House of Golf 2: A Putt Above the Rest?

Is there anyone in this world who doesn’t like a game of mini-golf? Whether it’s on the many crazy golf courses found in the real world, or virtually across the likes of Walkabout MiniGolf (I’m a huge fan of the PSVR2 version) or Golf With Your Friends, there’s probably nothing better than putting club in hand and putting your way to glory. Do it with some mates alongside you, and some of the most fantastical, super imaginative courses, and it gets better still. 

Hopes are therefore extremely high for House of Golf 2. Even if we have no idea where House of Golf 1 has gotten to (a previous Nintendo Switch only launch, it seems). 

House of Golf 2 has been put together by the Starlight Games team. Headed up and full of team players previously known for creating WipEout, Skate, Resident Evil and Horizon Call of the Mountain, there’s no doubt that this is a squad who know a thing or two about game creation. And they also seemingly know what makes a gamer tick. Case in point, House of Golf 2. 

At least, it makes me tick. But I’d be hugely surprised if it didn’t appeal to a huge range of players upon its release on Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and PC (Steam or Epic, you decide) come August 16th 2024. 

We’ve been hands-on with House of Golf 2 on Steam for a little while, taking in a tutorial and kicking back with some courses and championships set across House Opener, Jungle Jam and Putt ‘em up scenarios. We’ve come away from those courses hugely impressed. In fact, this could easily be the mini-golf game to take it to, and perhaps nearly even topple, the mighty Golf With Your Friends. Consider that Starlight are promising this to be a gaming experience that is ‘not just a game, but an invitation to create lasting memories with family and friends’ and they don’t seem to be too far off. 

It’s obvious what House of Golf 2 is. Anyone who has played mini-golf at any point in their lives, will know what to do here. Grab a golf club, ideally a putter, and look to navigate the perilous courses that await. Shoot lower than your friends and your job is a good un. Bragging rights will be placed in the bag, and you can saunter off into the sunset, readying yourself for another day. 

In a nutshell, House of Golf 2 doesn’t deviate from the usual, but it doesn’t need to, and as long as it plays well, then that’s a bonus. We’ve found our time with this putter to sink everything required of a mini-golf game, attempting to get a handle on the various home-themed courses in mind, looking for shortcuts, playing with pathways, all in hope of shooting low. Just don’t expect this to be an eagle- or birdie-filled gaming experience. We’ve found ourselves getting cocky with our skills, thinking that we’ve honed what is required for a low score, only for triple-bogeys to pop up, left, right and centre. If there’s ever a way of killing a scorecard, it’s by bottling it in the last few holes. 

But that doesn’t mean we’ve not found fun. In fact, it’s been the exact opposite with House of Golf 2, going back to it time and time again, hoping, praying to shoot lower than any previous PB. Ultimately, we’ve mostly failed, but the draw is real with this one. Much like it has been for the last number of years with Golf With Your Friends. And whilst we’ve been playing solo on Steam, opening things up to the wider couch-based audience, dragging friends along for the ride, is something we cannot wait to do. 

The only downside to all this seems to be the omission of any online House of Golf 2 fun. Long-term, that could be a killer, but we’ll hound Starlight until they succumb and throw in the promise of online play too. Perhaps the promise of Live Tournaments and the opportunity to win in-game gear will go some way to offsetting that disappointment. 

With some seriously cool visuals pushing House of Golf 2 along, things look well set for the August 16th 2024 launch on Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and PC. We’ll follow with review, but you should expect this one to be scoring high as it trundles down the course in the very near future. It’s the only time we’ll want to see high scores attached to this golf experience. 

Huge thanks go out to Starlight Games for providing us with access to House of Golf 2 for this preview. The Xbox Store page is up if you want to get a look at things ahead of release.