Three years have passed since Nintendo released Wii (and WIi Sports right alongside it) around the world, and the title -- simple, arguably shallow -- effectively demonstrated the functionality of the company's innovative remote. For the first time, you could swing the controller itself (and not fiddle with an analog stick) to do the same with a virtual bat in a game of baseball, for example. Predictably, since the debut of the console, third-parties have tried to duplicate the experience in Wii Sports and have usually faced failure. We'll be honest, too -- we don't foresee any company bettering Wii Sports bowling any time soon. That said EA seems poised to dethrone Wii Sports tennis with its own take on the sport, EA Grand Slam Tennis, a game that supports both good old-fashioned Wii remote play, but also makes full use of MotionPlus technology for more lifelike one-to-one control. We had the chance to go hands-on with the game -- unfortunately and inexplicably minus the new MotionPlus component -- and have some details for you below, along with a batch of exclusive new screenshots.
First, the basics. EA Sports Grand Slam Tennis is not a simple Wii Sports clone with copy-pasted controls, but a much deeper, more realistic take on the famous pastime. This is, of course, evident in the sheer amount of features and inclusions in the title. For example, as the polished, clean interface displays on-screen, you will notice a variety of play styles and options available, from traditional tennis to a party mode designed for up to four players and an online component. EA is not yet ready to talk about either of these modes, but did confirm that the title's online mode will be robust and full featured.
"I think EA Sports Grand Slam Tennis is the most superior tennis experience with or without Wii MotionPlus. Wii Sports Tennis is a great experience but I think we've evolved on where that experience was a couple of years ago," says the title's producer, Thomas Singleton. "When you plug in Wii MotionPlus, it takes it to an even higher level of authenticity."
That authenticity bleeds over to content. Grand Slam Tennis features the exclusive Wimbledon license and therefore recreates the famed courts housed within, which means you'll be able to visit a variety of grass, clay and hard locales. You'll even notice your character sliding around the court at the French Open. And while the title also boasts a meaty roster of tennis pros, we're only able to specifically a mention a few of those in our write-up today: Federer, Roddick, Nadal, Sampras and Borg. Rest assured, there are many more, both young and old. The characters, like the courts themselves, are brought to the screen via a stylized presentation, a pleasing blend of exaggerated characteristics and simple design. Both characters and courts resemble their real-life counterparts, but there are stylistic liberties -- for example, accentuated facial features and environmental backgrounds whose detail is intentionally simplified.
"We're designing a visual presentation for the platform. We know what the Wii platform does well and we know what the Wii platform doesn't do well. We also know that our EA Sports consumers who own Wiis don't want a scaled down next-generation title on the Wii platform. They want a different, unique experience that's built for that platform," explains Singleton.
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