Golf has become an increasingly popular theme for experiential initiatives involving licensed properties, both digital and physical. Many of the initiatives are tied to character and entertainment IPs, but they extend into other realms as well:
- Mattel Adventure Park, the new attraction opening in 2025 as part of Epic Resort Destinations’ VAI Resort in Glendale, Arizona, includes mini golf as one of its many activities tied to Mattel’s brands. The golf experience offers nine holes, each inspired by a different Mattel tabletop game, with examples including Magic 8 Ball, Pictionary, and Uno. The park also features two Hot Wheels roller coasters, Masters of the Universe laser tag, a life-size Barbie Dreamhouse with hologram technology, and other branded fun.
- Mighty Coconut this month announced that it would introduce an immersive Viva Las Elvis mini-golf experience, set in a 1970s casino, into its Walkabout Mini Golf multiplayer virtual-reality game in January. The downloadable content (DLC), created under license from Elvis Presley Enterprises, incorporates cues from Elvis’s films and lyrics into 36 holes (18 easy-mode and 18 hard-mode) within the game. Users can play as Elvis using custom avatars. Walkabout Mini-Golf also debuted a course with Aardman’s Wallace & Gromit in July 2024, which features holes “designed” by the two characters; creator Nick Park was involved, creating sketches of what the holes would look like. Other licensed downloadable components for Walkabout Mini Golf, which launched in 2020, have been based on properties including Jim Henson’s Labyrinth and Cyan’s Myst. The game is available for iOS as well as virtual reality platforms.
- Topgolf debuted a new Sonic the Hedgehog game at its venues across the U.S. and in Glasgow, Scotland, in November 2024. The game can be played for free with Topgolf’s Free Play Time package; licensed hats, sweatshirts, and t-shirts featuring Sonic holding Topgolf’s newest club are available for sale at Topgolf venues. The game will also be rolled out in customized versions to other venues worldwide that are enabled by Toptracer technology, which was developed with Topgolf, is used to power Topgolf games, and is part of the Topgolf Callaway family of brands. Toptracer follows the trajectory of a physical golf ball and incorporates the data into a competitive digital game. The Topgolf initiative marks Sonic’s first entry into golf entertainment.
- Toptracer paired with Angry Birds (owned by Sega division Rovio and represented for licensing by IMG) for a new game mode that launched at the 1,000-plus Toptracer-enabled driving range facilities around the world in September 2024. Players hit physical golf balls to knock down digital structures and complete other challenges. This is not the first golf-related venture for Angry Birds, whose classic game play—involving slingshot-propelled Angry Birds knocking down towers hiding Bad Piggies—pairs well with the game play of golf. In 2020, Angry Birds content launched at Topgolf, quickly becoming the chain’s second most popular game; it is still available to play. And Angry Birds indoor mini-golf is still going strong at the American Dream mall, where it launched in 2020. Golf-themed Angry Birds merchandise, such as golf balls, apparel, and “training materials,” is available for sale at that venue.
- Neko Golf, a global multiplayer golf simulation game for mobile platforms featuring original anime characters, paired in May 2023 with Neon Genesis Evangelion in the Japanese market, where the game is known as Shironeko Golf. The short-term collaboration integrated two of Evangelion’s characters, Asuka and Rei, each with three outfits, into the game as playable characters. A giveaway of Evangelion merchandise was also part of the initiative, and dedicated Discord channels were set up in the Shironeko server during the collaboration to allow for conversation while gaming.
- Monster Mini Golf has two licensed glow-in-the-dark indoor 18-hole mini-golf attractions in Las Vegas. The 10,000-square-foot Twilight Zone by Monster Mini Golf opened in 2017 at Bally’s Hotel and Casino, now Caesars Entertainment’s Horseshoe Las Vegas Hotel & Casino. Licensed by CBS Consumer Products (now Paramount Consumer Products and Experiences), it joined KISS by Monster Mini Golf, which opened near the Hard Rock Hotel in 2012 before moving to Rio Las Vegas in 2016, where it continues to reside. The rock-and-roll-themed KISS version, which is 13,000 square feet, also has a gallery, wedding chapel, arcade, private VIP room, themed event rooms, a café, and the largest KISS gift shop in the world.
Collaborations in the golf space in general have been on the rise, typically focused either on apparel collections inspired by classic golf pieces that can be worn on the links or off, or on golf balls, bags, tees, club covers, and other golf accessories. Experiential golf initiatives help amp up the engagement, giving fans more time with the characters and properties they love, in a fun setting with family and friends.
A heads-up that Raugust Communications has published its annual look at the top trends of significance to the licensing community in the past year. The 2024 edition takes a look at the challenges faced during the past 12 months, including economic, supply chain, and political happenings that affected nearly every licensor, licensee, and retailer. On a more positive note, the wrap-up also examines product categories and properties that were notable for their high level of licensing and collaboration activity and/or sales success. Read the “The Year in Review: 2024,” which features 30 trends to ponder as the business moves into 2025, here.
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