Zany Golf
From Sega Retro
| Zany Golf | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| System(s): Sega Mega Drive | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Publisher: Electronic Arts | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Developer: Electronic Arts | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Original system(s): Apple IIGS | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Developer(s) of original games: Sandcastle Productions | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sound driver: Electronic Arts/Steve Hayes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Genre: Sports | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number of players: 1-4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Zany Golf is an unlicensed Sega Mega Drive minigolf game developed and published by Electronic Arts. A port of the titular 1988 Sandcastle Productions game Zany Golf, it was released exclusively in the United States and Europe in December 1990.
It is most known for being one of few commercially-released Sega Mega Drive games to fail the system's TradeMark Security System test (refusing to operate with anything but the earliest Mega Drive hardware), requiring Electronic Arts to produce a later revision of the game with TMSS compliance.
Contents
Gameplay
The game is a minigolf game played in a 3D isometric viewpoint. It is a golf game only involving putting. Up to four players can play, taking turns (with player 1 having a red ball, player 2 a blue ball, player 3 a black ball, and player 4 a white ball). There are nine holes (half of a golf course). Holes have numerous obstacles that players can interact with.
At the beginning of each hole, every player is given five strokes. The objective is to putt the ball into the hole at or under the par rating for each hole. On completing each hole, the remaining players are given more strokes equal to the par of the next hole. Any player who runs out of strokes is eliminated, and the other players are allowed to continue. The game ends when all players are eliminated or when the last hole is completed. The scorecard is displayed at the end of the round (or it can be brought up during a hole with START ). Once a player's turn is complete, the player's ball disappears from the course and is replaced by an X mark of that player's color, so it cannot be disrupted by other players' balls.
The player controls a cursor using the D-Pad. Moving the cursor to the edge of the screen pans the view. A screen before the hole shows a full view of the hole and provides information about how to complete it; the player can show this screen again during gameplay with 
. The player can snap the cursor back to the ball with 
. While the cursor is on the ball, the player can start a shot by holding 
and moving the D-Pad in the opposite direction of the intended shot, which draws a line away from the ball. The angle of the line determines the trajectory of the shot, and the length of the line determines how hard the ball is hit. Releasing the button performs the shot.
On occasion, fairies are placed on the course; hitting them awards bonus strokes. Sometimes a timer bonus is offered instead; if the hole is finished quickly, the player earns bonus strokes. If a fairy is present or a timer bonus is available, it is announced prior to the first shot.
Objects
| Fairy | |
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| If a fairy appears, hit the fairy for a stroke bonus. |
Holes
| Wacky Windmill | |
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Par: 2 | |
| The ball has to be shot into a windmill or into the slide down the ramp below to enter the second area. Shooting directly into the windmill awards a bonus stroke. | |
| Hamburger Hill | |
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Par: 3 | |
| The hole is covered by a bouncing hamburger, reached by bouncing the ball off a ketchup bottle that squirts. The hamburger bounces up and down by pressing repeatedly, with more button presses resulting in higher bounces.
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| Will's Walls | |
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Par: 2 | |
| Four walls continuously rise from the ground and fall back down. Hitting them leads down to the bottom part of the course with the hole. The third wall must be hit to get to area with the hole; if missed, the player must shoot up and around into the third area. | |
| Pinball Palace | |
|
Par: 3 | |
| The hole begins as a game of pinball, where the player can hit the ball with the flippers after shooting it. Two drop targets must be hit before the top-left corner escape chute is activated. Although enough failures to hit the drop targets releases the ball to the bottom part of the course with the hole, hitting the targets and escape chute leads directly to the hole and awards a bonus stroke. The flippers are activated with , and the table can be bumped by pressing repeatedly.
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| Frantic Fans | |
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Par: 3 | |
| Fans positioned along the hole allow blowing the ball in a different direction. The fans are activated by rotating the D-Pad quickly. | |
| Chaotic Castle | |
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Par: 3 | |
| The ball has to be shot up a hill to enter into a castle or tunnels outside it, leading to the second area with the hole. Entering the castle gate, which is intermittently guarded with a portcullis, awards an additional stroke. | |
| Ambling Ant Hill | |
|
Par: 3 | |
| The course resembles a giant ant hill, with eight slopes facing the eight main compass directions and holding areas behind each. Players start in the south holding area. At the end of all areas except the south, there is a bumper which can be activated with to hit the ball back to the top of the hill. However, the hole on the hill moves at will while a ball is in play.
