Building
on the success of Hot Shots Golf, the newest sports title from Clap Hanz,
Hot Shots Tennis brings all the fun and excitement of the links games to
the courts on the Playstation 2. The game features another humorous cast
of tennis pros multiple play modes for single or group players and more.
Players can also unlock additional characters, extra costumes and more.
The gameplay is quite accessible and fun, though there's enough nuance
here that even experienced players will find a challenge at the higher
levels. While Hot Shots Tennis isn't the deepest game ever made, it's an
enjoyable title that offers some exciting tennis action.
While the causal market has grown by
leaps and bounds over the past year, Sony's long running affiliation with
Clap Hans has produced several memorable casual golf titles on the PS2. It
should be no surprise that the company has expanded the franchise with Hot
Shots Tennis. Players familiar with the approach of Hot Shots titles will
find many familiar elements in this title. The game offers an accessible
approach to gameplay with simple controls and fast-action oriented play to
create a title that should be highly playable to gamers of any skill
level. Before you begin the game, you are given the option of which
character you want to choose from. As in the previous Hot Shots games,
there are a selection of cute and charming anime style players you can
choose from. There are only a couple of these available at first, but
additional characters can be unlocked as you play through the game.
Players can also unlock other items, such as additional characters and
alternative costumes once they've won a few rounds. In all, players have
the chance to use 14 different characters which is a decent selection each
of which brings their own play styles, some are better servers, while
others are better at returning volleys. This helps to expand the gameplay
dramatically because it adds variety, extending Hot Shots Tennis' replay
value significantly.
Before
you begin each game, you are given a choice of several different play
modes. You can choose to play through a Training Mode where you are given
a different set of mini-games to play through for each skill - these range
from serves to volleys. In this mode, you are going against a timer and
have to complete your tasks and meet a quota before the timer runs out. If
you do this, you'll progress through to the next level which is slightly
more difficult. The training mode can be challenging and addictive in its
own right, and offers dozens of challenges. However, you can't beat
playing against another competitor so you might want to move onto the
challenge mode. Here, you compete head to head in a variety of locations
and try to defeat as many opponents as possible in order to move up the
ranks. As you gain skills and victories in this mode, you'll also be able
to unlock additional items and characters. There's a variety of opponents
you face in these modes, plus different courts and locations, which should
keep your motivations level high. Players can also choose to compete
against another human player in the Everybody's Golf mode - you can choose
to play with up to four players at the same time using the multi-tap for
some massively multiplayer fun. Finally, you can select from a number of
options such as round length, difficulty level and other options in the
game menu screens as well.
While they're all cool to look at, each
of the game's characters also brings a unique style of play and
personality to the action, which adds to the humorous approach. Once you
get on the court, the game feels very much like a tennis match should,
with all the basic mechanics such as serves, volleys and attack moves in
play. The controls are very simple, you move the character around the
court using the standard d-pad or analog stick and try and knock the ball
back over the net so it hits the ground before your opponent can return
your volley. Mastering all the different shot types will take some time,
as will the timing of your shots. Spinning your shot angle and aiming your
shots is also relatively simple and most players only need to press the
d-pad in the direction they want to aim. Players can also use power-serves
and special shots if they build up enough stamina, which makes them hit a
almost unanswerable shot and a point. Hot Shots Tennis' scoring and rules
are fairly simple and should be familiar to tennis fans. The out-of-bounds
and nets are placed where you'd expect them to be. You'd think that there
would be a lot of gimmicks used here, but the gameplay is surprisingly
straightforward which makes this ideal for a quick play, though the lack
of many options does curtail its long-term enjoyment somewhat.
Where
the game differentiates itself from others in the genre are in its
arcade-style additions, such as a slow motion mode and extra bouncy balls
that can be turned on or off. These make the game more fun to play.
Another key difference between the game and more serious tennis titles are
the on-screen indicators that show you where the ball is going to land.
This is extremely helpful if you're new to games, but can become annoying
if you have some experience under your belt. There are also indicators
that appear over your player's head the show when they've made a good
shot, or when they miss the mark. This helps players get the timing and
position down easily and helps to keep things accessible. The game offers
several basic types of play, with singles and doubles mode the primary
variants here. Both modes are fairly easy to play and should cause too
much of a problem. Obviously, which character you challenge is a major
factor in how successful you'll be - each brings their own strengths and
weaknesses to the court. Playing against a human opponent is ideal, but
the computer AI can also be quite challenging if its set high enough.
Hot Shots Tennis' gameplay is smooth and
accessible, but the light-hearted, charming graphics and slick
presentation adds much to its appeal. As stated earlier, the
anime-characters are very cute and animated nicely which definitely brings
the game to life vividly as do the humorous voice-overs. The game
frequently shows replays and cut-scenes between volleys as well, which
adds to its overall light-hearted feel. A decent music score and abundant
arcade-style sound effects add to its experience. Players who loved the
look and feel of the previous Hot Shots titles will definitely feel right
at home with the Tennis edition of the series, and it's accessible
gameplay, simple, arcade-style controls and cartoonish presentation makes
this one of the more enjoyable sports titles on the market. While its
appearance and look is bound to appeal to a casual audience, Hot Shots
Tennis offers enough solid gameplay mechanics and challenge to appeal to
even hard core sports gamers.
Grade:
B
