Super Swing Golf

As a "sports guy," what nonjocks might find amusing--like people hitting a golf ball with a hammer or a cricket paddle--I find idiotic. But once desensitized to Super Swing Golf's cutesy Japanimation elements (which are nowhere near as clever as Hot Shots Golf's), I had a great time throwing my back out using the Wii controller as a virtual golf club (you can use a more traditional button-con-trolled swing if you'd prefer--though what's the point in that?). But while the forward swing has a great feel and turns flaws in motion into virtual hooks and slices, the inconsistent backswing had me wiggling the controller above my shoulder trying to get the proper amount of power. The backswing issue is forgivable when compared to the game's molasses pace, though. I was forced to watch every computer-controlled golfer shot, and the game criminally offers no way to fast-forward things once I, or my opponent, hit the ball. Considering I had to stand to play, the waiting wore me out.

Golf boils down to grooving a swing, and Super Swing Golf's mechanic approximates the real thing pretty well. I got swing power down easily enough by cocking my wrists at the top of the backswing. But a lack of feedback to help you understand what caused an errant shot makes it more frustrating than fun to perfect your motion. And as satisfying as striking a good shot can be, the puzzling system for reading the break on greens makes it next to impossible to drain a putt of any length.

Todd's right; the "true" swing mechanics work great--which incidentally caused childhood flashbacks of my golf instructor shouting, "Keep those arms straight, bend your knees, and keep your eye on the ball!" Once you look past the nearly fluid swing, however, you realize Super Swing Golf lacks any real depth beyond traditional game modes, including story, stroke, and match play. More minigames--aside from the mediocre balloon-popping mode that focuses not on a low score but on how many balloons you and up to three others can pop in a round--would have been a welcome addition.