This was a big surprise for me! I'm used to NES and Mario takes on golfing games - decent arcadey simulators at best, impenetrable golf-themed walls at worst. It's easy to see the influence from these types of games on Golf Story, which makes it all the more impressive how well-refined Golf Story is.
And it doesn't sound like it's gonna be a particularly well-refined game from its high concept! A 2D golf game, framed exclusively from an overhead perspective, with RPG mechanics stapled in and a zany narrative that reads like a parody of a sports movie arc? I wouldn't blame someone who thought the game was little more than parody.
But it does a great job simplifying the parameters of golf into a video game while also retaining a lot of the sport's mechanical depth. I think it's quite inspired how the main concession is the reduction from 18 holes per course to 9. Meanwhile, things like draw and fade, slope on the green, and even golf etiquette are still considerations. A lot of the decisions you're making here are earnest considerations you'd be making in golf proper, even in more gimmicky situations like driving off ice, contending with kleptomaniac molerats, and caroming off turtle shells.
And that's the thing - for as out-there as the story gets (for goodness sakes, there's a murder mystery at one point involving mini-golf, a werewolf, and Diner Dash), there's always a reliable through-line with the types of mechanics the game wants you to be learning. Even exercises that are clearly not going to be on the final test - lawn bowling,frisbee disc golf, aqua golf, drone golf - feel like natural expressions of a game looking to simulate all modes of the sport. You definitely feel like, in spite everything, you've gone on your own rookie-to-champion arc over the course of the story.
And this isn't even getting into all the little character arcs! Obviously the no-named pompadoured protagonist is the guy with the main plotline, but most recurring NPCs have their own thing going on, too. Coach learning to love again. The old golfers at Tidy Park learning to accept new blood into the sport. The necromancers coming into their own power. The best was easily Lara, who went from being raw power and aggression to a friendly rival and quite respectable golfer in her own right.
And, like, Galf. Whaaaaaat a fun thing to throw in there. Let's learn to respect the fairways of galf.
Honestly? One of the most pleasant surprises I've had in a long while. Even with my buddy hyping this up, I was blown away by how good this one was. Highly recommended.
And it doesn't sound like it's gonna be a particularly well-refined game from its high concept! A 2D golf game, framed exclusively from an overhead perspective, with RPG mechanics stapled in and a zany narrative that reads like a parody of a sports movie arc? I wouldn't blame someone who thought the game was little more than parody.
But it does a great job simplifying the parameters of golf into a video game while also retaining a lot of the sport's mechanical depth. I think it's quite inspired how the main concession is the reduction from 18 holes per course to 9. Meanwhile, things like draw and fade, slope on the green, and even golf etiquette are still considerations. A lot of the decisions you're making here are earnest considerations you'd be making in golf proper, even in more gimmicky situations like driving off ice, contending with kleptomaniac molerats, and caroming off turtle shells.
And that's the thing - for as out-there as the story gets (for goodness sakes, there's a murder mystery at one point involving mini-golf, a werewolf, and Diner Dash), there's always a reliable through-line with the types of mechanics the game wants you to be learning. Even exercises that are clearly not going to be on the final test - lawn bowling,
And this isn't even getting into all the little character arcs! Obviously the no-named pompadoured protagonist is the guy with the main plotline, but most recurring NPCs have their own thing going on, too. Coach learning to love again. The old golfers at Tidy Park learning to accept new blood into the sport. The necromancers coming into their own power. The best was easily Lara, who went from being raw power and aggression to a friendly rival and quite respectable golfer in her own right.
And, like, Galf. Whaaaaaat a fun thing to throw in there. Let's learn to respect the fairways of galf.
Honestly? One of the most pleasant surprises I've had in a long while. Even with my buddy hyping this up, I was blown away by how good this one was. Highly recommended.