Under Par Golf Architect Review

For a certain generation of gamers who grew up with golf games unlock a core memory was Sid Meirer’s 2002 classic that managed to blend the nature of course design with the addictive game loop of Tycoon games that was all the rage in the early 00’s. For over 2 decades the genre has sat pretty dormant until now. Enter Under Par Golf Architect developed by Broken Arms Games. After a whole weekend of crafting fairways, making virtual people struggle and watching VIPS claim to be the best golfers it’s safe to say this game is a hole in one for me and needs to be experienced.

The main premise of Under Par Golf Architect is its robust editor. On a console, “editor” is often a scary word with most games in this field are renown for clunky UI, interfaces and cursors but honestly this is very enjoyable once you have the basics down and put in an hour or two before it becomes second nature. The game uses a tile-based system and makes sure you know that you aren’t just placing Hole 1 and Hole 2, you are sculpting and crafting masterpieces and moving things around to make the best experience for your customers.

The game uses a four-pillar rating system for each hole you craft. As you build, the game provides real time letter grades. It’s a brilliant feedback loop that prevents you from accidentally building a par-5 that is literally impossible to finish. Having enough tees makes it accessible and gives options to start the hole. Making sure there’s enough fairway creates landing zones and strategic placement, you get the option to change the type of fairway that creates mechanics on how the ball interacts on landing. Having enough green to land on and having the option to terraform creating slopes making the putting harder. Finally, the hazards, these are made up of things like Bunkers, Water, Trees and the rough that just break up the hole and create some sort of thought on shot placement.

Once your course is shaped, you have to run it as a business. This is where Under Par shifts from a creative suite to a management sim. You’ll need to build more than just greens you’ll need restaurants, driving ranges, and facilities for your golf VIPS. The management side is a “mixed bag” of depth. On one hand, hiring staff to look after certain aspects of the course adds a layer of charm. However, feels a little light as you can’t micromanage structures, tweak prices and just lacks that extra layer you would find in established Tycoon games. I feel this is needed an extra financial layer more so as in career mode as it was a slow burner making money even at 3X speed and sometimes was hindered by trying to take too much on as I was expecting things to tick in the background a lot quicker.

The real challenge comes from VIP Golfers. These high-profile golfers have specific, often demanding taste and improvement on their golfing careers. Asking for a certain number of holes, having facilities in place and even competing in tournaments. Catering their needs is most of the structure of ‘career’ mode where you have to hit certain targets / goals in order to earn 3 stars in each level. Each level has its own gimmick you have to work around and ensure you can adapt. There is a sandbox mode where you can revisit and make your own clubs without limits as well as plenty filters to toggle to make your experience as carefree or difficult as possible.

One of the most fun features is the ability to actually play the holes you make and Under Par delivers this with a fully integrated golf mode. Don’t expect levels of simulation here as the physics are arcade leaning, utilizing a classic power-and-timing meter. However, playing your own course is essential for science and you’ll quickly realize that if that bunker on the 8th hole is actually a nightmare that makes the hole unplayable.

Your avatar is customisable with a few various options on clothing as well as levelling up as you play, earning points in Power, Accuracy, and Imagination. This light RPG element gives you a reason to step away from the blueprints and onto the grass, though the primary joy remains seeing how your design choices affect the flight of the ball.

Final Thoughts

Under Par Golf Architect succeeds because it understands that golf is as much about the surroundings as it is about the swing. It isn’t trying to compete with the photorealistic, instead it carves out its own niche by focusing on marketing itself as a more cosier approach which has worked out a treat. There is a almost zen-like satisfaction in watching everything unfold and your hard work paying off on a fairway you spent fifteen minutes meticulously grading. Nothing more rewarding than seeing a crowd of AI golfers congregating at a hole because it’s bunker city and their feedback telling you it’s a difficult hole but they enjoy it, it provides a sense of “place” that few titles in this genre manage to achieve.

It’s a creative playground that respects your time and rewards your imagination, I found myself lost in deisgning and tinkering holes already made just to get ratings up. For fans of either Golf or Tycoon games I suggest you grab your digital visor as the club is officially open for business and we need to make it a hole in one.