Everybody’s Golf 2

According to one respected US author and humourist, "golf is a good walk spoiled." It should follow then that a golf video game is a good sit-down spoiled.

Not so, Mark Twain.

As the name of this PSone classic suggests, Everybody’s Golf 2 is all about accessibility: simple button presses, straightforward controls, and uncomplicated rules.

Putt simply

You start out with just a selection of three characters with which to play through the six game modes. As you rack up competitive wins in Tournament, Stroke, Match Play, Vs, better characters and equipment become available.

The multiplayer modes, meanwhile, involve pass-and-play with up to four people, handing the Xperia Play to someone else to take their shot. In the age of wireless network play, this feels like a step backwards in time, but not necessarily in a bad way.

Face-to-face multiplayer always seems slightly more human and enjoyable than competing against the anonymous hordes on the internet.

Who’s your caddy?

Winning a game in Everybody's Golf 2 - in single-player or multiplayer mode - however, isn’t as easy as it might first seem. Timing is hugely important, even if the controls are stupidly simple.

Press X once to activate the power gauge, then tap it again when it reaches the 'sweet spot' to take your shot. If you mistime by a fraction of a second, your drive or approach will be completely bungled.

You can change clubs using the L and R triggers, but the game usually selects the best option for you automatically. You'll only really need to switch up if the AI hands you a sand wedge when you're standing in the middle of the fairway. (Sometimes, caddies are stupid like that.)

In the rough

During the matches themselves, the screen can look cluttered, with a lot of icons and info blared out at you. It’s all fairly easy to understand once you play a round or two, even if you’re not a huge golfing buff.

Yet such a busy screen makes Everybody's Golf 2 look worse than it plays – and it does look incredibly dated. Considering the game was first released in 2000, this can hardly be held against it.

Nevertheless, the jagged edges and rough graphics are definitely noticeable: the ball, for instance, will sometimes become obscured in the distance or get buried beneath grassy layers. Even the cartoony characters can’t save it from looking a little weathered.

For some people, the only other major sticking point will be the price - £3.99 seems a bit steep for a game as elementary and straightforward as many of the cheaper smartphone games on the Android Market.

If you played it on the original PlayStation and have nostalgic memories, this is probably unlikely to put you off. All flaws considered, you could do a lot worse than a reinvestment in an old favourite.

The best things you can say in the game's favour are that it doesn’t try too hard to be clever and it won’t ruin your sit-down. Everybody’s Golf 2 remains a solid sports title and is still accessible to fans and nonfans of this pastime. Even Mr Twain.

Everybody’s Golf 2

The graphics may be dated, but Everybody's Golf 2 is still an entertaining and accessible cartoon golf game
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Brendan Caldwell
Brendan Caldwell
Brendan is a boy. Specifically, a boy who plays games. More specifically, a nice boy who plays many games. He often feels he should be doing something else. That's when the siren call of an indie gem haunts him. Who shall win this battle of wills? Answer: not Brendan.