Tee Time
A Review of British Open Championship Golf
Rich Cunningham
The game of golf goes back many, many years. It is not an original American game, even though they have dominated the game for many years. The names Nickalaus, Palmer, Snead, and soon, Woods, are the legends that the game is made of. These legends not withstanding, the names Player, Rogriquez, Norman, and Singh have achieved well-deserved status in the annals of golf history. But the personalities are only a small part of the game. To me, the real stars of the game are the courses. The links. The greens. The tees. Even the traps and water hazards can make a course special.
The game we are looking at today contains two special courses. The program is called British Open Championship Golf and takes place (where else) in the British Isles. The courses that are included in the game are Royal Troon, the location of the most recent Open, and St. Andrews, the birthplace of the sport. The British Open, or the Open (as it is known world wide) has been played since 1860, with hiatuses for the two world wars. What sets these courses apart is the barrenness of the landscape. Barren, that is, compared to Hawaii, California, and Florida, where other major tournaments are played. That is what makes the Open so challenging many pros feel. The challenge of the weather, the winds, the baking sun one day and howling rain the next. Toss in the actual course hazards of bunkers and roughs... well, you get the picture.
There seems to be a flood of golf games and simulations that have flooded the market lately. Sim Golf, Front Page Sports: Golf, Jack Nicklaus 4, Links LS 98, MS Golf, where will it all stop. With all these games and simulations available, making a product that is not only fun but also marketable can be a challenge. But British Open Golf has several features that set it apart from the others. Some of them may not be original, but the presentation is different enough to make it entertaining (remember, it's only a game).
First, there is the use of audio and video. The play by play announcer is long-time ABC sports commentator Jim McKay, famous from "The Wide World Of Sports" ("...the thrill of victory, the agony of defeat..."). There are over 5000 unique audio phrases used, more than in any other sports game or simulation. There is an animated caddy to offer advice. Whether you take it or not are up to you, but he is there.
Secondly, the courses are presented in an attractive fashion, and are displayed in a style that looks more like real pictures than textured art work. It is a pleasure to walk courses that look like these. There are even scenes of the buildings that actually surround the courses, as well as the roads and highways. Toss in realistic weather, including that good old British fog, and you get a real you-are-there feeling. Rain and wind are also tossed in.
A third feature is the use of crowd effects. They seem to sense when a person is not playing well, and react accordingly. One can almost feel the anticipation of how they will react when approaching a tee shot or a putt. Speaking of the crowd, they also react to the eight golf pros that may be in your foursome. Players such as Vijay Singh, David Duvall, and Chip Beck are on the course, and available for multi-round tournaments or a head-on match. Either way, it is nice to have some real competition. Since this can be tournament play, there is the ever present television crew, looking to get that one shot that without getting in the way. Hopefully you can ignore them, and play on through.
The game is very well presented and designed. It installed and ran with no problems. Any special software needed, such as DirectX (version 3) was included so there was no need to hunt for it. It will be nice to see if other courses are developed for the basic game engine, since it is very well presented on the 2 CD-ROMS that comprise the game.
So the next time you are looking for a little history, take a trip to the British Isles. Failing that, grab this game, and get buried in chasing a little white ball all over the English countryside. It is an activity that you will not soon tire of.
Gamer's Zone Scorecard
| Product: |
British Open Championship Golf |
| Company: |
Looking Glass Technologies, Inc.
|
| Cost: |
$49.95 |
System Requirements:
IBM:
Suggested:
Pentium 60, 12MB RAM, 40MB hard drive space,
2X CD-ROM, Windows 95,
Direct 3X-compatible video card with 1MB RAM.
Recommended:
Pentium 90, 16MB RAM, 4X CD-ROM.
Macintosh: not available.
Breakdown:
Fun Factor 4
Graphics 5
Sound 4
Interface 3
Replayability 4
Overall Score:
Copyright © 1997 InfoMedia, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide.