Tiger Challenge. In the 2003 version, this was the main focus of the game, giving you the option to play the Pros in head to head games or tournaments. Now it has been completely transformed, jetting you around the world to play your opponents in match play. The challengers range from real life pros to EA fantasy golfers. The matches start off easy enough but get challenging as you get further into the tour. Each region has three courses to play, culminating in a challenge where you play the region pro on a selection of holes from the courses you have played. You'll earn a lot of money quickly here and is a good place to start your career.

The Tournament Mode has made way for a complete 52 week PGA Tour with four day events. This is the real core of the game where you'll really get to know the game and courses. Played as the tour is played in real life, you'll have to stay at the top of the leader board to make the cut and challenge for first place. Unfortunately, apart from the scoreboards, there's not a lot to make you feel like you're playing in tournaments but the amount of events to play more than makes up for this.

The neat thing about the calendar you're presented with to make your way through the PGA Tour is that it's filled with Real Time Events. These occur on specific days throughout the year and are in sync with your X Box's internal clock. Start the game up on a day associated with a Real Time Event and you'll be able to play a round which, if you win, gives you some goodies to buy in the shop.

Ah yes, the Pro Shop. Money that you earn in the game can not only be spent on your stats, it also allows you to upgrade your equipment, most of it licensed from real world golf companies like Taylor Made, Ping and Calloway. There's nothing like whacking a huge drive with a Big Bertha. New equipment can be unlocked as you progress through the various stages of the game and you acquire new sponsorships. There's so much to customise your character with ranging from the obvious (clubs, balls, shoes) to the more obscure (socks, watches and grip tape). Much of it may be there to fill the content but it's all very much welcome as it allows you to customise your character like no other golf game has done in the past. The only gripe I have with this is because there is so much to look at and buy, it gets a bit muddled when browsing through the equipment.

Another new addition is the Game Face feature. Acting more like a wrestling game than a leisurely simulation of golf, Game Face allows you to make your golfer completely unique. You get to choose exactly how you want him/her to look like. With a bit of time and messing around, you can get an uncannily accurate representation of yourself up on the screen. Change the size of the eyes, brow, nose body... There's just a massive amount of customisation you have at your disposal.

Gameplay wise, there's not a lot different from the previous version, but if it aint broke... Your swing is controlled with the analogue stick, the further and faster you move it, the farther your ball travels, and vice versa. It's something that takes a while to master but once you're there you'll never want to play a game that uses a sliding bar again. If you need to draw/fade the ball just angle the control stick to the opposite direction and you'll put the necessary amount of spin on the ball to get your round those tight corners. When mastered it feels quite arcadey and it would have been nice if they had implemented more of a simulation aspect to the control system. Putting has made no noticeable headway but EA have given us a new shot type - the Chip. When only a few yards away on the fringe of the green, you can now hit a chip shot. Much like a reduced pitch, it seems a bit inaccurate and I tend to still use a pitch near the hole or putt in. Still, it's there if you need it.

The biggest disappointment is that only PS2 owners get to play online. For whatever reasons between Microsoft and EA, they have missed out on one of the best Live experiences we could have played. Imagine, a centralised stat database where you can play others of an equal aptitude to yourself, buddy lists and create-your-own-tourneys. Well, it aint gonna happen on X Box this time around. Personally I think Tiger Woods 2004 using Live would have been unbeatable, and a friend wanted an X Box just to play Tiger Online. Big disappointment.

Tiger Woods 2004 hasn't made as much headway in the graphics department as it has in gameplay, but that's not a negative. It looked damn impressive before and looks sharper now. There are a few tweaks but it's still the best looking golf game out there at the moment. Strangely enough, there are no widescreen modes which is slightly annoying as my version cuts the bottom of the screen off which is pretty essential when wanting to know the percentage of the lie. Hmm.

Sound is also as solid as last year, the environmental effects are great and really add to the feel of the game. Bill Macatee has been taken off the commentary roster and has been replaced by Gary McCord. Thankfully David Feherty returns to provide useful and irrelevant quips and comments. The game wouldn't feel the same without the great David Feherty, and long may his Tiger Woods association reign! Oh, and the 2004 version supports custom soundtracks too, but you wouldn't be listening to Fugazi or Shellac whilst playing golf, would you? After all, it's supposed to be relaxing...

Ok, so here we are, another update to an EA franchise. Only this time it feels different. This time it could be a whole new game in its own right. It is the most comprehensive, engrossing and fun game of golf you could possibly buy right now. EA have really made a massive effort to update this game the way they should be updated, new courses, new characters, new options, features... The list is too long to fit here, just get a copy of the game and try it out yourself. The best game of golf you can buy.