If your nieces and nephews are mini-golfers (or just love mini-golf) then the new Super Swing Golf for Wii may be the perfect game for them. It seems that golf was made for the Wii functionality - because of the direct correlation between the Wii's controller and a golf club. Super Swing Golf provides a realistic one-to-one swing mechanic and some special moves, all wrapped up in a light hearted fun-focused rendering of the sport your nieces and nephews of any age will enjoy.

What Sort of Game is This?

Sports games recreate a wide variety of real life competitive games. Depending on the sport, these will either have an action or strategy focus. Popular sports games are often released on an annual basis, each year the game receives new player rosters and game improvements.

What Does This Game Add to the Genre?

Again this Wii golf game innovates in its swing mechanic. Super Swing Golf enables the player to simply make their real world golf swing and translates that into the game world. Rather than pressing buttons to hit the ball down the fairway, this simple gesture is all that is needed to connect the player to the on screen action.

Until the MotionPlus Wii-mote add-on is released, any game that attempts to let the player use real world one-to-one motions has its work cut out. Super Swing Golf manages the sometimes-limited responsiveness of the Wii-mote well, so that you are rarely frustrated by the outcome. This is (in part) due to the pressing of a button at the top of the back swing to confirm the strength of your shot. It is a compromise that avoids being too intrusive on the player's swing, whilst ensuring they can specify the power they want. The slight inaccuracies here seem to be forgivable in light of the unpredictable nature of the sport itself.

While Super Swing Golf doesn't quite have the level of detail of We Love Golf, and lacks the serious weighty proceedings of Tiger Woods, it still manages to provide the majority of information the player needs to make their shot selection.

What do People Play this Game To Experience?

As with Tiger Woods, Super Swing Golf is simply great fun because of its real world swing. Players are drawn to the magic of controlling a game entirely by motion. Finishing a session with the game leaves you with a real sense of golfing achievement. Player replay each shot in their head - all with the knowledge that they were achieved with a swing of the Wii-mote.

How Much Free Time is Required to Play It?

To play a full round of 18 holes can take a good hour (more if you are playing in a larger group). Super Swing Golf does provide a lot of cut down modes where you compete against other players for three or four holes. It also sports a set of mini-games that can each be played through in ten minutes or less.

The control method means you need to stand up to play the game and accordingly require a good amount of overhead space. We couldn't find a seated control alternative (as in Tiger Woods) for their swing which may mean that players not comfortable standing find themselves unable to join in the fun.

What Factors Impact on Suitability for Novice/Expert Young/Old Players?

Very young or novice players should find Super Swing Golf's intuitive controls quick to pick up. My five year old soon got the hang of the swing.

Intermediate players should find the game a good balance between flowing golfing motion and accuracy - particularly with the inclusion of the button press to specify power.

Experts may find this game falls between two stools, not providing the accuracy of older golf games, whilst compromising its real world swing with additional button presses. That said, many will see this as a sensible compromise given the limitations of the (pre MotionPlus) Wii-mote.