General

FirstCuts: Top Spin 3 Review for Wii, 360

Jul 10, 2008, 7:15 PM UTC

Usually I wouldn’t do the hybrid review, instead giving proper space to each platform’s offering, but in the case of Top Spin 3, I just don’t think it deserves the space.â†µ

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â†µYes, just as Roger Federer was tired after his marathon loss to Rafael Nadal, I was drained trying to find things I really enjoyed about Top Spin 3. Hit the jump for the gory details on what comes up aces and what slams straight into the net about the latest incarnation of this title for both the Nintendo Wii and Xbox 360.â†µ

â†µLet’s get this part out of the way: the Xbox 360 version is far and away superior to the Wii version. I can’t faithfully recommend anyone buy the Wii version. Stick with Wii Sports tennis and hope Nintendo does a bigger version of it some day.â†µ

â†µâ†µThe Wii allows for no left-handed configuration. There’s no online play. And the graphics, oh the dreadful graphics. It was like I’d been tossed into a time machine. This is no great fault of 2K, and really more an issue with the Wii not truly being a next-gen console when it comes to what’s under the hood, but are publishers officially done fooling themselves? Just check out the comparison of what the player selection screen looks like in the two titles (first the 360, then the Wii).â†µ

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â†µâ†µCan we just all admit the fact that a realistic sports sim doesn’t have a place on the Wii thanks to hardware restrictions? Make a cartoony version of your “realistic sim” for the Wii and be done with it. It’s clearer to me now, after playing this game, that EA has the right idea by going with simpler sports titles under their All Play sub-brand on the Wii. 2K should take note.â†µ

â†µâ†µOK, let’s say a few last words about the Wii version and move on as if this never happened. The control scheme works OK, but there’s a problem that comes with swinging a racquet with the Wii Remote: Occasionally, you end up not pointing at the screen, and your guy just ends up not swinging at all. Watching the ball fly past Federer as I helplessly tried to return serves was not enjoyable. When I finally realized what I was doing wrong, I felt very confined to making the swinging motions in a certain space, and then the game lost a lot of its appeal.â†µ

â†µâ†µIf I haven’t adequately scared you away from the Wii version, I’ll also remind you the 360 version has four times as many playable venues.â†µ

â†µâ†µNow onto the 360, which is far superior thanks to little things like online multiplayer, leaderboards, etc. Here’s the problem – and this is now back-to-back 2K titles where I’ve run into this – everything felt a step slow. Much like in Prizefighter, when I felt like big punches took a long time to deliver, I also felt like a swing system that requires you to hold-and-release a button can create problematic timing. Eventually, I got the hang of it, and perhaps, as I speculated in Prizefighter, it was to add an element of realism to the game. Hitting big winners isn’t always easy. But you know what? It’s a video game, and realism isn’t always fun. It’s like in Madden 07 when the big selling point was lead blocking. Yawn.â†µ

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â†µâ†µOn the positive side of things, 2K did an outstanding job with the details available to change in its player creator, which you use to make your own character for career mode. In addition to playing career mode, you’ve got online play, tournament mode, exhibition and Top Spin School, where you can learn everything from basic to advanced techniques in gameplay.â†µ

â†µâ†µAlthough there’s a robust venue selection in the Xbox 360 version (40 courts), the professional players at your disposal are lacking. Sure, you’ve got Andy Roddick, Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova to go along with the likes of Bjorn Borg and Boris Becker, but you’re missing half of the current ATP men’s top 10, including Wimbledon champion Rafael Nadal. Oh, and while you can play at Roland Garros and the U.S. Open in NY, don’t plan on playing at the All England Club. It’s not included.â†µ

â†µâ†µPerhaps I had unrealistic expectations based on the job 2K does on many other titles, and my fondness for tennis games in general, but even the Xbox 360 version with its greater depth only would appeal to me as a title when it has its price slashed in a month or two.â†µ

â†µâ†µTop Spin 3 is available now for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS.â†µ

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This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.

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