Find out why PlayStation Move and stereoscopic 3D are the aces up the sleeve of Virtua Tennis 4.
It's the series that has consistently managed the clever trick of balancing arcade action with depth and detail. Now, Virtua Tennis is back and better than ever, thanks to the intuitive control offered by PlayStation Move as well as stereoscopic 3D functionality. Boasting a roster of superbly realistic players, such as Rafael Nadal, Venus Williams and Novak Djokovic, and devilishly addictive gameplay, Virtua Tennis 4 is warming up nicely ahead of its release later this year.
Mie Kumagai, creator of the series and producer of Virtua Tennis 4, is hugely excited by the level of realism offered by PlayStation Move. "I've been really impressed with just how much subtlety the controller gives," she tells eu.playstation.com. "I never imagined when I first created Virtua Tennis that some day people would be able to play it in this way."
Of all the possibilities offered by the motion controller, the fit with tennis is one of the most natural. "Players will find they can really easily add so much more to their shots by the tiniest change in the angle of the controller – top spin, slice, swerve and power," Kumagai-san says. "If a user has held a real tennis racket before they will find it very natural to use the PlayStation Move motion controller, and even if they haven't, they will very quickly pick it up."
On the surface, simply timing your shots successfully will see you through matches on the easier difficulty settings. Then once you have mastered reaching the ball and returning it, the fun comes from using PlayStation Move to outfox your opponent by adding variety to your shots. Depending on the pro player you use, the effectiveness of each shot will vary according to that player's skill.
An unstoppable force
The Match Momentum feature is a neat way to capitalise on a player's strength and use it to your advantage. An on-screen gauge fills up as you successfully use a player's trademark shot, giving you a power boost around the court when it reaches maximum. "Andy Roddick is well known for his big serve, so as you win points on that serve, you fill up the Match Momentum meter," Kumagai-san explains. "I hope this makes users experiment with all the different players to find out what works for them."
Add stereoscopic 3D support, and Virtua Tennis 4 really storms the court. "We wanted to go beyond making a great looking game," says Kumagai-san. "Through a 3D TV, we wanted to have a bigger impact on a user's experience. I think they will find that as a return shot heads towards them, they will feel as though they can really stretch out to reach it. They'll be able to anticipate where a ball will end up – and I think this will work perfectly together with PlayStation Move."
Kumagai-san is proud of Virtua Tennis 4: "The time has gone so fast since my very first Virtua Tennis title, but in a way I'm glad that it has." With such an electrifying blend of all court action, offbeat mini-games and some of today's most dazzling stars, it's not hard to see why.
Keep checking eu.playstation.com and PlayStation.Blog at blog.eu.playstation.com for more news on Virtua Tennis 4.
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