Sid Meier’s SimGolf Review (no fat)

Game Description

Sid Meier does it again with the release of yet another simulation title - this time taking on the world of golf. With over a dozen courses in SimGolf, get the feeling of what it is like to both own, and play in your own country club.

An import function allows you to bring in your character from the Sims game, and an easy and familiar interface gives ease of use for veteran Sims players.

SimGolf Gameplay

Taking a leaf out of the Sims book, SimGolf starts players off with a small amount of money to build their club. The story is that your Uncle died and left you an inheritance, with his big dream being building the world’s greatest golf course. A Disney touch on the storyline is nice, and that is as far as it goes - but suffices for this type of simulation.

The 16 themed courses that inherit a Desert, Parkland, Links, or Tropical attribute, await your choosing on where to build your dream course. The more expensive lots are out of your price range in the beginning of regular mode, but if playing in the sandbox mode then everything is up for grabs.

All of the necessary tools are available from the menu to get you started, including a simple but effective editor for your course. Since it borrows from the Sims game, it is a bit unusual in its approach; many tedious tasks are not automated.

Instead of including drag options like similar simulation games, you are forced to manually place 1, 2, 3 things down until you get the finished product. This is time consuming and a bit unnecessary.

But the highly editable game plays to a gamer’s imagination, and it is important to make a course that appeals to your Sim golfers. Holes’ attributes fall into length, imagination, and accuracy. The winning setup in SimGolf is a mixture of all three, to appease all customers. The more customers you bring in, the more money you get to finance your operations.

And since the upkeep costs a lot of money depending on size, you will find it very necessary to edit, re-edit, and then back over again. 18 holes can be created on one course, and with all of the options, it will be a while before you get to that point.

SimGolf More Features

The county commissioner will approve an expansion to your course if you do well, which of course means more money for you. The upkeep of courses provides the hiring of groundskeepers, marshals, soda vendors, and more. After a certain amount of experience, an employee is available for an upgrade, allowing them to watch over more areas that you assign them to, along with enhanced abilities.

Sim Golfers’ feelings about your course are available for view throughout the game, and it is very amusing to see their reactions whether it is good or bad. Stats are available, of course - a must with any simulation. The variety of them in SimGolf however, is sparse in comparison with EA’s other offerings in the field.

Through all the excitement of building your course, when you finally begin to play it, players will notice many of the automated features come into play. You choose one of the five types of shots, and the target. The rest depends on your Sims skills, and the environment he is playing in, and how much practice you have had with him.

Improving your Sims golf game is an important key, as the SGA (Sims Golf Association) will hold tournaments for big money that you can enter.

Although there is no end to SimGolf, you can retire your Sim so that he becomes a member of the pro circuit. Ready made courses will then be available for you to participate on in tournaments. Adding even more playability to the mix, you can retire your golf courses to the same effect.

How good it was before you retired it will decide how well it ranks against other courses you play on.

SimGolf Graphics

A mix of 2d with 3d touches, along with a fixed 800x600 resolution, it should move fluidly but there is a chance it still may slow down. Otherwise, the graphics do their job, with humorous reactions as you watch your customers interact and tell stories as they golf.

The bug count for the graphics is not as high as other PC games, for the simple fact that it uses a basic engine. Nevertheless, the limitations with the engine are apparent, and a simple but lacking interface makes the smallest task a chore.

A lot of your time will be spent moving through stats, golfers, and even between employees from a non-scrollable interface.

SimGolf Sound

Music is minimal, so sound effects are enhanced to a good degree. There is nothing outstanding about the sound in the game, but a level of detail and attention was put into it to where the above average gamer can appreciate it. You will also find yourself laughing at the simple sounds of aggravation that have become the norm for Sim games.

SimGolf Summing up

The Sims series puts out title after title and manages to withstand the test of time - even in this case. SimGolf is a fun and addicting game with minor problems. A slight staleness of the series shows with the much used but unchanged interface, with limitations that are a near abomination to modern gaming.

Three difficulty levels are included, with the medium being the default. The nice setup of difficulties gives another edge to the game, allowing access for all levels of players. With a high replay value, along with continuation modes even after the main game, SimGolf is a worthy pickup for any gamer.

SimGolf Cost

The game retails for $6.00, at the time of writing.