Virtua Tennis 3 - XBL Demo

[Oh_Mutants]

Coming into this fresh having never played the arcade version, and i have to be honest and say this (like VT2 did to some degree, after the magnificent original) has left me feeling a little cold. Graphically it's ace (sorry) as expected, but it all just feels a little shallow after a half hour bash at the demo
It doesn't do anything particularly wrong admittedly, but with only three types of shot (with no modifier ala Top Spin on the Xbox) there doesn't really seem enough depth to the play, and most of the points are won by reliance on the speed of the shot and the cpu 'guessing' the wrong side.
Aside from the expected graphical overhaul, it doesn't seem to be any better a game than Virtua Tennis 2 to me, and considering that was ported to a machine that's now referred to as 'retro' i would have expected so much more of a next gen VT.
Of course it remains to be seen if the career mode is deep enough to make up for this, and i'm sure multiplayer Live will be a blast, but i was really hoping for a bit more
And my god the music...

[tyler]

I missed VT2 after playing VT1 tonnes in both the Arcade and on the Dreamcast and I think this is brilliant. It's all about multiplayer and I think the mechanics are the same as always. So much more 'free' in the controls than Top Spin which was a chore to play. Kind of like ISS vs PES for me and we all know ISS wins every time.

[sj33]

Can't seem to do bugger all against the CPU, get completely kicked every time o.o

No doubting the quality here though, another great job.

[tyler]

The CPU had their way with me in the first few games aswell. I made them fight for it but they kept coming out on top.

[Oh_Mutants]

The mechanics are the same as always, that for me is the problem. I could've just cracked out the Dreamcast for a near identical experience. I'm sure it's a great conversion, but having not played the arcade game my disappointment lies with the game itself not the conversion. I guess i'm just beginning to get a little jaded with developers resting on their laurels all the time, and this is a prime example of that for me.
ISS (as in Major A developed) Vs Pro Evo (KCET)? Seems we just have different tastes buddy, cos i'd take Pro Evo every day of the week

Edit; Glad it's not just me, it's bloody hard too which is no bad thing, as long as the full game doesn't have sudden difficulty spikes like i seem to remember no.2 having.

[tyler]

Yeah the Major A games. Football games died the moment they got kicked off ISS and PES took over.

I'd have been gutted if they've have added stuff (extra shots etc) to VT3. I just want VT online and I think we're going to get it in it's purest form.

If you want 'new' (and deeper?) then Top Spin has tried that and I find it massively dull.

Different expectations as you say.

[bignige]

Blimey this is gash! It seems a bit sterile. The music is dire & can't be turned off either!
I agress with ISS, the N64 jpn version was the best ever!

[tyler]

To you 1st remark - WRONG (the music is amazing, this may be a lie)
And your 2nd - TOP ANSWER!

[Oh_Mutants]

But then Top Spin was very dull in it's presentation, which put a lot of people off. I love Sega's style and flair as much as the next man, but what i liked about Top Spin was that it tried to add a little to tennis game mechanics (in the main, successfully), which is much needed in my opinion. I loved the 'risk' shots using the trigger buttons for example. I'm just disappointed to see the same old game of Pong here, covered over with beautiful visuals and the much loved dollop of Sega presentation. I just wished they'd have done a bit more with the mechanics, but i've no doubt i'll be in the minority..

[tyler]

I should have clarified really, I enjoyed the original Top Spin loads (multiplayer) and agree the risk shots were implemented well but with TS2 everything felt so stiff and I didn't like the new shot system.

[Oh_Mutants]

I should have clarified really, I enjoyed the original Top Spin loads (multiplayer) and agree the risk shots were implemented well but with TS2 everything felt so stiff and I didn't like the new shot system.

Yeah when i refer to Top Spin i mean the original, not the piss poor sequel

[thegreathopper]

Tennis.

Sega arcade games always have realy bad music, I have VT2 on Naomi in my cab and the music is awful with no way of turning off the music in the dips.

As someone said earlier VT is all about multiplayer.

Blimey this is gash! It seems a bit sterile. The music is dire & can't be turned off either!
I agress with ISS, the N64 jpn version was the best ever!

[tyler]

Yeah when i refer to Top Spin i mean the original, not the piss poor sequel

Gotcha. Top Spin eventually got sterile as the top spin shot became all conquering and seemed to piss off everyone I played against.

[VR46]

How many mb is the demo lads ? ta.

[sj33]

Some 800-odd meg! Small compared to most stuff.