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238 of 240 found the following review helpful:
A video game that is the closest thing to real tennis - so do not expect to master it immediately!Jun 11, 2009
By Tomer Eden I have a feeling that many people will pick up this game and be initially frustrated. They may feel the game is not completely tracking their movements. Or that when they try to swing in a particular way it is not reflected in the game. Now, this game is by no means perfect, and some of these frustrations are real.
But I strongly urge you to keep with it and not give up. If you spend some time with the game you will quickly realize how brilliant and addicting it is. The point where you come to this realization will likely be when you are able to achieve a degree of consistency in your swing and direct the ball where you want it to go, and I provide tips for this at the end of this review.
I will say this - above all else this game is very, very fun. Some of the rallies you will have with your friends or while playing online will stick in your mind long after the match has been won or lost. You will agonize over missed shots. You will cherish your winners. In that sense this game captures the essence of what is great about playing tennis.
It is an addictive game that will keep bringing you back to play it until your arm hurts (and trust me, if you are not used to the exercise your arm will hurt).
As I said, this game is not perfect. The career mode should be more elaborate. Online play, great in itself and usually lag free, lacks tournament modes. And even when you have mastered the controls you will at times be frustrated. But that's tennis.
Here are some hints for achieving good control in Grand Slam Tennis using Wii Motion Plus. If you are waiting for the game to arrive at your door I recommend you keep these handy for your reference, since they will very likely be of help when you start playing:
-Be aware that the (imaginary) face of the racket is the side of the wiimote. That would mean that for the most part you want the wiimote to be parallel to the ground while you are swinging (i.e. the buttons are facing the ceiling). The index finger should be over the `b' button and the thumb should be over the `a' button.
-use defined swings (this is not wii sports tennis were you can just waggle, you really need to bring you arm back). This may sound like a given but it is actually one of the hardest things to realize if you have gotten used to wii sports tennis.
-start your swing as early as possible (just when the ball has been hit by your opponent, and you have determined what direction it is going to go), and follow through when the ball has reached you. Mastering this ability will markedly improve your game, and you will also have less instances where the WM+ is confused about if you are trying a backhand or a forehand.
-if you seem to only be able to backspin/topspin the issue is likely with your wrist on the follow through - you are twisting it. Go to the practice court and work on that.
-if you seem to only be able to slice you need to work on keeping your swing level. Trust me, its possible to hit straight - go to the practice court and work on that.
-when you are waiting for the other guy to serve, hold the wiimote still and parallel to the ground, don't worry about what your on screen character is doing.
-serving in GST is not 1:1 - it is the same as wii sports tennis. You swing the wiimote when the ball is at its apex. You can control the direction of the serve (while the ball is in the air) using the d-pad.
- you can only do lobs and drops using the `a' and `b' buttons.
209 of 215 found the following review helpful:
A comparison to Virtua Tennis. Motion Plus. Actual tennis player.Jun 11, 2009
By James G. Henderson
"jimghenderson"
I've had Grand Slam Tennis and Virtua Tennis for one day and played them about 3 hours each. I've played tennis for years. I'm using Motion Plus.
Here's a comparison.
Tournament mode: Grand Slam wins by a kilometer --- In Grand Slam Tennis you play the Grand Slam tour and do some exhibitions. No stupid "shopping races" like in Virtua Tennis. This part of Virtua Tennis is highly annoying. I don't want to run around a court on a shopping spree and jump through arbitrary hoops in order to play in a tournament. This part of Virtua was so annoying it took Virtua from 5 stars to 4 stars for me. Grand Slam exhibitions / mini games are fun while Virtua is annoying. On the other hand, you can just press "play" and choose tournament in Virtua but the experience is not as full as Grand Slam.
Graphics: Virtua Tennis wins by a meter. The crowd is better and players movement's are much more realistic to the player's style. Grand Slam's graphics are more cartoonish but with the announcers and the angles and replays it is more like participating in a match while you watch it on television... the presentation is better but does not make up for the better Virtua movement and detail.
Speed of play: Virtua Tennis by a kilometer. Your character moves at a more realistic pace and the match is just a more entertaining, fast action pace.
