I first played Hot Shots on ps1, in a demo of HSG1. I then bought Mario Golf N64, and enjoyed it alot. I then bought Mario Golf TT, and didn't really play it much. Now I preordered HSGF, and picked it up last wednesday. And I must say this game surpasses all of the predecessors, easily. It includes 34 characters, 15 courses, and oodles upon oodles of extras. Mini Golf has returned for the first time since HSG1. There is the 'rpg' system of gaining experience points and reaching new levels for your characters. Also there is loyalty from your characters which develops as you use them over time. All great things. Then there is the shop, where you can buy new clubs, balls, and tons of more stuff. The game supports 4 players via multitap. And for the first time ever, online play. The online play is easily the funnest online game I have ever played. And I've played many. You can take part in small tournaments where you take turns with upto 4 people. Or you can opt to enter tournaments with upto 50 players! Between each hole, you see the scoreboard, and how everyone is doing, and you can chat to eachother about how the hole went. It's really flawless in execution. Also is the inclusion of online rankings as well as weekly top 100. The game also allows different options for each course that you can set both offline and online. There is so much more great stuff I could say about this game, and I've forgotten to. I say atleast try to rent it and put some hours into it, if not buy it for the very cheap price of $39.99. It's the bargain of the summer, and the best game I've played in a long time. NOTE: the reviews I've seen online don't do the game justice, IGN 8.8, Gamespy 3.5/5, they just seemed to expect way too much out of the title... Heres the breakdown:
Graphics: 9
The characters look the same as they did in HSG3, but the courses have improved alot. Now trees sway realistically to show you how the wind is, and are just as important as reading the HUD. The ingame effects have improved alot too.
Sound: 9.5
The sound effects are great, spot on. The characters voice overs are top quality, sometimes you'll encounter some that talk just a little too fast. The music manages to even outshine the SFX, it's got catchy tune after catchy tune. Especially like the Japanese music on the Samurai Course.
Control: 10
Perfect control, bar none. Easy to learn, hard to master. Great depth.
Lastability: 10
You'll be playing this game for years, if you have a network adapter. And if you don't happen to go online with it, you'll still enjoy it for months.
Funfactor: 10
The most fun I've had with a game all year, easily.
Overall: 9.8
This is by far my favorite game this generation. Kudos.
Topic: Hot Shots Golf Fore (Read 2322 times)
