Golf. I always think about the Robin Williams bit about the invention of this sport. And you know what – he wasn’t wrong about the sport. That being said, golf is a sport that has also seen many adaptations over the years in the world of video games. This includes a recent release from Bandai Namco and HYDE – Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots.

Earlier this summer, I provided a brief summary on what I was looking forward to with Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots. And while Gamer Social Club did not receive early access to this game, I had already planned to pick this up and give it a whirl. I have already spent a good 10+ hours in the game, learning the subtle nuances of how to smack a ball with a stick. And let me tell you – it’s as unforgiving in this game as it is in real life when you choke on a shot!

Enough about how bad I am at the sport of golf – let’s get into it!

The World and Story

I’m gonna be honest – there’s not a whole ton of story when it comes to Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots. Truth be told, I wasn’t expecting a ton either. It’s a game about playing golf – how much story could there actually be?

Now, that being said, the game has a wide variety of game play modes (which we’ll get into later). One of which is World Tour mode, where you can explore the “stories” of each of the playable characters in the game. At the game’s start, you have two options: Alie and Mizuki. Playing other modes will open up and beating challenges will unlock other playable characters.

I played a decent chunk of Aile’s story. She’s a cheerleader…who wants to become a golfer? I don’t know – the stories were just kind of meh, in my opinion. Each chapter within a character’s story features its own unique challenges. Some require you to beat an opponent to progress the story and others do not. I will vent my frustrations about some of this later on.

The Gameplay

Single Player Options

Golf Lessons

If I could recommend, this is where you should start your journey in Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots. This is especially important if you have never touched this series beforehand, like myself. You’ll learn all of the intricacies of the game – from basic shots, to applying spins to your shots, as well as factoring in wind and putting mechanics. It’s a good crash course into what to expect with the gameplay.

Challenge Mode

I spent a decent amount of time in this area of the game, solely because of the simplicity of the processes. Here’s a tournament – win said tournament. Earn fabulous prizes (in the form of in-game currency that purchases special clubs, balls, and customization options). I managed to advance myself all the way to Amateur level and I would imagine it goes further. Not surprisingly, the further you advance, the more challenging your tournament opponents.

World Tour Mode

We already discussed this one a little earlier, but World Tour Mode will allow you to explore the different stories and challenges of each of the playable characters in the game. Given that the game boasts over 25 playable characters, each with about six to seven unique challenges to their story, there is a lot of gameplay to explore in here – too much for the purposes of this review.

Stroke Play Mode

Choose a course and play as well as you can! It’s simple and a relaxing pace if you just want to play a course without any of the extraneous challenges that some other modes offer.

Match Play Mode

It’s pretty much the same as Stroke Play Mode, except you have the luxury of an opponent to compete against. Choose someone specific, or let the game choose someone to vie for top player on your round of golf.

Wacky Golf Mode

Is standard golf too boring? Try your hand at one of the more ridiculous facets of Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots.

In Colorful Mode, there will be a smattering of hidden squares across each hole. Every square your ball hits will provide you with power-ups to utilize in the game. Some help. A lot hinder. During one of my ventures of this mode, a CPU player spawned a “monolith” (a la 2001: A Space Odyssey) right in front of my ball. And thus ensued my rage.

In Scramble Mode, you’ll take turns alternating shots between yourself and a partner as you compete against another duo. This mode, if I’ll be honest, drove me up the wall, specifically as it related to Aile’s story. One of her chapters involves you and Lani (another player) playing Scramble Mode against Mizuki and another partner (who’s name escapes me). To progress the story, you need to win. Let me tell you – there is nothing more frustrating that having your progress hinging on the skills of a CPU player – and it’s something that I actually note as a negative on this game. My progress should not be dictated by game-generated player who plays with the consistency of a yo-yo.

In Survival Golf, you play against other golfers and steal each others clubs. Nothing more frustrating than losing your sand wedge…while in a sand bunker!

Lastly, there is Boom Golf. There’s bombs on the fairway. Because of course there’s an active minefield as you play. I played a little of this mode – it is pure chaos, as you have no indication where the bombs are and the ball can keep getting blasted. I was lovingly launched Out of Bounds several times.

Solo Round Mode

Honestly, it’s pretty comparable to Stroke Play mode. I didn’t end up diving into this mode too much, as I found myself being drawn to the other more challenging modes of golfing.

Multiplayer Mode

I’ll be truthful here – I didn’t touch any of the Multiplayer content in Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots. I tend to be a solo gamer at heart (blame being introverted as a young boy). That being said, Multiplayer Mode has three offerings: Stroke Play, Match Play, and all four iterations of Wacky Golf.

