Virtua Tennis 4: World Tour Edition - PS Vita Review

Released by SEGA
Platform: PS Vita
Rating: G

Tennis is exceedingly popular on gaming platforms - usually because it's so playable and easy to grasp; the virtual equivalent of grabbing a racquet and some balls and kicking into it.

So it is with the latest Virtua Tennis which is launched on the newest console, the PS Vita.

You've got the option to play as a number of big names from the game - and of both sexes. Be it Pat Rafter, Boris Becker or the likes of Williams or Maria Sharapova, there's certainly someone who you'll recognise as a major name in the game.

Using both analogue sticks and employing touch screen capabilities on the OLED screen, it's very playable and easy to dive in. Whether you choose to take part in World Tour, Exhibition, Arcade or practice games, there's nothing to stop you getting on court and into the action.

With crystal clear images of the talent involved both at the title, there's certainly been a lot of effort to make sure this is the excellent recreation of the sport. But it's when you start to be able to customise the characters and players that this truly begins to feel interactive and like it's embraced the possibilities offered by the VITA console.

Particularly the chance to play the game with touch screen capabilities offers up a little more freedom of gaming than before - while it takes a little time to get it 100% right, it's a great way to free up yourself from the side joysticks. Throw in the chance to take your player into the online world as well, and there's plenty of scope for making this sports sim a more social affair than a few drinks after the on the court action.

But if you're not after just the tennis, some of the mini games offered on the side are fun too. You get the chance to play bowling by firing your ball at the pins; or poker by smacking into the cards to create a full house - one of my favourites is the chickens game where you're charged with returning a volley, rounding up baby chicks and returning them to their mother. It's a little zany but offers you a break from the action of a tournament.

The only real drawback is through necessity - and that's the size of the screen. Granted, you can adjust the aerial views of some of the plays and replays take you in close to the action but it does feel a little detached as the camera floats above the game.

Ultimately though this is a nice mix on the VITA - it's clever enough to embrace the new technology but not stupid enough to abandon the gameplay which makes it so addictive.

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