by
Ted Kritsonis
Faze Video Game Editor

When I was in college, Mario Tennis for the N64 was a popular game in the student lounge because it was fun, it was a sort of a sports game and it was very easy to learn. With Mario Power Tennis, Nintendo expanded the scope of the series in various ways without trying to change much in the atmosphere I just described.

Mario Power Tennis is more or less the same game, except with a lot of new additions. For one, this game is far more of a tennis game than its predecessor ever was. Topspin, lobs, slices and drop shots are easily done and positioning plays more of a factor in the way you hit the ball. But like its namesake, the most noticeable gameplay addition is the power shot, where every character pulls off some grandiose maneuver to hit the ball really hard or to catch it when they have no business doing so.

Gimmick courts have also been added, some of which include conveyer belts, swimming pools and teetering courtsides. They make things challenging in several ways because you obviously have to worry about more than just hitting the ball. It can all get a little confusing too, but you’ll find ways to use these elements to your advantage after a few games.

And, of course, there are a slew of characters to choose from in a who’s who of Mario world characters and other Nintendo stalwarts like Donkey Kong (my personal favourite) and Diddy Kong. Each character is put into a certain skill set that emphasizes speed, power, defense, technique, tricky or all-around. Whatever your preference, each character can be competitive, though it really depends on how you use him or her.

Mini-games have also been thrown in to challenge your tennis game in other ways. These include painting Mario’s face on a brick wall by hitting a coloured ball into the right spot on the picture, and another where you have to hit ghosts back into their boxes before they come after you. They generally weren’t my cup of tea but I can see how they might attract some gamers.

When you factor in all the gimmicks, mini-games, tournaments and hidden characters, you’ve got a lot to do in this game. The default difficulty is a little too easy, but you can rest assured that the AI in single player on higher difficulties is very challenging, though it does take a bit of a dive when playing doubles with a CPU partner. Understandably, Mario Power Tennis isn’t meant to be a tennis sim but the positioning of your partner is so off that it will cause you to run all over the court just to bail them out.

This is precisely why the multiplayer game is meant for humans to play with and against each other. When you play with three others in a doubles match, you’ll probably have some excellent matches that will really highlight the sports aspect of the game.

Mario Power Tennis is certainly a significant improvement from the original and achieves the type of “party game” status that Nintendo loves to create. It doesn’t pretend to be realistic because it’s not supposed to be, though you could argue its gameplay mechanics suggest otherwise in some respects. But without being too technical, this game will be fun for just about anyone, even those who don’t like tennis.

Publisher:
Nintendo
Developer:
Camelot Software

Platform:
GameCube

Rating: 9/10