It’s a known fact that mini-golf is a lot of fun. Not only is it simple and addictive, but it’s something that the whole family can enjoy; from young kids, all the way up to the elderly. So logically, this should translate into an awesome experience over Xbox Live. Well,
3D Ultra Minigolf Adventures does a pretty good job of it.
There are a total of 36 holes that are all rather unique from one another, set onto 3 different course styles. These three styles include ‘The Old West’, with holes revolving around blowing up barrels, avoiding scorpions that crawl all over the course and rolling past gophers without them getting in your way; ‘Classic Carnival’, which involves everything you could expect from mini-golf including things like a big spinning roulette wheel and a bulls-eye; and last but not least is the ‘Outer Space’ course, which will challenge you to literally defy gravity, shoot your ball into craters and try to predict where to hit your ball so that it will teleport into the hole at the end.
Minigolf and gravestones... that's a little depressing.
There are three different ways in which you can use your controller to get the best out of your putt. You can hold and release, use three clicks or use the analog (which is what is used in golf simulations like Tiger Woods). The power meter is divided into three sections, green, yellow and red, and you’ll have to think carefully about where in the power meter you want to use for each hole, as it seems to be a little unstable. In some instances, you’ll want a small shot and will hit it in the green, only to overshoot the hole completely. In other cases, you’ll want a long shot, hit it somewhere in the yellow and the ball will only go a short distance. It can be difficult considering how hard it is to predict your shot strengths, but thankfully the holes are all a lot of fun to play, so an oversight like this isn’t completely detrimental to the game experience, albeit a little frustrating at times.
In single player mode, there isn’t that much to do – there are two courses that have 18 holes, each combining six holes from each of the three course styles, or you can choose to do the long haul and play through all 36 holes. There are achievements to be had for doing well in these modes, but we don’t think you’ll be coming back to them once you’ve earned the points for your game-score. Where the game absolutely shines, which was to be expected, is in its multiplayer mode.
Everybody do the bump.
Up to 4 players can compete against each other over Xbox Live where you take turns having shots - just like if you were playing mini-golf in real life. There are power-ups scattered around each hole that can be used to affect your opponents or give yourself a boost. If you get the oil power-up, you can leave a trail of stickiness behind your ball as it rolls for a moment, leaving the remains for your opponents to contend with. Combine this with silly things like electric shocks that send nearby balls flying out of bounds and a spring power-up which allows your ball to jump over obstacles, and you have a very fun and competitive game of golf on your hands.
3D Ultra Minigolf Adventures won’t change your life, but it’s a whole lot of fun. It’s simple, inventive, entertaining and somewhat addictive. A little lacking in the single-player department but an absolute blast in multi-player. At 800 points, this game is definitely worth picking up for anybody who has a remote interest in this little sub-genre that has been so popular over the years both in real life and in videogames.
