Sega Superstars Tennis

Sega Superstars Tennis

Ever since the Dreamcast drew its final breath, Sega has struggled to put its once famous and dearly beloved characters to full use. Super Monkey Ball, Jet Set Radio, House of the Dead, Space Channel 5 and Golden Axe are all games and names that turn gamers of a certain age weak at the knees, but for gaming’s newcomers remain mostly meaningless.

Sega Superstar Tennis is game that banks almost everything on the fact that you’re one of the former group: a player for whom the offer of playing a game of tennis between Nights and Dr Eggman/ Robotnik across a court set up on Jet Set Radio’s Shibuya Crossing is almost too much to contemplate.

Developed by Sumo Digital, Sega Superstar Tennis is in a sense Virtua Tennis Lite. As Sumo were the British hands behind the recent console conversion of the sterling Virtua Tennis 3 this is no bad thing, even if that game’s subtleties and shades have been diluted somewhat here in favour of fan-service.

Set on Planet Superstars the game is brimming with Sega’s most treasured characters and IP. In the straightforward Tournament and Exhibition modes you play a standard game of singles or doubles tennis. One button press initiates a serve power bar while a second hits the ball. Once the ball is in play you have two types of standard returns to choose between (fast and slow), a drop shot and a lob.

As you land sequences of successful shots you power up your character’s unique special move. Deploying this unleashes a short-lived effect designed to turn the tide of play your way and learning the optimum time to trigger this advantage is one of the keys to success.

The attention to detail throughout the game is meticulous. When playing on the Samba De Amigo court, ball strikes sound like maracas; Tails hits the ball in a whirlwind style; the umpire on the Outrun court is internet favourite Flagman while each themed-level is sound tracked by a number of classic melodies from Sega’s vaults.

Outside of the core tennis play is the ‘Superstars’ game mode. Here you’re presented with a number of minigames to play through, each one a unique twist on tennis crow-barred into a specific game’s universe.

For example, in the House of the Dead matches you’ll need to knock over zombies while the Jet Set Radio world sends you off collecting spray cans and avoiding the police who routinely invade the court. You play to unlock new tasks and levels and are scored (up to an AAA rating) on how well you perform. Unlike in Virtua Tennis 3 these mini-games do not augment your character’s abilities and this lack of overarching development hurts the game a little, as the only incentive to keep training is to unlock new goodies and improve grades for achievements.

The actual tennis mechanics themselves are fun and solid but in this regard the game suffers by comparison to its more grown-up cousin, Virtua Tennis 3. Indeed, for players without nostalgia for these characters and universes, this is the weaker game. But nevertheless, Sega’s icons still pack a considerable punch and, as the game has been so lovingly crafted and is, underneath the visual, still very enjoyable, this is a recommended purchase for fans of Sega and tennis alike.

3 out of 5