We're going to be up front here. Golf gamers are different from most other gamers. Golf games bear lush green courses, blue skies, guys with clean clothes, and clubs that aren't used in melee attacks... Someone interested in these types of things is not your typical gamer, they're golfers. But Access Software is pushing to gussy up its image by combining the best aspects of pinball, shooting galleries, and a taste of the wild side of golf.

　　On Tuesday, Access Software (now part of Microsoft) stopped by the GameSpot offices to show off the latest title in the Links LS series, Links Extreme, with exploding golf balls and sneakers for a day of targeting on the course. Access stays true to its golf heritage with Extreme being powered by the current Links LS engine, but it has changed the overall look and strategies the game has had since the beginning of time.

　　The game features new modes of play that sound more as though they belong more in a current first-person shooter than in a golf game: demolition driving range, deathmatch golf, extreme golf, and poison golf.

　　- Demolition driving range is basically a shooting gallery for golfers: Players earn points by launching exploding golf balls at moving and stationary targets, like cows, blimps, planes, and trucks. - Deathmatch golf takes place on a WWI battlefield, where the player's only goal is to dodge exploding golf balls, return fire, and remain the only man standing as he reaches the next hole. - Extreme golf offers standard golf play with a bag full of magic golf balls. - Poison golf involves winning the game before an opponent does, or taking him out with five unique golf balls on his way to beating you.

　　The game will feature two courses: an island paradise 18-hole course named Mojo Bay Country Club and a nine-hole course named Dimension X, which resembles a WWI battlefield, complete with smoking ruins. The game also has one driving range named Armadillo Al's Demolition Driving Range.

　　Players will choose from eight golfers, including a WWI general, a Gen-X punk, and several other twentysomething-looking golfers. Players can compete against an AI opponent, or against another player over the Internet. In case you're worried about some of the difficult swinging methods used by some golf games, Links Extreme offers five different ways of swinging: Kwik, Amateur, 2-Click, 3-Click, and PowerStroke.

　　Access knows that it is taking a bit of a risk with the game and says that Links Extreme isn't intended for its hard-core Links LS fans. Extreme is focused on the younger generation, which has become increasingly interesting in the sport. Access thinks that its game will help introduce a game it enjoys immensely to a broader audience. During testing, gamers have responded well to the title.

　　Links Extreme for Windows 95/98 is scheduled for a May release for about US$29.95. Access/Microsoft doesn't plan to offer course add-ons like its classic Links series and says it is already working on a follow-up to the game.