Outlaw Golf's mechanics are more like Tiger Woods 2002's than previous golf games.

Outlaw Golf is Simon & Schuster's upcoming Xbox golf game, which is notable not only for being the first golfing game to reach Xbox owners, but also for introducing a fairly original set of characters and play mechanics to a genre populated by a number of strong and distinct competitors. In a field dominated by games touting fairly different golfing experiences, such as the realism of Tiger Woods 2002 or the comical characters of Hot Shots Golf 3, Outlaw Golf stands the middle ground, combining elements from a wide variety of these successful attempts and adding a fair bit of "adult" humor into the mix. But most importantly, Outlaw Golf addresses the notion that so many football and hockey fans have expressed over the years: It's not a real sport unless it's full contact.

Outlaw Golf is a visually appealing game, with attractive environments and with comical artistic elements throughout each course, in the menus, and in the characters. Individual blades of grass are modeled across the rougher sections of each course, and the variation between the levels of rough terrain and fairway are easily recognizable. There's an impressive water effect where reflective, rippling water shifts constantly, giving each lake a vividly realistic look. Competing on the first course means playing underneath a freeway overpass, complete with passenger jets flying high, speeding vehicles traveling overhead, and a chance to admire the graffiti on the cement supports underneath. Particle effects bring the flashy style of golf home, with streaks and trails following well-struck balls and fireworks commemorating well-played holes.

While it looks fairly good otherwise, what makes Outlaw Golf so visually distinctive, however, is its characters. Playable from the start are some of the over-the-top, stereotype-driven personalities that make this game so recognizable. At their core, the male golfers are brash, abrasive types; the women are sexy; and everyone is extremely violent, as can be clearly noted in their animation routines. Each character has a distinct set of movements that it goes through when first stepping onto the grass, after poorly or well-played rounds, or even between strokes. Summer, for instance, the part-time molecular biology student, part-time stripper, stretches out before a match with full splits and a handstand. She may even be consoled after a match with a spanking by her caddie. Mistress Suki, the dominatrix, is often seen whipping her caddie Puddin' after a hole, whether it's well played or not. The character designs, although quite tawdry, are incredibly funny and well represented both by their models and their articulations.

All sorts of attractive characters comprise the game's cast.

The trademark of Outlaw Golf, aside from the zany characters, is the innovative composure meter that directly influences the pace of the game, adding a significant element of chance and the potential for greater levels of strategy. The way the composure meter works is that each golfer begins in a levelheaded state of mind, collected enough to avoid frustration but not exactly into the game. With poor play, such as hitting water hazards or ending up in the bunkers, you'll begin to get rattled. Nail a drive off the tee with maximum power, and aside from the golden sparks trailing the ball, you'll be rewarded with a cool head, which translates to an incremental increase of the composure meter. Good approach shots will also contribute somewhat, although raising your meter through good play seems far more difficult than getting shaken by a few less-than-stellar swings and lowering it. In effect, nervousness makes your shots fly even more poorly, while good play has the converse effect, contributing to a streaky style of play that is unique to Outlaw Golf.

What makes the manipulation of the composure meter so much more than simply an additional statistic is each golfer's ability to get "in the zone" by taking out his or her frustrations on the defenseless caddie. If things are going badly with Harley, she can press the Y button to begin pounding out her aggression on her stalwart companion, which if done correctly can swing her composure meter toward a fully positive bar. When these fight sequences begin, a meter appears at the bottom of a screen dominated by a fuming golfer. When the action begins, the golfer approaches the caddie, and based on proper timing of an indicator that swings back and forth between targets, a number of blows and brutal attacks can ensue.