RR_Desperado wrote:My fear is that with the proposed changes to the game, the arcade and official tour events will become a hodge-podge with everyone trying to outdo the other person and dreaming up some rediculous playing conditions. Before we know it, those of us who prefer to play the straight 1.05 version will be hard pressed to find a normal event. Some of us are still struggling to become proficient at 1.05 and don`t need 1.06 conditions in to further frustrate us. I`ve been playing this game for close to seven years and still am far from a top player. If I am not looking forward to having the game made more difficult to play, imagine how some of the newer players will feel. One other thing, take a look at the member registrations and you will find a very large contingent of players who weren`t on the old linkstour so there is obviously new players coming to this game. Almost anywhere you go , you can find copies of 2k3 in the bargain bins or on sale. Lotsa of people who weren`t prepared to pay 59 bucks (can) for a game they weren`t sure they would enjoy are more than willing to pay the 10 bucks or less it costs to try the game out now.
I completely understand what you're saying and I think you're absolutely correct that the game will become more difficult for most of us (at first). But that's because there will be more variations of conditions that we're not accustomed to. What new version of Links hasn't involved some amount of learning?
There was a time when there was no such thing as the buried lie in the rough -- that was something we had to learn how to hit. The classic swingmeter in bunker play didn't always have that second mark at 5:00 that you have to hit from fairway bunkers. Sidehill lies in Champ mode weren't always as severe as they are in today's version. It's all stuff that we had to adapt to with each new release. I don't see this as any different.
As for the Arcade games, I think you're right. Players will try to outdo each other with outrageous set-ups. (Anyone for Windy/Very Firm/Very Fast at DI?). But those games won't attract as many players. Eventually, the Arcade will become an area where players will go to practice and experiment without concerning themselves with their stats or rankings. I might play a casual round there if I've played all of my official tour rounds and I'm looking for something to do before the following week's official rounds begin. I think we'll also see the arcade being used a good bit for privately run tours.
I dunno Barry, maybe I'm being dense and naive, but I just see this new combined version as "Links 2007". Each previous release has introduced new features with its own strengths and weaknesses, some changes we had to adjust to, things we liked, things we didn't like, and nothing more than that. I also think a couple of years from now we'll be having this same conversation, with many of us not wanting to move away from Links 2007 to the "new and improved" Links 2010.
Time will tell.