Super Swing Golf

There is an obvious question to ask concerning the release of Super Swing Golf on Wii. It’s the same question you ask any publisher releasing a new FPS on 360 or another brain-sharpening mini-game collection for Wii. How are you going to carve a niche in the market?

“We saw an opportunity in the casual sports market which surprisingly hadn’t been exploited yet – especially when you consider the way you use the Wii, its undoubtedly huge popularity and the fun everyone had with Wii Sports,” Rising Star’s product marketing assistant Yen Hau tells MCV.

“Yes, Tiger Woods was already available, but we see it as a totally different game. Tiger Woods is a golfing sim, whereas Super Swing Golf is first and foremost a party game. It’s like the difference between going to a country club to play a round of golf or heading down to a fairground for a game of crazy golf; they are the same game but they are played in a totally different environment and setting.

“We’re also planning on the success of Wii Sports to translate over. Although it was a good game, it’s still a small component of what is essentially a compilation and doesn’t provide the full depth of experience that Super Swing Golf does.”

The last point is particularly pertinent. Whereas Wii Bowling or Wii Tennis are the typical choice for post-pub shenanigans, many players would agree that the real depth of play is to be found in the golf section of Nintendo’s classic. But with such a short offering, it’s all over a bit too quickly, frankly.

Still, Rising Star will also have to fend off advances of other rivals aside from EA and Nintendo.

“We were also aware that Capcom were planning to release their own title, We Love Golf, and wanted to get to market around the same time,” Hau adds.

“Although at first glance the two titles are very similar, we’re marketing Super Swing Golf as a different experience. Capcom’s biggest selling point is the online play. Our lack of this ability has focused the core message on providing a solid single player experience in addition to great party gameplay, which it does very well.”

Rising Star is going all out to get word of its latest release to the masses, with columns in the national press including  The Sun, The Times, The Daily Mail and The News of the World. The publisher says that it is specifically targeting the casual mainstream audience – an approach that’s very sensible, we would have thought, considering the huge number of people a title like this is bound to appeal to.