Vijay Singh Pro Golf 2005 Review

Anannya Sen’s Review

A superb golf game that is up to the usual high standards that Gameloft set for themselves.

When most people get a new phone it comes preloaded with Snake or even Snake 2 but when I opened up my shiny new Sony Ericsson K600i I was pleasantly surprised to see that it had a Gameloft game on there. And not just any game but their flagship golf title from 2005, Vijay Singh 3D Golf.

One of the first reviews we did was of the hugely impressive Tiger Woods from I-Play and I wondered how this would compare. Gameloft are great developers as, like I-Play, they seem to care about all the aspects of a game to make it a well rounded experience.

Vijay Singh is certainly no exception. The game is really well put together and a great deal of fun to play. You can customise your character to begin with (although there are only a few simple clothing and colour options) and give yourself a name for a career.

The graphics are actually really nice. The courses look lush and inviting, the backgrounds are well rendered with decent amounts of detail and colour and the 3D graphics for the ball and the player are excellent. There are some great little touches on the animation as well like the player taking a few set views of the hole or doing little skips / dances on good shots. These help to give the game a more interactive feel as when you miss what you thought was a simple putt, the stylish animation accurately mimics the way you feel in real life, often summed up in one word. Bugger.

Sound is pretty decent too, as it is on most Gameloft games. There are several types of tune when you load the game as well as when you finish the hole. In addition to this there are sound effects on hitting the ball as well as crowd noises and occasionally when you aren't doing anything you'll hear some birds chirping or ducks quacking. Great stuff.

The controls are very simple and kind of standard now for golf games. It's a one button press game which makes it very convenient for playing anywhere. Use the D or key pad or stick to select things. 1 and 3 change club. 0 will scroll to where you are hitting and you can change the direction of the ball. Press the main button or 5 to start the power bar. Again to stop. One great aspect of this is the convenient meter reading which tells you exactly where the correct power is for the distance you are instead of you having to work it out as a percentage in your head. It doesn't compensate for wind or the lie though. Once the power is done your accuracy bar will move and press the main button or 5 to set the aim. You have to get it in the small middle section for a perfect aim. After the ball is let loose you can add aftertouch by pressing a direction, left and right for swerve and up and down for topspin or backspin. Just like all golf games really.

The gameplay is really enjoyable. The learning curve is pitched at a good level and there are three levels of the same course to play and you have to unlock each one by finishing the last. They increase in difficulty and therefore getting birdies and eagles becomes much harder on the later courses. This is primarily from the lie of the green as in the first two courses they are pretty flat and later there is higher wind consistency from your opponents. The game has the obligatory extras of making money to improve your character's abilities. There are also plenty of trophies to win which range from finishing an 18 under par to getting 6 birdies in a row. On career mode you don't ever see your opponents but you do see how they are getting on after each shot so the pressure can mount, especially on the later levels. In the quick play mode you see their shots in all their glory. One cool thing about the game is the fact that the power bar builds up and then down so if you miss pressing the button you don't have to worry about overhitting. This isn't the same with the accuracy bar and if you don't press it in time you're in trouble! The game is quite addictive as it's easy to pick up and play and there's plenty to do.

The lastability is great as there are so many trophies to try and win and also modes to play. Even when you finish the courses you probably won't have done everything. The course you play on is a recreation of a great course from the US and the game will save your progress after each shot! In addition to this you get little side bets going on where you get extra money if you make an eagle on the hole or chip in from distance. This adds to the pressure and all of a sudden hitting perfect power and accuracy suddenly isn't so simple anymore. I haven't won the Legends course yet as I get quite far and then one bad hole and it's catch up time. But I will, and this is where the game shines as it draws you back in for great replay value, it's only a shame there's one course.

Slickly put together golf game which has almost everything you could wish for.