After the huge failure in 2018 of the first chapter by Breakpoint Studio, the producers seek their redemption with the publication of Tennis World Tour 2. As for the previous title, in many ways it was considered a real failure. Tennis World Tour, released about two years ago, was in fact judged negatively by most of the critics, defined as an incomplete game and with amateur animations, many sports game lovers did not even consider it "worthy of their time" . But the producers were not intimidated and, as soon as they read the reviews on their work, they decided to immediately get to work for a much better second chapter. And now here we are, a whole new team has managed to give birth to a game pleasant e funny, with eye-catching graphics and one definitely gameplay style interesting.
The new team of wonders
After the failure of Tennis World, the reins of the situation passed into the hands of the Australian boys of Big Ant Studios, already known in the world of sports games for titles such as AO Tennis and many products related to the world of Cricket. Despite being professionals in the sector, the scarcity of financial resources available immediately shook all the critics waiting. Yet, against all odds, they managed to give us a realistic and above all game playable smoothly. Sure, the lack of a budget with many zeros is felt, especially when it comes to the graphics, but in hindsight it could have been much worse. For those accustomed to "major" sports titles such as FIFA, PES or NBA, in short, get ready to notice a noticeable difference in the designs and fluidity of the movements. Furthermore, although the panoramic shots are objectively well done, when the frame narrows all the defects present come to the surface.
A point in favor of the work is certainly the character personalization and Career mode (but on the other hand it was one of the few really valid things of the first chapter). Starting from the facial features and physical features, to get to the style of service and play, the customization is very wide and leaves room for the players' imagination. Once you have created your character, it will be possible to use it both in quick games - making it compete against all the greatest tennis players - and in career mode. The latter will give you the opportunity to grow your pg of experience and technical skills, through the training tool and through the various tournaments in which you can participate (by playing or simulating matches). Starting from a basic level, going on with the game and making the right decisions you will be able to get your player to the top of the world rankings. By winning games you will earn money that will allow you to participate in other tournaments or to improve your personal situation (as a coach or agent). In addition, you will be given the opportunity to rest and make seasonal retreats, in order to restore the statistics lost during the games.
The style of play
In addition to the career mode, there are obviously other options to be able to play a game. First of all is the classic exhibition. Unlike the first chapter, doubles matches have also been included, which makes this title even more complete. After selecting the mode, you can choose between a 38 character rooster, the tennis player to play with and the one to challenge you against (be it an NPC or a local player). At that point you can select the surface, the climate and the time in which the game will take place, depending on the strengths of your character.
After the exhibition and career modes we find the opportunity to participate in gods tournaments, preset or customized. If you decide to play two created by the title, you will immediately find the Tie Break Tens and Roland Garros. Once the decision is made, you will have to choose the gender of the tournament (male, female or mixed) and the difficulty. Later, after selecting the character, you can start playing. A note of merit goes to the "opening ceremony”Of tournaments, accurate and fun, perfect for thrilling the gamer. As for the custom tournament, you will be the one to choose the entire game mode. You can decide if they will be single or double matches and how many rounds / sets / games will be played. Last mode present (apart the academy that will allow you to train on any movement or beat) is that Online. Here you can challenge other players from all over the world in Championships or Online Matches. A small parenthesis goes to playing cards, very interesting mechanics but which unfortunately (or fortunately) fails to be incisive during gameplay, which makes them more or less useless.
A matter of control
The only negative enough note that we found within Tennis World Tour 2 is summarized in rather cumbersome commands (especially as regards the use of mouse and keyboard). Movements are only possible through the directional darts, which makes everything quite uncomfortable. With WASD, however, you can choose the various types of serve and response (which obviously will be pressed with the right timing for a perfect shot). Key combinations such as space bar and A (for a damped) while moving using a directional arrow plus the shift present to the right for running will make some swaps really frustrating. As for the use of a joypad, the commands are rather simple and intuitive, if it weren't for the fact that sometimes the game can give problems. From the simple pad detection error that can be solved with a restart, we have unfortunately had several episodes of "madness”Where the controller was detected but it was impossible to select any menu item due to a continuous random movement of the cursor. Despite our attempts with two different joypads, the problem returned, but we can't know for sure if it was our problem or an actual bug in the game.
In conclusion we can define Tennis World Tour 2 a simple and fun product, perfect for tennis lovers. Some shortcomings and inaccuracies caused by the limited budget available may be noted, however they are trifles which can be easily passed over. Were it not for some bugs and various defects found in the controls, it could almost challenge the leaders of the sports sector.
