This review is from: Table Tennis – Xbox 360 (Video Game)
I love Table Tennis for Xbox 360 more than Tim Tebow loves Jesus. If you could give games a rating of 11 (instead of 10, since this website only lets you score up to 10) I would definitely say 11. But since I can’t, I will give it a 10. Graphics: 10. Sounds: 10 (Crank the volume up, you can really hear the ball hit the table and the characters very witty attitude remarks). Story Line: 10. Female Character Sexiness: 15 (Haley and Carmen Making out? Yes please. Oh wait, Cassidy just showed up? Ménage à trois!)
Perhaps the greatest feature in the game is the sexy, estrogen driven Lioness like mind-set of the female players. Extraordinary. Second would be the excitement of the rallies. Insane. I had a rally against Liu Ping that lasted 73 shots. I went into this zone, like another world. I actually thought I was in San Paulo, Brazil. I could hear the crowd, see the blur of the ball and feel my pulse quicken pace. Then the lights dim, the crowd is gone. It is just me (Haley). And Liu. The techno beat surges as does my focus shot. 67, 68, 69, right sidespin, left sidespin, right sidespin…my sweat is dripping down my face, no time to wipe though, my hands are busy making Ping Pong magic. My focus bar blinks! I hit left trigger, hold Topspin, aim left. Full focus top spin winner!!! San Paulo is Mine! Achievement unlocked!
Thank you Rockstar, for bringing Me, and Table Tennis alive through video gaming.
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This review is from: Table Tennis – Xbox 360 (Video Game)
If I told you a year ago when the Xbox 360 was being finalized and games were starting to be talked about, that Rockstar was supporting the system, what’s the first thing you’d think of?? Grand Theft Auto? Midnight Club? The Warriors? Sure, something like that. But then what if I told you in March that the first game Rockstar (keep in mind we’re talking about Rockstar here) was going to put out on the Xbox 360 was Table Tennis (better known as PING-PONG!! in the US), would you have believed me? My very first reaction to that news was, “What, are they putting it out on Xbox Live Arcade??” I mean, seriously; Table Tennis?? From the guys that make rated M games? Were they serious? Was this a joke? The answer to those questions in order was: No, yes, yes, yes, and no. In fact, Rockstar Games was so serious about this game they really marketed it on the net and in game magazines. They were dead serious about it. And when you play Rockstar’s Table Tennis, you’ll see that too.While it’s not a system seller, or a game that is going to revolutionize the sports genre, Table Tennis is not only solid, but authentic! This isn’t an Xbox Live Arcade level game. And it’s on shelves for $39.99, which is a relief from the usual $59.99 games. The question I pose is this: Is a Table Tennis game worth even a discounted price of $40? Well, Rockstar makes a heck of a case for it with a very solid game. And no, you’re not playing against hookers, and armed Mafia gunmen aren’t going to jump out from the stands with machine guns and start shooting at you. It’s just Table Tennis.
Ok, some quick basics about Rockstar’s Table Tennis. The game modes here unfortunately are pretty bare, and that has a little bit of impact on the game overall, but not a lot. There are 11 playable characters in the game; 7 men, 4 women. They come from all around the world; Japan, Germany, USA, Sweden, Brazil, and more. Each player has their own distinctive attributes and gameplay. Some are faster than others, some more powerful, some with more spin they can put on the ball. Who you choose to play with can be as important as the gameplay itself. There are only a couple of players at the beginning to chose from, and the rest you unlock by playing through the game. It seems like you unlock characters based on winning total number of games, but you also unlock them through playing offline tournaments. There are three tournaments to play with different difficulties. There is also an exhibition mode with three levels of difficulty. There’s no create-a-player, nor is there a career mode; two things that a game like this should absolutely have.
There is some basic online play as well, and that’s a given now with Xbox 360 games. And this game makes use of the 360’s Spectator mode in it’s “Table Tennis Network”. In fact, you get achievement points for watching a match online. Then of course you have your ranked and non-ranked matches. The only problem with playing online is that there is no lobby system. Once you’re game is done you’re thrown back into the main area where you have to look for another game, or wait for another invite if you want to play the same person. You should have the ability to keep the room open to play another match. But that’s minor.
