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Pickings have been slim for golf simulations on the Nintendo 64. Waialae Country Club Golf gave N64 owners their first dose of sim golf on the N64, but that game was below average in terms of gameplay and graphics. Console golfers who do not desire the simulation element of golf have not been totally left out. Mario Golf and CyberTiger Woods are both highly playable games that sport bright graphics and fast gameplay.

Due to licensing issues, most golf games only include a handful of big-name golfers, if that many. PGA European Tour is different. Quite a few of the actual PGA European Tour names are included in the game. Several years ago, it would not be a big deal to have the real names, since few people in the U.S. cared about European golfers. However, golf has gained in popularity, and several European golfers are making a name for themselves. Nick Faldo, Steve Ballesteros, Colin Montgomerie, and Jose Maria Olazabal are several of the 64 actual golfers in PGA European Tour.

PGA European Tour is a step in the right direction for console golf games. Player licensing in NBA, NFL, and MLB games is a must in this day and age. I cannot imagine playing Triple Play 2001 or Madden NFL 2000 with fictitious players. Golf games need to follow suit, and begin offering a lineup of the actual golfers. Although PGA European Tour does not have great ball physics or graphics, it is still a fun game, in part, because of the excellent PGA license. Gameplay:

The best way to characterize the gameplay of PGA European Tour is by saying it is "fun." Realism is not a strong point of the game, but that does not mean that the game is lacking in the fun department. The challenge of beating the professional golfers is nice. Also, the interface is user friendly, which allows for quick gameplay. The physics model, unfortunately, is not so great. The physics model is problematic in several areas. First, the putted balls do not react realistically. On long putts, there is very little suspense, as the ball shoots very quickly off the putter. If not enough strength is applied to the shot, then the ball shoots off the putter, streaks across the green, then comes to a sudden stop. It looks very unrealistic. Second, the balls take some incredibly unrealistic bounces on the courses. A shot from an iron is subject to hitting in the middle of the fairway and going out of bounds on one hop. Eventually, the user will learn how to judge the ball physics in this title, but it takes a couple rounds to learn the unworldly physics. Third, the balls do not behave realistically in terms of roll. At times, it seems as if there is velcro on the ball.

Despite the lack of a great physics model, the variation in weather conditions and wind make for the user to use good strategy. PGA European Tour is not a game that accentuates the long game. Instead, the user will find that getting par on Par-4 and Par-5 holes is the norm. Birdies and eagles are a rare treat. Also, since the pro tour is so competitive, the user will have to make use of items such as backspin and topsin - every shot is important. One thing that is disappointing is the lack of good stat tracking. It is hard to believe that a game that has so much going in its favor, fails to offer decent stat tracking.

Longevity:

Several modes of play are available in PGA European Tour. Quick Match is simply a round of 18 holes on a randomly selected course. Non-Tour Golf allows up to four players to compete in games such as strokeplay, matchplay, skins, and practice. EPGA Tour is a career-based mode of play in which the user must start as an amateur, and eventually earn a spot on the PGA Tour. This mode is implemented well. The user must progress through a number of stages to reach the top. Starting the Challenge Tour as an amateur is the starting point. Challenge Tour consists of four events. If the user fails to finish this tour among the top eight golfers, then they must start over. Rankings are based on prize money. The top eight ranked Challenge Tour golfers then proceed to Qualifying School. The Qualifying School consists not only of the eight players from the Challenge Tour, but also the bottom eight ranked players from the PGA European Tour. If the user finishes in the top eight ranked players in Qualifying School, then it is time to go play with the superstars. Once on the PGA European Tour, the goal is to become ranked number one. Seven real-life events are played on the pro tour. The tour events are run just like in the real world. Golfers are subject to being cut if their scores are not high enough. The final event is the Matchplay Championship, in which the top 16 golfers compete. While the EPGA Tour takes a while to play through completion, it is a very competitive mode of play, and provides nice depth to the game.

