Links LS (Legends in Sports) can rightfully reclaim its status as the king of golf sims. The graphics are gorgeous, there are many playing options, the physics mirror reality, and Links finally offers network play. But there are several golf sim contenders in the wings and Links LS has enough minor weaknesses that one or more of the up-and-comers may soon topple it from its throne.
Links has more than a 50-percent share of the golf sim market. But its luster has faded of late, largely because, until now, it's had no substantive upgrade for three years. Access has sustained Links' No. 1 position by releasing many add-on courses - 17 in all. Meanwhile, the newer Electronic Arts PGA Tour 96, with its clever golfer interface, multiple big-name pros, and improved overall gameplay, has moved ahead of Links.
But that's now ancient history. Links LS raises the bar far above anything on the shelves today. First, it is visually dazzling. It looks and feels like you're there; down to the trees, shrubs, and cart paths. The customizable sound effects, coupled with animations of flying divots and sand, plus backspin and ball marks, put Links LS in a class well above the competition.
Golfer animations are superb and eminently emulative (if only my swing looked like that!). Your golfer can be male or female and can have a full range of abilities and appearances. You can adjust course conditions, including wind speed, fog, and putting surface characteristics. You can place up to five camera views onscreen any one time, plus add a tracer and alter the ball's size for easier viewing. And finally, Links LS offers a wide variety of gameplay options including stroke, best ball, match, and skins.
The game ships with three courses: Kapalua Plantation and Village plus Arnold Palmer's Latrobe Country Club. All 17 previous courses will work with Links LS and will look better. Arnie comes along as well with his inimitable swing and commentary. Plus you can take a virtual 3-D tour (ala Under A Killing Moon) through Arnie's office and Kapalua's clubhouse.
There's so much excellent software here that finding flaws may seem like nitpicking, but after three years in development there shouldn't be flaws. The old Links let you see the player's swing as you clicked the mouse. Now, in a gameplay quality step backward, it's click, release, click...and wait for the swing. Soon-to-be-released golf sims from Sierra and Maxis will give the player more control over the swing by incorporating mouse movement to adjust swing timing and direction. Access ruled out such nuances, saying they did not translate well to computer golf. We'll see.
The virtual reality tours are virtually useless, the resort videos are mundane, and the hole fly-bys offer few playing tips. The network play is for only two computers using a modem or LAN. The modem setup is kludgy and no Internet play is available.
The 1997 Edition of the popular Links golf simulation. New features include higher resolution graphics (up to 1600x1200 in 16.7 million colors) with a new terrain rendering engine, and improved ball flight physics. Three new courses are featured, Latrobe Country Club, Kapalua Village Course, and the Kapalua Plantation course. Also included is a video tour of Latrobe Country Club, and a virtual reality tour of Arnold Palmer's office and workshop.
How to run this game on modern Windows PC?
People who downloaded Links LS 1997 have also downloaded:
David Leadbetter's Greens (a.k.a. MicroProse Golf), Links 2001, Links LS 2000, Links 2003, Links 386 CD, Jack Nicklaus 5, FIFA World Cup: Germany 2006, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005
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