Grand Slam Tennis 2
From: Electronic Arts
For: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
4½ stars (out of 5)
Reviewed by Hayden Meikle
Partly, I think, this is because most tennis games have been poor, or at least struggling for an identity.
The Smash Court Tennis series was all over the place, Virtua Tennis had too many gimmicks (the "smash down the pins" and "gather the fruit" mini games), and Top Spin, while it got better, was fairly limited and repetitive.
Grand Slam Tennis was released three years ago but was Wii-exclusive, so was never really going to make a massive splash in the sports gaming market.
Its sequel has arrived for the major consoles and is the tennis game everyone has been waiting for.
Grand Slam Tennis 2 is certainly the best tennis game I've seen.
It's got:
The best modes: A deep career mode, with all the usual training, exhibition and tournament options, as well as plenty of mini-challenges and unlockables. All four grand slam events are available, a rarity for tennis games.
Plus there is a separate challenge mode that features dozens of famous real-life matches, from the past several decades.
The best graphics: So realistic, you do occasionally think you are watching real tennis on the box. The courts are lush and accurate, and the leading players are perfectly done. Look out for Boris Becker's short shorts and John McEnroe's headband in the classic games.
The best commentary: McEnroe himself, with Australian Pat Cash beside him. Full of varied and appropriate lines.
The best difficulty curve: So important for any sports game. You can make it quite simple, to the point you are firing down regular aces and service return winners, or fiendishly difficult.
The best controls: A stick-based system called Total Racquet Control is an interesting option, but I still prefer the buttons. They are clean and simple and responsive.
The best range of players: Djokovic, Federer, Nadal, Murray, Roddick, Tsonga, Sharapova and the Williams girls. Plus legends like Sampras, Becker, Borg, McEnroe, Edberg, Evert and Navratilova, plus hundreds more creations that can be downloaded.
Negatives? No major ones, though at times the players' running is quite skittery.
Other than that, Grand Slam Tennis 2 is a smashing effort.
