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Review: Powerstar Golf

Looking for a mostly inoffensive, nice-looking, takes-no-risks golf game on the Xbox One? Look no further than Powerstar Golf. This opening blurb might sound bad, but it wasn’t meant to be; Powerstar Golf is a safe, fun game that delivers exactly what you’re expecting.

That is, to be blunt, Everybody’s Golf (or, as you North Americans might know it, Hot Shots Golf) on an Xbox.

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You’ll start the game off able to use one of two golfers and a similar amount of caddies. This is your introduction not only to Powerstar, but to the concept of the game’s special abilities. Muscle-head Frank can place extra power placed on his drives, while token ‘smart Asian’ Reiko has a magnetic ball and pin combo that makes for easy hole-in-one or chip shots, providing you can get the ball close enough to the pin to take advantage.

Stopping here for a second, Reiko’s character was clearly created by a super-racist dude and voiced by someone who thinks that substituting ‘r’ for ‘l’ in speech is appropriate. Add to that some wince-worthy lines like “Easier than a PhD” after great shots, and it’s a recipe for near-disaster. Each character is clearly a stereotype – muscle-bound dude, scientist, ‘Real Housewife’-type lady and all that – but developer Zoë Mode surely could have picked less derogatory and offensive clichés to poke fun at.

Moving on, Powerstar Golf is all about record breaking. With each hole, you’ll be able to see Xbox Live friends and top-scorers who’ve managed long drives, amazing chip shots and the like, and you’re actively encouraged to best those records. As you play, the game will also throw direct challenges at you, demanding that you better the score of an Xbox Live friend, or, in the case of couch co-op, your local opponent. As you progress through exhibition or career-making golf courses, not only will you replay matches to best yourself, you’ll do it to try to beat your friends.

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Whilst online play against others will be the best bit of the game, you’re encouraged to go single-player to take on different courses and their masters. Once you beat the master of a certain course, you unlock that player to use in your own game. Each golfer comes with their own special skill, and they’re all worth checking out. Progress is also tracked via XP, and said points can be used to purchase new perks and equipment.

Shot-wise, you’re able to put spin on the ball by using your d-pad, and shots themselves are performed using the all-too-familiar golf shot bar seen in a thousand golf games before Powerstar. Hell, I remember playing Pebble Beach Golf Links on the 3D0 (I know, right) back in 1994, and not much has changed in that respect.

Competitive types will loathe that shot bar, as it’s fair, yet unforgiving. Miss your markers, and your ball is going to hit the rough, a bunker or simply go nowhere near where you planned. Couch co-op allows for 2-4 player golfing, so it’s especially more embarrassing when you flub a shot next to your mates. As far as multiplayer experiences go, PowerStar Golf provides for the only 4 player first-party Xbox One experience that we can think of, so be aware.

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Powerstar Golf – apart from the horrible representation of Asians as nothing more than overly-motivated intellectuals with broken English – plays it very safe. So safe, in fact, that Kinect control doesn’t make an appearance. Golf in the 360’s Kinect Sports: Season Two was amazing, and the Kinect bundled with the Xbox One is about 1,000 times better (no exaggeration), so it’s disappointing to see that you couldn’t tee up a shot with the new, included-for-all peripheral.

Lack of risk aside, Powerstar Golf is a great little addition to your fledgling Xbox One collection. Fans of golf will obviously want to pick it up, and those who wish to entertain friends on the couch with a little friendly competition will find this a must-have as well. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have an appointment on the back nine to keep.

 

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About the author

Steve Wright

Steve's the owner of this very site and an active games journalist nearing twenty (TWENTY!?!) years. He's a Canadian-Australian gay gaming geek, ice hockey player and fan. Husband to Matt and cat dad to Wally and Quinn.