bumbleB

Billed as an 'RPG/golf' game, containing more elements of the latter than the former, this old-school looking 2D golfing game is a heckuva lotta fun and recommended to adults and kids alike. True aficionados of golf sims might disagree - I'm a casual player of the genre myself with only a XBOX360 Tiger Woods game on my sheet previous to this. Fans of Mario Golf will know what to expect, mechanics-wise. The storyline is fairly lighthearted and humorous. You want to be a golfing pro just like your old man, but everyone says that you ****, so you get about getting a coach and training to be the best. The courses are varied and well-designed; there's an island-hopping beach course populated by surfer types, a fancy course full of rich snobs, a spooky haunted course, and others besides. The story elements aren't overly prevelant and you're free to wander the areas of the map that you've unlocked so far, play courses to your heart's content, look for the usual NPCs offering side quests or pursue the main storyline in RPG fashion. The levelling up elements are pretty basic; as you gain XP you can make your drives longer or more accurate or put more spin on your swings. You also get more and better equipment as you advance, as you'd expect. There are some interesting and fun situations you find yourself in, such as being locked in a mansion with various shady characters in order to solve a mystery, or being compelled by a ghost to complete a course he's made, or chasing off birds that are carrying away balls that think they're eggs. There's an invasion of the rich snobby course by the clientelle of the poor run-down one, resulting in a brilliant rap battle between the two. You'll complete golfing challenges and go treasure-hunting with an archeologist. Overall you'll be surprised just how many problems in life can be solved by thwacking a ball at them. The actual golfing itself is pretty standard for 2D golfing games and you won't find anything revolutionary there, it's more about the way the game is presented and framed which makes Golf Story stand out from other sims. I had a lot of fun playing this and enjoyed the twist/reveal at the end. It only lost one mark for me because I wanted it to be longer!

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]