Buy this game. Seriously.

Dadoo Games released “Curling 2010″ for the XBox360 this week– the full version is available for the amazing price of $3.00! It is downloaded through the XBox Live service directly from your game console, or through your web browser by following this link. The amount of bang for your buck is tremendous.  You can see screenshots from the game here, and videos here.

I’ve spent a bit of time with Curling 2010 since its release, and I can confidently say this is the best curling video game available for any console system today. Rather than make a winter sports compilation, this game is focused solely on curling, and it is clear that Dadoo thoroughly understands curling. In the basic match game, the standard competition rules, including the free guard rule, are in effect (although the number of ends per game, number of stones per end, Canadian versus international free guard rule, etc. are all changeable parameters– in fact you can set up a game with up to four teams, and four stone colors!).

The setting is an outdoor curling sheet, set in a valley surrounded by snow covered spruce. There are no cartoon characters or avatars to control; you basically act as skip and set a hovering broom to set the aiming point. You also set the weight with the left and right triggers, and turn with the X and B buttons. Once you have everything set to your satisfaction, press the A button to release the stone. Sweeping is accomplished by alternating left and right trigger buttons as the rock glides down the sheet.

(Click the “more. . .” link below for the rest of the review.)

The curling physics overall are great– the rocks don’t start curling until near the end of their run, making it possible to really bury rocks behind guards. The rocks also stay very straight with anything above about hack weight. When rocks hit, for the most part the physics seems accurate, but occasionally I’ve seen them take an odd bounce.

Curling 2010 allows you to play matches against very capable computer opponents, against friends in your living room, or, best of all, with friends across the globe using XBox Live. These matches are set up with a simple but effective lobby system, and if you have a microphone, you can chat with your opponent during the game. I have played several games against live opponents so far, and they are a lot of fun. Although you can not see your opponents broom or weight settings, each stone leaves a lightly colored trail, allowing you to see where the rock was aimed and when it started to break.

In addition to the standard matches, Curling 2010 also has several additions that provide even more value for the modest $3.00 price. There is a practice mode that lets you set up the house however you want, and then make a shot–so if you wanted to relive Jason Smith’s great draw in the eleventh end of the USA vs. Sweden match, you could set it up stone for stone. After your shot, you can reset the house back to its original setup with the press of a button, and different scenarios can be saved and replayed later. This feature makes Dadoo Games Curling 2010 stand out as not just a casual game, but a real curling simulation that has the potential to be a fantastic coaching aid.

To satisfy curler’s latent Pokeman instincts, Dadoo Games added a badge collecting feature. Every time you make a raise, tight guard, takeout, etc., you get a badge for that play. Then you can see how many times you’ve made a particular shot, and there are also achievements for earning a certain amount of badges. It seemed a little corny at first, but actually its kind of fun, and if you choose to ignore the badge system, it is not intrusive to the basic game at all.

This is a minor complaint, but Curling 2010 does omit one feature of curling: The ability to control a stone by sweeping ends as soon as it hits another rock. So for example if you’re peeling one of your own guards, in real life you could choose whether to sweep the shooter, the guard, or both. Similarly, when your opponent is shooting, you can’t sweep your own rocks or your opponent’s rock after it crosses the hogline. Admittedly, it would be difficult to map multiple sweeping possibilities to the limited buttons available on an XBox controller, but its something to think about.

If you have an XBox 360 with internet access, buy Curling 2010 by Dadoo Games as soon as there is a break in the Olypmics– this is a great value for a mere three dollars. And if you want to play online, my XBox Live username is “skildum”. Good curling!

And if you want to read an interview with Dadoo Game’s Bill Fowler, here it is on Gamespot.com.