Virtua Tennis 3 demo on Live Comments by Tom Bramwell

is it really out next week on the 360? I always thought it was a week after the PS3 version, but now GAME has got me thinking otherwise. Can anyone clear this up?

No comments?

blimey...

Edit: That's better! =)

but there was!

Game have told me 30th, though Amazon says 23rd...

Apparently there's no rumble in the demo... Thanks, PS3!

its single player, features 4 different players and is a best of 3 exhibition match, and various courts.

Cool - will check this out in the weekend!

Isn't there a console coming out next Friday?

"Game have told me 30th, though Amazon says 23rd... "
lol, the game website says 23rd, and till recently amazon said 30th!

overlush.... not that i know of

The guy in Gamestation told me it wasn't out for months. I hung up on him. :-)

Simo: you can't afford to spend 20 something €?

It looks good, and is FAST. It's Federer, Nadal, Sharapova & Williams, best of three on random courts.

Vibration is supported, but you have to switch it on in the start menu.

There's some annoying music you can't seem to switch off though...

It's also quite difficult for a demo (either that or I'm shite). Nadal's just slaughtered me, twice...

All in all a decent demo, apart from that terrible music.

Sega confirmed the other day that 360 and PS3 will definitely both come out next friday. Happy days...

Isn't there a console coming out next Friday?

Yeah I've been hearing rumors about that for months.

Great!!

I can't wait to try out the 360 demo later on but as I'm also buying a PS3 next week I can't help but wonder how they compare with each other, with the former having been ported by Sumo Digital and the latter developed inhouse by SEGA themselves?

I know the 360 version has rumble support (you have to enable in the options first though) and online gameplay unlike the PS3 but I'm wondering if there are any differences technically; in the speed, smoothness, controls, animation and texture detail for example.

Maybe EG could comment as I'm sure they've played both?

lol. Played 4 matches as Federer and still haven't won a game.

The long, yellow comet-tail on the ball is starting to get on my nerves too!

Any word on the PC demo?

It plays just as well as VT ever did but players have a nasty habit of diving all over the place instead of staying on their feet. It plays a comical game of tennis at times

I've had SuperSmash Tennis for the PS3 (virtua tennis 3) for a week now, it's good and thankfully it's completely in english.

Yeh - the excess diving then tends to lead to your opponent smashing it past you from behind the baseline, which you don't see in tennis too often....

Well unless the excessive diving is unique only to the 360 version, it's clear that Virtua Tennis must be pretty good because Edge magazine gave the PS3 version 8/10.

Hmm, and that's without multiplayer...!

I wouldn't even dream of buying this (or any sports game) if it wasn't online, though.

FAO people moaning about the diving

Move in to position THEN take your shot. Once you have pressed a button in this game you are committed. That's the way VT has always worked.

Do I just suck, or is it really very hard!?

After playing the demo, i got slaughtered first. but after a few more games, i won and i realised how awesome this game is. Its all about "reading" the next shot and therefore generating the most power from your strokes. Its not as arcady, and more of a sim compared to VT2.

Overall, i am so gonna buy this. This and PES6.......Heaven. :)

P.S You can mute the music in the full version btw.

It's quite hard for a demo, which makes a refreshing change. Played 5 matches and didn't win a game! It's quite simmy, as you have to be in position for the next shot, and like real tennis these days, it's very fast and there aren't too many long rallies (least not in my games).

As for the diving, there does seem to be a lot, but maybe I'm pressing the button too soon. Have to play it a bit more I guess. The overhead smashes from behind the baseline aren't too realistic though.


I'll just be playing Lara next Friday anyway....

Reviewing the 360 version atm. Current World Tour ranking 14...

Have you played the PS3 version, Krudster? If so, how do both versions compare?

Pretty much identical from what I can tell. Obviously online is the big draw.

More when the review goes up!

...Predicts an 8...

krudster, please don't forget to tell us how it compares play-wise to Virtua Tennis 2!

*hugs Dreamcast*

I remember being surprised when gamesTM gave the arcade version of VT3 a lowly 6 when they reviewed it last year so I expect EG to give the game... ooooooh... at least 7 and possibly an 8. I'd be surprised, nay shocked, if it got a 9 and it definitely won't get a 10 because it's a sports game.

Hey guys,
Really pleased you like the demo - If you're finding it hard, this is because AM3 have tweaked the gameplay, so your positioning on the court is key to achieving the best possible shot and power. You'll notice the better you get, the better your anticipation and positioning will be, resulting in better shots.

Hope you enjoy!

ZASH - totally agree. However, even now I am winning about 85-90% percent of the time, I have yet to win a single point with a lob. So much so that I question the ability to do so in comparison to the other shots, and the consummate ease the CPU seems to be able to lob it [the ball] to the back of the court no problem.

just got No.1 on World Tour.

Wooo!

You'll be seeing little yellow comets behind your eyes when you go to sleep tonight...

Can you turn off the trails in-game as an option? Can not find it in the demo.

God, the VT3 demo is really awesome... absolutely love it. It took me about an hour's practice to actually win a game and I find I can play better with the woman than the men but once you get used to the speed and timing, it's fantastic fun. Only the music annoys (replaced by a custom soundtrack: sorted) along with the "ooohing" and "aaahing" crowd - shut up please I'm trying to concentrate!

Can't wait to get the game next Thursday from Gameplay ahead of the PS3 launch! :)

its crap!!

thanks god there's top spin 2

If the demo lets me select Maria Sharapova and a low camera angle, then I see no reason why I'd need to buy the full game.

I'm sad because the demo definitely didn't live up to my expectations. As a huge fan of Tennis games, with VT2 being my favourite, I was just hugely underwhelmed by this. Maybe it's because the only games I've had in the past few years have been the Top Spin series.

VT3 feels very basic as an actual tennis game. The shots you do and control over them seem to stem completely from just predicting the ball rather than spin you can put on, lobs you make etc. The graphics are nice and pretty, but I wouldn't say they're amazing. I'm going to give it more time, and even give the full game a chance as this was the game of 2007 I wanted. I can't say I'm hopeful that it will deliver the experiance I was looking for though.

No way near as good as Top Spin 2. Arcade, unrealistic. They dive every other shot. This is for people who think Virtua Striker was a good football game.

Anyone diving a lot is a bit rubbish. Granted demo is a bit tough but you have to position yourself before pressing the button to not to dive.

Can't wait for this on Live.

I thought the Virtua Tennis 3 demo was 'ace' (sorry about the pun) and far better than I expected it to be. I was expecting it to be a simplistic clone of Top Spin 2 with better mini-games and wasn't sure whether I'd like it after playing the more realistic Top Spin games for the past few years.

Instead though, we have a game that feels much faster (thanks to running at 60 fps), thus it's more 'arcadey', but at the same time it requires more skillful timing to avoid diving all the time. The A.I. is also better than Top Spin 2's although I'm not sure what difficulty setting VT3 is on though. I found the game challenging and was losing all the time at first but the more I played it, the better I got, which is how it should be. That said, I only seem to be able to win as one of the women... LOL

I love Top Spin 2 and I've a feeling I'm going to love Virtua Tennis 3 too from the demo and I feel they will compliment each other nicely. I can't wait to check out the Career mode and the mini-games, which were always great fun in the previous games.

i 'love' VT3 it's 'ace'.

What a 'smashing' game, it's 'served' up a great gameplay experience

I have a feeling VT is the kind of game where you need to go through the training mode to get the timing right. Once again, we seem to have a demo on Xbox live which will only serve to put off the casuals.