Active Reviews

Written by Edward Hankins

At the latest "Austin Games Conference" held last week September 8th-9th, I was very surprised the sheer volume of representation of Korean game companies. Most were just testing American response to already successful Korean games. Some however are doing more than just consumer testing, they are preparing to move into the already super competitive world of MMORG. One of the more interesting title, and hopefully one that will be in US stores in about a year is Shot Online, an online golf game. I played what I would guess was the Korean final version of the game, all menus were in Korean and I required help from the company to set a game up, but once you were playing knowledge was sidelined timing you drives and plotting your putts.

Shot-Online is not your typical golf game, because of its online nature the makers added an RPG element to the game. By playing matches, defeating competitors, and training you increase points in various categories till you level up.

Gameplay is similar to other golf sims with the 3 click system. You click at 0%, then 100%, then 0 % again. The farther you are from these numbers the worse your shot will be. Pull up a little on the down click and be prepared to slice the ball. After your first strike you will appear where you hit the ball and get ready to play your second shot, to choose a club click on the club icon on the bottom of the screen. Hitting the tab key will show you approximately how far the ball will travel with that particular club. Then hit tab again and get ready to shoot and repeat step one. Putting is a little more difficult I thought, you are given a power game and a grid system is placed on the green. You are supposed to tell the curve of the green and choose the power then sink it. Only you never know exactly how hard to hit it, sometimes 40% power will barely roll the ball, other times is will send your ball flying off the green.

Graphics in this game are definitely above average, especially for an online game where often graphics are sacrificed for speed. OnNet Co. developed their own engine for the game. By using motion capture of a professional golfer the movements of the characters are smooth and genuine.

I do hope this game will catch on in America, it is one of the most entertaining online golf sims available. By adding RPG elements with excellent smooth graphics, Shot-Online is guaranteed to occupy hours of your free time.

Go back to the Shot Online page.

Screenshots