Vertiginous Golf

About

Vertiginous Golf is a single player and multiplayer sport game. It was developed by Kinelco & Lone Elk Creative and was released on May 6, 2015. It received neutral reviews from players.

"Vertiginous Golf" is a steam punk mini golf adventure game set in a floating city above a polluted world. Play through challenging golf courses in story mode to uncover a looming insurrection, while avoiding the propaganda messages of peace and prosperity. Experience temporary escape from the gloom below in this dystopian mini golf journey.

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59%

Audience ScoreBased on 741 reviews

story19 positive mentions

stability19 negative mentions

Unique and immersive steampunk world with beautiful graphics.
Challenging and rewarding gameplay mechanics that require skill and strategy.
Fun multiplayer experience, especially when played with friends.

Clunky controls and frustrating physics that can lead to a steep learning curve.
Small online player base, making it difficult to find multiplayer matches.
Overly complex level design that can be confusing and detracts from the enjoyment.

story
101 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
76%
5%
The story in "Vertiginous Golf" is a mixed bag, featuring a dark and intriguing backstory set in a steampunk world that some players found captivating, while others criticized it as convoluted and poorly integrated into the gameplay. While the effort to include a narrative adds depth, many reviews noted that the execution is often muddled, with voice acting and plot elements that can feel pretentious or disconnected from the actual golf mechanics. Overall, the game's story is seen as an ambitious attempt that may not resonate with all players, but offers a unique twist to the mini-golf experience.
- “With stunning aesthetics, intricate course designs, and a surprisingly dark backstory, Vertiginous Golf offers more than just putting a ball into a hole.”
- “The occasional voiceovers and snippets of the game’s backstory add depth to what could have been a simple golf game.”
- “There's lots to like about this game, including the steampunk setting and the ambition to try to create story and atmosphere in a mini golf game.”
- “No individual element of the plot, story, or setting quite makes sense even in isolation, and gets worse when you consider other elements of the plot.”
- “There's a story, but it has almost nothing to do with you or the game; it's just kind of shoehorned in there, and playing the story mode completely screws up your actual game of golf.”
- “The story is all told by rambling characters who spent 3 hours poring over a thesaurus for the most ostentatious way of saying anything at all.”
graphics
98 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
47%
48%
5%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the stunning steampunk aesthetic and intricate course designs, while others criticize technical issues such as blurriness and poor UI/UX. Overall, the visuals are often described as beautiful and immersive, contributing positively to the game's atmosphere, despite some players finding them busy or lacking polish. While the graphics are generally considered above average for a mini-golf game, technical glitches and performance issues detract from the experience for some users.
- “With stunning aesthetics, intricate course designs, and a surprisingly dark backstory, Vertiginous Golf offers more than just putting a ball into a hole.”
- “The steampunk aesthetic is where Vertiginous Golf truly shines.”
- “The graphics are amazing on splendid settings!”
- “Camera is annoying and graphics are very blurry.”
- “Slow, buggy, graphics are awful, just avoid this completely.”
- “In this game the graphics are busy, blurry and hard on the eyes.”
gameplay
89 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
61%
9%
The gameplay of this mini-golf game is a mixed bag, featuring innovative mechanics like a mechanical hummingbird for scouting and a rewind feature, which add depth but can also lead to frustration due to steep difficulty and unintuitive controls. While some players appreciate the unique challenges and steampunk aesthetics, others criticize the gameplay for being convoluted, poorly executed, and lacking in basic enjoyment. Overall, it offers a chaotic and visually appealing experience, but its mechanics may not resonate with all players, particularly casual ones.
- “At its core, the game functions as a mini-golf simulator, but it comes with a range of mechanics that set it apart.”
- “Players can use a mechanical hummingbird to scout ahead, manipulate time to rewind shots, and deal with moving obstacles and bizarre hazards that make each course a unique challenge.”
- “Vertiginous Golf is an impressively fun golf game with tight controls and some interesting game mechanics such as a scout to survey the track and the ability to go back in time to reverse a fatal swing.”
- “The gameplay is terrible and brings shame to the very idea of a golf game.”
- “Interrupting the gameplay multiple times per hole and forcing the player to listen to an overly long and flowery audio monologue is just bad game design that only serves to frustrate the player.”
- “This game's major issue is that it wants to introduce more complex mechanics, but can't even get the basics down first; I could not imagine paying money for this as there are better mini-golf games out there for free.”
music
42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
48%
14%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its atmospheric and calming qualities that complement the visuals, while others find it repetitive, obnoxious, or poorly suited to the gameplay. Many users noted that the soundtrack enhances the overall experience, but some expressed frustration with its lack of variety and the intrusive nature of certain sound effects. Overall, the music contributes to the game's ambiance, but opinions vary widely on its effectiveness and enjoyment.
- “The soundtrack complements the visuals perfectly, with eerie yet relaxing tunes that immerse players in the dystopian world.”
- “The game couples relaxing music and visuals with golfing and physics puzzle-based gameplay.”
- “The environments are lovely and the music is so relaxing, and the gameplay is brutal!”
- “The music is obnoxious, the mechanics are all wrong, and the controls feel awful!”
- “Weirdly designed, constant droning 5-second loop of piano music in the background, the physics are somehow both too heavy and too floaty at the same time.”