Controls:

There has been very little progress in the development of an intuitive swing interface in console golf games. Although games such as CyberTiger have attempted to implement use of the analog stick for power and direction of shots, nothing in the console realm has approached the intuitive feel of PGA Championship for the PC. PGA European Tour has several swinging interfaces available to the user. The standard 3-click and 2-click methods are included. Additionally, there are two interface types known as "X-Swing" and "Y-Swing." These two methods require the user to press the A buttton to activate the Swing-o-Meter, push the directional control to start the backswing, activate the downswing by pushing in the opposite direction of the backswing, and then release the A button make contact with the ball. Any deviations in the path of the directional controls will cause hook or slice. I was optimistic when reading the instructions on how to implement this type of interface, but became disappointed after struggling to implement it. It is not that it is hard to eventually master, but it simply does not provide for a satisfying swing mechanism. The "X-Swing" and "Y-Swing" interfaces make the game a bit more challenging, but add little to the gameplay value.

Graphics:

Graphically, PGA European Tour is nothing to get excited about. Four European golf courses are present in this title - The K Club, Quinta do Lago, Kungsangen, and Druid's Glen. On the fly-bys and overhead views, the courses look pretty good. The courses look far from gorgeous when viewed up close. Perhaps I have grown too accustomed to the detailed graphics of PC golf games, but PGA European Tour's courses seem bland. Objects such as trees, brush, the rough, water, and sand all appear as simplistic items. The sand traps, in particular, are unimpressive. The bunkers look like nothing more than a beige surface, with little curvature. The greens do not look very good either. Aside from the path indicator used during putting, the contour of the greens is not well defined graphically. The weather effects, especially rain and fog, are fairly well done. However, the courses seem overly dark in the afternoon, even on sunny days. The "darkness" of the courses reminds of the tone of the video by Dream Academy, "Life In A Northern Town." I certainly do not expect the bright color palette of Mario Golf, but the colors of PGA European Tour need some life. On the positive side, the golfers look fairly good. They animate well, and roughly resemble their real-world counterparts. Before certain shots, the golfers will take a practice swing, or perform some other action. While this feature may add to the realism of the game, I find it to take up too much time. Fortunately, these animation sequences can be forwarded through by pressing the "A" button.

The camera work in PGA European Tour gets the job done. The camera follows the ball after it is hit, and its positioning allows for suspense on where the ball will ultimately land. Before the ball is hit, the user has the option to view a fly-by of the hole, or even walk the hole. Depending on the user's preference, there are arrows that show the estimated arc and landing point of the drives and chips. The color of the arrow indicates wind effect and possible obstacles in the path of the shot. While on the green, a path arrow is shown. This arrow shows the approximate path the ball will take on a putt.

Sound:

The developers of PGA European Golf took a minimalist approach to the sound. From the music of the introduction to the on-course sounds, the sound of PGA European Tour is low key. The commentary is delivered by the BBC's Peter Allis. He does a respectable job, although the commentary does get a bit repetitive. The sound on the golf course is good. The environmental sounds are nicely implemented, and the rain sounds spot on. Even the running streams make a realistic sound. Overall, I like the sound in this title. I play golf to relax, and the sounds in PGA European Tour are mellow enough to allow the game to seem relaxing.

Overall:

Normally, I would not give a respectable score to a golf simulation that has a below-average physics model, lackluster graphics, and poor stat tracking. However, PGA European Tour is a game that I found myself playing quite a bit, and having fun to boot. The generous inclusion of actual European Tour players, the competitive EPGA Tour mode, and the ability to play a quickly-paced match are all reasons to like this game. The Nintendo 64 is still without a great golf simulation, but for the moment there is something close enough for gamers who want to go beyond the cutesy atmosphere of Mario and CyberTiger. PGA European Tour has what it takes to provide gamers with an enjoyable golfing experience.