NES Game Reviews #24 – Tennis

NES Tennis Cover
NES Tennis Cover

Unlike Soccer, Tennis is actually a good game. It’s no Super Tennis, but for its time it’s enjoyable.

Não vou explicar as regras, se você não tiver certeza, por que não perguntar ao Mario? Ele é o árbitro, parece que comeu alguns cogumelos a mais, pois está parecendo um pouco gordo, mesmo para ele. Talvez ele ainda esteja se recuperando do último cogumelo, por isso ele continua chamando IN em alguns lances que são claramente OUT. Bem, não vou dizer a ele que "não pode estar falando sério", pois ele pode ter uma estrela no bolso!

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.

Tennis Ending
Tennis Ending