Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 Hands-On

During a recent Electronic Arts press event in San Francisco, we got our first look at the PSP version of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 and had an opportunity to play a few holes on it. Currently scheduled for release this fall, the PSP version of Tiger 06 doesn't look like it does a whole lot that's radically different from its three-month-old predecessor at this point. Although, we can report that it'll employ the same all-new, top secret putting system as its console counterparts.

Like its predecessor, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 on the PSP has a lot in common with the recent Tiger Woods console games, including the analog swing controls (the PSP game features a power meter not present in other versions and, of course, it lacks a second stick with which to "shape" your shots a la Tiger 06 on consoles), the GameFace character-creation system, and commentary from David Feherty and Gary McCord. The PSP game will again feature 12 courses, although EA hasn't yet confirmed whether they'll be the same 12 that appeared in the game released on March 23.

One thing that Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 thankfully doesn't have in common with its predecessor is the painfully long loading times in between holes. The version of the game that we got to play at EA's San Francisco event was far from finished, but the loads were already noticeably shorter. The PSP version will also feature an exclusive minigame, which EA plans to unveil next month.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 is currently scheduled for release this fall. We'll bring you more information on the game as soon as it becomes available.