PANGYA: Fantasy Golf

Golf etiquette demands a quiet, reserved clap in response to a successful shot.

No shouts, screams, or outbursts of joy. Open your mouth and security is sure to come to pluck you from the sidelines for making a scene. Not standing out is the golden rule of the golf spectator.

PANGYA: Fantasy Golf holds fast to the conventions of video game golf, opting instead to differentiate itself from the crowd with animated visuals and a rich, highly customisable single player experience. Without online play and a larger set of local multiplayer modes, however, the game relinquishes the honour of a round of applause for a polite, conforming golf clap.

The most important element of any virtual golf game - the controls - remains consistent with others in the field. A three-button-press shot mechanic keeps things simple: tap X to start your swing, again to set its power, and a third time to determine the accuracy of the shot. It's familiar and it works.

That simplicity makes it much easier to layer advanced techniques like spin and curvature. PANGYA excels in this regard, the ease of pulling off special shots actually encouraging you to use them more frequently.

Holding up or down on the D-pad during the second half of a swing places topspin or downspin on the ball (called an aztec in the game), respectively. Other shots involve quick pulls on the shoulder buttons or a flick left or right on the D-pad. All are easy manoeuvres, yet provide a sense of depth to the game beyond monotonous jamming on the X button.

Mastering the controls puts you in a good position going into Story, License, and Tournament modes. Each has you vying for domination on the green while building up your reputation and purchasing equipment with your winnings. Play across all three modes earns you general experience that raises your title from Rookie to Master, as well as filling your pockets with in-game currency, 'pang'.

Story mode enters stage front with slate of playable characters that you control across two narrative episodes. Each character receives their own vignette, though they're loaded down with entirely too much dialogue. Most of your time in Story mode is spent flipping through text rather than teeing up.

Tournament mode steals the spotlight. Before you're able to register for tournaments, you first have to earn the associated permission slips in License mode. These licenses are testing tasks asking you to score holes-in-one, acquire so much 'pang' in a round, or finish in so many strokes. Earning licenses to enter the tournaments themselves is more exciting than trudging through the story.

With licenses in hand, you can compete in huge tournaments on any of the game's nine themed courses. Instead of dialogue-laden one-on-one contests as in Story mode, you're thrown into a mix of 30 computer-controlled opponents. It's a stiffer challenge and, without the heavy text, a much more enjoyable play.

While PANGYA offers a hearty slice of single player golf, it doles out only a sliver of multiplayer action. Eight players can link up locally in Ad-hoc mode, but limited options and the lack of online play keep it well behind other titles in the genre.

The omission of network play really handicaps the game's long term value, particularly given its availability in Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 and Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee 2. Even more curious is the fact PANGYA originates from a massively multiplayer online game of the same name.

Expanding the options available when setting up a local round with friends is would be a good place to start bridging the gap between PANGYA and competitors. Rounds can be played on any of the nine courses, configurable for 3-, 6-, 9-, and 18-hole competition.

It's possible to hold a free-for-all or divide into teams. By default stroke play rules are used: there's no option for match play when squaring off against a buddy head-to-head.

Hours of solo gameplay assure decent value, but PANGYA lacks varied value in skipping online play. Cute graphics and great controls make it fun to play, though these qualities aren't unique to this game. You're likely to have just as much fun with another more feature-rich competitor.

PANGYA: Fantasy Golf

Neat presentation and solid controls mean you’ll have golfing fun with PANGYA: Fantasy Golf, but its lack of online play is a surprise
Score
Tracy Erickson
Tracy Erickson
Manning our editorial outpost in America, Tracy comes with years of expertise at mashing a keyboard. When he's not out painting the town red, he jets across the home of the brave, covering press events under the Pocket Gamer banner.