Mana Games

[Rob92]

Hey,

Tennis fever got me over the last few weeks (Roland Garros, Queens, Wimbledon all on TV ) so I felt like playing a simulation tennis game - I used to be a fan of [censored], but the latest versions of that game are poor compared to what it used to be like.

My search for a sim continued... Tried the Top Spin 4 demo, and it's not what I was looking for.

I remembered the Tennis Elbow series from a few years ago, and thought I'd check out the newest demo - Wow! It's great! The ball physics are some of the best that I've seen in any sports game, the AI is challenging and the controls work really well (low autopositioning + Elite control makes hitting those inside-out forehands very satisfying! ).
I purchased the game last night, and tried out some of the different surfaces, and had a quick look at the World Tour mode - very impressed so far!
One thing I don't like though is how long most of the rallies are.

Is there anything I should know about the game? Any tips? Could anyone suggest which mods I need?

Thanks .

P.S - Lol, the name of a competitor's tennis game is censored?...

[manutoo]

Hello,

welcome to TE !

>> low autopositioning + Elite control

That's a tough set-up !
What difficulty level are you playing against ?

>> One thing I don't like though is how long most of the rallies are.

Don't forget to step inside the baseline on short balls and hit an acceleration ; that gives a winner in most cases..!
Also, opening the court with the short strike can work pretty well.
Overall, rallies shouldn't be too long, except on clay & NewLine synthetic.
But some people shared your opinion, and they lowered the speed of the players, to make the rallies shorter (with more winners). Look here : topic15-3821.php .

If you need tips about more precise points, don't hesitate to ask them..!

[Rob92]

Thanks for the reply! It's great to get such feedback from a developer so soon!

It is a tough setup that I'm using, but I love how it makes the footwork and preparation so important - I'm still strying to find my difficulty level, currently on Pro sublevel-5 but getting whooped .
Might drop to Simulation control for a bit until I get used to the game .

Thanks for the tips to shorten rallies - I'll make sure I give them a go next time I play!

Something I wondered about was hitting cross-court passing shots on the run - it seems that they are not possible. You have to prepare for the shot to get the angle, but hitting them on the run means you don't have the time to prepare.

Also, something I'd suggest is "reach" shots that just attempts to get the ball back in play, but go out a lot and could set up opportunities to smash or put away a winner.

Great game, keep up the good work!

[Elias]

Hi Rob

We shared recently on another forum about TE
Honestly the rallies are not that long, you probably need more practice . Depends also in wich conditions you played ? If this is about a rally between two juniors/low skilled characters in the carrer mode, the rallies may be a bit longer sometimes as they usually doesnt start with much power wich leads to less clear winners opportunities.
But playing some "standard" skilled character (that is, with 780 stats points left, because in online mode the fair/realistic modes will prevent your char to have more), using some basic setup like 90% power FH & BH, and power baseliner style, you should be able to finish the rallies pretty quickly (well , in pro-5 level that is), especially on fast surfaces.
I would advise to create such a char, and then play some training matches against the comp in junior-5 or 10 for a start, and then rise the level
when needed (TE will suggest it when you win a set). Start practising moving around and improving your ground strokes.

Also,i don't like either to have any helper display in matches, though i think it can help to use them in a training environment, to have a better understanding of aiming and positionning in the game. Maybe you should try and then get rid of it when you are used to the controls.

As for mods i don't use any yet so i can't advise you for one yet.
You can check this translated instructions file : topic29-4485.php?start=75#p65340 to check how to install modded 3d courts.This is done replicating the folder tree found in the .Pak file in the Data game folder. Then, the external texture/files are used instead of internal ones, if i got it right

[manutoo]

Rob92,
I think beating the Junior-10 with your current set-up would be already a nice achievement for a newcomer to TE !

You can't aim when hitting totally on the run, but you can aim when hitting on the end of run ; ie: use your player inertia during the end of your run while you prepare your strike. This requires a great deal of training though. The inertia can be up to about 4 meters with the maximum speed.

The current safe strike (done when you don't press any button) meets 50% of your "reach shot" criteria : it's just to put the ball in play and it gives a chance for your opponent to do a easy winner.

[Rob92]

@Elias - I agree, having had more practice with the game and getting used to the controls, I am now able to finish off points fairly quickly with some well placed shots. I also took your advice about using some of the helpers for training purposes and it did help quite a lot, thanks .

Thanks for the link about the mods - although currently I use 2D courts as my laptop specs suck! I'm impressed that TE2011 runs smoothly on it, not many games do!

@manutoo - Haha, I think I started off too difficult! I will use normal autopositioning and simulation controls until I'm more comfortable with the game.

I'll have to practice that technique, I think I pulled it off earlier without really trying to, and hit a sweet passing shot.
It's great how this game requires skill, practice and tactics - a rare thing in sports games!

Played online for the first time, as Tim Henman on realistic mode - first game I won 6-2 3-1 ret, second game though I lost 6-3 7-5 and the final game was a 6-1 6-2 loss.
All on grass (in the spirit of Wimbledon ) and it was very enjoyable, the rallies were usually very short, breaking serve was difficult and my opponents were good sports - one of my rivals quit, but I won't hold it against them as I know that the game can be frustrating, although when getting beaten I prefer to stay to the end so that I can learn from my opponent .

I see what you mean about the safe strike being easy to put away, whenever I used it to return serve, I lost the point .

I love the animations, especially the Federer forehand

In my final game I had an annoying glitch - I alt-tabbed out by accident, and when I went back to the game, the player models were gone and just the racquets were visible, looked kind of cool but it did affect my performance!

Edit - After some more online games (as Tim Henman on grass) there's a few things I don't like;

Acceleration shots are too reliable and accurate - they are the shot that's used for every shot during most rallies, and if you have time to prepare, you can consistently put the ball close to the lines - I played someone who was hitting 85mph+ acceleration shots on the lines from every shot, even service returns, this isn't realistic. This is on realistic mode, maybe "Elite" controls and low autopositioning should be used in that mode? That makes the acceleration shots much more difficult in my experience.

Smashes seriously lack power.

Apart from that, love it .

Edit 2 - Just realised Elite controls can be set for online matches, enjoying it more now that acceleration shots are a bit more risky, could maybe still be toned down slightly .

[manutoo]

Rob92,
>> I had an annoying glitch - I alt-tabbed out by accident

Re-download & re-install the game ; this bug should be fixed since a few days...

>> low autopositioning should be used in that mode

Average AutoPos is kinda mandatory when playing online, to counteract the effect of the lag...
But as you mentioned, "Elite" controls do the trick...

>> Smashes seriously lack power.

1 common mistake is to smash the ball too low ; it takes a bit of practice to smash it at the correct spot (usually near the service line). The autoback speed of your player is kinda high, so you can usually rely on it for the last 50 cm of backward positioning.
Also, don't forget you can use the acceleration to make a more powerful smash. But usually, the normal strike on smash is fast enough to give you a winner, if well aimed (if you have a decent Smash Skill, around 60%).

[LetsGoBro]

Ah, this reminds me of my rookie days in playing this game. Yeah d/w man, u'll get the hang of it -- experiment around and if needed, u can change your hotkeys for particular styles of shots that make it easier for you to play. Nice advice too Manu.
And it will pay off too -- when you get the hang of it, you'll dominate