Golf video games: Top 20 of all time
14. Sports Champions 2 Golf/Wii Sports Golf
Sports Champions 2 was a terrific follow-up to the original title, and brought the sport of golf to its lineup after having the fun sport of disc golf in the first one.
Yes, I just threw you a knuckleball. Hope you can hit it.
I threw both Sports Champions 2 Golf and Wii Sports Golf together because they both operate similarly. Only differences is the looks. Let’s start off with Sports Champions 2 and its golf.
Sports Champions 2 Golf
Sports Champions is a game significant with the world of PlayStation. It was the first all-sports game to require the use of the PlayStation Move controller. Among the sports in the first title included Bocce Ball and Disc Golf. The second release of the title would feature traditional golf and tennis among others.The golf on Sports Champions 2 is about as accurate as you can get with with the Move. As long as the PS Eye Camera was in range, the motions were nearly flawless.
There were only three courses to play on but plenty of holes to navigate. Each course was nine holes and also featured par-3 tracks as well. In the video above, I play on the island course as I flail my clubs around and as you can also tell, I like my visors sideways. At impact, you can feel the minor vibration in the controller. It feels like you really hit the ball and it’s the little things like that that make this mini-game an all-timer. It got you close to the sport without being there.
Wii Sports Golf
The golf game in Wii Sports was important in introducing the sport to the world of motion-control gaming.
Wii Sports is the third-highest-selling video game of all time and for good reason. It was affordable, featured several sports, and instrumental in the growth of motion-control gaming. To put it simply, it changed the video game world forever. It also came with a lot of Wii systems in the box. It was a great way to get a head start on your motion-controlled journey. One of the popular games on there was the golf game and similar to Sports Champions 2, it was a dandy.
The accuracy of the motion was true1-to-1. You really felt the impact when swinging with these armless and legless warriors. The extreme popularity of Wii Sports translated into Wii Sports Resort, which is seen in the video above. It was my first real taste of experiencing the sport of golf away from the course, taking full swings and hitting putts.
Wii Sports helped spearhead for series such as Sports Champions. Moreover, these motion-control games helped segue into the world of virtual reality. Games like Wii Sports made experiencing golf more convenient. It’s like when you go the driving range. There’s nothing more convenient than the range and Wii Sports was that perfect golf getaway on those rainy days. It didn’t hurt that the other sports were great as well.