Though each episode of the series unvariably becomes a Japanese hit, Hot Shots Golf meets quite a more mitigated success under our latitudes, in spite of its appearance among the PSP line-up with a successful adaptation. Nearly four years later and after a new nippon record sale, the kawai golfers from Clap Hanz come back in a sequel which has rather few defaults to correct. The preview version between our hands, let us see whether this new opus will find how to innovate with an ancester so well approaching the green...

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The UMD inserted as firmly as a park start tee, the vivid colors and the cild-like ambience of the series welcome the players all arms open for a few games. One, even from the menus, finds back the licence's key-recipe: cute players you can customize with at the very least some hundreds of accessories as useless and thus, as indispensable as each other. They still are unlocked the same way, by winning in the diverse challenges proposed, which on this preview occur on two 18 holes tracks.

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Though only two novice and balanced players (Carly and Luke) were available with two caddies, the soft proposes a dozen of each in total, with whom you will have to play a certain number of times. Still like his predecessor, the game allows the luttle golfers to improve if you remain truthful to them. You participate with them to complete competitions with stroke scoring, but also to duelsin which the number of holes won counts instead of the final socre. Beating challenges in the corresponding mode allows to earn collectable cards representing items. As soon as a collection is complete, you can then compete in more complex locations and new clubs and balls are offered to you.

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One of the the first installment's first rank defaults was its feeble number of tracks available. With its 12 ensembles of 18 holes also playable in mirror mode, meaning the double of its ancestor, the bar seems to have been raised. You can by the way train on each of the proposed fairs through a concise training mode. Finally, last novelties, some mini-games based on precision have appeared, as the multiplayer mode now lets you play ad hoc games with four other players as well as online matches up to 16 instead of 8, formerly.

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As for the gameplay, nothing has really changed. You will find back the swings managed through a triple pressure system (rise, power, precision) which can be simplified by stepping through novice mode. The latter, as precedently, allows not having to worry about the timing concerning the shot's precision, but won't allow perfect ones. However, you will still have to care about the terrain's inclination as well as the wind's speed. During the time lapse necessary to perform the stroke, you can still apply an effect to the ball by keeping a direction pushed, or to launch a special move by entering a series of arrows. Finally, the power dots have not disappeared: distributed in limited quantity at the beginning of a session, they allow to stike your balls further of some precious yards.

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From a technical point of view, the game reveals itself as fresher than its predecessor, with colors a bit more vivid. The decors are a bit less empty and most trees seem somewhat more detailed. However, the aliasing remains rather present as far as the characters are concerned, and its predecessor's main problem does not seem to have been object to much attention. Are spoken of, the horribly long loading times the title suffers of, which can even let the player down for half a dozen of seconds in the full middle of the menus just after having cancelled a choice. The little gay and unworried musical themes, enjoyable until then, quickly become annoying as they seem to taunt the player.