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| Knock-Out Nightmare | |
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Par: 4 | |
This hole consists of a Breakout-style scenario where the player must destroy targets while given control of a paddle. The paddle can be moved with  and  . After all the targets are destroyed, corner escape holes are activated, which lead to a checkerboard-like putting green (if the hole is hit before the targets are destroyed, the ball shoots back out and all previously hit targets will reappear). Certain squares on the green flash, which, if rolled over at any time (not only while flashing), teleport the ball back to the start of the green.
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| Energy Enigma | |
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Par: 5 | |
| A two-part hole which consists of a giant computer on the lower level and a field of false holes surrounding the real hole on the top level. To complete the hole, the player must hit two buttons on the giant computer, then shoot into a suction tube that leads to the top level. Alternatively, there is a mouse hole on the bottom level which is either empty, shows white eyes, or very rarely shows red eyes if both buttons have been hit. If a ball is shot into the mouse hole while the red eyes are displayed, that player completes the hole automatically. At any other time, the ball is pushed out of the hole and the shot may be attempted again. In a multiplayer game, only one player needs to successfully enter the mouse hole. |
Versions
Holes have been renamed to have alliterative names (for example, Windmill Hole was renamed to Wacky Windmill and Fans was renamed to Frantic Fans). The Mega Drive version omits the Magic Carpet hole, which requires a mouse. Instead, the bonus hole from the computer versions, Mystery, appears after Ambling Ant Hill, renamed to Knock-Out Nightmare.
Production credits
- Written by: Will Harvey, Jim Nitchals, Ian Gooding, Doug Fulton
- Sega version by: Brett G. Durrett
Magazine articles
- Main article: Zany Golf/Magazine articles.
Physical scans
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61 |
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| Based on 22 reviews | |
| Mega Drive, US |
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    Cover
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 Cart |
| Mega Drive, EU |
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 Cover
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Cart |
| Mega Drive, BR |
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 Cover
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 Cart |
Technical information
ROM dump status
| System | Hash | Size | Build Date | Source | Comments | |||||||||
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512kB | Cartridge (US/EU) | REV00 (without TMSS support) | ||||||||||
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512kB | 1990-07 | Cartridge (US/EU) | REV01 (with TMSS support) |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 ACE, "January 1991" (UK; 1990-12-xx), page 165
- ↑ File:Zany Golf MD credits.pdf
- ↑ 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 130
- ↑ 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 348
- ↑ ACE, "April 1991" (UK; 1991-03-08), page 64
- ↑ Aktueller Software Markt, "März 1991" (DE; 1991-02-22), page 116
- ↑ Complete Guide to Consoles, "Volume IV" (UK; 1990-11-xx), page 39
- ↑ Console XS, "June/July 1992" (UK; 1992-04-23), page 137
- ↑ Génération 4, "Février 1991" (FR; 1991-xx-xx), page 93
- ↑ Hobby Consolas, "Diciembre 1991" (ES; 1991-1x-xx), page 81
- ↑ Joystick, "Janvier 1991" (FR; 199x-xx-xx), page 100
- ↑ Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming, "December 1992" (UK; 1992-xx-xx), page 79
- ↑ Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming, "January 1993" (UK; 199x-xx-xx), page 95
- ↑ Mega, "October 1992" (UK; 1992-09-17), page 60
- ↑ MegaTech, "Xmas 1991" (UK; 1991-12-06), page 81
- ↑ Mean Machines, "November 1990" (UK; 1990-10-29), page 68
- ↑ Mean Machines Sega, "October 1992" (UK; 1992-09-xx), page 143
- ↑ Player One, "Mars 1991" (FR; 1991-xx-xx), page 42
- ↑ Power Play, "3/91" (DE; 1991-02-15), page 150
- ↑ Sega Power, "January 1991" (UK; 1990-12-06), page 24
- ↑ Sega Power, "October 1991" (UK; 1991-09-05), page 55
- ↑ Sega Pro, "April 1992" (UK; 1992-03-19), page 31
- ↑ Sega Pro, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-11), page 68
- ↑ Tricks 16 bit, "Tricks Sega Gold 800 igr" (RU; 1998-03-20), page 307
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