Approximate Release Date: November 30, 1991
Genre: Golf simulation
Developer: T&E Software
Publisher: T&E Software
True Golf Classics: Waialae Country Club is trying to do too much.
The golfing mechanics are similar to HAL’s Hole in One Golf (and every other golf game), but more complicated. You can alter your stance or where exactly you hit the ball to change a shot’s trajectory, so I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that this game’s golf model is more accurate than many other golf games. It’s more difficult to hit out of the rough or a bunker in Waialae Country Club than I’m accustomed to in a golf video game, for instance.
Waialae Country Club has visually impressive courses, with a behind-the-ball view that lets you see trees and mountains in the background. The game really manages to create depth with very rudimentary technology, and it looks nice. There are even crisp-sounding bird chirps to attempt some level of immersion.
But these nice environments come at a great cost; the game is terrifyingly sluggish. It takes well over a full second for the screen to adjust to turning left or right, making it impossible to eyeball shots. I would gladly take worse graphics to have more responsive controls. Plus the UI takes up a lot of the screen, so the gameplay area feels especially cramped. I didn’t have very much fun playing the game for these reasons.
And it’s too bad because I could talk about other things the game does well – a wide variety of modes, multiplayer, decent music, menus with a cool retro-computer vibe – but they don’t really matter. True Golf Classics: Waialae Country Club is probably a more accurate golf game than HAL’s Hole in One Golf, but I’d rather play the latter.
Tomorrow: Does Bill Laimbeer’s Combat Basketball really need any introduction?
