Review - Mario Golf: World Tour

Mario and friends take to the golf course in the latest instalment in the long-running Mario golf series, and it proves to be a real winner.

It’s probably got something to do with growing up in the 80s and 90s that has made me incredibly wary of spin-off games featuring much loved characters in situations other than the ones they’re best known for. A slew of these rubbish titles littered the release schedules back in those days, and it’s been hard to shake off the suspicion that, even today, anything that takes a similar tack is destined for mediocrity – if you’re lucky.However Nintendo, as we all know, likes to do things a little differently. The cast of the much-loved Mario series has made countless appearances in a variety of different games, spanning multiple genres, dabbling in various sports and even taking a shot at medicine and, surprisingly, these spin-offs tend to hit the mark more often than not. I say surprisingly because, let’s be honest, the original idea to take Mario onto the course way back in 1984 for the NES title “Golf” was hardly one to get people excited.Nevertheless, in the years since that modest original, Mario has worn his love for the sport on a number of occasions, with Nintendo 64 release Mario Golf marking the first time he managed to get his name into the title, and he hasn’t looked back since.Although Mario Golf is far from an in-depth simulation of the real-world sport, it shares countless obvious similarities. Tiger Woods PGA Tour it’s not, but at no stage does it ever try to be, instead aiming for the kind of pick-up-and-play gameplay that is sorely lacking in traditional golf sims. In Mario Golf: World Tour, Camelot Software Planning once again takes on development duties, and this might just be their best trip to the course to date.Despite not being a first party developed title, everything about World Tour screams Mario. It’s got that unmistakable Nintendo charm and charisma that you can’t find elsewhere, and as you guide your Mii through his career at the renowned Castle Club Golf Course you’ll encounter a blissful mix of tomfoolery and straight up golfing action.Arguably the most difficult part of your early time with World Tour will be casting aside your presuppositions that, because this lacks the serious presentation, in-depth real-world course selection and ludicrously detailed ball physics of some of the more straight-edged golf titles, it’s a title exclusively for younger players, or those who don’t play the real thing. But that really couldn’t be further from the truth.