Move over Virtua Tennis, now there's something meatier....
Let's just say tennis games on the Xbox haven't been very good. Actually, Tennis games this side of the Sega Dreamcast haven't been very good. Where's Virtua Tennis 3 when you need it? Well Top Spin is competing on the same level that Virtua Tennis does and that's pretty good. Top Spin is even better than Virtua Tennis. There, I've said it.
Oh yeah, let's get this out of the way – there's this tennis superstar in the game that many male gamers will know pretty well – his name is Pete Sampras. Haha. Psych! The real star I'm talking about is Anna Kournikova. While her real tennis playing hasn't been that great (heck, does she even play anymore), she sure is pleasant to look at and you'll be doing that a lot in Top Spin.
Luckily this game is much better than Anna's recent game. Slices, drops, lobs, slams and serves are all part of the game and there are different surfaces to play on (clay, hard court and grass). The control this game is very unique – you'll be very surprised, because I haven't seen this level of control in any tennis game before. You can use the triggers to use a "risk" or "drop" shot. Every gamepad button is accounted for in Top Spin – and by this , I'm not referring to "pause" as a button accounted for. It's definitely allows you to control the ball the way you want to hit it, and you can consider me impressed!
That's not all in Top Spin – you'll also have to get yourself into the zone to get those hot shots – similar to a momentum meter, you'll build it by getting frustrated after a point or cheering yourself after an ace – your player can also argue bad calls!
Of course, as with all new Xbox sports games, Top Spin also supports XSN Sports – you can set up your own "World Tour" or a tournament as well. As we received the review copy prior to release, we were unable to fully test this part. We were unable to try a league but we would assume it will work just as well as other XSN Games. Our online experience was very good and a lot of fun -- lag free and enjoyable, even though I lost way too much.
Graphics and sound are superb. if there's something you can fault the game for, it's lack of site licenses. You don't play the US Open at Arthur Ashe Stadium, and there's no Wimbledon either. The stadiums themselves look very, very familar however..and if you didn't know the names to begin with, you probably wouldn't care anyway.
The courts all (grass,clay, etc) all play differently so if your player is an ace on grass, they may not be so hot on clay. Besides, clay is messy. Sound is nice, with the umpire giving his/her accent in the different countires you're in (cool) but there is no commentary to speak of. Then again, if you watch enough Patriots games, you'll have heard Dick Enberg enough and you really don't want anyone doing commentary. Tennis is supposed to be a quiet game, and you get a quiet game (at least between points) with Top Spin.
Top Spin is a definite must buy for gamers of all genders and ages. A heck of a lot of fun for beginners but also has enough of a higher difficulty/challenge level for experienced players too. I can't get enough of this game -- and you should pick it up. Now.
-Dan
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