Mario Golf has finally arrived on the GBA and The Younger Putter is here with the review.
Almost a year after Toadstool Tour graced the GameCube, its handheld counterpart has arrived on the GBA. Mario Golf: Advance Tour fails to further the series, but it still dishes out a respectable par for Mario Golf enthusiasts.
The box declares the game as “Role-Playing Golf,” and it is Golden Sun Golf in every sense. Story mode is Advance Tour’s centerpiece. Set shortly after the Game Boy Color game, story mode focuses on youngsters Ellie and Neil, two upstart golfers with big dreams. The game starts off by asking the player to choose which girl to control, assigning the other as your computer-controlled partner in alternating doubles golf rounds (which play a larger role than before). The story commences with a grueling dialogue sequence among the main characters and their golfing associates, which will stir negative emotions in most Golden Sun veterans. Thankfully, the first conversation is by far the longest, with only instructional dialogue extending past a few text boxes through the rest of the game.
If there’s anyone actually looking for a story with any depth or emotion, that one person will be disappointed. The intro sequence sets players up for character development, but it never happens. Instead, Advance Tour’s RPG essence is in its experience point system. Players earn points by completing side-games or rounds of golf, and distribute them between Ellie and Neil. With enough points the character will level up, and the player can choose which attribute to improve. As players explore story mode, they will eventually obtain alternate clubs with special enhancements. The club types can be mixed among woods, irons and wedges, adding even more variety to the character system.
For anyone who hasn’t already played a Mario Golf game, the story mode does an excellent job of teaching players through training sessions disguised as side-games found in each golf course’s practice area. The game assumes the player knows enough to swing the club with A, but it will walk novices through spin, terrain, impact point, and golfing techniques if they chat it up with the non-playable characters. Players will discover how to adjust for a poor lie and strong wind conditions. Upon completing training and other side-games, Advance Tour rewards players with experience points.
Doing well in side-games and tournaments also unlocks holes and features in Quick Game mode. Most remarkable are the star versions of each hole, which incorporate zippers, item blocks, warp pipes, and action buttons. In Quick Game mode, players can choose to play as their story’s buddy partner or any other characters unlocked through story mode. Once unlocked through the story, players can partake in familiar golfing modes from the console games such as Club Slots, Speed Golf, and Go-Go Gates (a modified version of Ring Shot). Quick Game maintains Mario Golf’s pick-up-and-play tradition, and has an independent save so as to not interfere with Story Mode.
The graphics so closely resemble Golden Sun’s, you’ll likely forget this game is tied to the Mario franchise. Beautiful Marion Clubhouse looks like one of Golden Sun’s towns, while the in-game start menu, instrument samples, and character mannerisms (such as the smiley-face and sweat droplet) are all ripped straight from the RPG series.
Advance Tour borrows Golden Sun’s world map engine for the actual golfing with marginal results. Golden Sun’s blurry-yet-grainy map clearly wasn’t designed with such a purpose in mind, and as a result, the first round of golf is very disorienting. The game points out collisions with obstacles while aiming, but it will take experience to determine where one terrain meets another.
The camera also causes grief: players can switch to camera mode with the select button and zoom using the trigger buttons, but the aim cannot be adjusted in this mode, and the camera zooms back out when adjusting the aim. The GBA may only have four action buttons, but some combination could have been reserved for adjusting aim instead of the camera! On the green, the camera switches to a more detailed static view and is at its worst when attempting to aggressively run the ball up to the green with the landing target just outside of the green’s vicinity. The 3D shot view, optionally shown before the start of a swing, is impressively rendered and often more useful for determining the shot path and current lie.
Mario Golf: Advance Tour’s soundtrack is a fantastic compilation of beautiful and uplifting new songs accompanied by some of the best from the GBC and GameCube Mario Golf games. There are a few rough spots in the audio, though. Music transitions are abrupt and sloppy: the feature-unlock fanfare cuts off other celebratory ditties, and the Save jingle plays over the main menu’s music! Voice samples for the story’s characters are unenergetic or confusing—one pro sounds identical to the game’s announcer! Also, Golden Sun’s babble text noises are in full swing. You can’t disable them, but increasing the text speed makes the noise much more tolerable.
Advance tour is fun as a single-player GBA game, but it also has impressive multiplayer and connectivity features. Up to four can hit the links on one system by handing off the GBA, or a well-prepared group can use multiple carts in tandem with link cables or wireless adapters for a more comfortable round. Owners of Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour for the GameCube need not feel guilty about golfing in full 3-D, as they can transfer their characters and earn experience on the GameCube. It can even transfer your customized taunts, though you’ll have to provide the aural accompaniment yourself!
Gamers who can put up with the clunky camera and jagged graphics will find Mario Golf: Advance Tour to be an enjoyable, arcade-style golf game that doesn’t stray from its roots. If you have been looking forward to this game, don’t let my complaints rescind your purchase plans.
PROS:
- Polished mechanics
- Surprisingly accurate 3D shot view
- Great music
- Unsurpassable multiplayer support
- Variety of game modes from the console games
CONS:
- Tiny, imprecise golf course graphics
- Cannot adjust aim in camera mode
- Lacks innovation
- Voice acting
GRAPHICS: 6.0
If you take the ugliest portion of Golden Sun and place a golf club in the main character’s hands, you’ll have an idea of what the game looks like most of the time. Players can accurately recognize a course’s varied terrain, trees, and hazards—but not without a few trial runs. The game slows down considerably while the AI calculates a shot.
SOUND: 8.5
Songs snatched from Toadstool Tour feel at home on the Game Boy Advance, and most of the Golden Sun new songs are fitting. There are some quirks with musical transitions, and most of the new voice acting feels forced, but overall this game sounds pretty darn good.
GAMEPLAY: 8.0
Advance Tour is largely a remake of the GBC game, but it is still fun. With its detailed golf mechanics, important character attributes, and alternative golf modes, the GBA game really can compete with the GameCube game. The two hardest courses even contain Mario enemies, just Toadstool Tour's! Some might become bored or frustrated with the computer AI in doubles games.
CONTROLS: 7.5
That camera is nothing but trouble, but that’s all I can complain about. Advance Tour’s responsiveness is improved over its GBC inspiration, and Toadstool Tour’s shot system and range slider have been seamlessly integrated. The results of a swing are largely affected by a character’s impact, control and spin attributes.
LASTABILITY: 8.0
The GameCube connectivity is a nice bonus, but both Mario Golf fans and sports enthusiasts new to this series will want to keep Advance Tour on-hand for its excellent rounds on the road and all of its unlockables. The multiplayer modes, which require only one GBA, are sure to come in handy.
FINAL SCORE: 7.5
Those who weren’t thrilled by the GBC or GC updates and those expecting something new should pass on this game. However, if you’re simply looking for a good 18 holes and can tolerate some inconveniences, Mario Golf: Advance Tour’s detailed mechanics and varied gameplay modes will not disappoint.
Topic: Mario Golf: Advance Tour Review (Read 2609 times)