Controls: Grand Slam by a centimeter: Grand Slam's controls are easier to master. Virtua's controls have less tolerance for error. You MUST complete the training coach with Virtua to master any advanced shots, even then the drop shot leaves me wanting to smash the controller! Grand Slam's topspin, backspin, and fade are more true to real tennis, while Virtua's serve, lob, and dropshot are much more true. Grand Slam allows you to "cheat" somewhat by using the nunchuck to help with your crosscourt winner, while Virtua requires you to nail it perfectly. While I appreciate Virtua's effort, sometimes my intentions do not translate, but I suppose that's true in real tennis too.
Overall experience: A tie. Really. I appreciate Virtua's pace and effort at control realism, but Grand Slam gets the top spin and back spin nearly perfect... and that's a huge part of a real tennis player's game. Grand slam lets you cheat using the A button for a lob and B for a drop shot, and the nunchuck for crosscourt slams. Virtua has great realistic smash and lob controls, but the drop shot is just too hard and overambitious. The tennis stars in Virtua are more current and broader. Grand Slam gives you classic stars and current stars. Virtua's graphics are killer but the career mode is like throwing Jar Jar Binks into Star Wars... annoying and distracting. I want to play tennis, not the Sims! They both have room for improvement, but for a quality virtual tennis experience both beat the "plug and play" Wii Sports. Both require a bit of patience to learn. I'll come back to both for different reasons. 4/5 stars for both!
4/5 for Grand Slam. Note: I originally gave Virtua 4/5 stars. After playing it more see my warning below! And I now have to say if you are just going to by one, buy Grand Slam.
Edit after playing both for about 1 week: I can't win one game playing Virtua with a nunchuck. It is meant to only be played with the Remote. If you want to play a souped up, fast paced version of Wii Sports Tennis, Virtua is for you. If you want to play a game with the nunchuck that requires thought, anticipation, and Strategy, play Grand Slam Tennis. If I could re-rate Virtua tennis after one week. I'd give it a 2.5 or 3 stars. If I could re-rate Grand Slam after one week, it would get a 5 star rating.
69 of 71 found the following review helpful:
Put the time in and this game will reward you!Jun 10, 2009
By M. K. Brown
"photovideojunkie"
I bought Tiger 10 w/ Motion Plus and Grand Slam the same day (yesterday). This is a review for advanced players. If you play w/ Motion Plus and the nunchuck...and you put in a couple of hours...it will click for you. Many of these reviews are clearly from people that are expecting an improved Wii Sports Tennis experience. It's not that...and that takes some getting used to. And many people (in the other reviews) seem to think Motion Plus will translate 1x1 in every scenario...when you are not controlling the player movement...that won't happen and it makes sense that it won't happen. Before using the nunchuck, I found myself complaining about the same thing...I go forehand and the game goes backhand...then I began to realize that the position of the player in relation to the ball directly affects what swinging options are available, makes sense right? Once I got used to controlling the player with the nunchuck I was responsible for everything and was having a blast. It took me a couple of hours to win my first match on easy mode. Found myself at 6 to 6 against one of the pros and sweating my butt off...but smiling the entire time. Played online, flawless framerate. The game has a great rewards system and great career mode to keep you going as a single player. As far as multi goes...I haven't played the party modes yet. But overall, this is a very deep and rewarding game if you put the time in...it's not Wii Sports and it's not casual (if you want real control). Enjoy.
32 of 32 found the following review helpful:
Wii motion plus is not brokenJun 11, 2009
By Vagitus A little about myself, I had never played real tennis before and I'm not that good at Wii Sports Tennis either.
I had spent over 8 hours playing Grand Slam Tennis. Here is my experience so far.
For the first few hours, I felt like the game was broken, that wii motion plus doesn't work. There were so many times I felt like throwing the control into my TV because I lost so many matches due to the fact that my player was either out of position or did not swing at all.
But as I played more and more, things just starting to click. I realized that unlike Wii Sports Tennis, when you play Grand Slam Tennis with Motion Plus, little things matter, you have to pay attention to the way you hold the control "all the time", your form, your arm motions ... You have to actually swing correctly, you can't just flick your wrist back and forth and expect to hit winners.
