Review by Jon Donnis
I seem to be playing a lot of Golf based games recently, and the latest game to come across my desk is Golf Gang from Lazy Monday Games and published by the great people at Curve Games.
As I am sure you will all know, any game based on Golf that is not either a direct simulation or basic crazy golf, needs to have a gimmick, and with Golf Gang the gimmick is that it is more of a racing game, a game to be played with friends and all at the same time. Up to 8 players at once!
Since this is a racing game, speed is more important than accuracy, which means you can hit the ball while it is moving, and even while it is in the air. Hit a balloon and it gives you an extra boost, and once the time allows you, you can hit it again, allowing for some very nice long range shots.
There are lots of different courses, in different genres, grass, desert, snow etc.
There are in game "mods" that you can purchase with the in game currency, which allows you to get very creative, some of the mods include low gravity, explosions, slowing down time, and so on.
There are a few different modes, and it can be played in single player as well. There are time trials, basic golf, where you are not racing against time, and hybrid modes.
Throw in lots of things you can buy to customise the look of your "ball", purchase new courses, skins, accessories and so on.
There is even a creator mode where the community can create and share their own courses. Although I did not try any of that, so can't speak on it.
The Good
A very colourful game with a simple graphic style, everything moves fast, and in a race, it can get very exciting, and competitive.
The Bad
I hate the controls. You control the camera, the ball, everything with just the mouse, so in a frantic situation it makes it much harder to get your shot right, because you are trying to do three things with just one control method. The same with the gamepad, which you would think would be easier, but no, it is the same system but all mapped onto the right stick. There is a way around things however, you can press the F key on the keyboard and that shoots the ball at maximum speed, which allows you to use the mouse mainly for directional purposes, but obviously when you need a more finesse shot, you have no choice but to use the mouse. I have brought this up with the developers, and hopefully they will add extra methods for controlling your shots.
Overall
This is a fun game, bogged down slightly with a poor control system, don't get me wrong, you will get used to it, but you will throw skill out of the window pretty quick, and just hammer that F button. This is not about wanting to be great at a game from the start, it is about a new player feeling like the controls are intuitive, which they are not. Fix this control system and the game becomes infinitely more enjoyable.
I score Golf Gang in its current state a fair 7/10
Out Now on Steam
