ekz_
Power Member
Top Spin 4 brings the competitive action of tennis to life like never before with redesigned controls, jaw-dropping player models and Signature Style animations, enhanced TV-style presentation elements, and one of the deepest player rosters to date featuring tennis' top athletes and legendary pros.
Preview IGN
2K kicked off the demo with a look at the introductory video to the game, which showcased many of the athletes who will make up "the largest lineup ever in a tennis game" according to 2K Sports. Among the most notable players in the trailer were Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi. While Pistol Pete appeared in the first Top Spin, this is the first time that the two greatest American tennis players in history will be able to compete against each other in the same game. As an added bonus, if you pre-order the game at GameStop you'll be treated to a downloadable Retro Agassi, long hair and all. No news yet on if his hair will be a removable wig.
The early demo that I got to play featured only Roger Federer and Andy Murray as playable characters on the very Arthur Ashe Stadium court where our demo took place. Ironically enough, Federer was actually wearing the same shirt in the game as he was in his match that day at the US Open, so it goes without saying that the look of the players is fairly accurate to the way they look in real life.
The same thinking applies to the player's movement as well. At least for most of the animations. 2K is bringing the same signature style moves that give life to its NBA 2K series to Top Spin 4, so if you're like me and know Federer's backhand from Sampras's, the game should show those differences. There were a few occasions in my time with Top Spin 4 when a forehand or backhand groundstroke would look more generic than it should've, but those instances were few in number.
Top Spin 4's gameplay is taking a slightly different approach than in previous years. For starters, there is now a three-tiered meter underneath your player that builds as you wind up for a shot. The more the meter builds, the harder and more accurate your shot will be. Of course, the pace and placement is also dependent on your ability to release the shot button (A for flat spin, B for top spin, X for slice and Y for lob) at the proper time in the animation. Failing to do so will yield a limp return and an easy put-away for your opponent.
The depth of this control mechanic was revealed the more I played. As in real tennis, if you hit a hard shot at your opponent, he's going to have less time to respond with a hard shot of his own. That translates in-game to your opponent having to hold their shot button as soon as you hit your aggressive shot to even have a prayer of reaching the third tier of power. It might sound a bit frustrating, but that's the nature of the game. The server has an instant advantage if he's able to slam a 130 mile per hour serve at you because you simply won't be able to react fast enough to fire an aggressive return back. Of course, if you're feeling daring you can always hold the right trigger during one of your shots to go for a risk shot or hold the left trigger to hit an inside out forehand or backhand. These different modifiers up the difficulty of the shot but can really help you get back in a point if you're scrambling. Oh, and Federer's 'tweener is definitely in Top Spin 4.
Other nuances include a turbo button, which helps you serve and volley and sprint for tough-to-reach shots, and a stamina gauge that depletes significantly through the course of a point. It also gradually loses pieces of its maximum allotment if you repeatedly run your player into the ground point after point.
One issue that I did have with the gameplay was that the speed of professional tennis wasn't quite present yet. My average serve speed when playing with Federer had to be just over 100, a far cry from his first serve speeds in real life despite me maxing out his meter every time. I'd like the developers to ship Top Spin 4 with one difficulty setting for amateur players where ball speeds are lessened and player movements are a bit more forgiving, and one mode for veterans where it's possible to crank the 130 mile per hour serves and thunderous groundstrokes that some of these players are known to hit.
Top Spin 4 is looking like a faithful addition to the sim series. It adds some nice wrinkles to the gameplay formula that lend themselves to the realistic nature of the franchise while making it a bit easier to simply pick up a controller and get into a match. Now if only they could provide two separate gameplay experiences – one for the hardcore and one for the mainstream fan – then Top Spin 4 would have all its bases covered.
Publisher: 2K Sports
Developer: 2K Czech
Release Date: Fevereiro 2011
Preview IGN
2K kicked off the demo with a look at the introductory video to the game, which showcased many of the athletes who will make up "the largest lineup ever in a tennis game" according to 2K Sports. Among the most notable players in the trailer were Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi. While Pistol Pete appeared in the first Top Spin, this is the first time that the two greatest American tennis players in history will be able to compete against each other in the same game. As an added bonus, if you pre-order the game at GameStop you'll be treated to a downloadable Retro Agassi, long hair and all. No news yet on if his hair will be a removable wig.
The early demo that I got to play featured only Roger Federer and Andy Murray as playable characters on the very Arthur Ashe Stadium court where our demo took place. Ironically enough, Federer was actually wearing the same shirt in the game as he was in his match that day at the US Open, so it goes without saying that the look of the players is fairly accurate to the way they look in real life.
The same thinking applies to the player's movement as well. At least for most of the animations. 2K is bringing the same signature style moves that give life to its NBA 2K series to Top Spin 4, so if you're like me and know Federer's backhand from Sampras's, the game should show those differences. There were a few occasions in my time with Top Spin 4 when a forehand or backhand groundstroke would look more generic than it should've, but those instances were few in number.
Top Spin 4's gameplay is taking a slightly different approach than in previous years. For starters, there is now a three-tiered meter underneath your player that builds as you wind up for a shot. The more the meter builds, the harder and more accurate your shot will be. Of course, the pace and placement is also dependent on your ability to release the shot button (A for flat spin, B for top spin, X for slice and Y for lob) at the proper time in the animation. Failing to do so will yield a limp return and an easy put-away for your opponent.
The depth of this control mechanic was revealed the more I played. As in real tennis, if you hit a hard shot at your opponent, he's going to have less time to respond with a hard shot of his own. That translates in-game to your opponent having to hold their shot button as soon as you hit your aggressive shot to even have a prayer of reaching the third tier of power. It might sound a bit frustrating, but that's the nature of the game. The server has an instant advantage if he's able to slam a 130 mile per hour serve at you because you simply won't be able to react fast enough to fire an aggressive return back. Of course, if you're feeling daring you can always hold the right trigger during one of your shots to go for a risk shot or hold the left trigger to hit an inside out forehand or backhand. These different modifiers up the difficulty of the shot but can really help you get back in a point if you're scrambling. Oh, and Federer's 'tweener is definitely in Top Spin 4.
Other nuances include a turbo button, which helps you serve and volley and sprint for tough-to-reach shots, and a stamina gauge that depletes significantly through the course of a point. It also gradually loses pieces of its maximum allotment if you repeatedly run your player into the ground point after point.
One issue that I did have with the gameplay was that the speed of professional tennis wasn't quite present yet. My average serve speed when playing with Federer had to be just over 100, a far cry from his first serve speeds in real life despite me maxing out his meter every time. I'd like the developers to ship Top Spin 4 with one difficulty setting for amateur players where ball speeds are lessened and player movements are a bit more forgiving, and one mode for veterans where it's possible to crank the 130 mile per hour serves and thunderous groundstrokes that some of these players are known to hit.
Top Spin 4 is looking like a faithful addition to the sim series. It adds some nice wrinkles to the gameplay formula that lend themselves to the realistic nature of the franchise while making it a bit easier to simply pick up a controller and get into a match. Now if only they could provide two separate gameplay experiences – one for the hardcore and one for the mainstream fan – then Top Spin 4 would have all its bases covered.
Publisher: 2K Sports
Developer: 2K Czech
Release Date: Fevereiro 2011