What is amazing about Table Tennis is it’s complete attention to the detail of the actual game. I played a lot of ping-pong in college. I am in no way, shape, or form, an expert or a tournament player. I played a lot for fun. But I did learn how to put spin on the ball, how to make drop shots, and how to take a step back from the table in order to really fire up my volleys. So I felt like I was a little more more than just a casual player. So I recognize the authenticity of Rockstar’s physics engine they put in this game to make it feel and play realistic. In fact, I have to say this really is as authentic a game in regards to ball physics that I think I’ve ever seen. It’s one of the reasons I am highly hooked on the game. Table Tennis as a sport is all about power and spin. In order for a player to dominate his opponent in Table Tennis, they have to master being able to put high amounts of spin on the ball so that when the ball hits the table it veers in that direction so sharply that the opponent either mis-places his paddle to where he can’t effectively return the ball, or with the addition of power, simply can’t react fast enough to get the paddle to the ball. The better your accuracy on the table, and the better your spin ability is, the better player you are going to be. It’s a small table, but it’s a big game. And I can’t stress enough how impressed I am in the way Rockstar was able to capture that. The reality is that no volley will ever truly be the same. Just like in real life, you can place that shot that just grazes the table so that it still counts, but it never actually bounces. And yes, you can even hit the net with so…
This review is from: Table Tennis – Xbox 360 (Video Game)
Graphics :
They get the job done, they aren’t as impressive as I was expecting, everything seems to have a bit of a blur effect on it that makes the textures seem less sharp than they actually are. Everything is in fairly detailed 3D though, ranging from the players, the judge, the audience. all pretty solid, but nothing too impressive. The animations are extremely well done, nothing looks jerky, everything’s pretty fluid, and the nice touches, like rippling clothes, are really well done.
Sound :
43 song soundtrack, mostly techno, mostly coming into play as the matches drag on. Once you hit about 15 hits in the rally a song starts playing in the background and gets louder as the match goes on(or the ambient sound goes down, either way, the music becomes more noticeable as the match wears on), helps make it seem more dramatic/intense. Otherwise, the sounds pretty standard, audience cheers, boos, pings, pongs, and the occasional taunt in your players native tongue.(although they will speak English sometimes too)
Gameplay :
While you may think it’s just pong, it isn’t, at all. There’s four different shots, top spin, backspin, left spin, and right spin, all of which create a little glow around the ball, which you have about a third of a second to see and each shot has a counter shot(thus why you can see the color, to counter). You can pick your shot type with the right thumbstick, and try and aim your shot with the left(left also moves your character). Depending on how long you hold the shot type, the harder you’ll hit the ball(hardest is not always best) When a particularly impressive shot or a focus shot is made(when you make a good shot you get focus, much like bullet time, allowing you to start hitting harder) the game will change the camera to show a close up of the shot in slow mo, really adding to a dramatic effect that works pretty well. Over time you’ll accumulate or even lose “focus” which can be used in two ways. 1) Focus shots. By holding the right bumper when you hit a shot you hit the ball harder for that hit, you’ll lose some focus, but it’s a good quick way to put more power behind the shot. Way 2) Let the focus accumulate, once a certain meter fills, you enter focus mode. During this time the focus meter will be constantly depleting, but as long as there’s some focus there, every single shot you hit during that time will have a LOT more power behind it. If both players enter the third tier of focus mode at the same time, everything fades out except for the table and the players, which become brightly lit. When that happens, that’s definitely the most intense and if you ask me, fun parts of the game. It all works pretty well, and comes out pretty entertaining in the end.
Live : This is one of those titles where the main focus is on live, as the single player offering is a bit on the weak end. With single player, all you’ve got is Exhibition and four tournaments. Online, it’s you vs. the world.(And vastly more challenging than the AI) You’re going to get slaughtered for a while online, but once you start to figure out how it all works, there’s a lot of fun to be had getting these true battles of 100+ rally hits for each point.(my record as of this writing sits at 152) The games themselves are actually pretty quick even if it goes for 150 pings(that takes about a minute) Oftentimes people will stay silent when you’re playing and let out some sort of exclamation at the end of each rally, it’s intense enough that talking COULD break the concentration. Lag can be an issue, but the game has a few ways of compensating that caught me off guard when they came into play and nearly cost me a point.(The game makes sure the ball never stops moving, so if you don’t get any info from the other player, the ball just bounces off some invisible wall back at you) Online you can play Ranked on unranked games, the ranking system uses the same method of CoD2 with the “Trueskill” method. Within ranked and unranked, there is exhibition, where people just play 1v1 matches.. The other is a “timed tournament” where you get 2-8 people to play Round Robin, and whoever has the most wins at the end wins.(I think the time limit by default is 8 minute matches. Overall, the live is extremely entertaining, I just see two minor flaws. The skill gap. I can go into an 8 player tournament and find 3 of them can barely return a serve. The next 3 I can beat but it’s a good game, then the last 2 make me look like an idiot out there. Other flaws fall into character use with some just seeming to be useless in multiplayer.
