Top Spin 2 XBOX360
Top Spin 2 published by 2K is a tennis game which features many of today's top tennis professionals.
Gameplay:
At its core tennis is a slow paced game, and it can be hard for non tennis fans to play tennis video games because of this. Therefore, if you have any interest in tennis or want to know more about the sport this game is for you. The controls for the game are simple, simple to the point where almost anybody can pick up and play. I found myself perfect with the controls even after not playing for a month. Easy controls are a plus in my book because it introduces gaming to non-gamers, but I like tough games and controls. Different shots are mapped to the face buttons: Y is a lob, B is topspin, X is a slice, and A is a safe shot. The Left and right triggers can be pulled to perform risk or specials shots, and for the most part they are challenging and rewarding when one is successfully pulled off. Serving also uses the same buttons.
The on the court action is a perfect representation of the game of tennis. Any tennis fan and gamer would love this game. Personally it is the best tennis game on the market, but I have yet to play virtua tennis. The game features a number of pro tennis players including Sharapova, Roddick, Federer, and Henman. The modes in the game are exhibition, career, and xbox live play. The exhibition mode is where you can customize match settings and play against the computer or friends. The meat of the game is the career mode. You start off by creating a player using a good player creation system, and you also get to dress your character. Before you start playing you also need to sign a sponsor. The career consists of 5 years of play, and each year covers many months of the season. Each week you have three options. You can train your player, play in a tournament, or play in a special event. When you start out your career the only options are to train your player. The training system is terrific. You can choose what skills to work on and you play fun minigames to build up those skills. Your skill progression is based on stars, and you can get bronze, silver, and gold stars. After a few weeks of training you will be able to participate in minor tournaments. There are four types of tournaments: minors, majors, masters, and slams. You have to progress your ranking from minor tournaments in order to compete in the other tournaments. The career progression is fun and very rewarding as you can easily see how much your player has developed. By winning tournaments you increase your rank, win cash, and strive towards the goal of becoming the number one player. It took me a little over 28 hours to progress through the career. Xbox live is ok, but not many people are playing because this is an older game. A lot of the people playing are highly skilled and the average player would get crushed. There is enough game here where you don't have to play online at all.
Some complaints I have about the gameplay are that the game is too easy, and it can get extremely boring. The game only has one difficulty in the career mode and I found it very easy. Near the end of the career I was pounding even the best players and sometimes not even allowing them to score one point. The game can also get extremely boring as I feel the career mode can drag on at some points and the competition is weak. This really brings the game down for me. I am a tennis fan(I follow the big tournaments) yet I still found it overly boring. I can take it for what it is because tennis is generally boring.
Gameplay: 6 out of 10
Graphics
Simply put the graphics are stunning. I couldn't believe how this game looked in HD and it is still pretty good in SD. The environments and colors are so vibrant; it is simply amazing to look at. Granted there isn't much going on but it is still an accomplishment. From what I played there really weren't any issues with clipping or collision detection. The player animations are very smooth and it really looks like you are watching a tennis game. This game is worth checking out just for the graphics.
Graphics: 9 out of 10
Presentation
The presentation is great in this game. This is mainly due to the fact that it is very authentic. The only voice you hear is the PA announcer calling out the score during the match. There are no commentators at all which is a good thing. The in game menus are also good, and the career is presented very well.
Presentation: 8 out of 10
Sound
The sound in the game is good. There isn't much going on besides sound effects on the court and from the PA.
Sound: 7 out of 10
Lasting Appeal/Value
Because of the long career mode there is a lot of value to this game. Also the game now comes free with some 360's. The only thing which might shorten the value and did for me was the boringness of the game. I would recommend picking this game up if you can afford to spend 25$ for. I got mine free with my 360.
LA/Value: 7 out of 10
Overall: 7.6 out of 10: rounded to 7.5
