Ludography
Links LS 1997 cover

1996 · Golf · Sports

Links LS 1997

Links LS 1997 is a golf video game released in 1996. It is part of the Links video game series.

Released
1996
Platforms
MS-DOSWindows
Genres
GolfSports
Developers
—
Publishers
—
Series
Links
Perspective
Third person
Themes
Non-fiction
Country
United States

About

Links LS (Legends in Sports), later given the retronym Links LS 1997, is a golf video game developed and published by Access Software for DOS. It was released in 1996, and is part of the Links video game series, following Links 386 Pro (1992). It was followed by Links LS 1998.

Media

Links LS 1997 screenshot 1

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

Links LS has three unnamed playable golfers, with Arnold Palmer as a fourth. It has three courses, including Palmer's Latrobe Country Club, and is also compatible with previous courses released for Links 386. The player can also take a virtual tour of Palmer's office and workshop.

Development

Like its predecessors, Links LS (Legends in Sports) was developed and published by Access Software. The game was in development for three years. Access initially considered naming the project Links Pentium. However, Intel objected to the title over trademark concerns regarding its Pentium microprocessor.

Unlike the earlier games, Access added computer players, improved ball physics, and high-resolution graphics. The company also spent $50,000 on a motion-capture machine to create the golfer animations, providing a higher level of detail than before. To accurately recreate the Latrobe course, Access conducted extensive interviews with Palmer and co-designer Ed Seay. Several features were eventually scrapped and saved for the game's successor.

Reception

Macworld's Michael Gowan called Links LS a "beautifully rendered golf sim [that] is almost as tough to master as the real thing." A Next Generation critic said it put the Links series "once again at the top of the PC golfing heap", citing its impressive technical specs even by the standards of high-end setups, support for all the Links 386 add-on disks, and customizable features.

Links LS was a finalist for the Computer Game Developers Conference's 1996 "Best Sports Game" Spotlight Award, but lost the prize to NHL 97. It was also the runner-up for Computer Gaming World's 1996 "Sports Game of the Year" award, which ultimately went to NBA Live 97. The editors praised Links LS as "the best-looking golf game we've seen." Links LS won Computer Games Strategy Plus's 1996 sports game of the year award.

Releases by platformdates and regions as published

PlatformReleasedRegions
MS-DOS31 December 1996Worldwide
Windows31 December 1996Worldwide

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Collections1 collection

Genres

Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.