Info about Golfie:

Official game description:
**_“Golfie is Slay the Spire meets Golf With Your Friends”_ - Lewis Brindley, Yogscast.**  
Golfie is a roguelike, deckbuilding minigolf game for 1-8 players. Each run requires strategy, planning, and skill. Build unique decks which will unlock incredible new ways to play, giving you the power to pull off some spectacular shots - or die trying.  
**
GOLFIE WITH YOUR FRIENDS
------------------------
**  
Join your friends in the action-packed, chaotic multiplayer mode and pitch your wits, skills and devious use of cards against your opponents.  
**
SLAY THE GREEN
--------------
**  
Set off from the clubhouse in procedurally-generated roguelike single-player, building upon an ever expanding deck of cards to modify your shots and conquer the 18 holes.  
Card powers can vary from increasing the distance or elevation of a standard shot, through to out-of-this-world abilities and power-ups which can be combined to dazzling effect. But be careful: finish over par and you’ll lose some energy – and once it’s totally depleted, the run is over.  
Daily runs, endless modes and seeded runs mean you’ll never run out of holes to play. Gain experience during each run to unlock an ever-increasing pool of cards and customisation options, then return to the course with even more ways to play.  
With the full release of Golfie you can now take to the fairway with your friends in a no holds barred battle for Golfie supremacy. Earn points by racing to be first to the hole, collect all the coins and crystals, or use your power-ups to ensure that only you make it to the hole to secure your victory at the top of the leaderboard.

Release date: 19 Jan, 2023

Categories: Minigolf Gameplay, Roguelike, Deckbuilding, Procedural Generation, Competitive Multiplayer, Cooperative Multiplayer, Strategy, Physics Simulation


- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price: No data
- Playtime Metrics: No data
- Time-to-fun: No data
- Player Archetypes: No data


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Engaging & Replayable Fun (weight 0.99): Players consistently praise the game for its addictive and highly replayable nature, especially in multiplayer. Its "just one more run" appeal, combined with challenging yet accessible mechanics, makes it a great casual experience and good value for money.
- Innovative Core Concept (weight 0.82): The game's unique concept, blending mini-golf with roguelike and deck-building elements, is highly lauded. Reviewers appreciate its creative idea, potential for growth, and attractive, well-polished visual design.
- Deep Card System & Builds (weight 0.37): The card and perk system offers significant gameplay variety and strategic depth. Players enjoy experimenting with unique cards, building diverse combos, and unlocking new abilities, which provides a strong incentive to keep playing and attempt zany shots.
- Realistic Physics & Mechanics (weight 0.24): The game's physics-driven gameplay is well-executed and feels good to play. Players appreciate the ability to practice in casual mode to understand the physics, leading to satisfying trick shots and improved performance.
- Responsive Dev & Polish (weight 0.22): Developers are praised for their responsiveness to feedback and continuous improvements. The game is noted for its polished state, even in Early Access, with many cool additions and a functional, problem-free experience.
- Impressive Level Design (weight 0.11): The game features well-designed levels with interesting obstacles and branching paths. Players enjoy the challenge of puzzling out the best route through courses, which adds to the strategic depth and replayability.
- Daily Challenges & Content (weight 0.07): The inclusion of daily challenges provides a consistent reason for players to return. This feature encourages regular engagement and extends the game's longevity.
- New Draft Gamemode (weight 0.07): The new draft gamemode is highlighted as a fun twist that addresses previous concerns about card usefulness and shot power. This mode enhances gameplay variety and balance.
- Fair Progression System (weight 0.07): The game features a well-paced meta and difficulty progression system. Players feel the challenge escalates fairly without being overly restrictive, contributing to a balanced experience.
- Multiplayer Sabotage Fun (weight 0.06): A specific highlight of the multiplayer experience is the enjoyment derived from sabotaging friends. This adds a unique layer of competitive fun to the game.
- Steam Deck Compatibility (weight 0.06): The game runs well on Steam Deck, with reviewers noting that variable frame rates are not an issue for its slow-paced gameplay. This ensures accessibility for portable players.
- Unlockable Ball Cosmetics (weight 0.06): Players appreciate the ability to unlock new decorations and customize their golf balls. These cosmetic options add a nice touch of polish and personalization.

