First, let me start by saying tennis comes a very close second to my gaming habit. I’ve got the six-racquet bag, play in two leagues, get new racquets every year, re-string once a month, and so on. To make matters worse, I have a horrible streak of buying (or scamming for a review) nearly every single tennis game that’s been released on PC, and a fair majority that have appeared on the console. I strongly recommend that NO ONE ever do this.
Fortunately, Top Spin is sounding pretty good and should be out by month’s end. I’ve read most every preview and they seem generally positive, even if they seem to over-emphasize the link between Virtua Tennis and Top Spin (the basic play dynamics of Virtua Tennis have been copied by EVERY SINGLE friggin’ tennis game since it). I’m particularly intrigued by the multiplayer possibilities via Xbox Live/XSN. And oh yes, it should be fun playing as Anna and making her booty shake.
I know MSFT has been previewing the game to various game journos, but because I normally never handle console coverage, I’m not one of them. So, have any of who’ve seen it have any impressions? And/or can you answer my questions?
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Have you tried XSN? Is the interface worthwhile and does the game play well online?
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I know the game has a variety of shots (lob, spin, regular, slice) - but how well do the shots work? Can they be used to get your opponent off-balance; for example, a deep spin shot to the corner would allow me to move to the net for a put-away?
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How well do those specialty shots work? Are they a pain-in-the-ass to work, or just another level of complexity to master?
And, most importantly:
- Have any of the developers ever played tennis before?
Thanks kindly!