While I was playing, if I concentrated and paid attention to my form, my swing, then more often than not, my player did exactly what I wanted it to do. But sometimes, when my arm was tired and I reversed back to "Wii Sports wrist flick mode" I started to hit the ball out of bound or not hitting the ball at all.
So in summary, if you want an experience like Wii Sports Tennis, just play without the Motion Plus. However, if you are willing to learn a newer, more accurate form of tennis game, then you will be greatly rewarded for your time. After the initial frustration, it's really fun.
Update: Played for another 4 hours tonight. All I can say is the level of control is just simply amazing with Motion Plus. I feel like I'm in total control now. This game should be rated 10 stars not 5. Also, I forgot to mention, I had been playing without the nunchuck.
22 of 22 found the following review helpful:
Fantastic Tennis ExperienceJun 10, 2009
By R. Hunt
"RJH14"
Despite the popularity of the simple, yet addicting, tennis feature in Wii Sports, Nintendo is finally attempting to capitalize with a polished tennis product.
EA's first venture into the sport, Grand Slam Tennis, is very solid. In fact, it's the most fun I've ever had playing a sports game on the Wii.
Make sure you pick up the Wii Motion Plus for this one; it's how the game was meant to be played. With the WMP attached, the game is able to measure the amount of top spin and the direction of the ball based on your wrist movement/follow through. The 1:1 motion isn't quite as fluid as EA marketing will have you believe, but when you look at the game play compared to Wii Sports Tennis, you'll quickly forgive the jitters.
But is it isn't quite so simple to pick up and play. Like the real sport, there is a steep learning curve. Be patient if your intended top spin shots turn into slices. Unfortunately, EA doesn't guide or instruct you nearly well enough. They offer very few pointers, no swing tutorial, and a less than detailed control guide. For example, I had to learn from a load screen that the side of the Wii remote represents the face of your racquet. A critical piece of information you'd expect to learn in the control guide or in the instruction manual.
The game takes you straight to a practice court when you start the game for the first time, and sadly, it's a pretty poor first impression. The machine only feeds balls to the middle of the court, which if you know tennis, makes it difficult to hit good angles. Moreover, it took me 30 minutes to an hour to figure out that Wii motion plus wants you to really turn over your wrist at contact to apply desired top spin. A simple low to high motion of your arm is not always enough.
Here's the important thing to take away: Once learned, the game is smooth, natural, and the best virtual tennis simulation I've played.*
The points flow well, at a fast pace, and with marginal technical error. When you miss a shot in Grand Slam tennis, it's typically because of dumb shot choice or user error - the way any tennis sim should be. There is the occasional calibration error or motion control glitch, but certainly not enough to tarnish the overall experience or the outcome of a match. The nunchuck control should be used for the best game play experience. I found the automated player movement to be clumsy and not as intuitive as you'd like.
And by-the-way, if you take it seriously, you'll burn far more calories in this game than with EA active or Wii Fit. I found myself actually sitting down during the changeovers for a water break and a mental refocus. Never expected to experience that from a video game!
Other nice elements include official licensing of the four Grand Slams and their show courts, a fairly decent roster of players past and present, and a seamless online mode that pits you against players from around the world.
The downsides of the game lie within the presentation and depth. EA developers typically read Amazon reviews, so hopefully they take note for any future iterations:
*The career mode only features the four Grand Slams. Forget about warm-up tournaments or other ATP events. Compared to the Virtual Tennis series, EA has come up way short here. *The in-game commentary is virtually non-existent. *Good luck getting your Created players to look anything like yourself. I love the stylized cartoonish look to the characters, but EA has shown complete lack of effort in the number and diversity of body features. This is 1/100th of Tiger Woods create-a-player. *The 1:1 is far from perfect. While practice helps, I still frequently give a top spin swing and end up with an odd slice.
Overall, this a solid first edition of a what I hope becomes a staple of the EA Sports franchise. It's an insanely fun experience. Expect to be a little frustrated at first. When you start ripping topspin winners down the line, however, all frustration will be a distant memory.
based on 144 reviews
( 144 customer reviews )
