PlayStation 2

Outlaw Golf 2

What the game really boils down to is this: The humor is certainly there, but Hypnotix really needs to get the polish onto this simulation before people will revere its hilarity. Well, most people that is. I'm still going to hit these links, but it won't be my only weapon of golfing choice.

Whether or not you think modern men's lifestyle magazines are entertaining and informative should serve as a suitable yardstick for determining how favorably you'll react to the overall attitude of Outlaw Golf 2. It is, undeniably, an integral aspect of the game. But even if the game's sensibilities don't appeal to you, the other positive qualities--like the $19.99 price tag, the online play, and the well-executed gameplay mechanics--may still make Outlaw Golf 2 an attractive package for you.

Golfing is a fantastic thing. It gives new meaning to those who are in search of lawns that seem to go forever, gently beautified with sand pits and watery pools. It's a serene zen thing and it gets better when whacking a little white ball all over it in search of an itty bitty hole. With the real-life thing convincing some to plunk down tens of thousands a year in pursuit of the perfect excuse to drink scotch in the morning with some friends it's a definite must for a videogame version. This leads us, naturally, right into Outlaw Golf 2, Global Star's sequel to the original, and only, bad boy golf sim.

At the end of the day we’re taught as children to never judge a book by its cover and that seems especially relevant here. For all its tits and ass and needless swearing, Outlaw Golf 2 is a surprisingly engaging golf game that’s great value for money and is perfect to appease those post-pub blues. Tiger Woods eat your heart out.

Even though my golf game is in the 120s, and for me a double bogey on a par three is shooting an eight (four times two - get it?), the unpredictable results in Outlaw Golf 2 are more wild than than when I take to the links in real life.

If the controls were just a little better, and the game wasn't so frustrating, Outlaw Golf 2 would be a really good game. For $20, the amount of courses and play modes is impressive, and the fact that it's online is an even bigger bonus. That said, there are simply better options out there for anyone looking to play online, or anyone looking for a game with good pacing and responsive controls. If you enjoyed the first game, then by all means go pick this one up, but even at $20 it's not for everyone.

What makes this silly presentation even more irritating is the fact that underneath it all is a pretty decent golf engine. So decent in fact, that if the designers hadn't spent half their time writing tit jokes and drawing bums they might have actually crafted a very good golf engine - good enough to try to wrestle some market share from Links and Tiger if they'd timed it right, especially with the included online play. As it is, rather than an Outlaw as promised, we end up with a somewhat errant teenager who looks like a nice boy underneath but is too busy mimicking the unfunny bits of South Park and stealing sweets to take his GCSEs with the big boys. Or something equally ridiculous.