Grand Slam Tennis: EA Sports Tennis Game

Post by **ScoopBrady** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 1:40 pm

Holy crap this game is awesome! I've been able to play 5 games. 1 was without M+ or nunchuk , 3 were with M+ and nunchuk, and 1 was with just M+.

I checked it out first with just the standard Wii remote and it was fun enough. It reminded me of the Wii Sports tennis with actual players.

The next 3 I played with the nunchuk and M+. I had no problem with swings registering or anything like that but I did have a problem with moving my player with the nunchuk and swinging with the remote. If I missed a shot it wasn't because of losing sync, it was because I was out of position.

I decided to check things out with just the M+ and I found that it was fun but I missed not having control over where my player moved. I was in much better position most of the time though. Again, I had no problems with missed swings or sync issues.

I am now determined to get used to playing with the nunchuk as it really pulls the whole package together.

And how awesome is it to have a tennis game with McEnroe, Becker, and Borg in it?

I'm definitely feeling this one more than Tiger. That's not to say that Tiger isn't a great game. On the contrary, it's much better than last year. It's just that I have never golfed a day in my life and I used to play tennis when I was younger (much younger

) so the tennis feels much more natural to me.

I would definitely highly recommend this game.

sportdan30 · Post by **sportdan30** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 1:47 pm

Thanks for the impressions Scoop. I'm finding myself leaning towards GST (which I don't own) moreso than Tiger, which I already own. Your reason pretty much nailed it. I played competitive tennis for seven years, and have only played real golf a few times. I'm thinking GST would suck me in more than Tiger, which of course is great game in its own right.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 1:59 pm

Dan FWIW I would suggest Tiger and rent GST. Tiger on the Wii is amazing this year, maybe SGOTY? GST is fun but the controls can get wonky at times. As you spend time with it you learn to adjust to the controls and you'll encounter less erratic controller behavior. If you've played real tennis you maybe in for a let down if the controller doesn't do what you expect it to.

Also there's the Tiger bundle not sure if there's a GST bundle. IMO GST plays a little better without the M+ feature whereas Tiger is just awesome with the M+ controller.

sportdan30 · Post by **sportdan30** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 2:05 pm

I'm certainly going to hang on to TW 10. I'm truly having a great time with it, but I also crave a little more action with respect to the Wii motion plus. I guess I'm just jonesing for a good tennis game.

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 2:15 pm

Man, if EA can develop Fight Night with M+, I'll be in heaven. Not sure how it can pull off the job since the nunchuk always is part of Wii Boxing, but that would be sublime.

Take care,
PK

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 2:35 pm

pk500 wrote:Man, if EA can develop Fight Night with M+, I'll be in heaven. Not sure how it can pull off the job since the nunchuk always is part of Wii Boxing, but that would be sublime.

Take care,
PK

I'll be four levels above you in heaven when Microsoft releases Natal. FN4 or FN5 should be bliss with Natal.

10spro · Post by **10spro** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 8:52 pm

sportdan30 wrote: I'm finding myself leaning towards GST (which I don't own) moreso than Tiger, which I already own. Your reason pretty much nailed it. I played competitive tennis for seven years, and have only played real golf a few times. I'm thinking GST would suck me in more than Tiger, which of course is great game in its own right.

Keep Tiger if you can especially when we can get a group pf online players in the future and you won't regret buying GST. There's a bit of a learning curve especially if you want to play with the advanced control and Nunchuk together, but the reward in the end is top notch fun. Along Topspin 3, I just love whacking the fuzzy ball and especially if you've played the sport before, your read of the game will surprise you.

Just a minor gripe, wished the tennis ball was smaller.

I just got the game, I teach on the sides to younger (6-10) kids the sport and with this game I may even encourage them to take a good swing at it for practice and fun and take their virtual memory swing to real life. It's an experiment that I think will transfer well in court.