Online Mode

Same as above, I did not dip my toes into Online play either. The Online Play offers fewer options, but does allow for across-the-globe play. You can join either a Group Match (via finding an open match or starting your own match) or World Tournament. In World Tournament, get the best score you can and compete against other players around the globe. The only caveat – the tournaments appear to be calendar-based (next one per my game starts on September 30th).

The Good

Graphics and Art Style

One of the aspects that drew me to Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots was the vibrant and anime-inspired design of both the world, as well as the playable characters. Each course design, as well, felt very unique and not just a copy-paste of another course.

I will also give credit to HYDE in their crafting of the unique weather conditions/environmental effects. Sun rays, rain drops, and clouds – all are on display and provide a true sense of the world being dynamic with regards to the environment (all of which affects your gameplay).

I also enjoyed, from a solely aesthetic stance, the inclusion of unique sequences when you get a perfect hit shot or when you manage to get an exemplary score on a hole.

Variety of Game Play Options

We went through the absolute glut of game play options that are offered. I never found myself sitting there thinking “All of these game play options are kind of stale”. If one play mode got a little dry, I would just switch to another and fell into a grove with that one.

Gameplay Difficulty and Scaling

Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots scaled itself well, in terms of difficulty. I understand that some modes/tournaments/set-ups are going to be more difficult than others. But it did scale appropriately, especially when it came to the Challenge Mode. If anything, some of the Beginner/Novice courses felt a little too easy (so long as you didn’t wildly screw up a hole).

Caddy Support

I’ll dig more into some of the matters around voices/dialogue in the game, but overall, the input from caddy’s was always pretty helpful. Do you need to angle your shot more to account for a slanted green? Is your shot uphill? Or downhill? Having these little tidbits helped me factor my play well, especially when it came to putting (the bane of every golfer’s existence).

Character & Caddy Leveling

I enjoyed this process! The higher your character’s level, the more options that they have with regards to gear, as well as general skills. The same goes for your caddy – boost your bond and they “help” more as you play. It’s not much, but it speaks to the idea of rewards for progression of aspects of the game.

The Bad

Character Dialogue

I know that voice acting can be difficult work and that you are ultimately limited by what parameters are put in place by the game developer themselves. That being said – I quickly dropped the voice audio in game (except the caddy) for two specific reasons.

The first reason – variety. There is only so many times I can hear Aile say the same 2-3 lines after each drive. It gets very repetitive very quickly…for all the characters. Heck, even with the caddies. The only reason I left their voices on (which the game allows you to do) is because of their advice when putting.

The second reason – impatient NPC’s. Golf requires some patience and some fine attention to detail. The detail which cannot be focused on if your in-game opponent tells you to hit the ball…after 3 seconds. This, to be honest, was a wild choice, given the nature of golf itself. It truly baffled me – this wouldn’t fly on an actual golf course – why would you choose to incorporate that into the game?

Course Variety

I know that I previously said I liked the design aesthetics of the course. I still stand by that. What I don’t love, however, is that the courses quickly become “Drive to here, approach to here, putt from here”. There isn’t a ton of variety when it comes to your process of going through a hole, especially after you have run through a course several times. Ideally, I would love to even see the process of having mirrored holes in later iterations/updates.

Graphical Glitches and In-Game Lag

There were several instances of some in-game graphical issues in Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots. Especially when it came to night courses. For some bizarre reason, the view of trees and darkened shadows would “bleed” down the screen as you played. The best way to describe it – see the picture below.

Along with these occasional glitches were in-game lag issues. The most frustrating – your gauge meter stuttering on your opening drives. This shot determines how you play the whole hole (heh!) and when you cannot accurately make the correct swing due to issues within the game, it’s frustrating. I have heard (but not experienced) that these matters become more pronounced with online gameplay with other players.

No Quit Game Option

This might be the pettiest complaint I have made about a game, but it needs to be said. There is no option to quit the game from the Main Menu. I played via Steam – you have to go to Steam and click “Stop” on the game. It is 2025 – why there is no option to just quit this game is beyond me. I cannot imagine how much more frustrating this is if you’re playing on console!

The Overall

This was my first golf video game that I truly played an extensive amount of. I honestly don’t count my minimal time playing Mario Golf on the Nintendo 64 with my cousin when I was 10. Overall, while I did enjoy my time Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots, there were definitely hiccups that impacted my experience. Were they absolutely “this is unplayable” hiccups? No. But were they enough to make me take pause or have to vent some frustration to my partner? Absolutely.

Additionally, this is also my first experience with the Everybody’s Golf series. So ultimately, I don’t have a comparison point for how “good” this is in relation to the series as a whole. That being said, give Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots a chance if you’re looking for something new. But if the price makes you balk (currently $39.99 on Steam), then maybe let this one pass you by!

Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots is available for purchase today on Steam, Nintendo Store, and PlayStation Store.

The reviewer (KingOTheCask) purchased this game for the purposes of this review. This review was played on PC.