Unlockables : 11 characters, you start with 4, each character has five costumes, which are just different colored shirts essentially. Each character plays a little differently, catering to certain playstyles. Jesper plays well to power hitters, Jurgen plays well for a technical get the guy running around trying to catch trick shots. Every…
Table Tennis!,
Perhaps the greatest feature in the game is the sexy, estrogen driven Lioness like mind-set of the female players. Extraordinary. Second would be the excitement of the rallies. Insane. I had a rally against Liu Ping that lasted 73 shots. I went into this zone, like another world. I actually thought I was in San Paulo, Brazil. I could hear the crowd, see the blur of the ball and feel my pulse quicken pace. Then the lights dim, the crowd is gone. It is just me (Haley). And Liu. The techno beat surges as does my focus shot. 67, 68, 69, right sidespin, left sidespin, right sidespin…my sweat is dripping down my face, no time to wipe though, my hands are busy making Ping Pong magic. My focus bar blinks! I hit left trigger, hold Topspin, aim left. Full focus top spin winner!!! San Paulo is Mine! Achievement unlocked!
Thank you Rockstar, for bringing Me, and Table Tennis alive through video gaming.
0
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|Deservedly a budget title,
If I told you a year ago when the Xbox 360 was being finalized and games were starting to be talked about, that Rockstar was supporting the system, what’s the first thing you’d think of?? Grand Theft Auto? Midnight Club? The Warriors? Sure, something like that. But then what if I told you in March that the first game Rockstar (keep in mind we’re talking about Rockstar here) was going to put out on the Xbox 360 was Table Tennis (better known as PING-PONG!! in the US), would you have believed me? My very first reaction to that news was, “What, are they putting it out on Xbox Live Arcade??” I mean, seriously; Table Tennis?? From the guys that make rated M games? Were they serious? Was this a joke? The answer to those questions in order was: No, yes, yes, yes, and no. In fact, Rockstar Games was so serious about this game they really marketed it on the net and in game magazines. They were dead serious about it. And when you play Rockstar’s Table Tennis, you’ll see that too.While it’s not a system seller, or a game that is going to revolutionize the sports genre, Table Tennis is not only solid, but authentic! This isn’t an Xbox Live Arcade level game. And it’s on shelves for $39.99, which is a relief from the usual $59.99 games. The question I pose is this: Is a Table Tennis game worth even a discounted price of $40? Well, Rockstar makes a heck of a case for it with a very solid game. And no, you’re not playing against hookers, and armed Mafia gunmen aren’t going to jump out from the stands with machine guns and start shooting at you. It’s just Table Tennis.
Ok, some quick basics about Rockstar’s Table Tennis. The game modes here unfortunately are pretty bare, and that has a little bit of impact on the game overall, but not a lot. There are 11 playable characters in the game; 7 men, 4 women. They come from all around the world; Japan, Germany, USA, Sweden, Brazil, and more. Each player has their own distinctive attributes and gameplay. Some are faster than others, some more powerful, some with more spin they can put on the ball. Who you choose to play with can be as important as the gameplay itself. There are only a couple of players at the beginning to chose from, and the rest you unlock by playing through the game. It seems like you unlock characters based on winning total number of games, but you also unlock them through playing offline tournaments. There are three tournaments to play with different difficulties. There is also an exhibition mode with three levels of difficulty. There’s no create-a-player, nor is there a career mode; two things that a game like this should absolutely have.
There is some basic online play as well, and that’s a given now with Xbox 360 games. And this game makes use of the 360’s Spectator mode in it’s “Table Tennis Network”. In fact, you get achievement points for watching a match online. Then of course you have your ranked and non-ranked matches. The only problem with playing online is that there is no lobby system. Once you’re game is done you’re thrown back into the main area where you have to look for another game, or wait for another invite if you want to play the same person. You should have the ability to keep the room open to play another match. But that’s minor.
