Everybody's Golf - PS2

Minna Ho Golf is a household name in Japan, but the cartoony, nicely balanced golf game has rarely made it to these western parts of the world, where consumers have more faith in more realistic golfing sims. Now we are to be plunged into SCEI’s cutesy world, as the PSP is accompanied by its own version and Everybody’s Golf 4 makes its way onto PS2. The fact that what is in fact the fourth game in the series is to be known simply as Everybody’s Golf shows just how little known it is here in Europe.

Subscribing to the old school of golf swing mechanics – you play the ball with a sequence of carefully timed button taps – the game boasts 13 sunshine-soaked courses. These environments, which are very beautiful, are complemented perfectly by 34 wacky, super deformed characters to choose from, including such SCEI luminaries as Jak, of & Daxter fame. Being a SCEI title, it’s no surprise that Everybody’s Golf makes use of the PS2’s now near ubiquitous online capabilities. This it does par excellence, enabling you to take part in online golf tournaments involving up to 50 competitors. And if you’re somewhat less ambitious, you can still host tourneys in your living room for up to four friends.

So, Everybody’s Golf really does live up to its name, and brings the joys of videogame golf to the masses with delightfully democratic enthusiasm. If you’re looking for an accessible and addictive title to challenge your buddies – online or otherwise – then this might be the game you were looking for.
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