Hot Shots Golf Fore!

Online play is addictive and challenging despite its frustrating flaws and oversights, the realism of the game despite the cartoony look is great, and most importantly, the game is extremely fun.

The online gameplay is somewhat less inspiring than I hoped, but overall it looks and sounds great, plays extremely well, and most importantly is a ton of fun for single and multiple players.

The visuals may seem vaguely familiar, and the gameplay may fit like a glove, but you'll be hard-pressed to find a sequel that delivers as much new content as Hot Shots Golf Fore! so effortlessly does. [Sept 2004, p.108]

I cannot express how much enjoyment this title has brought into our family gaming.

Underneath all the 'hilariosity' though, are some rock solid physics.

9 / 9 / 9 / 9 - 36 platinum [Vol 781]

If may not feature a drunken out of shape John Daly or the regal presence of Tiger himself, but like Stifler's mom, it definitely has it going on. Buy it for the gameplay, stay for the online.

Though hard-core golfers might not appreciate exaggerated plaid pants on cartoon characters and sarcastic golfers, pretty much everyone else will get into the game's taunting, tricks and big hit effects and exaggerated character personalities.

A deceptively deep golf game. [Nov 2004, p.85]

The graphics will simply amaze you in this off the wall game.

The best golf game that you will find on a console. There is so much depth so much charm to this game. It is impossible to dislike unless you really hate golf.

Hot Shots Golf Fore! has updated its own version of cartoonish golf in a pretty spectacular way...The cross sections in the shots, the trail option of skipping through the shot, and the wind affecting the trees all add up to making the game an improvement all around.

Proof that as long as a game is fun, it doesn’t need to be advanced upon by leaps and bounds with every installment. There’s loads of content here.

You can play 18 holes with up to three more players or play in a huge tournament (up to 50 players) It's not a revolutionary online mode but it's a huge step forward from HSG3.

Despite its goofy and, possibly to some, even tasteless look, HSGF! is one of the most enjoyable golf games on the market, and surely the finest I’ve ever come across in its field.

The unlockable content alone is enough to keep a player busy for quite some time; couple in the sweet little extras like ‘celebrity’ golfers, and mini golf and the enjoyment can go on for quite some time.

An option to use either the analog stick or button swing commands, a full suite of online play modes and options, the ability to swap clubs, gear, and characters online or through memory cards, and maybe some sort of golf cart racing mini-game in addition to the character/voice creator mentioned above, and the next Hot Shots game would be even better.

The limited online mode and lack of a course editor are lamentable, but the new characters and courses are quite nice.

Up to 50 players can compete in a single tournament with the low score for the course taking the prize. Even though the tournaments are quite large it often feels like you are playing solo as you play each hole on your own.

It's simplistic in the initial stages, but deep down, this is a fun, surprisingly deep game that can keep you interested for quite a while.

If you like the game of golf, and appreciate a well styled, RPG-like game with an online component, then I would certainly pick up Hot Shots Fore!

Worth a play if you didn’t snag the last one. Otherwise, how valuable is online play to you?

Packing a new online community, new courses to take on, slight gameplay tweaks, and some surprise faces in the cast, Hot Shots Golf Fore! is definitely worth a go-around.

Even though the cartoony graphics are like classic arcade games, the controls remain remarkably sharp.

Has just enough new features and improvements to make it the best Hot Shots game yet. [Nov 2004, p.140]

It's faced paced, full of creative shot making, and chock-full of fun unlockables - there's no denying the addictive power. [Oct 2004, p.98]

It retains everything you loved about the previous games and simply adds more content.

The huge number of new golf courses and playable characters, along with slightly-improved control and user-friendly online modes (not to mention the returning golfers/courses from “HSG 3”), make Hot Shots Golf Fore! the best installment of the series yet.

But in the grand scheme of things, this somewhat underwhelming series is falling farther behind the game currently atop golf's leaderboard, "Tiger Woods," and doesn’t look to be gaining any strokes.

Sure, mini-golf is fun and online is fun, but most of what you’ve seen here is found in the previous game, which is somewhat disappointing.