Another annual increment to a sports franchise? Yes, only this time, the developers claim this is the largest overhaul to the game in ten years. Links 2001 will get upgrades to everything from the graphics engine and ball physics to the star power of the franchise. Two as yet unnamed golf pros will add their names to the Arnold Palmer celebrity complement of the game. Courses in the game will be designed using Global Positioning Systems data to achieve greens rendered accurately to the centimeter. Microsoft touts the inclusion of the new Arnold Palmer Course Architect editing tool as one of the biggest changes in this edition of Links, promising it will be easy to use and powerful enough to create courses with tunnels and arches and come with a sizable library of objects.

One lucky player will get paid to play. Microsoft will sponsor a series of monthly multiplayer games in the Virtual Golf Association Tour that can lead to winnings of US$100,000.

Genre: Sports
Developer: Microsoft
Publisher: Microsoft
Web: www.microsoft.com/games
ETA: Fall 2000