Top Spin 4
SCORE: 84
2K Sports has released the fourth installment of the Top Spin tennis series. With an ambitious career mode, tennis lovers will be able to work their way up to the pros and play against a host of tennis champions and legends.
I was impressed by the quality of the graphics in Top Spin 4 on the Wii. While they are a bit rough around the edges like virtually all Wii games of this sort, the quality of the player animations and likenesses in the game were much better than in most Wii games that I’ve played. Andre Agassi, for example, actually resembles Andre Agassi and not some distant cousin with a misshapen head. These in-game characters will express excitement as well as frustration based on their performance on the court. Fortunately all of the characters display an impressive amount of self-restraint and good sportsmanship, something not always seen in real world tennis matches. In other words, parents need not worry that John McEnroe may unexpectedly leap from the sidelines and throw a tennis racket at the screen. The attention given to background details in Top Spin 4 impressed me as well. On one court for instance I noticed a man jogging around the outer fence with his dog as the match was being played. This was a small detail, but it’s always great to see developers make the effort to add these bits of realism to their games. The interface looks crisp and well designed. I particularly liked the notebook format of the menus in career mode as you go through your training. Of course there are no violent or obscene images for parents and players to be concerned about. The only negative graphical item worth noting is the slight jiggling visible on female players. This is fairly subtle, but quite unnecessary nonetheless.
The audio found within Top Spin 4 has its good points and bad. The music is upbeat and fits the theme of the game, though I didn’t personally care for the musical selections. The commentary in the game is decent, but is limited mostly to player names and the current score. The ambient sound in the game is done very well. On the New Hampbridge court players will play in a very serene environment without the distraction of an on looking crowd. Instead you’ll hear the chirping of bids and the distant sound of a bell tower. The characters in the game also make realistic grunting sounds as they whack the ball back and forth. At times this can sound similar to angry jungle animals, much like actual tennis.
Top Spin 4 has a surprising amount of content for tennis savvy players to enjoy. Players can choose from 4 difficulty modes ranging from “easy” to “very hard” ensuring that as their skills progress, the game will continue to offer an appropriate challenge. Plenty of court selections provide the ability to keep the scenery fresh as you play. With over 20 pro players to choose from, you’ll be able to play as your favorite tennis champion (or least favorite just to make him look bad). When you begin your career mode you can also create your own custom player. There are a wide variety of options including hair style and a decent selection of clothing options. While there are truly many options, there’s not really any ability to personalize your character to make them unique. Basically you can dress up a preset character, but you can’t adjust facial features or any physical details. The user manual also struck me as a little on the light side. It contains a measly 4 pages and actually directs players to the website to download a full version of the user manual. This seems to be a growing industry trend, and it’s disappointing for players to shell out good money for a game and not even receive a decent user manual. To be fair though, I will say that the in-game instructions are done very well and provide the player will all he or she will need to know.
The gameplay of Top Spin 4 is one of the most satisfying that I’ve found in a Wii tennis game. At first I felt that the controls were a bit sluggish and that my character wasn’t responding quickly enough. After a short time playing I found that this actually added to the realism and challenge of the game and became much less of a nuisance. I appreciate the way Top Spin 4 has provided skill settings to cater to both novice and experienced tennis players. Those new to tennis games will have no problem having a good time whacking the ball back and forth while those looking for a challenge can choose higher difficulty settings and even use the advanced serving controls built into the game. One of my favorite features is that the Wii remote rumbles to signal the appropriate time to swing. This felt very intuitive and was immensely helpful as you will find that you stay quite busy moving your character around and trying to predict where the ball is going to come at you. You can play singles or doubles against up to four other live players or against the CPU. Now if you think you may like to play with 4 players, I would suggest that you make sure your living room is adequate in size. With all the swinging going on it’s likely that someone could sustain a nasty Wii related injury far worse than tennis elbow. Another interesting feature of Top Spin 4 is the built in skill system in career mode. When you go through your training you are given skill points to spend on certain attributes to improve your character’s abilities in areas such as serving, speed, forehand, backhand, etc. It’s kind of like a tennis RPG and provides a pretty slick way to customize your character.
Top Spin 4 is without a doubt family friendly. Supporting up to four
players, families can use this game as a way to play together. The game
supports both co-op and competitive play so you can choose which one
best fits your family. Top Spin 4 actively displays good sportsmanship
through the in-game tennis pros which is definitely something that can
positively impact younger players (and some adults). I found no
offensive content or foul language during the time I played this game.
The only thing I could have done without is the aforementioned bouncy
female physique. Top Spin 4 on the Wii is a solid tennis game that
serves up a lot of family friendly fun.
-Roger
Graphics: 78%
Sound: 84%
Replay/Extras: 89%
Gameplay: 82%
Family Friendly Factor: 88%
System: Wii
Publisher: 2K Sports
Rating: 'E' for Everyone
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