Mario Golf (GBC)

Mario Golf
Developer	Camelot
Publisher	Nintendo
System	Game Boy Color, 3DS Virtual Console
Release Date	Game Boy Color JP August 10, 1999 US October 5, 1999 EU November 4, 1999 3DS Virtual Console JP October 3, 2012 US October 11, 2012 EU May 28, 2014
Rating	ESRB: E

Mario Golf (known as Mario Golf GB in Japan) is a handheld Mario-based golf game for the Game Boy Color which acts as a companion game for the N64 Mario Golf. This game sets a new precedent by introducing RPG elements and featuring a cast of original characters.

Story

The game follows one of four golfers (Kid, Azalea, Joe and Sherry) who embarks to become a golf champion. The player character must challenge four different clubs and defeat their champions. Doing so would unlock a way to the Mushroom Kingdom and the true champions.

Gameplay

This Mario Golf notably enhances the standard golf gameplay with RPG-like gameplay. There is gameplay outside of the actual golf game, as the player freely controls a character who can be moved along an overworld map to enter clubs and talk to others. The player character has a variety of stats which are improved with the experience points earned from participating in golf games.

Supplementary modes include minigames which feature the Mario characters and a multiplayer mode that can be played with just one game (due to the nature of golf requiring only one player being active at a time). This game can also be linked to the N64 game using the Transfer Pak to make the four player characters temporarily playable in the N64 game, and this earns experience for the Game Boy Color game.

Playable Characters

In Story Mode, the player can choose between playing as Kid, Azalea, Joe or Sherry. There are also four unlockable characters: Putts, Grace, Tiny and Gene Yuss.

Outside of the Story Mode, Mario and Luigi were playable, with Wario also being unlockable.

Legacy

This game set a precedent which was followed by the Game Boy Color version of Mario Tennis, which had similar RPG-inspired gameplay. It also set off its own subseries of RPG-based games within the Mario Golf series.

Ports/Remakes

• In 2012, this game was released for download on the 3DS as part of the 3DS Virtual Console. Its European release did not come until 2014, however.

Sequels

The next Mario Golf game was Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour for the Gamecube. Camelot also made another Game Boy Color game called Mobile Golf, which used Mario characters and some of the original characters from this Mario Golf, and this game also later received a direct sequel in the form of Mario Golf: Advance Tour for the Game Boy Advance.