Dan Whitehead reports:
''While Everybody's Golf may be an obvious touchstone for this budget round of putt-putt fun, it's a credit to developer Housemarque (creator of PS3 sensation Super Stardust HD) that the comparison is favourable rather than dismissive.
Unlike the atrociously titled 3D Ultra Minigolf Adventures, Live Arcade's only rival golf game, this effort avoids the easy lure of wacky crazy golf antics and instead concentrates on providing an accessible but satisfying round of golf, livened up with cheerful cartoon characters. You can dress them up in silly costumes, should you feel the wacky quota isn't up to your required standards, but its otherwise business as usual.
Control is intuitive enough for anyone familiar with any golf game from the past twenty years. Aim your shot with the stick (the game automatically selects the most appropriate club for the distance) and then use the traditional three-hit power bar to set power, accuracy and swing away. There's a very handy terrain gauge on top of the power bar, giving you an instant idea of the power needed under ideal conditions. Hitting the centre of the accuracy gauge takes a little practice, since the power bar returns fairly quickly and the margin for error is slim. Thankfully, the game doesn't overdo the effect of hooks or slices, and you can always correct horrible mistakes to some degree by using the focus feature.''
