Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee

"Anger Management Patients Need Not Apply"

Okay, let's face it. Golf is a frustrating sport and video golf is not much better. In fact, I would venture in so far as to say it's worse. It's the type of game that just does not fair well in one on one play against a computer. Think about it. The secret to all video golf games is the ability to accurately gauge the correct amount of strength required to get the ball as close to the pin as possible while compensating for wind resistance and the slope of the ground and then carefully time your button presses to carry out your plan. Unless you're a video golfing freak, this usually amounts to hours of trial and error before you eventually get it right and even then it's annoying as heck when you spend what seems like an eternity lining up a shot only to have it fall just short of where you intended. This is just something that a computer unequivocally does better than a human. Most golf games (of which HSG is no exception) try to mimic the human element by having the computer mess up a certain percentage of shots, but try as they might, computers simply don't go on tilt. Humans on the other hand will mess up one shot and then the next 8 thinking about that last shot. Golf is to put it plainly a game best shared with others.

Having said that...

...I actually had quite a bit of fun playing solo.You've got several modes of which "Challenge" is arguably the meat and potatoes. Curiously, although you are able to play against other people using an ad-hoc wireless network, (if you are so inclined, there's even a way to play against people around the world via the Internet) there is no multiplayer feature for a single PSP using a pass the controller type format. Going back to Challenge mode, there you will have the chance to unlock characters, items, and courses. Not only that, but once you complete a challenge, your golfer's stats will rise. HSG has more of an arcade feel than other golfing games. Aside from the standard arsenal of golf shots and clubs, you've got a touch of the fantastic by being able to golf with things like an umbrella and being able to pull off superhuman homing shots. The game has the same comical non-offensive graphics of previous iterations. Characters look like oversize bobble-head dolls and each represent a none-too-imaginative stereotype. Definitely a bit kiddie in its presentation, but I didn't care as long as it didn't distract. Sound effects consist of your usual mishmash of whacks, clinks, and swishes. Its helpful to use the sound of the gusty wind to gauge its strength. Music is limited (as it should be!) to menu screens and short jingles after holing out.

HSG's positives come from when you get in that zone. You're nailing drives and putts are falling. You are a "birdie making machine" (thus Kevin Costner from Tin Cup). Nothing quite beats the feeling of chipping in a 50 yard shot for eagle. But those moments get fewer and farther in-between as you progress. HSG's negatives come when you get in that rut. Drives are landing in sand traps behind trees and birdie opportunities become 50 yard putts to save par. Once this happens, the most annoying part of HSG quickly becomes apparent, the inability to easily restart a course. In match play (play against a single opponent), you must first give-up the current hole and then you can exit your game. In tournament or stroke play, you *must* complete your current hole before you can exit your game. In both cases, you must then wade through the title menu, save options, mode selection, character selection, stage selection, etc. before you are finally able to start the course with a fresh slate. Very annoying. To HSG's credit, they try to reduce the frustration factor by implementing an "Easy" mode. Although it remains a mystery to me why normal mode is so frickin' sadistic, this is still very much appreciated. As an aside, I must warn would be amateur video golfers that the word "Easy" is relative.

The amount of playability you'll get from HSG depends on 2 factors: 1) how much of a video golfing fan you are; and 2) how much patience you have. Personally, I only had enough patience to play up to the sixth (and as far as I can tell the final) course you can unlock. At that point, the fairways became narrower, the greens became tinier, the winds became fiercer, and I became angrier. I neither had enough love of video golf to continue playing nor enough patience to practice the course.

So to wrap it up, HSG is a good enough game for video golfing fans to get their kicks. For the casual fan like myself, you'll enjoy the game early on, but find less and less reason to keep playing as the game wears on. And of course, golf haters need not apply. This game will do absolutely nothing to change your opinion. Recommended...somewhat.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 07/06/09

Game Release: Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee (US, 05/03/05)