Virtua Tennis 3 Update (ign.com)

- ign.com -

UK, November 23, 2006 - Although various IGN reporters have already had the chance to play through early builds of Virtua Tennis 3, when SEGA dropped by our UK offices in London it was the first time we got to smash an ace without being disturbed by the hustle and bustle of playing it in a busy, noisy environment such as on the TGS show floor.

Running through a 1080p projector on a six-foot screen, it's hard not to be impressed by VT3's pin-sharp graphics. Playing it on anything less than a 40-inch LCD (1080p, naturally) would be a crying shame, because the game is so rich in detail anything smaller just wouldn't do it justice. Sure, it's only a tennis game, but the players, backgrounds and court surfaces all look superbly crisp. Admittedly it's not photorealistic, no matter what SEGA wants us to believe, but it's pretty damn impressive nonetheless.

Take the players for example: even with the camera drawn back, it's still possible to tell one player from another, with Federer recognisable by his headband and Leyton Hewitt's backwards baseball cap instantly distinctive. Up close, during the replays, they look even better, with realistic facial expressions that change to reflect their mood when they win or lose a point. Clothing flaps around realistically too, both as they move about court and also in the wind, although sometimes the shadows cast on the ground don't quite keep up. Likewise, not all of the players are spot-on: Nadal looks every bit the powerful young newcomer he is in real life but Tim Henman has a somewhat glazed look about him. Maria Sharapova looks hot in her gymslip too, and SEGA has even made Lindsay Davenport look half-decent -- which is more than can be said for the she-brute in real life.

Naturally each of the players has their favoured style of play in the game, with Martina Hingis very much a tactical hitter and Venus Williams relying on her strong passing strokes. Nadal is fast on his feet and is therefore more likely to reach most of his returns while Federer is a great all-round player and as such is the perfect choice for those new to Virtua Tennis.

Out on the court, Virtua Tennis 3 feels as sharp and intuitive as any of its predecessors. As ever there are three types of shot - stroke, slice and lob - with your player automatically adapting their return depending on their stance and the position of the ball. Harder, more accurate shots can be placed by 'powering' up the racquet by holding down the relevant button, allowing for some truly great down-the-line returns, although these are only possible if you predict where your opponent's return will come from and get into position beforehand.

The different types of court affect the speed and bounce of the ball, with the two clay courts (Barcelona and Paris) proving less bouncy than Melbourne's hard surface, but less so compared to Wimbledon and Dusseldorf's grass surfaces. Additionally the backgrounds are modelled on countries in which each tournament takes place, with Barcelona basked in deep red sunlight and traditional German bierkellers providing the backdrop for Dusseldorf World Cup. Admittedly, the crowds looked a little wooden in the version we played - although not quite as static as spectators in, say, MotorStorm - but the fact the umpires announce the scores in the local language is a nice touch.

Unfortunately the build we played only included an exhibition singles match against an AI player and the difficulty level was painfully easy, so we breezed to victory without losing a point. It's therefore impossible to accurately give an idea how how refined the gameplay will be compared to Virtua Tennis 2 but, needless to say, we can't wait to get stuck into a near-finished game, to play through the World Tour game and also hone our racquet skills in the mini-games. Stay tuned and we'll bring your more updates soon.