Under Par Golf Architect (PS5) Review: SimGolf Lives On

Sid Meier’s SimGolf was one of the best strategy games released in 2002, yet the golf course simulation field has largely been left vacant. Now, 25 years later, Under Par Golf Architect arrives to fill its shoes. While it might not be as polished as Firaxis’ classic game, it provides a fun, modern take on the genre that has largely been forgotten.

Gameplay is exactly what you’d expect, as you design golf holes, set up buildings in your course, and hire employees to staff your club. There’s a nice amount of depth, as buildings can be upgraded, holes are graded, and making sure golfers are satisfied is key to getting members. Mechanically, the game is at its best as a sim, and a lot of what you expect from SimGolf is lovingly recreated here. There are two main play modes: a sandbox where you can go as wild as you want and a career mode that tasks you with managing increasingly difficult clubs, so content won’t be an issue.

You can also play your own courses, which is a good way to make sure you’ve designed a good experience from entry to finish, as if you’re having a poor time getting around, then the computer characters are as well. It’s not the game’s strong suit, but it has some decent fundamentals (think Hot Shots-adjacent gameplay). I had more fun managing the club, and that’s where most people’s focus will be, but it’s a nice bonus to be able to get on the course yourself.

If there’s one major complaint to be had against the game, it’s that its art style provides a constant mixed bag. It has a chibi art style, which is playful and scales well, but a lot of the characters are just ugly to look at. Some elements, such as the courses themselves and the animals (raccoons!) that can appear on the courses, have a lot of charm to them, though, so it largely evens out, even if I wish the game looked better.

I had a good time with Under Par Golf Architect, but I do have to say that it’s probably best enjoyed on PC rather than on a console. Playing with a controller naturally slows down course creation, and the game has a somewhat cumbersome control scheme due to its many menus. The user interface is also initially hard to read on a television, as I had to switch it to “handheld” mode to make it legible. It’s still entirely playable on PS5, but it isn’t the best fit for the genre, and PC was clearly the main development version.

Under Par Golf Architect (PS5) Review: Final Verdict

If you’re like me and have been itching for another SimGolf game since 2002, then Under Par Golf Architect will scratch that itch. It’s not as polished, but it also runs on modern systems and isn’t at an 800×600 resolution, so you take the good with the bad. Just know it’s probably best played on PC rather than PS5, which has received a serviceable port but one that never feels quite right.