Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour

"Mario's no Tiger, but he still gets the job done."

Golf was never that interesting to me. The only golf I ever really played was miniature golf, and even that was ho-hum. All you did in golf was swing a club to hit a ball as close to the hole as you could. Everyone watching a game of golf remained quiet as the golfer started getting ready to hit the ball. I figured that any average Joe could hit the ball towards the ball without hesitation.

All of a sudden, Camelot released a game called Mario Golf 64 featuring Mario characters (well, some of them) as well as a cast of new characters teeing it off on different courses more or less inspired by Mario games. Since Camelot went through all the work of slapping an easily recognizable franchise to a sport, I decided that I might as well try it out. Losing the first game showed me that there’s more to golf than striking the ball off the tee. There are many factors into every move you make. I learned why concentration was important for most golfers. I soon found myself liking golf. Now that the Gamecube version is out, I figured I would continue the Mario magic and see for myself how much the series has improved.

Gameplay: After a humorous intro sequence, the game began. One would easily be amazed at how much Camelot has added. New modes have popped up overnight as it would seem. First off is a handy tutorial that is extremely helpful. Not only does it tell you the basics, but it also provides you with some advanced strategies for different scenarios.

Now on to the main game… Before even picking a mode of play, you must first choose your character out of the available 14, though you will eventually unlock others. You must decide on the character with the attributes that suit your gameplay. Each character has different ratings of impact, control, and spin. If you want an strong character that will have the ball flying, choose characters with strong impact such as Diddy Kong. For more control over the ball, choose a character with high control ratings like Luigi. If you want your ball to have better backspin or topspin prowess, then go for a character with a high spin rating like Daisy. Choosing characters here is more about knowing what style you can win with, not by choosing a character that has a cool hat.

There are multiple modes opposed to Mario Golf 64’s few modes. The first mode, being tournament mode is the mode you may find yourself playing the most. In tournament, you play an 18 course golf game with other characters that you don’t actually see playing. The game is most like a regular game of golf where you must hit the ball towards the hold located on what is known as the green under a certain limit called a par. Getting below par will help you win the game, but scoring above par will place you dangerously behind in the scoreboard. By winning the tournament with the lowest score, (lower scores win in golf) you can unlock new courses for further gameplay.

There is challenge though since you must make sure you pay attention to every little thing during gameplay. Choosing your club requires a certain knowledge of how strong and effective a club is in a certain situation whether it be on the tee, in a bunker, or on the green. Then checking the direction of which the wind blows as well as the speed of the wind is necessary as it may affect where you must aim the ball to get to the desired spot. A final addition is hitting the ball at a certain impact point to give it a little spin.

Finally, once you get to the actual swinging, you must set the power of your swing by timing it with a meter. There are two different types of swinging. The new and easier one, auto-swing, requires only that you set the power. This simpler method is better for beginners who aren’t good at timing. For golf pros, the manual swing from the original game returns. You must not only set the power, but set aim by pressing the swing button an extra time when the cursor on the meter is located upon the “sweet spot”. That method takes practice but is also the only way to apply topspin and backspin to the ball.

The courses themselves look like regular golf courses and have all the popular (sort of) elements such as the fairway, the green, the bunker, and the infamous water hazard. Then once you get farther into the game, you see some Mario inspired courses. One of the final courses is Mario themed and features chain chomps that gobble your ball and pipe warps that transport your ball should you land onto them. There may only be about 7 courses, but they are all fun in their own right.

Moving along, we see character matches which allow you to compete with a computer controlled opponent in the hopes that you will gain a starred version of their character. Starred characters are generally more powerful then their normal counterparts. A nice addition is the doubles matches which put two characters in a match against two other characters. Two characters take turns hitting the ball and must cooperate as a team to succeed.

Games get weirder with the returning ring shot mode where not only must you score under par. You must also shoot the ball through every ring on the course along the way. The rings are usually in difficult areas to reach and require careful planning. If you’re feeling lucky, the club slots forces you to play a course using only the clubs that you win in the slots. Coin shoot requires you to collect coins scattered along the field as you play, speed golf is more of a time attack style of game, stroke play allows you to compete for the fewest total strokes, and near pin mode where you must aim for the shortest total distance from the pin. Four side games include a birdie challenge where you must score consecutive birdies (under par) as well as three practice games that help you improve your drives, approaches, and putts. Finally, for those of you that just want to play any stage you want, there is a training mode.

The action becomes more exciting with two to four players. You can either face them in regular match plays or double games. Additionally, there is a skins match where the player who finishes with the lowest score wins one point. The one with the most points wins. Setting handicaps for those with lower skill levels allow anyone to play against each other. The handicaps you can set are where the ball lands, how far the tee box is from the pin, and how many mulligans (retries) each player has.

Now that the many modes are out of the way, you must be thinking that Camelot must have forgotten something in the transfer of Mario Golf from N64 to GCN. What was it again? Oh right, miniature golf is missing! The fun miniature golf mode where you must simply swing a ball through a tiny course with a putter is absent from this title for no apparent reason. Still, be grateful that Camelot put so many modes in. After all, miniature golf can still be found on Mario Golf 64.

Some final gripes I have about this game are the fact that the game constantly breaks your concentration. When it’s not a Boo snickering around telling you to hurry up, it’s your friends whose only purpose in life is to taunt you, which you can do in the game. Concentration is easily broken with these nuisances. Also, the gameplay appears to have been dumbed down. Not only do you have auto-swing, the game practically tells you where to go. You get a grid showing the average landing point of your ball. Wherever you are, they will choose the club best suited for the occasion. The only thing you can really do for yourself is swing the ball and adjust the power. However, even with these problems, the game remains fun with the presence of wind and a ball’s impact zone.

Mario Golf has outstanding gameplay that is only lowered by it’s appeal to golf beginners. I am a beginner in real golf with no interest to continue, but in Mario Golf, I actually have a good chance in winning and am very interested in playing. Camelot has done a great job in making a golf game that appeals to people who don’t even know how to play golf.

Rating: 8/10

Graphics: The graphics are amazing and make the courses look real and alive. The intro sequences features amazing 3D animatics and great character models with few surpassing them. The environment looks so real that you feel you could just touch it. These graphics make Mario Golf 64 look like dirt.

Rating: 9/10

Music/Sound: The music is uninspired but just perfect for a sports title, just like music for the original Mario Golf and Mario Tennis that followed. However, some familiar tunes have made it including the underground theme from the original Mario as well as the castle theme from Mario 64.

The sound is realistic with the sounds of clubs swinging and balls flying in the air and landing. Each character has voice samples that are true to their character. My only complaint is that Diddy sounds like some weird bird and Bowser has the same weird grunt voice that he had in Mario Sunshine, unlike the cool roaring voice in Mario 64.

Rating: 7/10

Replayablity: With the many modes, it will be surprising if you master, let alone complete each course with every character. There are many courses to unlock as well as a few extra playable characters. Once you finish all that, you still have to play Mario Golf for the Game Boy Advance and connect the games together using the link cable. The players you created on the GBA come to life in the GCN. With so much to do, the game should keep you busy months from now.

Rating: 9/10

Rent or Buy? Whether or not you like golf, Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour is a great purchase catering to every video game fan and will be worth your money. In other words, this game is a definite buy.

Final Rating: 8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/30/03, Updated 07/30/03