SMASH COURT TENNIS: PRO TOURNAMENT 2

From the archive, first published Monday 27th Mar 2006.

SUMMER is upon us, so expect beach holidays, ice-creams, and many an opportunity to play tennis.

Spotless white shorts and tee-shirts, bright green grass and Wimbledon, all add to the sense that tennis is a very British sport traditionally taking place in the sweltering summer.

For the last few years Smash Court Tennis has maintained its position as the best game of its genre.

With the introduction of Smash Court Tennis: Pro Tournament 2, it appears that Namco are on top form as always.

Various difficulty levels ensure that SCT can be played by gamers of any ability, and the simple "pick up and play" controls mean gamers can become immersed in the game within minutes.

There are various modes available, the two main modes being "arcade" and "Pro Tour".

Arcade allows gamers to select various tennis stars such as Tim Henman and play through a tournament.

Pro Tour is an enormous mode, where gamers must create a tennis player and take them from ranking 250 to number one!

All the major tournaments are included but, for realistic reasons, gamers can only play in the larger events once they are ranked in a reasonably high position worldwide.

Pro Tour isn't as clear cut as simply allowing gamers to play match after match, but rather sets challenges within the match, such as hit a certain percentage of "nice" shots.

SCT certainly has enough substance to keep gamers playing throughout the Summer.

With an addictive multiplayer mode and luscious graphics, Namco have created a masterpiece that will appeal to both tennis fans and the casual gamer.

Michael Wilson

PRICE: £39.99

PLAYERS: 1-4

AGE RATING: 3+

GENRE: Tennis

FORMAT: PS2

GRAPHICS: 17/20

SOUND: 15/20

GAMEPLAY: 23/25

LIFESPAN: 23/25

ORIGINALITY: 4/10

OVERALL: 82%

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