If there were an award for most improved game in a series, my vote for 1998 would go to Microsoft Golf 1998 Edition. It's so much better than any of the previous Microsoft Golf games that the only way you'd know it had anything to do with the previous versions is from the name.

How was Microsoft able to make such a quantum leap from the ho-hum Microsoft Golf 3.0 to this beauty? The answer is simple: a new developer. All the earlier incarnations of MS Golf were created by Access Software, and the stuff it did for Microsoft never came close to reaching the level of excellence Access achieved with its own Links games. Perhaps there was some sort of contractual deal whereby Access demanded that certain features of Links couldn't be incorporated in the MS Golf games; whatever the reason, though, MS Golf's trailing-edge graphics and ho-hum gameplay meant it was always several steps behind the Links games and Accolade's Jack Nicklaus line.

But with MS Golf 1998 Edition, Microsoft and new developer Friendly Software have changed the game substantially. The biggest area of improvement is in the graphics department: The difference between these visuals and the ones in MS Golf 3.0 is downright staggering. Friendly Software obviously took its cue from the Links engine, and the results are impressive indeed - not quite as good as what you'll find in the latest Links and Jack Nicklaus games, but pretty darn close.

One of the strong points is the interface, which has been designed so you can get to almost any area of the game with only one or two mouse clicks. Want to change your swing type from two-click to a mouse swing without exiting to a configuration screen? A nifty little menu bar at the bottom of the screen lets you do that in seconds, as well as adjust game settings (flybys, commentary, graphic detail), change the height of your next shot, get statistics on your current round, and more.

With a slew of options for customizing your player character, MS Golf 1998 makes it possible for you to create a virtual version of yourself out on the course. Ten player models are included (though you won't get access to all of them unless you do the full 418MB install), and naturally you get to pick the color of your shirt. But you also get to choose from three ball types, set your strength in ten different categories (such as driver, fairway, woods, sand), and set distances for each club. It takes some time to plow through this stuff, but when you're through you should be able to create a character that plays pretty close to your own real-life skill level.

Other nice features include the ability to alter pin placement (from moderate to hard, and there's a randomizing feature), four swing types (two-click, three-click, mouse swing, and sim, which lets the computer do the actual mechanics of the stroke), five game types (stroke, match, skins, scramble, and bingo bango bongo), and extremely smooth play over Microsoft's Internet Gaming Zone (which now supports Netscape Communicator - hooray!). All in all, this is a very sweet package, and perhaps most importantly the screen redraws are fairly fast (though not as quick as Links LS and Jack Nicklaus).

MS Golf 1998 Edition does have some weak points, to be sure. There's no offline tournament, a feature of Links LS that really gets competitive juices flowing. The commentary by CGS golf analyst David Feherty isn't particularly humorous or helpful (you can turn it off, though). But the biggest drawback is that there are surprisingly few courses to play here. The game ships with only three full courses - The Bay Harbor Golf Club, The Links at Casa de Campo in the Dominican Republic, and Teeth of the Dog (also at Casa De Campo) - and one nine-hole course, The Preserve 9 at Bay Harbor. The courses are beautiful, no doubt, with plenty of waterside vistas and lush wooded areas, but 63 holes at two resorts is a letdown compared with the stunning lineup of championship courses available for Links LS or all the user-created courses that are being passed around for Jack Nicklaus.

MS Golf 1998 hasn't quite caught up with the big boys just yet, but if the next edition shows as much improvement as this one, it's only a matter of time before it seriously challenges Links LS and Nicklaus. 

By Stephen Poole