The Concept

Developer: Firaxis
Publisher: Electronic Arts/Maxis
Sim Golf official page: http://simgolf.ea.com/

Sid Meier

The man, the myth, the legend. He is the single human cause of most college dropouts and the inspiration of aspiring game designers anywhere. Sid Meier. No matter what I or any other reviewer might say about SimGolf, it will sell like hotcakes. The first reason, is because the full title is "Sid Meier’s SimGolf." It could be "Sid Meier’s Crappiest Game In Computer History" and it would sell out. Sid is far, far beyond the typical game designer. He is recognized among the mainstream audiences as a safe choice.

My new tropical course

Hole 1 is ok

Holy 2 is brutal :(

However, that is only half the reason for SimGolf’s incoming, inescapable steamroller of success. The second reason is ‘Sim’. Since The Sims, anything Sim will sell. It could be SimRock, the real-time simulation of the creation and erosion of igneous rock, and it would sell. Will Wright, the man behind SimCity and Maxis in general, may not be as well known as Sid Meier, but he is no less influential. Take Will’s Sim concept, throw in the Sid Meier name and design, and you have what is going to be very likely the best-selling game of the year. But is it good?

What do I do?

SimGolf does not have the player playing golf. There are far too many golf simulators out there, and they have untouchable leads and licenses to real golf courses. Besides, for most people, playing a golf simulator is as stimulating as watching golf on TV. No, SimGolf puts you in charge of designing and running a golf course.

Predicted hole 2 drives

See if we can improve the stats

Yayayaya

Every new game gives you $100,000, and the opportunity to buy some locations from around the world. Not all of them are available initially – all but four will be too expensive. The four that are available are random, but there usually will be one of each type of course – a normal course, a desert course, a tropical one and a links course. The differences between these are merely cosmetic, though they add some character to the game.

Once the course is bought, you will start with a clubhouse and just enough money to build your first hole. As with most Sim games, there is no ultimate objective, though there are rewards for success and doing a good job. Milestones, both for your resident pro and the course itself, appear along the way and may or may not be accomplished. There are incentives to do so, but no penalties. All that the player is forced to do is maintain positive cash flow, and even then this task can be eliminated in Sandbox mode.