Common complaints:
- Repetitive Procedural Levels (weight 0.73): The procedural generation results in repetitive, unvaried, and often broken or unfair maps/levels. This lack of diverse course design quickly makes the core gameplay stale and uninteresting.
- Buggy, Unpolished, Glitchy (weight 0.72): The game suffers from numerous bugs, glitches, and crashes, leading to a frustrating and unpolished experience. Reviewers note a lack of developer attention to these persistent issues, especially after recent updates.
- Gimmicky, Unbalanced Card System (weight 0.7): The card mechanic feels unnecessary and poorly implemented, with many cards being useless or unbalanced, especially the mandatory "power shot" card. This discourages deckbuilding and leads to frustrating, unpredictable gameplay.
- Inconsistent Ball Physics (weight 0.44): The game's physics are inconsistent and janky, causing the ball to fall through maps, get stuck, or bounce unpredictably. This makes precise aiming and controlling ball trajectory extremely difficult and frustrating.
- Limited Multiplayer/Replayability (weight 0.38): The game gets boring quickly when played alone, with reviewers desiring stronger multiplayer options like splitscreen. There's not much incentive to continue playing after a few runs, leading to low replayability.
- Frustrating Camera Controls (weight 0.3): The camera is frequently janky, getting stuck in walls or corners, and requiring constant manual adjustment. This makes aiming and navigating difficult, often leading to lost shots and frustration.
- Shallow, Lacks Content/Polish (weight 0.28): The game feels underdeveloped and shallow, lacking sufficient content, depth, and aesthetic polish. This includes bland visuals, repetitive music, and a poorly designed UI, contributing to a rushed and unfinished impression.
- Unsatisfying Golf Gameplay (weight 0.27): Beyond technical issues, the core minigolfing experience itself is often described as janky, clunky, and lacking satisfying predictability. The game also lacks a clear purpose or goal beyond just playing golf, making it less engaging.
- Overpriced, Poor Value (weight 0.24): Many reviewers feel the game is not worth its full price, considering its current state and lack of content. The charm wears off quickly, leading to a perception of it being a waste of money.
- Inconsistent Aiming System (weight 0.15): The aiming lines and reticle are inconsistent and often obstruct the view, making precise adjustments difficult. This issue is exacerbated when using a joystick, leading to unstable and unreliable aiming.

Gameplay feedback:
- Golf Deck-building Roguelike (weight 0.59): The game uniquely blends mini-golf with roguelike and deck-building mechanics. Players use a deck of cards to modify their shots and abilities across randomly generated courses, creating a distinct gameplay experience.
- Unlock Cards & Perks (weight 0.31): Players unlock new cards, perks, and cosmetic items as they progress and level up. These power-ups add variety and strategic depth, making each run feel different.
- Diverse Procedural Courses (weight 0.28): The game features a variety of challenging courses with different themes like dungeons and floating islands. Levels are procedurally generated, ensuring randomness and unique layouts for each playthrough, including a daily seed.
- Strategic Deck Building (weight 0.26): The deck-building system is central to gameplay, requiring players to balance basic and special cards. Strategic choices about which cards to acquire and use are crucial, as deciding the best move can be complex and influence the outcome of shots.
- Multiplayer & PvP Elements (weight 0.22): The game includes a multiplayer mode allowing players to compete live against friends. Players can use specific cards and traps to hinder opponents, adding a competitive player-versus-player dynamic.
- Stroke & Health Limits (weight 0.19): Players have a limited number of strokes per hole, and exceeding par depletes their health. Running out of strokes or health results in losing the game, adding a critical failure condition to each run.
- Roguelike Modes & Boss (weight 0.19): The game features a single-player roguelike mode that includes a final boss. There are also other modes like an endless mode and a non-rogue mode with unlimited strokes, offering varied play experiences.
- Varied Shot Cards (weight 0.19): The game features various shot cards, including basic ones like power shots, lob shots, and curveballs, as well as more advanced options like Hypershot. Combining these cards is often necessary for effective shots.
- Challenging Golf Gameplay (weight 0.18): The game is designed to be challenging, requiring careful play and strategic shot planning. It has a considerable difficulty and a learning curve for mastering ball control, distinguishing it from simpler golf games.
- Post-Hole Run Choices (weight 0.09): After completing each hole, players are presented with choices, typically involving acquiring new cards, perks, or coins. The game also provides a visual path prediction for planned shots, aiding strategic play.
- Card Heat Cost (weight 0.09): Cards in the game have a 'heat' level, and using them costs 'heat,' which is a limited resource. This system adds a layer of strategic resource management to card usage.

Performance notes:
- Poor Performance/Optimization (weight 0.07): Players frequently reported significant performance issues, citing general bad optimization and variable frame rates. These problems were particularly noticeable on devices like the Steam Deck, negatively impacting the gameplay experience.

Recommendations:
- Consider Sale/Updates (weight 0.81): Many players recommend purchasing the game on sale or waiting for significant updates, as the current full price is often seen as too high. However, some find it enjoyable and worth playing now, especially for its unique blend of genres, suggesting a nuanced value proposition.
- Enhanced with Friends (weight 0.15): The game is highly recommended for its multiplayer aspect, providing a fun and chaotic experience when played with friends. It allows for competitive and playful interactions, significantly enhancing enjoyment.
- Strong Bundle Value (weight 0.13): The game is frequently recommended as a good value when purchased as part of a bundle, particularly with games like PlateUp!. This significantly improves its perceived worth and makes it a more attractive purchase.
- Appeals to Genre Fans (weight 0.09): The game is highly recommended for players who enjoy a mix of casual deck-building and mini-golf, offering a unique and challenging experience within these genres. It stands out for its innovative concept and specific appeal.
- Requires Bug Fixes (weight 0.09): Some players advise against purchasing the game until current issues and bugs are addressed by the developers. They indicate that the game's current state hinders enjoyment and needs significant improvements.
- Procedural Levels Criticized (weight 0.07): A specific point of contention is the use of procedurally generated levels, with some players expressing a strong preference for hand-crafted, more thoughtfully designed courses. This impacts replayability and overall level quality perception.
- Stroke Play Preferred (weight 0.03): One review specifically notes that playing in stroke play mode allows for a more deliberate and careful approach to the game. This suggests a preferred playstyle for some users seeking a less chaotic experience.

