|
Sunset Valley-1
by Wayne Kerns
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 754 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2002-01-29 |
12,255,253 bytes |
72 |
6811 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
|
FICTIONAL |
DESERT |
Sunset Valley-1.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
| 18afd1c014ff11d68fdc00c0f0963a5a |
2d1b2075365f8240d04bbbb2eeebe8a0 |
|
LINKS CORNER REVIEW |
Reviewed by
Mike Nifong
February 2002
Course type: Sunset Valley is a fictional desert course. According to the brief read-me file, it is loosely based on a real course located in Arizona.
Historical perspective: Sunset Valley - 1 is the revised version of Wayne Kerns' third course. The original version (which, as you might suspect, was named just Sunset Valley) was released on December 30, 2001. After Andy Scott made several comments about the APCD work on the web board (for those of you looking for a definition of constructive criticism, I would suggest that you read his posts on this course), Wayne decided to release a second version to address those issues. His willingness to do so is a very good sign; I am always appreciative of a designer's efforts to make his courses as good as they can be. A less positive sign is found in the user reviews: the initial version got two stars (60-69%) from four users, while the revised course has a silver star (less than 50%) from two.
This is the first of Wayne's designs that I have played. His first two courses, Bear Mountain and Southern Comfort, got decent LC review scores, but generated little user response. All of his courses boast small download sizes.
What is included: In addition to the previously mentioned read-me file, there is a card showing the course layout and a .REC file (not examined). The cameo and splash screen are both quite colorful (I mean that in a good way). The hole previews, an unaccustomed bonus at this file size, are simple but attractive and informative.
First impressions: As expected of a desert course, your initial view is quite open, with an appealing pano of dunes. The tee box is nicely finished, and the overall impression is surprisingly green, perhaps a little too much so; a less saturated shade would probably fit the surroundings better. There are also two desert textures: a reddish, 'Desert Sand' texture which is planted with a profusion of cacti and the like and well populated with a few (too few) varieties of rocks, and a more brownish and essentially barren texture simply labelled 'Desert.' Coupled with the darker green collar of first cut and the white sand bunkers, the overall impression is a little busy.
What comes next: Unfortunately, this is not one of those courses that rewards closer inspection. In fact, such inspection reveals some inconsistencies in quality of finish that really should have been addressed in this second version. Take, for instance, the tee boxes. Almost all of them are consistent with what you see on #1, but you only have to go as far as #3 to find a similar tee box that also features bad mesh shadows and overly square texture boundary transitions. Did this one inadvertently get left out of the upgrade? There is a similar issue regarding the bunkers. Most of them are nicely finished, but check out the fairway bunker on the right on #1, which has both bad mesh shadows and borders composed of straight lines and sharp angles. Similar straight lines and sharp angles can also be seen in the borders between the fairway and the first cut (which is how the texture is labelled although in reality it is the only rough).
In addition to these lapses in finish quality, there is also a significant problem with object redundancy. While I am willing to overlook the repetitiveness of the planting given the modest file size, I find it harder to ignore the over cloning of the rocks. In the screenshot at the top, you will see the same small, square rock used more than 100 times (not to mention the large, square rock that is used seven times). I would not even want to guess at how many times you will notice this same rock during the course of your round.
Finally, there is a problem with scale. There are some cacti planted, especially around the greens (#11 and #12 come to mind), that tower to apparent heights of ten or twelve feet when their real-life counterparts would likely not reach much above mid-calf. And the wolf and coyote that are directly ahead on the #11 tee also seem somewhat larger than life.
The use of sounds, on the other hand, is a positive for this course. Mostly consisting of a variety of bird sounds, the course sound library also features such things as coyotes howling, although seemingly at a greater distance than the one you see with his head thrown back on #11.
In fairness, it must be said that these shortcomings affect only the immersion level of this course, which is important to me but may be less so to you. None of them affect playability at all. And in that category, the course acquits itself reasonably well. The layout features good variety within the constraints inherent in the choice of setting, and there is a wide selection of hole lengths as well. Appropriately for a desert course, there is not much water; it is featured on only a few holes and is never in play. The two desert textures play quite differently: the 'Desert Sand' plays as you would expect sand to play, but with the added danger of finding yourself in a difficult or unplayable lie behind a rock or plant; the 'Desert' texture, on the other hand, seems to have about the same consistency as a parking lot, and the bounces you get can make things a lot better or a lot worse. The fairways are fairly generous in the landing areas, but there is only that narrow collar of light rough between them and the desert. The greens are for the most part pretty flat, and the slopes tend to be gentle, making for easy putting as long as you are below the hole.
The course configuration is somewhat unusual, in that there are six each of par-3, par-4, and par-5 holes. Only one of the par-5's (#8) is absolutely unreachable from the back tees, although #18 will require favorable wind conditions. And on any of the par-5's that you do reach in two, your chances at an eagle will be pretty good (in one round, I eagled four out of five) because of the easy greens. The par-4 #9 is almost drivable as well; you will certainly be able to put yourself in position to have a short chip for eagle.
Overall, Sunset Valley plays a little too much on the easy side to present much of a challenge to pro clickers, even at breezy settings with difficult pins, so at that level you may find it necessary to turn the conditions all the way up. Presumably, that same fact will make the course more favorable for those who play ay the higher levels.
The bottom line: A decent course, but there are some excellent desert courses out there that offer better value even at their larger file sizes (Talon Course at Grayhawk, Desert Canyon, Arrow Canyon, Dove Valley, and The Scorpion come immediately to mind). I am also a little disappointed that so much that is obviously below the current standard would not have been addressed in the second version of any course, and that fact calls into question the point of the endeavour. Your call.
Course Statistics :
Par 72; 3 sets of tees; 6811 yards from back tees; holes are not handicapped. |
This course is available as a FREE download.
|
|
Download course
|
Please support Links Corner
|
|
|
