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Blue Rain Valley HD
by Rand Herron, update by Lez Marwick Note: This course contains 1024x1024 textures and can only be played in version 1.07 or later of Links 2003
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 2115 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2012-12-21 |
131,850,240 bytes |
72 |
7392 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
|
FICTIONAL |
PARKLAND |
BlueRainValleyHD.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
| 399287aef5d54852bafc605179f8c3e8 |
5112b0a5badaada4330f7adfb4824ed3 |
| COURSE NOTES |
I only heard about Blue Rain Valley after a post on a well known Links website had been severely critical of the course. I took a look out of curiosity, and found that it was actually a well thought out course, with excellent planting. Unfortunately, I thought the textures let the course down visually, and the course also had some technical issues. Some mod-unfriendly greens were also not doing the course the justice I felt that it deserved. I could see that past these problems though there was the potential for another very nice course, and so I decided that this would be another perfect course for an HD upgrade.
This is a list of the changes I can remember making:
HD textures added
Green slopes modified
Water reflection issues fixed
Custom tee markers and flag removed
Textures renamed
Seam blends added
Extrusions minimized
Hole handicaps added (thanks to Jerry Garlisch)
Steel trees replaced
Woodland areas marked as 'unplayable lie' to aid realistic gameplay
out of bounds posts replaced with normal posts (as marked areas were not OB)
More bird sounds added to better create a woodland ambiance
Corrected the scale of some 2D and 3D objects
Unrealistic fairway section removed on 8th hole
Non-hazard flower beds set to free drop
New logo added
Updated splash screen
I hope a few more people will now enjoy this fine course by Rand Herron.
All the best............. Lez |
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CLIPNOTES by Ben Bateson (ousgg) |
Description
Fictional, lakeside course |
Location
Despite a wide range of planting, the Florida influences are pretty clear. |
Conditions
The greens play OK on F*/F*, but the surrounding complexes might put you off. I would settle for a notch slower. |
Concept 8/10
The original Blue Rain Valley showcased some imaginative golfing design amid some pretty horribly textures and landscaping; thankfully a great deal of this has been levelled out with Lez's affectionate remake, and some of the great golf shines through. It's reminiscent of both Bay Hill and Sawgrass, with lots of water and plenty of creativity required despite some apparently flat landscape, and the multiple flowerbeds break up the visuals very nicely.The 10th, in particular, is a classic and well worth playing through the first half for. |
Appearance 8/10
A vastly improved texture set goes with the slightly esoteric planting set, and generally the course looks have been tidied up well. It's not perfect: some texture folds and extrusion marks remain, and there are still quite a few clones. But good textures have made a lot of difference. |
Playability 6/10
A love of upturned-dish greens is apparent, and given that many of them are barely bigger than your average dining table, it would be a brave man who played with slick conditions all the way around. There are quite a few forced shot-shaping exercises from the tee, several very tight landing areas, and - alongside the glut of water - this struck me as one gimmick too many. |
Challenge 8/10
Although not easy, Blue Rain Valley is open and reasonably accessible and despite the water and some additional 'unplayable' hazards, stands a very reasonable test of getting round in par. A lot may well depend on green conditions, but that's certainly not a negative against the course itself. |
Technical 7/10
Huge improvements to both visuals and playability were Lez's aim, and although the original was somewhat coarse, it took great vision to pick out the golfing values contained within. Sure, it's not perfect, but it is most definitely fun, and that's one of a course designer's aims achieved. |
| Overall |
Lez has scratched away at the surface of a course that was unpalatable before, and revealed some of the beauty within. Commendable. |
37/50 |
Please remember that Clipnote reviews are the opinion of one person and do not constitute an 'Official' Links Corner review of the course. |
This course is available as a FREE download.
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