Cursed to Golf is every golfer’s (and roguelike fan’s) worst nightmare

digitaltrends.com:

Whenever I watch professional golf, a few moments can make me cringe: a ball getting shot into a lake, an unsuccessful attempt to get out of a bunker, completely whiffing on a putt. As someone who had a brief golfing stint as a kid, I can’t help but picture the embarrassment pros must feel in those moments, especially in a game where every single shot counts.

Cursed to Golf cranks those stakes up by adding eternal damnation to the mix. The hybrid golf-roguelike has players fighting their way out of “golf purgatory” by successfully playing a round of 18 holes. If that wasn’t stressful enough, a stroke counter ticks down with every shot. Mess up a hole and you’re teleported back to the start, forever cursed unless you can achieve the perfect game.

It’s a sports game-turned-supernatural nightmare. While it’s thematically clever, it’s a bit of an awkward genre mash-up too. Incredibly long “runs” make this a particularly punishing game, one that’s made me reflect on what makes my favorite roguelikes so appealing.

Right from the jump, Cursed to Golf throws players into its wacky premise as a golf player is sucked into purgatory. A Scottish ghost lays out a standard roguelike escape plan, explaining that they’ll need to golf their way through a variety of biomes to get back to Earth. Of course, that’s easier said than done. Much easier.

The golfing itself is streamlined, which is great considering how much else there is to focus on. It’s a 2D golfing game where players only have three clubs: a driver, an iron, and a wedge. Teeing off is as simple as pressing a button once to set the power and timing another button press to select the angle, which moves up and down automatically. Spin is exaggerated too, allowing players to