iPhone Review: Real Tennis 2009

Publisher/Developer: Gameloft
Genre: Sports
Price: $4.99
Verdict: A well-featured tennis game let down by imprecise controls
Pros: Excellent graphics and several ways to play
Cons: The controls take some getting used to and could prove a problem for people with large hands.

With Wimbledon currently reaching its conclusion, the tennis courts around the country will soon return to their usual semi-vacant state. As expectations and hope for a British champion rise each year, the courts tend to get busier than at any other time of the year, especially considering the British weather and its tendency to rain most of the year. Thankfully for armchair tennis fans such as myself, there are always video games that allow us to play tennis without having to worry about a distinct lack of ability in the sport. Real Tennis 2009 from Gameloft has come along to try and show that excellent tennis games aren’t just for consoles and portable gaming systems, but also for the iPhone and iPod Touch.

Real Tennis Main Screen

As a relative newcomer to gaming on my iPod Touch, one thing that struck me right away was the excellent presentation in Real Tennis 2009. The menus are crisp and clear, and navigation between them simplicity itself. Going through the menus reveals the game modes on offer here. You’re offered simple exhibition matches, either in single or doubles play. You can play in tournaments, working your way past several opponents in an effort to secure the title. There is also a Championship mode which acts as a career mode, allowing you to go across the world playing in different tournaments. Finally, there is an option to play opponents via a Wi-Fi connection.

So, we know Real Tennis isn’t short on ways for you to get your tennis fix, and while you do so you’ll be treated to some excellent graphics. I was surprised by the quality of the character models and the animation, something I honestly wasn’t expecting from my iPod Touch. Players move around the court quickly, throw themselves into their shots, and will dive if a ball is a little too far away.

The main problem with Real Tennis unfortunately is the one thing that hurts it the most, which are the controls. When you’re playing, the bottom left of your screen turns into a d-pad, while the bottom right is the button for hitting your shots. The problem I found is that the d-pad can be very imprecise at times. Unless you have your thumb in just the right position you can find yourself running in completely the wrong direction, giving your opponent free points and giving you the urge to throw your tiny device across the room. On more than one occasion I’d want my guy to run to the right only to find part of my thumb was still on the left of the d-pad, and my player inexplicably ran completely the wrong way. This fault could easily be down to the fact I have fairly large hands, so perhaps gamers with smaller hands will find this much less on an issue.

When it works and you get your thumb in the right place, the game offers up some very good gameplay. The serving in the game is controlled with the accelerometer, as you’re required to tilt the phone to move your aiming reticule for your serves. One press on the button will toss the ball into the air, with another stopping the on-screen power bar. During rallies, your shot power is determined by how long you hold the button down before you hit the ball. Get your player in the right place early and get enough power on your shot, and you can hit some Federer like forehands that leave your opponent wafting at thin air.

One final little point about the game is that I feel it could really benefit from some official stadiums and real life players. Obviously as a mobile game they won’t have the same kind of money to throw around as console developers, and having fake players doesn’t detract from the gameplay at all, but it would make a nice bonus for any future releases if they could have players like Federer, Nadal and Murray in there.

Overall I’ve found Real Tennis 2009 to be an enjoyable game when the controls/my fat fingers aren’t getting in the way. There are plenty of options to keep you entertained and the ability to play your friends over Wi-Fi is always a welcome feature. If you’re looking for a tennis fix on your iPhone or iPod Touch, you could do a lot worse than Real Tennis 2009.