Developer Clap Hanz takes their talent from the links onto the PSP with Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee. Now these guys have done well for themselves on the PS2 games, and they don’t hold anything back just because they’re developing a game for a handheld platform. HSG: Open Tee is largely unchanged gameplay-wise from its PS2 counterparts, and that’s probably for the better. The sport of golf is already a good formula for a pick-up-and-go handheld game, and the quirks that Hot Shots Golf bring just make it better.

The game brings a comprehensive and accessible golf experience that has not sacrificed much with its move to the PSP. As with the console games, Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee offers a variety of modes to play with, including the usual Stroke Play and Multiplayer, along with Challenge Mode and Putting Challenge. In each, you select from one of ten customizable golfers, each with its own innate abilities, advantages and weaknesses. This is represented with a series of base stats, which you can alter and grow through experience and unlocking items. It adds an RPG-like quality to the game, and your abilities are even measured in levels. Your abilities include how well a character can spin the ball and how accurately you can swing. The strength and precision of your shots also come into play.

Character stats are built in Challenge Mode. This mode gets you into with the game the most, as you level up your characters and unlock new items, courses and additional characters. From the start, you only get one course and two golfers that are well-rounded with no extreme pros and cons. Challenge Mode divides the challenges into tournament plays and match plays. Match plays have you competing against a computer-controlled character while a tournament play keeps you golfing at your own pace while trying to keep your lead against a list of players.

Each challenge provides an incentive to complete it. You either unlock a new item, course, or golfer, and additionally you may get a “rank star”. When you get enough of these stars, it increases your ranking in the game, opening up a new tier of challenges. Not all challenges have to be completed to do this, since some do not provide you with rank stars. Some matches have special rules (like a 2 stroke penalty for landing in the rough), or conditions that must be met. The matches start to get repetitive, but unlocking new golfers and courses try to keep the experience fresh. Additionally, playing with the same golfer for a prolonged time can help you max out their “loyalty” rating. This also gives a good incentive to increase your stats and try out all the different golfers.

As far as difficulty goes, the AI in the tournament games are a little too “rubber band”…they try to hold back when you are not doing so well, but can aggressively keep up with you if you’re taking the lead. It’s nothing too frustrating, though. The individual golfers in Match plays seem to have their AI of their own but they’re believable enough to be okay players. The difficulty curve for the courses never gets too steep, and each new course provides a good challenge as your skills improve. The first course has gentle slopes and winds, but the topography changes up on each course, and you are faced with natural obstacles that are more difficult to overcome. The wind also gets more unpredictable in the later courses. Occasionally, it might snow or rain in one hole, but this does not affect the ball’s flight.

Items for your golfer come as head gear, accessories, or body outfits. Although the items themselves are purely cosmetic, earning the items boost your stat experience in different areas. Earning head gear, for example, boosts the control of your shots. You can also amass a collection of clubs and golf balls which directly affect your performance. Some of them improve distance or control, while others are suited for certain situations, like escaping from sand traps, for example. Experimenting with combinations is useful, and can counteract some problems with the way you are playing.

At first you get simple golfing clothes and accessories but later on you can deck out your golfers in weird and snazzy outfits. And in true Hot Shots tradition, the golfers have cartoony designs and show personality. In addition to decking out your golfer in different clothes, you also choose from a variety of caddies. Although in practice, they just provide the voice of the announcements made throughout the game.

Stroke Play is effectively the “free play” of this game, and any unlocked course can be replayed. Your best scores and plays get posted to your records. In addition to the golf scoring rules, another score determines by detail how well you do on each course. Actions such as landing on fairways improves this score, as well as chip-ins and staying under par for the course. You are able to choose from the first or last 9 holes, the full 18 holes, and a mirrored variety of these. Practice Mode works almost the same way, except that you can start on any hole and repeat it as you wish, but your scores are not recorded in this mode.

Open Tee takes the gameplay further with Multiplayer mode, where you can compete with up to 7 other people through a local network or across the world. Unfortunately I did not get to test this feature. However it should be enjoyable considering that you can use your own customized golfers to compete against others. The games are also customizable, letting the host choose from a set of additional rules to make the match more interesting or challenging.

The last of the game modes, Putting Challenge is a small game which involves scoring a set number of points under one or more cups from putting in the green. It’s a small diversion that is especially good in helping you master the art of putting. In holes that have more than one cup, the more difficult putts are worth more points for the cup. Completing these challenges unlock different items which will not be found in Challenge Mode.

The style and presentation of Open Tee might draw you in, but it’s the solid gameplay and physics that will make you stay. This game has tight controls, and with each swing, the ball bounces and rolls in a very convincing manner. Although its three-point swing system is not groundbreaking, it’s still flexible enough to give you a variety of ways to hit the ball. Master the system and you’ll be able to pull off some gravity-defying pin shots and spinbacks which make the ball roll against the slope. The key is to work these to your advantage for some impressive chip-in shots.

Visually, the game is just right for what is intended to be a light-hearted golf outing. The courses are made to look fairly pleasing and realistic, but they don’t clash with the bobble-head look of the characters. The environment textures are good and crisp, and you will never confuse fairways from roughs. Most of the interface graphics are consistent with the look of the PS2 Hot Shots Golf games. The characters in this game are well-rendered and even have individual fingers, which is a nice touch considering they would be holding golf clubs most of the time.

The sound in the game is passable to good. Each course has its own subtle but distinct set of sounds, like the distant yodeling in the Alpine course or the the crickets of a seaside area. In some points it feels like the ambient sounds are recycled a little too much, but they are not so intrusive as to ruin your game. Whatever music is in the game is mostly left to the menus and option screens, though you also have the option to turn on the music when you are actually playing. It is light, upbeat music and which is not bad for this game. Like the sound effects, it does not try to compete for your attention.

Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee is a game with a surprisingly long replay value, with many things to unlock and collect. The Challenge mode is designed under the premise that you gotta play “just one more” game before you stop. The items may seem gimmicky to some people, but collecting them can easily become an addictive experience. If you get bored with that you can try to improve your personal scores in Stroke Play, or keep up with other people in the Multiplayer games. The game also records your best matches, scores, and also tracks your average performance for each course. Being able to record and view your most amazing shots is also a nice way to show off. All these features are a good layer of polish to a game with already great controls and physics. You do not have to be a golf purist to enjoy Hot Shots, and even if this is your first experience with the series, Open Tee won’t disappoint.

Score: 8 out of 10 (golf balls?)