C&VG


Ultimate Golf

Publisher: Gremlin
Machine: Amiga 500

 
Published in Computer & Video Games #103

Ultimate Golf

Gregory John Norman, he of the golden locks and cute 9-iron, has won 58 major tournaments around the world. Last year he accrued $835,000, bringing his career total to just over $3,000,000. He's 6'1", dabbles in snooker and has his name plastered all over Gremlin's answer to Leaderboard.

Ultimate Golf claims to simulate real holes and courses right down to information about vegetation and yearly weather cycles. An introductory menu screen features four basic game types for 1-4 players, allows you to alter the wind, weather and ball effects and load a saved game.

The action is presented in 3D; an info bar reveals all the necessary course details - wind speed, weather conditions, course length, club selected, hole and par numbers, and strokes used.

Atari ST

Ultimate Golf

Ultimate Golf lives up to its title: it's just about the most comprehensive simulation of the sport to date. The easily-accessed menu system allows very subtle alterations to every stroke, and the random wind factor adds an extra edge of judgement and skill.

The course viewpoints are very quickly drawn and quite detailed - but dividing the terrain into grid sections gives the game an artificial touch. This isn't the only fault: the caddy (if you use him) has a habit of thinking for too long; and the ball movement, though mostly accurate, occasionally feels awkward, particularly when putting large distances.

These are minor drawbacks though: the game system is unsurpassed in its flexibility - you can change everything from opening the face of the club to the viewpoint - all of which can alter the game significantly. It's not as much fun as Leaderboard, but it's a far more accurate simulation and should appeal to armchair pitch and putt fans looking for something a bit more demanding.

Amiga

Virtually the same game as the ST. It needs practice, but it's well worth it.