RENT FIRST

User Rating: 6 | Top Spin 2 X360
for as long as i can remember, i've been a fairly avid fan of tennis, starting back in the early 90's with goran ivanisevic and progressing through the years with becker, roddick, agassi, mcenroe ... so, when top spin 2 came out i was all over it. i had played the original top spin and loved it and figured this one would be top notch. yeah ... not so much.

the game is fun, don't get me wrong, but i feel so limited in playability. i either train--spending an inordinate amount of 'coin' that i really haven't earned yet--or on the rare occasion that i receive a 'minor' competition selection that i might even be capable of having a fair shot at, i make such a measly sum of cash that it wasn't worth my time. i tried a major competition ... creamed.

player creation was fun and my vin diesel character looks great in an adidas sleeveless t with a pair of dark oakley wrap-arounds but moves like special ed child playing with his own shadow. he jumps the opposite way at times or doesn't even respond to button presses and just stands there while a ball sails lazily past, easily within reach. it gets a little frustrating. graphics are great and as it stands, that's almost all this game has going for it. sure, it has its moments of competitive fun but nearly every time i am at the top of the screen, i lose the game ... and the close-up camera doesn't show the entire court on your side and you easily miss returns. i absolutely abhor the camera setup and would really have liked the way that mario tennis--yes, i went there--kept the camera at the players back even after you switched courts.