Other player notes:
- Multiplayer community small/unimplemented (weight 0.16): The multiplayer mode is either not yet fully implemented or suffers from a very small player base, making it challenging to find matches and suggesting it's best played with friends.
- Game has unrealized potential (weight 0.11): While the game shows promise and has a solid foundation, it is not yet perfect and has significant room for improvement and further development to reach its full potential.
- Improve level design (weight 0.09): The game's level design could be enhanced by observing and incorporating successful design principles from other established golf games.
- Needs hand-crafted maps (weight 0.04): Players express a desire for more hand-crafted maps, suggesting that current map generation or design might benefit from more bespoke levels.
- Consider top-down camera (weight 0.04): Reviewers suggest exploring a top-down camera perspective, which is common in other mini/golf games, as an alternative or addition to the current over-the-shoulder view.
- Active developer engagement (weight 0.04): The developer maintains an active presence, consistently communicating with the community and demonstrating a strong commitment to ongoing game development and improvements.

Emotions:
- Frustration (weight 0.26): The primary causes of frustration stem from the game's technical instability and design flaws. Players frequently encounter bugs, crashes, janky physics, and camera issues, alongside poor level design, inconsistent mechanics, and a lack of quality-of-life features. These issues, combined with repetitive procedural generation and unbalanced card mechanics, hinder progression and create an unpolished experience.
- Satisfaction (weight 0.21): Players express satisfaction due to the game's strong core gameplay mechanics, particularly its unique blend of strategy and skill in the card system and trick shots. The developers' responsiveness to feedback and continuous improvements, along with the game's replayability and overall polish, contribute significantly to a positive experience. Many also enjoy the challenging obstacles and the strategic depth offered by deck building.
- Disappointment (weight 0.21): Disappointment arises from the game's unpolished and unfinished state, characterized by frequent bugs, crashes, and a general lack of polish. Players feel let down by poorly implemented core mechanics like deck building and procedural generation, as well as a perceived lack of content, variety, and longevity. This often leads to a feeling that the game's potential is not being met, especially given its price point.
- Joy (weight 0.08): Joy is primarily driven by the game's engaging multiplayer experience, especially when playing with friends and engaging in playful sabotage. The unique twist on mini-golf, combined with fun gameplay, appealing aesthetics, and the excitement of unlocking new cards and abilities, contributes to a delightful overall experience.
- Excitement (weight 0.06): Excitement is generated by the game's unique concept and addictive gameplay mechanics, particularly the unpredictable and fun multiplayer interactions. Players are also excited by the game's future potential, anticipating upcoming features and continuous development that promise to enhance the experience.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.05): Players find enjoyment in the game's fun gameplay, both in single-player and multiplayer modes, appreciating the strategic depth offered by the card system. The game's replayability, varied build possibilities, and engaging progression, along with attractive graphics, contribute to an overall positive experience despite any minor flaws.
- Anger (weight 0.03): Anger is primarily caused by severe technical issues, such as game-breaking bugs and frequent crashes, which lead to wasted time and an unplayable experience. Players also express anger over fundamental design flaws and developer choices that negatively impact the game's core mechanics and overall execution.
- Surprise (weight 0.02): Surprise is often expressed when players unexpectedly enjoy the game, particularly due to its unique genre blend or encountering unexpected elements like a boss. This indicates the game exceeded initial expectations in a positive way.
- Caution (weight 0.02): Caution is specifically linked to the game's price point, suggesting that players perceive it as potentially too high for the current content or state of the game. This advises potential buyers to consider the value proposition carefully.
- Hope (weight 0.02): Hope is expressed regarding the game's future, with players anticipating potential improvements and new content through upcoming updates. This indicates a belief in the developers' ability to enhance the game over time.
- Boredom (weight 0.01): Boredom stems from the game's repetitive procedural generation, which leads to a lack of variety in levels and gameplay. This feeling is often exacerbated when playing alone, highlighting a need for more diverse content or engaging single-player experiences.
- Annoyance (weight 0): Annoyance is specifically attributed to repetitive music, indicating that the game's audio design can become tiresome over extended play sessions.
- Interest (weight 0): Interest is sparked by the game's core concept, suggesting that the unique premise or idea behind the game is appealing to potential players.
- Amusement (weight 0): Amusement is derived from multiplayer interactions, indicating that the social and competitive aspects of playing with others lead to enjoyable and entertaining moments.
- Addiction (weight 0): Addiction is described as the "just one more run" feeling, highlighting the game's compelling and engaging gameplay loop that encourages continuous play.
- Confusion (weight 0): Confusion arises from an unclear point system, indicating that players struggle to understand how scoring or progression is calculated within the game.
- Challenge (weight 0): Challenge is directly linked to the game's high difficulty, suggesting that players find the game demanding and requiring significant skill or effort to progress.}