Of course my reflexes are not as sharp these days, and I find myself playing more Golf than tennis but this game has me itching to go out and practice my passing shots on Mac who covers the net like a blanket.

wco81 · Post by **wco81** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 10:41 pm

Rodster wrote:
I'll be four levels above you in heaven when Microsoft releases Natal. FN4 or FN5 should be bliss with Natal.

Shadow-boxing may not be that bad.

But if they apply it to Guitar Hero or Rock Band and you have all these gamers playing air guitar, that would just be a sad sight.

sportdan30 · Post by **sportdan30** » Fri Jun 12, 2009 11:13 pm

One. More. Game. One. More. Game. Lets just say I missed the last period of game 7 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. What a finish by the way as I watched the last two minutes.

Initially I didn't know what to think I was taking ground strokes from the machine. At first, I didn't feel like things were registering well. Additionally, I was hap hazardly swinging uncontrollably. It wasn't until I slowed down and executed the ground strokes that it started to make sense.

I jumped in to Play Now, and what an enjoyable experience. I did have to keep reminding myself that the side of the Wiimote was the head of the racket. There were quite a few times I would swing too soon and lose the point. However, just like in real tennis I learned you can start your back swing while you running down the ball. By the way, I don't know how anyone can play with the nunchuck. I was ready to "chuck" that out of the window after three points. Unfortunately, there are times where your player doesn't run down the ball like he should. Or he gets caught in a bad position where he's basically in a defense swing. Those times seemingly don't happen too often from what I can tell.

I purposely aimed the Wiimote at the sensor bar after every point. At no time did I feel out of control in regards to the Wiimote being out of sync. Most of the mistakes were made by me. Either swinging too early which would most often result in an unforced error by hitting the ball wide. By far, my biggest challenge is being able to hit the ball where I want it to go, specifically down the line. Cross court is not a problem, but being able to react quickly enough to stroke a shot down the line is going to take practice.

I'm very impressed thus far with the lets, unforced errors, balls hitting the net, realistic rallies, etc.

I played three matches and lost all three. I got destroyed by Stephan Edberg as he's just a rock solid serve and volleyer. I struggled mightily against him. I had a fair bit of success using Roddick against Stich. I lost 3-2, but it was an epic battle. I basically choked my service game away.

I love the emotions of the players too. Sure, they're cartoonish but their mannerisms while maybe a little over done are similar to how the players really react.

The commentary isn't anything to boast about, but when was the last time we played a tennis game with a broadcast presentation.....??? I'm all for it. I'd love of course more in depth commentary.

I'm very happy with my purchase. I was definitely hesitant, but this is a game that I can see playing on and off for a long time. Plus, I burned almost 50 calories....

Well, it's time for bed....after I play a couple more tennis matches! Time to turn that Wii on one. more. time.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 1:58 am

This game is absolutely AWESOME. I haven't had any issues with the controls at all. When I miss a shot or whiff, I know exactly why it happened. I cannot believe how good this game is. I'm definitely gonna "keep it" from gamefly.

Leadfoot5 · Post by **Leadfoot5** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 2:49 am

Glad that so many others are enjoying this game as well. I'm hoping this is just the beginning of a successful franchise...

Spooky · Post by **Spooky** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 10:26 am

Count me in on the 'one...more...game...' crowd.

I have not been this into a sports game in years. I played for about 2 more hours last night. Got EXTREMELY frustrated at times and was still so addicted it's crazy. I had to eventually bump the difficulty down to Easy in my career as I could not win one match with my created player being soooo slow and weak.

I truly think most people will have to start their career on Easy and then bump it up once your created player gains more stats.

I've had some of the most intense sports gaming moments of my life with this game. Once again, literally shaking from adrenaline. Being to focused and careful to hit that perfect shot. EVERY unforced error I hit I knew EXACTLY what I did wrong.

Incredible!

SGOTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(oh and I am still just using the M+ without the Nunchuk - not sure if I really ever will use the Nunchuk as the damn cord bothers me a bit too much)

Leadfoot5 · Post by **Leadfoot5** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 12:41 pm

Spooky wrote:(oh and I am still just using the M+ without the Nunchuk - not sure if I really ever will use the Nunchuk as the damn cord bothers me a bit too much)

Yep, I've gone back to the M+ only control scheme too. Lovin' it.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 1:42 pm

I'm actually using the nunchuck and it seems to work fine for me. Sometimes the cord gets in the way, but usually I like the freedom of moving wherever I want without the CPU doing it for me. Tennis is all about anticipation and being able to do it myself is a great thing. I'd rather just learn the game with the nunchuck and deal with the cord.

toonarmy · Post by **toonarmy** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 1:57 pm

dbdynsty25 wrote:I'm actually using the nunchuck and it seems to work fine for me. Sometimes the cord gets in the way, but usually I like the freedom of moving wherever I want without the CPU doing it for me. Tennis is all about anticipation and being able to do it myself is a great thing. I'd rather just learn the game with the nunchuck and deal with the cord.

That has been my philosophy as well. Although the cord bothered the crap out of me at first, I could see early on that I would feel too restricted down the road letting the CPU move my player. So, I think it's a good idea to just deal with the initial cord factor up front and learn to play with it from the get-go.

Spooky · Post by **Spooky** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 2:04 pm

Random question...

Do you guys use the Wii remote casing/condom or no?

toonarmy · Post by **toonarmy** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 2:07 pm

Spooky wrote:Random question...

Do you guys use the Wii remote casing/condom or no?

Yes. I value my TV. I do not use the wrist strap, so the casing is essential for me.

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 2:23 pm

Spooky wrote:Random question...

Do you guys use the Wii remote casing/condom or no?

Yes, and the strap.

Take care,
PK

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 2:37 pm

I use the Wii condom as well as i've already struck objects swinging the damn thing. Good thing it was on or I would have taken a chunk out of the controller.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 3:52 pm

No condom, but definitely the strap. I used to use the condom when it was just wii...now with the plus, it just became way too bulky.

Spooky · Post by **Spooky** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 8:11 pm

This game really is unbelivable. I'm sitting here in a sweat after playing about 7 games online. My shoulders sore. But worth it!

We need to play online guys! I'm 'Spooky73' on both GST and Tiger. Can't wait to get my created player up to a decent level.

sportdan30 · Post by **sportdan30** » Sat Jun 13, 2009 9:11 pm

How do I create an EA user name?

Edit: I figured it out. Would love to play online if anyone is interested. My username is sportdan30.

Post by **ScoopBrady** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 1:24 pm

Now that I'm actually getting used to controlling player movement with the nunchuk this game is getting even better. I lowered the difficulty level to Easy and I'm now just getting to the point where I'm winning. I'm about ready to bump it back up to Medium as I've won my past 3 matches 3-0 while winning points 12 to 2-4 on the average.

Now that I fully understand the controls they are genius. I tried Virtua Tennis 2009 and the controls blow that away. Those who are still just using the Wiimote only really need to do themselves a favor and add in the nunchuk. It really takes this game to a new level.

As someone who used to enjoy playing tennis in his younger days but doesn't know anyone who plays now it is really nice to be able to have a game like this to play. It's fun, challenging, and I actually get to burn a few calories doing it.

JRod · Post by **JRod** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 1:30 pm

What's the "career" mode in this game.

Is it like the other Tennis games, play some mini-games, increase your stats, try to make it to Wimbledon or the French?

Who are the other legends? NM found this.
http://tennis.easports.com/blognews.act ... r%20Lineup

tjung0831 · Post by **tjung0831** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 2:12 pm

Spooky wrote:
dbdynsty25 wrote:Spooky = the new Tjung
I totally deserve that.

Well WTF? You could be called many worse things!