Links 2001: Links 2001 Preview Company: Microsoft Microsoft?s Links 2001 has got some pretty smooth graphics, but I?ve seen better. The smoothness is almost the problem as it makes things look a bit too fake (for example, sand traps don?t have distinct barriers). The golfer animations are very detailed however... and they look good! They seem to be video-captured animations of real golfers including pros Arnold Palmer, Sergio Garcia, and LPGA star Annika Sorenstam. The sound fx and voiceovers just aren?t all there either. Tournament mode does offer a bit more course interaction, but most sounds seem a bit too late. Crowd cheers are the most noticeable as the next player in the group may well be on his/her way to shooting when the cheers finally come. Other than that, sound effects are pretty good. However, I keep wishing for a couple of announcers or something to liven up the game?s dead silence. Perhaps this will change in the final product as this is a beta. Links 2001 has got TONS of gameplay! Quite simply, I?m overwhelmed with all of the options included in the game. There are bunches and bunches of different modes of play including all of your standard modes as well as a tourney mode (with its own selectable options!). In fact, there are plans for Links to allow PC gamers to compete against one another online in their very own VGA (Virtual Golf Association) Tour for prizes! That would be a huge bonus for virtua-golfers! Links 2001 offers three different swing options and tons of onscreen info for aiming your shots in hopes of those precious birdies! Also included (and this is awesome!) is the new color-coded putting grid. Not only do you get the now-standard grid showing slopes, but now this grid also includes various colors to represent high and low points. And trust me, you?ll need it! ?Drive for show, putt for dough,? right??? Well, Links definitely hits home on this old saying! Also included within the package is the new ?Arnold Palmer Course Designer,? which allows you to recreate your home course in real-time 3D. A great add-on, since I would imagine that you would be able to download/share courses with other golfers around the world, adding a limitless number of courses to go along with the six pre-installed on this four CD set. Links 2001?s difficulty is all a matter of perspective. If you think that you?ll be able to compete with the Tour Pros on first breaking the game from the box, you?re fooling yourself. And if after first playing, you feel as though you should stick to mini-golf; try again. ?Practice makes perfect,? right? In case you do need to change it up, you will have many options to make the game perfect for you, including difficulty settings, mulligans, and more. As with all golf games, you only have one goal: Get the little white ball into the little white hole with the smallest number of strokes. (Everybody got that?) Links 2001 is no different. The player interface is pretty well designed, as everything is just point-and-click. The only thing I felt was annoying was that it seemed to take the computer players in your group an awfully long time to ?think? about their shot before swinging. Another thing I noticed (at least on the average difficulty setting) was that sometimes the computer A.I. isn?t all that great. One time the computer 6-putted!!! It was insane, but helped me win the hole (he he he). Links 2001 is a worthy game that could use a bit of tweaking, but golf fans may want to pick this one up on release. Once again, this was a beta I was testing, so things are subject to change. -Woody, GameVortex Communications AKA Shane Wodele