What the Golf on Switch is a party game dream

2019’s What the Golf? was one of the most delightfully surprising releases of the year. The irreverent and ludicrous golf game first first hit Apple Arcade and then PC and it became an instant favourite for quick and hilariously rewarding gameplay. It was widely considered one of the best mobile games to release that year, even getting a nomination from The Game Awards!

Now, What the Golf? has rolled on over to the Switch and I can safely say that this is the best version of the game currently available.

The game’s goofy campaign is still present within the Switch port. It’s a golf game but it also isn’t really a golf game at all. What the Golf? throws any semblance of sanity out the window as you putt your way through this single player journey, one absurd level at a time. Nothing is predictable in What the Golf? and it’s within that unpredictability the game is able to achieve such irreverence and charm. From punny one-liners to ridiculous bait-and-switches, the game revels in its own stupidity and you never quite know what to expect next.

The mechanics of the game will change on a dime and you don’t really know what you’re in for until you wind up that golf swing and attempt a hit. It’s wholesome and silly and utterly ludicrous but everything works to perfection.

The portability of the system and the casual pick-up-and-play style of the game makes the Nintendo Switch the best place to experience What the Golf?. It’s also the type of game you’ll want to show off to your friends so there’s the added benefit of booting up the game on a big communal screen and making a group of people chuckle at the shenanigans before them.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

The Switch version of What the Golf? also comes with its own Party Mode, and boy oh boy is it a lot of fun. Whilst a simple port of the existing game would have been enough to convince me to play this game on the Switch, the added Party Mode makes What the Golf? somehow even better. Two players can square off in local multiplayer in a set of golf challenges based off levels of the campaign. The two players will have to race to the hole with the winning player scoring a point. After a set of challenges have been completed the two players’ points will be converted into lives where they’ll battle it out one last time before an ultimate winner is crowned.

There’s a good range of challenges on offer and even the final battle has variation although I wouldn’t be upset if even more were introduced later. The challenges are, of course, absolutely ridiculous and it becomes an amazing way to introduce a friend to the game. Certain challenges wouldn’t even be possible without a second player allowing even more high jinks than before.

What the Golf? on Switch turns an already amazing game into something phenomenal. For those who haven’t experienced the game at all, now may be the perfect opportunity. Even for those who have played the game prior, the Party Mode introduces enough fresh fun to make the experience worthwhile.

It’s safe to say that I’m now a massive What the Golf? fan with the game becoming a staple of my party gaming rotation amongst some of the best party games available.