Mario Golf It was one of the most beloved video games of Nintendo 64and in June 2024 he meets 25 years. We remember this sports video game of Golf in its 25th anniversary to remember how its launch and subsequent success meant a small revolution for Nintendowith the rebirth of Mario sports games.
This was Mario Golf, Nintendo’s return to its fun sports games
Mario Golf was a Nintendo 64 video game released in Japan on June 11, 1999in the United States on July 26, 1999 and in PAL territories on September 14, 1999.
Despite what its name might suggest, It wasn’t the first game in this seriesbut before him there were two more: Golf (1984) and NES Open Tournament Golf (1991), both released for the NES. To give more variety to the Nintendo 64 catalog, the Japanese company commissioned Camelot Software Planningthen known from the saga Shining Force, create a third installment from their series of golf games. AND The result was this Mario Golf.
Although the decision was shocking For many, golf has typically been perceived as a sport that is too slow and boring to watch, Mario Golf turned out to be a very fun and colorful title. In essence we were faced with a golf simulator with Mario and company as the protagonists.
But, of course, in this video game it was not enough to hit the ball in the direction of the hole, but there were many factors that affected the hits: he stick used, the powerthe attributes of the characters themselves, the stick selected, the type of terrainhis earring or the wind They were variables to take into account at the time of each shot.
Although it was perfectly possible to play against the game’s AI, The fun was, indeed, in its multiplayer for up to four people. Although given the idiosyncrasies of the sport, the blows were performed in turns, it was still a very fun game in which we laugh at our friends’ failed blows.
Precisely The difficulty of the game when it came to mastering the aforementioned parameters made it interesting in more “high-level” shots, with impossible shots and holes in one of pure filly that changed the tables of the confrontation. Eye calculations and deductions were necessary to win.
And if that were not enough, Apart from conventional golf, there were also mini-games such as mini-golf. which gave much more variety to this fun cartridge.
On a technical level it was a real virguería; The representation of both the characters and the different environments in 3D was very solvent, with a notable improvement from what was already seen in the outstanding Super Mario 64. Although for obvious reasons there was not as much freedom as in the platform game, the final result in terms of presentation was still impressive.
Nor should we forget the excellent soundtrack which this title enjoyed, in addition to the funny character voices to celebrate holes completed with good scores… or to curse bad shots.
In 1999 he also arrived a version of Mario Golf for Game Boy Color that added a story mode with slight RPG touches to the formulaand I had connectivity with this version “major” of the game. Connect a GBC Mario Golf cartridge via Transfer Pak served for exchange characters and data between both titles.
The legacy of Nintendo 64’s Mario Golf and how it revived Nintendo sports games
Mario Golf had an incredibly good reception from critics, something that attests to its 91 in Metacriticturning it into one of the best Nintendo 64 video games. In this house he received a grade at the time that did not reach an outstanding mark, but he was close to it: 8.4 out of 10. It sold 1,470,000 unitsa little less than a million and a half, and was placed as the 34th best-selling game on the console.
These good sales encouraged Nintendo to commission a new sports title from Camelot for Nintendo 64: Mario Tenniswhich with its 2,320,000 units sold He managed to beat Mario Golf. This new success made them get excited and encouraged to launch future titles in these two sagas. on other platforms such as Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, GameCube, Wii, Wii U and Nintendo Switch.
The sports offer has also increased over time.and we have Mario titles focused on other sports such as soccer (Mario Strikers), the baseball (Mario Superstar Baseball), the Olympics (Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games) or the basketball (Mario Slam Basketball). The launches have been so many that practically It is assumed that in each new game console from the company there will be a Mario sports game.
In short: until then, Mario sports games were still anchored in the NES catalog a decade ago, so Mario Golf was directly responsible for the rebirth of titles of this nature. AND This period covers from 1999 to the present.
Where to play Mario Golf?
The original Mario Golf was released in 1999 on Nintendo 64 in physical formatand since it’s been a long time, Finding a cartridge at this point is only possible in second-hand stores and applications.. Luckily, Mario Golf has been re-released over time on the following systems:
- In Wii in digital format if we acquired it before the Virtual Console closed.
- In Wii U in digital format if we acquired it before the Nintendo eShop closed.
- In nintendo switch in digital format as part of the Nintendo 64 catalog, accessible through the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pass subscription.
The main difference between the Wii and Wii U versions and the Nintendo Switch version is that the first two allowed you to buy it to have it forever, while we only have access to the Switch version as long as we continue to subscribe to its service, not allowing you to purchase it for possess it.
