Fairway Solitaire

Fairway Solitaire by Big Fish games is a real classic. This review is for Fairway Solitaire is on the iPhone, but there is also a version available for the iPad, called ‘Fairway Solitaire HD’. Many golf courses are included on multiple levels.

This game I’d rate as being in my top three favourite apps of all time, right up there with Garageband and Galaxy On Fire 2. This game easily makes it into the featured area of this website.

This app goes under the guise of ‘solitaire’ but in fact it is a totally original game. There is even a storyline to this app, with animated cut scenes included. Your enemy is a gopher who is constantly trying to harass you. There is excellent commentary in the game too which makes it feel like you are on an actual golf course. The golf courses have their own individual feel.

The feel of the game is excellent and the way that it is paired with golf is more fun than it sounds. When you click on a chosen course it could be a 3 hole, 6 hole or a 9 hole course and you can get a birdie, eagle, double eagle or even a perfect score. For a really good run you are awarded in-game money, and for a long perfect run you with 1000 in game bucks.

To start with you are put on a driving range and taught all there is to know about the game.

There is a shop in the game where you can buy different gizmos and you can unlock trophies for certain milestones that you pass within the game.

I’ve bought the full version of this game on the iPad and it is giving me hours of fun game play. The price of unlocking the full game is reasonable as you get what you pay for and don’t have to buy any more in-app purchases if you don’t want to.

You also have a golf bag where you can win or buy golf clubs. These golf clubs correspond to card numbers, so if you are stuck you can pull one out of the bag. If you do this too often however, you run out of in-game money pretty quickly.

There are 3 commentators who tell jokes and comment in a funny way as you are playing. There is even a mad Scotsman who is a real character.

This app is very solid and has never crashed on me once yet over many game play hours.

The free version gives you about 9 courses, which is quite generous as a taster.

The game is 256 MB in total to download. Personally, I welcome big downloads of games as it means more content and boy you get a lot of content with this game.

To be honest, I was occasionally played solitaire, as in solitaire in a normal format, but after playing Fairway Solitaire the standard game of solitaire, unless I’m playing with real cards now seems boring compared to this game which has taken solitaire to a whole new level. In fact, this is the first card game that I’ve seen integrated with the latest game mechanics. I wonder what the future of card games will be after this milestone app? Perhaps there is scope for 3D variations of popular card games . . . ?

In all a really excellent app.

Update: In a recent app update: 30 new golf courses / levels have been added!