- “Ps: I got tired of the music after 10 minutes....”
atmosphere
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
55%
30%
15%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its stunning visuals and immersive steampunk aesthetic, creating a unique and engaging experience. While some players find the dystopian storyline and gameplay mechanics detracting, the overall ambiance, complemented by a satisfying soundtrack, enhances the game's appeal, particularly for fans of the genre. Despite some criticisms of repetitiveness, the atmospheric world-building and innovative design stand out as key highlights.
- “Set in a dystopian steampunk world, it blends precision golfing with a unique narrative and atmospheric world-building.”
- “While its steep difficulty curve and physics-based frustration may not appeal to casual players, its stunning atmosphere, deep mechanics, and innovative design make it worth checking out—especially for fans of steampunk aesthetics.”
- “The atmosphere in the game is dripping wet from the blood and sweat the developers put into the game.”
- “The courses are pretty enough, but the atmosphere is hampered by a dystopian storyline that you have to listen to.”
- “The atmosphere is weird, the gameplay is average, the controls are unintuitive, the level design is somewhere between boring and annoying.”
- “Con- repetitive atmosphere.”
stability
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is widely criticized, with numerous reports of severe bugs, glitches, and framerate issues that significantly hinder gameplay. While some players find charm in the chaos, many describe it as barely playable, with specific complaints about the physics engine and level creator. A few users noted that the game functions adequately at times, but overall, the consensus leans towards a frustratingly unstable experience.
- “So buggy it's barely playable.”
- “I have never seen such a buggy and undeveloped game; even if it is an indie, don't buy it.”
- “Slow, buggy, graphics are awful; just avoid this completely.”
optimization
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
19%
36%
The game's optimization has received significant criticism, with users reporting issues such as frame drops, stuttering, and unresponsive controls, even on high-spec systems. While some players noted smooth performance on specific setups, the overall consensus is that the game requires substantial improvements in CPU and GPU utilization, as well as better control responsiveness.
- “Great graphics and runs smoothly on my i86-pxe.”
- “Also a well optimized game.”
- “Runs smoothly.”
- “The developer should focus their attention on fixing glaring issues with this game, like broken mouse boundaries, stuttering, and other frame rate inconsistencies.”
- “My specs are well above the recommended for the game; however, it still has fairly constant frame drops and stuttering.”
- “This game is badly optimized; it seriously needs V-Sync, and the controls aren't easy to understand.”
humor
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted by the chaotic and absurd situations that arise during gameplay, particularly when playing with friends, leading to laughter over mishaps like missed shots and explosive interactions. Players find amusement in the game's quirky design and unexpected challenges, often treating it as a humorous experiment rather than a serious competition. The contrast between the lighthearted gameplay and the game's darker backstory adds an additional layer of irony that players appreciate.
- “Got this game along with 3 gifts in the humble bundle, it might not be worth the £7 price tag, but this game is so much fun to mess around with friends on. So far we've been laughing every second as we screw each other over with tornados and explosives in the goal to get to the hole.”
- “Couldn't stop laughing at my mate taking 28 shots to get it in the hole!”
- “When you play with friends, an inaccurate stroke could send your ball to 'how am I supposed to get to the hole now?!', which will give you and your friends a very hilarious time together.”
replayability
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
28%
43%
The game offers significant replayability through local multiplayer, custom course creation, and a vast array of user-generated content, which can keep players engaged for a long time. However, some users note that the complexity and overwhelming amount of options may detract from the experience for new players. Overall, the potential for replay value is high, especially with community involvement.
- “While the online player base is small, local multiplayer and custom course creation add replay value.”
- “Tons of replay value, regardless if you're a pro mini-golfer.”
- “Limited replay value beyond going for high (low) scores.”
- “It's got a lot of content and replayability value, but it can definitely make you feel overwhelmed or confused.”
- “The replayability can be through the roof if you consider all the hundreds (maybe thousands?) of user-created golf holes that were made.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game tedious, citing long menu navigation and slow transitions that detract from the experience. While the initial gameplay may be enjoyable, the repetitive nature of grinding quickly becomes boring, especially in the early months before potential patches improve the experience.
- “Grinding in this game is incredibly rewarding and keeps you engaged.”
- “The grind is satisfying and offers a real sense of progression.”
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Tedious menus (you need to walk to the menu items, then go sit in a chair and wait for a long transition to load a level... it's fun once, and after that it's boring).”
- “I know how tedious a game can be for the first few months until they patch it up and give it its polish.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization model of the game is favorable, as players can access it for free, particularly through promotional offers like Steam advertisements.
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players initially find the emotional aspect charming, but this sentiment tends to wane after a couple of hours, leading to fatigue. The need to engage with recordings to follow the plot can feel tedious, detracting from the overall emotional experience.
- “At first, it was charming, but after about two hours, I was dreadfully tired of it. However, to follow the plot, you have to listen to the recordings you gain by touching them with your golf ball.”