What is amazing about Table Tennis is it’s complete attention to the detail of the actual game. I played a lot of ping-pong in college. I am in no way, shape, or form, an expert or a tournament player. I played a lot for fun. But I did learn how to put spin on the ball, how to make drop shots, and how to take a step back from the table in order to really fire up my volleys. So I felt like I was a little more more than just a casual player. So I recognize the authenticity of Rockstar’s physics engine they put in this game to make it feel and play realistic. In fact, I have to say this really is as authentic a game in regards to ball physics that I think I’ve ever seen. It’s one of the reasons I am highly hooked on the game. Table Tennis as a sport is all about power and spin. In order for a player to dominate his opponent in Table Tennis, they have to master being able to put high amounts of spin on the ball so that when the ball hits the table it veers in that direction so sharply that the opponent either mis-places his paddle to where he can’t effectively return the ball, or with the addition of power, simply can’t react fast enough to get the paddle to the ball. The better your accuracy on the table, and the better your spin ability is, the better player you are going to be. It’s a small table, but it’s a big game. And I can’t stress enough how impressed I am in the way Rockstar was able to capture that. The reality is that no volley will ever truly be the same. Just like in real life, you can place that shot that just grazes the table so that it still counts, but it never actually bounces. And yes, you can even hit the net with so…
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|This game will change your view of PONG as a game forever !!,
Graphics :
They get the job done, they aren’t as impressive as I was expecting, everything seems to have a bit of a blur effect on it that makes the textures seem less sharp than they actually are. Everything is in fairly detailed 3D though, ranging from the players, the judge, the audience. all pretty solid, but nothing too impressive. The animations are extremely well done, nothing looks jerky, everything’s pretty fluid, and the nice touches, like rippling clothes, are really well done.
Sound :
43 song soundtrack, mostly techno, mostly coming into play as the matches drag on. Once you hit about 15 hits in the rally a song starts playing in the background and gets louder as the match goes on(or the ambient sound goes down, either way, the music becomes more noticeable as the match wears on), helps make it seem more dramatic/intense. Otherwise, the sounds pretty standard, audience cheers, boos, pings, pongs, and the occasional taunt in your players native tongue.(although they will speak English sometimes too)
Gameplay :
While you may think it’s just pong, it isn’t, at all. There’s four different shots, top spin, backspin, left spin, and right spin, all of which create a little glow around the ball, which you have about a third of a second to see and each shot has a counter shot(thus why you can see the color, to counter). You can pick your shot type with the right thumbstick, and try and aim your shot with the left(left also moves your character). Depending on how long you hold the shot type, the harder you’ll hit the ball(hardest is not always best) When a particularly impressive shot or a focus shot is made(when you make a good shot you get focus, much like bullet time, allowing you to start hitting harder) the game will change the camera to show a close up of the shot in slow mo, really adding to a dramatic effect that works pretty well. Over time you’ll accumulate or even lose “focus” which can be used in two ways. 1) Focus shots. By holding the right bumper when you hit a shot you hit the ball harder for that hit, you’ll lose some focus, but it’s a good quick way to put more power behind the shot. Way 2) Let the focus accumulate, once a certain meter fills, you enter focus mode. During this time the focus meter will be constantly depleting, but as long as there’s some focus there, every single shot you hit during that time will have a LOT more power behind it. If both players enter the third tier of focus mode at the same time, everything fades out except for the table and the players, which become brightly lit. When that happens, that’s definitely the most intense and if you ask me, fun parts of the game. It all works pretty well, and comes out pretty entertaining in the end.
Live : This is one of those titles where the main focus is on live, as the single player offering is a bit on the weak end. With single player, all you’ve got is Exhibition and four tournaments. Online, it’s you vs. the world.(And vastly more challenging than the AI) You’re going to get slaughtered for a while online, but once you start to figure out how it all works, there’s a lot of fun to be had getting these true battles of 100+ rally hits for each point.(my record as of this writing sits at 152) The games themselves are actually pretty quick even if it goes for 150 pings(that takes about a minute) Oftentimes people will stay silent when you’re playing and let out some sort of exclamation at the end of each rally, it’s intense enough that talking COULD break the concentration. Lag can be an issue, but the game has a few ways of compensating that caught me off guard when they came into play and nearly cost me a point.(The game makes sure the ball never stops moving, so if you don’t get any info from the other player, the ball just bounces off some invisible wall back at you) Online you can play Ranked on unranked games, the ranking system uses the same method of CoD2 with the “Trueskill” method. Within ranked and unranked, there is exhibition, where people just play 1v1 matches.. The other is a “timed tournament” where you get 2-8 people to play Round Robin, and whoever has the most wins at the end wins.(I think the time limit by default is 8 minute matches. Overall, the live is extremely entertaining, I just see two minor flaws. The skill gap. I can go into an 8 player tournament and find 3 of them can barely return a serve. The next 3 I can beat but it’s a good game, then the last 2 make me look like an idiot out there. Other flaws fall into character use with some just seeming to be useless in multiplayer.
Unlockables : 11 characters, you start with 4, each character has five costumes, which are just different colored shirts essentially. Each character plays a little differently, catering to certain playstyles. Jesper plays well to power hitters, Jurgen plays well for a technical get the guy running around trying to catch trick shots. Every…
Read more
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|