Electronic Arts Grand Slam Tennis 2 - Playstation 3

parfait !!

Firstly, many people would complain about the Total Racket Control instead of the conventional use of buttons in the game for the shots. However, personally just like Fifa 12 and few other sports games, I absolutely love total control over the game play which in turn makes the gameplay more challenging and realistic. However, thats just my personal opinion. I have broken up my experience with the game in the sections listed below.Gameplay---------Challenging, and based on a new, complex control system, but ultimately very rewarding, and actually empowering once mastered.Graphics---------Excellent. From just far enough away, it's almost convincing as a real televised game. Great player likenesses and animations for the most part too.Sound------Poor. The commentary is a massive flaw, with repetition and without the kind of personality to hide the problems. I loved the music though.Players-------This is where I got really pissed with EA. Too few players to play with specially on the ladies side. Why don't we have Steffi Graff, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Ivan Lendl, Kim Clijsters,Del Potro, Safin,Ivanisevic, Agassi etc. I hope EA provides official downloadable player packs (and not charge us for the same) to upgrade the current roster although all these players are available for download as user created players.Career Mode-----------Just like any other tennis games, the career mode is weak. You get 10 years to rise from the ashes and win it all.Game Modes--------------Mastering the control system requires hours, while getting to an impressive level requires even more effort. The training ground is where John Mcnroe will make you work like a horse to get your shots right. Its challenging but is really helpful in getting initial grips on the new control system. As of the game modes, apart from the normal single match, tournament and career modes, with the new Grand slam classics mode(Where you can try to rewrite history ), you may be playing this until well after Wimbledon.Presentation-------------It's EA Sports, so everything is typically slick and consummately professional. Bravo.Overall---------All-in-all a very fine opening set for the newest tennis franchise on the court, just lacking that little spark of charm to make it truly great. Potential to win, like Andy Murray, but also a couple of glaring shortfalls, also like Andy Murray.Hopefully EA will provide few updates and more downloadable content to make this much more fun.Also, just like the Fifa series, I believe the game will evolve to be the real tennis game in the future.I have not played Top Spin 4. So cant compare the game with it. However I have played Virtua tennis and surely this is way better than that.And lastly I am always a big fan of EA's graphics and game play. Hence in spite of the flaws/shortcomings that I have mentioned, giving it a 5 out of 5.

thanks a lot

I am an avid tennis fan having played the real sport on a casual level and also on the digital level. I love Top Spin and Virtua Tennis equally. I have all the Top Spin games, all the Virtua Tennis games on the newer systems (PS2, Xbox, PS3, Xbox360, PSP, iPad/iPhone and PC). I also love Smash Court Tennis series and have a couple of their games. I like SC3 a lot as well albeit it did very poorly surprisingly.Now, that brings us to Grand Slam Tennis 2. I don't have a Wii and didn't play the first one but I bought the second one on a whim recently for $25. I got the PS3 version because I wanted to test the move.Amazon is excellent as always shipping the game and the Move Navigation Controller in 2 days.Review :Gameplay - The gameplay is quite decent in this game albeit the mechanics are different than other games that you get used to such as Virtua Tennis where you press and hold and the char hits as soon as the ball is near the player. Here, you need to build up power by holding the button and letting go at the prime moment. Several times I let balls go by or have aces on me because I forgot to let the button go.The few issues are - the difficulty ramps up like crazy as the years go by. However you have probably won a grand slam before the first 3 years already so the challenge to continue gets diminished. When serving, the player always needs to be repositioned which gets annoying. Also, the game seems more Serve and Volley oriented with such players being almost invincible as nothing can pass by opposed to Offensive baseliners who have to work very hard for a win.Loading screens are also annoying with time consuming loads. The other annoyance is that replay screens pop up and although you can kill them, it should be removable from a settings menu.The gameplay consists mostly of either scoring an ace because you've timed it perfectly down the middle which seems to work like 4/5 times for an ace or you just keep moving the player from one side to other to create an opening.Unlike Top Spin which has 4 buttons for the 4 shot types - Flat shot, Slice, top spin and lob, this game eschews the top spin button for some combo for the same. I'd have preferred the same face buttons for each shot type instead of combo buttons for it.Level up is something of a puzzle to me because I've not seen a screen asking me to up my different attributes.Another puzzling thing is sometimes I see a red, green or blue trails (not seen yellow yet) when the opponent hits the ball. Is this supposed to specify shot used by the opponent? Matching the Xbox360 face button colors? And same on PS3? That is odd.The events are laid out nicely and easily and you have additional objectives to complete per match. One good thing is prior to each match you can set certain values for match length. However, I'd have liked total control over this instead of the few pre-defined values.Player - There is player creation if you're into that sort of thing but it is not my thing. I just randomize it and be done with it.Sound - Decent, works well. However, there is no satisfying thump and oomph when you hit the balls harder. I like the commentary aspect but after a while, they say the same things over and over again. Still, it is fine as it is at least there.Graphics - The graphics are decent but not crystal clear sharp like Top Spin 4. However, they are quite good still. Crowd is just a cardboard cutout as usual. The ESPN presentation like quality is however a nice touch. Overall it feels like you're watching a TV tennis match with this.Move Controls - Move controls work quite well however, it is complicated to remember what to do for each shot type. However, it works quite well if you like a work out and want to feel good playing tennis. I like playing with the move because unlike the joke that is the Wii controller, this Move controller is a lot more precise and satisfying. One lone problem is that the PS Eye has a small range for the move controller.Value -Good value for the game. $25 for already over 15 hours of entertainment is quite fantastic.Final rating : 8/10

Super