We really wanted to like Virtua Tennis 3. On the surface, the Virtua Tennis 3 demo presents a polished, professional veneer. Dig deeper, however, and something ugly begins to rear its head. Of course, it's possible that we just really suck (or that we've been spoiled by Top Spin). We can accept that. Still, in an hour of play time, we managed to win one (one!) game against the CPU. Not one match mind you, but one game. Put simply, the CPU is pretty ruthless. Combine that with some questionable game mechanics and Virtua Tennis 3 becomes very frustrating very fast.
First of all, we found our character (we tried both Federer and Nadal) dove unnecessarily for several shots. Naturally, the time it takes to get back up after diving can cost you the next shot, or at the very least make for a shoddy return. Also, the shot selection is a little strange. You can choose to hit topspin, slice, or lob, but nothing in between. Unlike Top Spin, you can't simply hit a neutral shot. This is annoying when all you want is to make sure the ball gets over the net and doesn't go out. Also unlike Top Spin, it's sometimes difficult to get in the proper position for your stroke. This often results in the character unnecessarily diving or simply missing the ball altogether. We couldn't figure out how to manage a drop shot either.
Now, the CPU can be infuriating. First of all, the CPU will make shots that you can't (and without diving to get them). It's particularly annoying when a CPU makes nearly the same shot that your character mysteriously whiffed 2 points earlier. Yes, the computer will make shots that you can't and it will return shots that should have been game winners. Even more maddening is a repeated exchange we experienced, in which the computer hit increasingly powerful shots until our return landed out of bounds.
The final game may have more lenient difficulty, but it's definitely a turn off in the demo. Speaking of turn offs, the music in the demo is awful. It's the worst kind of terrible rock music imaginable. Not only that, but it seems like it's permanently stuck on a 30 second loop. Seriously, it's like the Virtua Tennis 3 team asked the Sonic Adventure team if they had any leftover music. If you want to increase you score (and save your brain cells) we suggest you use your own music. Better yet, put your own music on pause so you can enjoy the silence.
Graphically, the game is sharp, but the character models have a creepy mannequin quality to them. They seem stiff and wooden. The brow wiping animations in particular look very strange. The courts look nice, and the game is very colorful, but it's nothing to write home about. Still, for a tennis title, it's more than serviceable.
All in all, we were disappointed with the demo. We'll wait for the retail release (with it's copious training modes and mini-games) before passing judgment though.
View the Virtua Tennis 3 image gallery
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
3-16-2007 @ 4:41PM
sabuc said...
Wow. I was looking forward to playing this demo especially after playing Top Spin 2 and really liking that game, but now I may have to reconsider based on this review and comments. I'll prolly still download it but am no longer rushing to see what it's like. Im still curious to see the graphics on this as it is supposed to be one of the first 1080p games. Right?
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3-16-2007 @ 4:47PM
J.Goodwin said...
2nd Yeah. First one was Homecourt, it's already out, and is good.
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3-16-2007 @ 4:50PM
Player1 said...
That sounds exactly like every other Virtua Tennis, sounds like it's gonna be awesome! Richard, have you not played Virtua Tennis previously?
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3-16-2007 @ 4:53PM
Anthony D said...
Yep, the demo sucked in my opinion too. Why didn't they port the mechanics from the DC game?? That was the best Tennis game ever in my opinion. And the graphics aren't that great either. I will Gamefly this one for sure.....
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3-16-2007 @ 4:56PM
Richard Mitchell said...
Player1,
I played VT1 way back on the Dreamcast, but not extensively. Honestly, I can see myself enjoying the game, but this demo is tough as nails, at least for me. I wish it had multiplayer so I could test it out with a human opponent. Still, I think it's decent, but until I see the full version I'm reserving judgment.
Besides, I can always just play real Tennis :) (Not that I'm any good at that either)
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3-16-2007 @ 5:00PM
murph said...
it's the men. play with the women and the diving is significantly toned down.
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3-16-2007 @ 5:29PM
Player1 said...
Yeah, multiplayer is really where it's at. Don't the women not dive at all? Honestly this all sounds exactly like what I expected. Oddly enough, I would almost be annoyed if it didn't have the cheese rock soundtrack.
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3-16-2007 @ 5:29PM
Foe said...
He's right. I played VT for the Dreamcast to DEATH, and this demo is just brutally difficult. Shame, I was looking forward to the game, but in this case, the demo has led to at least one less sale.
Seriously, it's so hard that it's not fun at all.
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3-16-2007 @ 5:46PM
murph said...
XBL online mode is going to carry this game with 4-player games and spectator mode. other than that, it (should) be the same VT we've played before.
the default difficulty and diving definitely could use a little tweaking though before release though.
poor PS3 Fanboys who get absolutely NO online modes whatsoever.
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3-16-2007 @ 5:51PM
KGLotusElise said...
