If you haven't owned a tennis game yet, it's about time. I don't even like the sport and I love this game to death.
Virtua Tennis is a real pick up and play kind of game. The control is just so amazing in every way. The control does this by allowing you to put the ball exactly where, and how you want it at all times; this can be done with the touch of a button and the point of a joy stick, depending on where the ball it at the time and on how fast you're running. Your player will make all the right moves to play the ball based on it's position, keeping your frustration bottled up and only existent when the computer AI opens a can of whoop *** on you. The courts alone in Virtua Tennis provide more game-play depth also, as each court type will affect the bounce of the ball.
The main attraction in Virtua Tennis is the world championship mode, where you must hire and fire partners, compete in singles and doubles matches, buy new outfits, keep your energy up with plenty of health drinks, get the newest most stylish rackets, while keeping them fine tuned by getting the strings tightened, you can play mini games to unlock even more goodies throughout the game, and You can even unlock new players. The world championship mode will challenge you to say the least, but the game is so addictive that it'll seem like it's over in no time, though you won’t feel like it's over until you've unlocked all the players, rackets, and suits.
The game really ups the anti when it comes down to the presentation it holds, using fluid player, crowd, and ball fetcher boy animations and sounds. Over passing clouds will even leave shadows on the court. The only thing that sticks out as odd about the presentation is that the players themselves look downright ugly; it's not because of the graphics, they're just really ugly. The sound also proves to be very worthy; making matches that much more in-depth with authentic player grunts, sneaker squeaks, and ball-to-racket sounds. But don't expect to be won over by any flashy soundtrack or anything, the quality mostly retains to the game-play itself.
Four player doubles matches make for a downright hilarious time, and playing two players vs. the computer players will add more fun as you and a friend drive through the game (Though the computer team mate AI is probably much better than your friends in most cases). Multi-player in tennis games has probably been the most overlooked feature up until Virtua Tennis' release.
A full out blast to play, with innovations such as the mini games, the control, the world mode that seems more like it's based on your choices, rather than just playing one opponent after another, and the possibility for your player to lose energy and for his racket's strings to get loose. I don't even like tennis, and this is still a game that is on my top sports titles list. Just try missing this classic; you'll only be cheating yourself.