Outlaw Golf 2

Outlaw Golf 2 continues the “M” rated action found in Outlaw Golf and adds a few key tweaks and a whole lot more stuff. It needs to be said, though, that if you don’t enjoy crude humor you won’t think much of OG2. This game lives and dies based on its humor and the adult theme because the gameplay underneath can’t really stand up to other golf games. For those that do enjoy the game’s brand of humor, it really is pretty entertaining and laugh-out-loud funny and a good buy for a measly $20.

Features and Modes

Outlaw Golf 2 feature 8 courses and each has a distinct theme. You won’t find any real-world courses here, but the New Jersey course under freeways, the haunted house, and trippy mushroom course are all laid out pretty much like a real course even if they don’t look like it. The game also features a great cast of characters that range from rednecks to strippers and each character also has a caddy that matches their overall theme. There is also a fantastic selection of modes to choose from in OG2. In addition to playing by standard rules, you can also play variations of the game that limit club selection or drastically change the scoring.

You can play quick games in exhibition mode or play through a tour mode. Each character has a different set of competitions in tour mode, so it is worth playing through multiple times. You can also play the game online via Xbox Live and the experience is actually pretty full-featured. Four people can play together and it is easy to adjust the rules and options however you want. You can also choose to have players take turns or all play at the same time in order to speed things up.

t3h Funny

The real draw of Outlaw Golf 2 is the crude humor, and if you don’t approve of it then you need to find another golf game. Between holes, your can watch little cutscenes starring your character and their caddy. Depending on how the game is going, you’ll get different scenes and there are several different sets of dialogue for each scene. That means that some scenes will repeat, but there will be different dialogue so it stays fresh. All of the golfer/caddy interaction is pretty hilarious and a lot of it is actually kind of shocking. This is an “M” rated game, and developer Hypnotix took full advantage of it. The humor is thick with innuendo and is overall very crude, but it is also pretty funny. Put this game in a room full of college students and you’ll have a great time. What makes the humor even better is that comedian Dave Attell is the announcer for the game. If you are familiar with his standup routine or his show Insomniac on Comedy Central, you know pretty much what to expect and you should also know why he is such a good fit for the crude humor in the game. He describes the courses and characters and comments on all of your shots and is absolutely hilarious. Definitely money well spent to get him.

There's A Golf Game in There Somewhere ...

Underneath all of the modes and crude humor, however, is a decidedly average game of golf. OG2 uses the analog swing that has also been used in the last few Tiger Woods games. Basically, you pull back on the control stick and then slam it forward really fast in order to strike the ball. A little meter in the corner of the screen tells you how much power is behind the shot and it is up to you to hit it with just enough oomph to get it where you want it. There are a couple of big problems, though. For whatever reason, the ball seems to bounce and roll incredibly far in this game. If you want to actually get a ball on the green you have to aim a good 15-20 yards in front of the green just so it can bounce off the fairway and through the rough and hopefully stop somewhere on the green. That sucks, folks. When you actually get on the green, the putting system is absolutely broken. The green is hard to read even with the grid on and even though the game will draw a little line for you telling you where the ball will go, it is incredibly hard to use the analog swing to actually hit it with the proper power. In all fairness, the gameplay isn’t completely horrible. It just doesn’t compare well to other golf games out there.

Graphics, Sound, and Bottom Line

Graphically, Outlaw Golf 2 is pretty good. The characters all look really great and have a ton of detail and are animated very well. The courses also look pretty nice, but the trees and shrubs look pretty fake and the crowd of spectators is blocky and ugly. Other than that, the game looks nice.

The sound is also fairly well done. There is a ton of spoken dialogue in addition to Dave Attell’s commentary and all of it sounds great and is really funny. The music consists of hip-hop and rock tracks and most of it is ok. You can also use custom soundtracks if you want, which is nice.

Overall, Outlaw Golf 2 only really accomplishes half of its goal. It provides a very funny game geared towards adults but the golf underneath is very poor compared to other games in the genre. It seems that golf should be the most important aspect of the game but it is the weakest link instead. The redeeming aspect of Outlaw Golf 2 is the price, and for $20 it is worth checking out even if the golf isn’t all that good. Give it a rent or drop a $20 on it, but approach it as a funny party game first and a golf game second and you’ll probably enjoy it.