It must be the men. I just played it for the first time, using Sharapova against Federer, and won 2-1 with little trouble. I think it's an excellent update although the only version I've played prior is Virtua Tennis on the PSP. The music is a bit annoying but aside from that I thought it was great.
I gave the Top Spin demo a shot a while back and had to quit playing after 5 minutes or so, I really really really disliked it.
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3-16-2007 @ 5:56PM
ericdrum said...
I'll have to agree. I only played for 15 minutes, but I was just lost and diving for every hit. It was brutal. I really liked TopSpin. I also played lots of VT on Dreamcast. This demo wasn't so hot. I'm curious to see if they fix some of this stuff before release.
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3-16-2007 @ 6:04PM
Tennisman said...
I just played the demo and completely disagree with the post. I teach Tennis and Coach college Tennis as well. This is a very good reproduction of the sport. I've played the previous games as well and don't find this at all difficult.
For those not familar with the strategy of the sport then it could prove difficult. First of all, you also need to know the players. Federer is an all court player and is more suited for serving and volleying on grass. Trying to play him on the baseline is futile. Hopefully the diving feature will be toned down a little.
It's all about time management and court control. Once you dictate a point you can generally control it's outcome. The same holds true in this game. My suggestion is since we are isolated only to playing on grass, play it like a traditional grass court player would play it. Use a lot of slice and follow it in. Once your on the net you can control the point fairly easily.
This is a FAR better game than TopSpin with it's incedibly unbalanced shot mechanics and super shot. TopSpin is much more arcade like than a true Tennis game. This game captures the spirit of the game much better,
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3-16-2007 @ 6:16PM
PostScript said...
I am a Top Spin man myself. But I do disagree with your statements regarding game play. The reason you are diving is because your player is not in the proper position to hit the ball. You need to run THROUGH the ball and then press the button for a shot. This will eliminate nearly all unneccesary diving. As a tennis enthusiast myself I can appreciate this, as in real tennis in order to properly place the ball you must move your body through the swing...not just stab at it. As to directing the ball, drop shots are admitedly cumbersome but by pulling back on the analog stick when you swing you are able to place the ball closer to the net. Combine this with a slice mechanic and you have yourself a drop shot -- of sorts. The music is terrible, but that graphics are better than those in Top Spin 2. Also the game has fantastic animations and seems slightly more fluid than Top Spin. Furthermore, I really like how the game is more fast paced and simplistic (as compared to Top Spin). The lack of "risk" shots makes it less punishing to land those difficult to place shots. Don't get me wrong I am not trading in my Top Spin game any time soon. But this game can hold its own. Give it some more time and be sure to run through the ball and I believe you will find it really entertaining.
PS If it has shorter load times than Top Spin I may just have to pick it up.
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3-16-2007 @ 9:32PM
Deano said...
Totally agree with the post. I doubt I have ever deleted a demo as quickly.
I remember when tennis games were fun, like Super Tennis and Mario Tennis. The more they try to make it look real the worse the gameplay becomes.
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3-16-2007 @ 9:49PM
Jcarpio said...
Does anyone know if it will have a career mode similiar to TopSpin2. Meaning it'll be divided by seasons.
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3-17-2007 @ 12:07AM
Type105x said...
Well i think this demo is class .... i am a fan from the Dreamcast days .... & this game is just like the old ones .....your guy sames to jump around alot but its not a SIM after all ....its just alot of fun :)
The GFX are well good ^_^ MIND ITS THE 1st 1080p game :P haha
the load time took like 20/30 secs??? Did any one ele have the load time?
.....o and the game anit that hard who ever said that lol
^_^
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3-17-2007 @ 3:25AM
Ayo Jube said...
I agree with the diving, and I understand that I need to be in range, but I remember previous VT games having a slide type of swing that helped you reach it in time. Diving 20-30 times a game got old really fast. A shame cause I was really looking forward to this after putting many hours on the DC version :(
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3-17-2007 @ 9:53AM
Thomas said...
If you're not winning, you're not playing it right.
At first I tried playing it like DC Virtua Tennis and kept losing. Then I figured out that it's all about placement. Where you are in relation to the ball when you hit it. After that I started winning most of the time instead of losing.
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3-17-2007 @ 11:31AM
jules c said...
Vt will not sell anyway, be honest. I know some people like the game but making it more difficult will drive peoplle away from the game. who wants to play something that costs so much and is too hard to master. There are tooo many games comming out to spend so much time on tennis?!!!
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3-17-2007 @ 12:00PM
vurtag said...
I laugh at the "because I play tennis - I know what I'm saying" posts. The bottom line is... the controls are clunky, the shot selection is crippled and the ability to control the movement of your shot is a guessing game.
The diving is annoying, but more annoying to me was the inability to effectively hit down the baseline. WTF.
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