NES Game Reviews #24 – Tennis
Unlike Soccer, Tennis is actually a good game. It’s no Super Tennis, but for its time it’s enjoyable.
I’m not gonna explain the rules, if you’re unsure why not ask Mario? He’s the umpire, looks like he may have eaten a few extra mushrooms as he’s looking a little porky even for him. Maybe he’s still coming down from his last shroom, hence why he keeps calling IN on some of shots that are clearly OUT. Oh well, I’m not gonna tell him he ‘cannot be serious’, he might have a Star in his pocket!
The mechanics of the game are simple but satisfying when things work. The directional buttons do not affect the direction of your shot. Instead the position of your player dictates the angle of your shot. It takes some getting used to. In many respects this makes for a more realistic experience, since you are forced to position your player in the right place to return the ball, rather than having the safety of simply holding down a button and a direction. The downside is that the computer has a say in where your shot goes. Perhaps more experienced players can manipulate the mechanics more precisely, but I found it was never a sure thing to know which area of the court my return shot would end up, even if I positioned my player correctly.
There’s 5 different skill levels you can choose from, each letting you compete in a tournament. Since my aim is to simply beat every game, not beat the hardest setting, I vouched for the quick exit and went for level 1 AI. I soon realised, I could have taken on level 3 probably without much bother, but since even a level 1 match can last 20-30mins, I’m happy enough with my decision. I’m allowed the occasional break aren’t I? A quick match up against level 5 AI did nothing but reinforce my decision.
