History VideoGame / HotShotsGolf

* CanadaEh: Zig-zagged. Max's biography from ''World Invitational'' states that he's from Canada, which isn't overtly apparent just from his FamilyMan appearance. Then you get to the color variations of his alternate costume, a superhero outfit, and find out that one of them is pretty blatantly color-themed around the Canadian flag, prominent maple leaf symbol included.

''Hot Shots Golf'' is an [[SportsGame sports golfing game series]] initially developed by Creator/CamelotSoftwarePlanning, who would later be responsible for developing the ''VideoGame/MarioGolf'' series, and later by Creator/ClapHanz and Creator/SIEJapanStudio beginning with the second game onward. Known as ''[[MarketBasedTitle Everybody's Golf]]'' in Europe and Japan, this [[Creator/SonyInteractiveEntertainment Sony-published]] arcade-style golf series has been around since 1997, and is a popular title on the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable PSP]]. In contrast to the realistic ''PGA Golf'' series from Creator/ElectronicArts, the ''Hot Shots/Everybody's'' series is known for its cartoony characters and pick-up-and-play gameplay, with a wildly varying art style.

* ArtEvolution: The first two games were released for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation, so technical restraints prohibited full 3D models from being used. Instead, the character models were made à la ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry'', giving them a 3D-ish, spritey look. The first game was more anime styled, but the players were obviously adults. Interestingly, the second game was more influenced by WesternAnimation (just look at Mel) in the West, with had a more varied cast, but retained the anime-styled characters from the first game in Japan (although the Japanese characters were unlockable bonus characters in the Western version). The third and fourth games were released on the [=PS2=], and kept the Western style while benefitting from the more powerful technology. However, when the series hit the PSP with ''Open Tee!'', an {{animesque}} style took over and all the characters turned into children.

** The first couple games on the UsefulNotes/PlayStation had no voices for the player characters, no visible caddies on the course, no Rising/Homing shots, no unlockable alternate colors/costumes, no flag marker nor terrain indicators on the shot bar, and used digitized sprites for the characters and background objects rendered in a 3D environment rather than full 3D models. Only full power shots with perfect impact were called out as a 'Nice Shot!', and Versus matches also did not have a 'mercy' rule implemented of 3 holes up on your opponent, meaning you played as many holes as it took until you or the opponent could no longer catch up. Up to and including the third game, the background music also had to be turned on from the settings menu, as it was off by default.

* DropTheHammer: The 100-Ton Hammer club set in ''3'' and ''FORE!'' replaces the driver with a comically-oversized cartoon hammer.

** A few golfers throughout the series fit this trope, but Erika from ''World Invitational'' fits this personality to a [[JustForPun tee.]] This is best shown when she achieves a Birdie, where she presumptuously states 'That was nothing special' before turning around and quietly celebrating.

* DoubleUnlock: Many of the games are chock full of items that become available for purchase in the in-game points store, or as a [[LuckBasedMission roulette spin at the end of a round]] that rewards you with items randomly. ''World Invitational'', however, goes up to eleven with this, and many have criticized the game for its FakeLongevity as a result. To wit:

* OddballInTheSeries: ''Hot Shots Golf FORE!'' turned the [[DenserAndWackier zaniness]] UpToEleven compared to all the other installments, with a crazy cast of characters including a golfing super android, a small [[FunnyAnimal talking dog]], a magical SurferDude, and [[VideoGame/JakAndDaxter Jak]] and [[VideoGame/RatchetAndClank Ratchet]] as guest characters. According to behind-the-scenes footage, the reason the dialogue was so strange and ridiculous was because the voice actors weren't given strict scripts, and decided to [[{{Improv}} improvise most of their dialogue]] based on their looks and animations.

* OddballInTheSeries: ''Hot Shots Golf FORE!'' turned the [[DenserAndWackier zaniness]] UpToEleven compared to all the other installments, with a crazy cast of characters including a golfing super android, a small [[FunnyAnimal talking dog]], a magical SurferDude, and [[VideoGame/JakAndDaxter Jak]] and [[VideoGame/RatchetAndClank Ratchet]] as guest characters. According to behind-the-scenes footage, this was because the voice actors weren't given strict scripts, and decided to [[{{Improv}} improvise most of their dialogue]] based on their looks and animations.

* TemporaryOnlineContent: ''Everybody's Golf'' on [=PS4=] [[DefunctOnlineVideoGames shuts down online services]] on September 30, 2022, causing two trophies and the Platinum trophy to become [[PermanentlyMissableContent permanently missable]].

%% * HotScientist: Renee from ''FORE!''

** The first couple games on the UsefulNotes/PlayStation had no voices for the player characters, no visible caddies on the course, no Rising/Homing shots, no unlockable alternate colors/costumes, no flag marker nor terrain indicators on the shot bar, and used digitized sprites for the characters and background objects rendered in a 3D environment rather than full 3D models. Only full power shots with perfect impact were called out as a 'Nice Shot!', and Versus matches also did not have a 'mercy' rule implemented of 3 holes up on your opponent, meaning you played as many holes as it took until you or the opponent could no longer catch up. Up until the third game, the background music also had to be turned on from the settings menu, as it was off by default.

* HiddenDepths: Despite the cartoonish veneer, the series has garnered critical praise during its lifespan due to its rock-solid golf physics, managing to largely avert becoming a BizarreAndImprobableGolfGame.

With Sony closing Japan Studio's doors in April of 2021, Clap Hanz would venture off on their own and release an [[Creator/{{Apple}} Apple Arcade]] exclusive SpiritualSuccessor to the series called ''Clap Hanz Golf.''

** The first game, having been developed by Camelot rather than Clap Hanz, predates ''Mario Golf'' on the Nintendo 64 by two years and shares a ''lot'' of its DNA with it. The character designs are very similar to the original human characters in ''Mario Golf 64'' and the game lacks a lot of features that would become staple mechanics for the Hot Shots Golf series, such as the pink impact zone, super backspin shots, a visible and reactive crowd gallery and the ability to skip shots mid-flight. Compared to future installments, which opt for more stylized cartoon-y or anime-esque designs for their characters, the roster here is rather modest and subdued, with only a generic male or female voice for the caddies.

* DoubleUnlock: Many of the games are chock full of items that become available for purchase in the in-game points store, or as a [[LuckBasedMission roulette spin at the end of a round]] that rewards you with items randomly. ''World Invitational'', however, goes UpToEleven with this, and many have criticized the game for its FakeLongevity as a result. To wit:

''Hot Shots Golf'' is an [[SportsGame sports golfing game series]] initially developed by Creator/CamelotSoftwarePlanning, who would later be responsible for developing the ''VideoGame/MarioGolf'' series, and later by Creator/ClapHanz beginning with the second game onward. Known as ''[[MarketBasedTitle Everybody's Golf]]'' in Europe and Japan, this [[Creator/SonyInteractiveEntertainment Sony-published]] arcade-style golf series has been around since 1997, and is a popular title on the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable PSP]]. In contrast to the realistic ''PGA Golf'' series from Creator/ElectronicArts, the ''Hot Shots/Everybody's'' series is known for its cartoony characters and pick-up-and-play gameplay, with a wildly varying art style.