Sega Superstars Tennis (Xbox 360)

SEGA SUPERSTARS TENNIS

Sega Superstars Tennis is of course a tennis game that features characters from the most notable Sega games of all time. The game is aimed at the younger gamers and kids will absolutely adore this. Sega Superstars Tennis was developed by Sumo Digital and published by none other than Sega. The game is on a wide range of systems. Its available for the PS2, PS3, Wii, Nintendo DS and the Xbox 360. The game includes 16 playable characters including fan favourites like Sonic & Tails and it also features 10 courts from Sega games which are just bits taken from previous games and made into a tennis court. In total, 15 different Sega games are represented in the game through mini games and by other means. The game doesn't feature any storyline and the game doesn't just revolve around one character in particular. The PS3 and Xbox 360 versions both have online play where as the others don't.

GAMEPLAY

As stated there are 16 playable characters in the game but most of these characters are locked at first. Along with hidden characters there are hidden courts, music tracks and mini games. Most of these items are unlocked as you play through the main game mode and win different challenges. There are numerous different challenges in the game and some of these include things like knocking monkey balls through hoops, knocking zombies down as they try and get close to you, hitting targets to unleash a vast amount of Sonic rings to collect and many many more. Along with these challenges are single matches, doubles matches and tournaments. There is definitely a lot of variety with different challenges but the match ups do get really repetitive and they are incredibly easy to beat. Some might see this as a major disappointment.

The actual way the game plays is also a little weak and does feel slightly rusty. Its the same rules as a normal tennis match with the score system and the boundaries. The characters move really slick, almost like there on ice. Also I feel there aren't many different shot types in the game. Only certain characters can use a slice shot which is a little disappointing. There is however one great thing to point out and that's every character has their own special shot when their special shot gauge fills up. The gauge is under your characters feet and you can instantly tell when its full and ready to use. Some of the special moves suit the game the characters from. For example the monkeys from Super Monkey Ball use bananas to make their opponents slip. Sonic changes into Super Sonic and so on. I'm not a big fan of the singles and doubles matches in this tennis game because you can do the same thing every time to beat your opponent. Also I found that most the time I was playing against the same characters every round!

GAME MODES

SUPERSTARS - Superstars mode is the main mode in the game where just about everything happens. This mode is where you find all your hidden items, take on mini games and compete in tournaments. Whilst playing this mode you can change character every time you take on a new challenge/match. Superstars mode is definitely the best mode in terms of fun but its just far too easy to beat. Each challenge is met with a ranking. Try and aim for the best score and get an AAA rank. The higher the rank the better the rewards. Overall its a good, fun mode to play and kids will love playing this game mode a lot.

MATCH - Match mode is just like a normal exhibition mode. You can play singles or doubles matches with friends. You can have a maximum of 4 players playing this mode at once. I'm not a huge fan of this game mode because it doesn't offer variety and its incredibly weak in terms of gameplay.

TOURNAMENT - Tournament mode is exactly what you think it is. Pick your character or characters and compete in either singles or doubles tournaments. The bad thing about this mode is the lack of tournaments in it. There are only a select few tournaments to be played and this mode is limited and only fun for a short time. It does get incredibly boring because its just match after match after match.

GAMES - This is a fun mode to play because you can tackle any mini game you've played from Superstars mode. There is a lot of variety in this mode because of the many different challenges/games to play. This mode can be enjoyed playing with friends but I found it can actually get really competitive. Its a brilliant mode if you just want to get straight into the mini games without having to play all the singles or doubles matches. Definitely one of my favourite game modes in the game.

XBOX LIVE - There are numerous options in Xbox Live mode. There is an overall leaderboard to check where you stand against the worlds best gamers. There is TV where you can watch coverage and highlights of Sega Superstars Tennis. There are two other modes in Xbox Live which are Ranked matches and Player matches. Ranked matches are the more competitive because they affect the overall leaderboard if you win. The Player matches are just for fun against other online gamers and these match ups don't affect the overall leaderboards. Its a fun mode to play but the outcome is based on luck and not skill. There isn't a right or wrong way to play this game.

GRAPHICS & SOUND EFFECTS

I was impressed to some extent with the graphics but they certainly aren't the best I have seen from Sega games. The look and design of the characters is fine and they look pretty much how they do from their respected games. Some of the courts are nicely designed as well but some lack any real zest. There are a couple that are pointless because they look exactly like other courts in the game. I think by far the best thing is the way the mini games are designed because they do stand out and definitely make the game better. The scenery in the game looks extremely fake, the way the characters hit the ball back also looks fake but never the less it doesn't affect the game too much.

Now the sound effects I love to this game especially the music. The music is classic tracks from the 15 Sega games that feature in this game. My personal favourite is the old Sonic tracks and The House Of The Dead tracks. The game features hundreds of different sound tracks from other games. The actual gameplay sound effects are equally as impressive. All the characters sound like and how they do in other games. Also the sound the ball makes when being struck is great, the sound when your moving around is nicely done and just the overall sound is top notch. You can alter the sound in the options menu but I recommend you leave it how it is to give you the full feel of the game.

DIFFICULTY & LONGEVITY

I wasn't best pleased with both these options but everyone needs to take into account that this is actually aimed for the much younger gamers. The game is extremely easy, in fact far too easy. I have had the game for a while now and I still haven't lost a single game. Every match has a certain number of games that you need to win to progress to the next round. It starts off easy and finishes just as easy. I have barely lost a single point let alone game. The controls are easy, the opponents are easy and every mini game on it is far too easy. I would even go as far as to say that kids will find this incredibly easy and not at all challenging.The game is very short on some modes but it can last a lot longer with Xbox Live and multiplayer modes. Superstars mode only takes about 6-8 hours to fully complete every challenge and all the matches which is a huge disappointment but it can still be enjoyed on another playthrough. Overall it all depends on what mode you play and if your willing to play certain game modes again after finishing them.

ACHIEVEMENTS

There are a total of 45 achievements to get on the game. Most of the achievements are very simple to get and I found myself with half of them after only 2 hours of gameplay. There aren't many tricky achievements in the game to be fair and the hardest I found was doing 3 perfect serves in a row. There are a lot of achievements for this game and most tennis games don't have as many. Overall the achievements are okay for this and fairly simple to get.

GOOD BITS

• There are 16 playable Sega characters in the game and all of them have their own special move.
• 10 different courts to play and they are all bits from other Sega games.
• Lots of different mini games to play with a lot of variety.
• Classic songs from previous Sega games. The sound effects are brilliant!
• Multiplayer and online play is very addictive and can be a lot of fun for a while.

BAD BITS

• Graphics are a little weak in places and could do with strengthening.
• The game is far too easy and most gamers will complete this without any trouble.
• The game is very short in places. Superstars mode could of been made bigger.
• The singles and doubles matches are repetitive and easy.

FINAL THOUGHT

Sega Superstars Tennis is a fairly decent game. Kids will love this more than any other gamer because it does seem a little childish at times but its great fun as well. I did like the fact its a Sega game and it features things that most Sega games feature with the music and stuff.

I would recommend the game to people with kids or to people who are fans of easy Sega games. It is fun for a while but a few things let the game down. The game manual is also very disappointing and lacks any real information.

Sega Superstars Tennis has one great thing about it and that's the incredible price of it. The game is cheap because its been out a while now and you can get the game for around £2.50 which includes postage. Great value for any game in my opinion especially one with some fantastic characters in it. For some strange reason the games rating is 7+ and to be fair anyone can play this.

Overall I would give Sega Superstars Tennis a 6/10! Definitely aimed more at the younger gamers!

Review also on dooyoo under the username: simon020187!