Author: Shawn Hawkins
Editor: Howard Ha
Publish Date: Monday, November 27th, 2000
Originally Published on Neoseeker (http://www.neoseeker.com)
Article Link: http://www.neoseeker.com/Articles/Games/Reviews/links2001/
Copyright Neo Era Media, Inc. - please do not redistribute or use for commercial purposes.
Introduction, Visuals & Characters
Links2001 is Microsoft's latest contribution to sports genre. It boasts a new graphic rendering engine, colorful golf characters, accurate ball physics, and impressive online play. These elements serve to create a realistic golfing experience in a game that ranks among the best in the industry. Two separate programs are included in the Links2001 package: the golf game itself and the Arnold Palmer Course Designer, a program which allows the player to create and manipulate courses. Links2001 is a top-quality product and a solid contribution to the sports genre.
The game's graphic rendering engine provides fantastic visual accuracy. Cliffs, rock beds, and bunker overhangs are delivered with, for the most part, photographic quality. It creates a 3dimentional effect without any trace of polygonal shapes. Links 2001 also supports a high resolution (1280-1024) making imagery amazingly crisp.
The ball physics are impressive in their realism. The golf ball is accurately affected by wind, other physical objects, and rough terrain. The ball is controlled by specifying the angle of the character's body, the type of club, and the intensity of the swing. A player can customize club distance for better control of the golfer or to reflect his own real-life skills. Another interesting feature is a colored grid which appears when putting. The grid shows the distance and contour of the putting green allowing the player to better estimate the necessary shot. The player can also monitor his improvement as player and course statistics are tracked for every round.
There are three swing types that the player can choose from: easy, classic, and powerstroke. The easy and classic stoke types are similar; a ”swing gauge” is used to select the intensity of the swing in real time. When the easy stroke type is selected, pointers are given on the swing gauge to aid in making shots. When the classic stroke type is selected, players must judge the necessary intensity on their own. The powerstroke option requires more skill. The player must move the mouse from left to right at a speed suited to represent the intensity of the hit. Direction can then be controlled by placing a marker on the green for the ball to move toward. Powerstroke requires a fair amount of practice to master and it, therefore, seems that most virtual golfers will prefer and be satisfied with the much simpler classic stroke.
There are 14 golfing characters to choose from, each one looking completely different. These include three well-known golfers, Arnold Palmer, Anna Sorenstam, and Sergio Garcia, and a number of generic physical types. The characters are high quality 2D video representations of real people in the 3D environment. Each character will behave differently when pleased with their shot or when disappointed. Anna Sorenstam will kick her club and let out a sigh of disappointment when her shot goes awry. One of the generic characters will throw a full-fledged tantrum. This adds an entertaining element to the game, as the player never quite knows what to expect.
Features, Multiplayer & Final Thoughts
There are six courses that are included in the game, Avaria, Princeville, Chateau Whistler, Westfields, Mesa Rosa, and an updated version of St.Andrews. Each course was created using global positioning satellite (GPS) points and Microsoft claims that all courses are accurate to the centimeter. This can give golf enthusiasts the opportunity to "virtually" golf on some world-renowned courses that they may not otherwise get a chance to try.
Links 2001 comes complete with The Arnold Palmer Course Designer which allows the player to design courses using the same tools used by the Links 2001 design team. The course designer is a program that allows players to customize a course or to recreate a course of their liking. The player is provided with over 1,400 types of trees, shrubs, and 3D objects to choose from. Everything from course size and shape to environmental climate and season can be specified. This program is rather complex and it is doubtful that many happy Links2001 purchasers will take the time and energy to design an entire course.
Links 2001 has full multiplayer capability and can be played over a LAN,TCP/IP, or over the Internet. The most interesting element of multiplayer is that Microsoft plans to host the Virtual Golf Association Tour that will allow Internet players to compete for $100,000. This may turn out to be the largest multiplayer event to date. There will also be a series of monthly golf tournaments where online gamers can compete for real money. A novel feature in the online component of Links2001 is "simultaneousness", which allows online golfers to observe the ball flight of their competitors in an overhead view. The end result is faster and more gratifying online play.
Links2001 is an exciting addition to the sports genre. The fact that there is a Virtual Golf Association Tour for $100,000 and several monthly competitions with monetary prizes brings Links2001 to the level of real sport as opposed to casual gaming. The game itself has a realistic feel and appearance, making it inviting and pleasant to play. The characters, along with their comments and antics, give the game depth and personality. The Arnold Palmer Course Designer is an innovative contribution, difficult and unintuitive as it may be. In all, Links2001 is a dynamic product of great quality that would make a formidable addition to any sports gamer's collection.
Overall Score: 90%
System Requirements:
Pentium II 266 Mhz or greater.
Win 95/98
48 MB of Ram (64 recommended)
250 MB minimum hard drive space.
Quad speed CD-Rom drive.
4 MB video card
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