Virtua Tennis

IGN (9 out of 10)

There's not a whole lot of Virtua here, folks...but the tennis part is fantastic. Virtua Tennis is, by far, the finest tennis title on the Game Boy Advance to date. It may not be a pretty rendition of the Dreamcast series, but it plays so well it's easy to forgive the somewhat clumsy character animation. And even though the sprites may not move nearly as fluid as their polygonal, console counterparts, the ball physics and motions are rendered extremely well on the GBA. And without those, tennis games wouldn't have a leg to stand on. I also love the collection aspect that Altron included in the GBA version of the series...it's very similar in concept to EA Sports' popular "cards" element, where each item is acquired by performing certain tasks in the game.

GameSpot (8.7 out of 10)

Overall, Virtua Tennis more than lives up to its namesake and does an ample job of compacting Sega's Tennis 2K2 into a portable format. THQ has released a game that any tennis fan is sure to enjoy.

Total Cube (87 out of 100)

Virtua Tennis reproduit parfaitement le plaisir du sport originel... avec plein de possibilités !

64 Power / big.N / N Games (86 out of 100)

Virtua Tennis bietet wirklich guten Tennis mit einer einfachen, eingängigen Steuerung. Die Ballphysik ist realistisch und die flüssigen Animationen sind einfach hervorragend. Die Tennisspieler entscheiden automatisch, ob sie Vor- oder Rückhand spielen, was das Spiel um einiges erleichtert. Klasse Grafik, klasse Sound und ein perfektes Gameplay machen Virtua Tennis zur ersten Wahl für Tennisfans.

N-Zone (86 out of 100)

Abgesehen von den grafischen und soundtechnischen Schwächen bietet Virtua Tennis Spielspaß für mehrere Wochen. Der umfangreiche World-Tour-Modus spielt von Anfang an seine ganzen Stärken aus. Die Möglichkeit, die Spieler-Attribute nach eigenem Ermessen zu steigern bzw. zu trainieren, bietet viel spielerische Tiefe. Für alle Tennis-Fans ein sehr empfehlenswerter Titel.

Officiel Nintendo Magazine (8.5 out of 10)

L'opus GBA de Virtua Tennis se montre digne de son nom. Malgré quelques défauts techniques, le réalisme est au rendez-vous.

GameSpy (85 out of 100)

Virtua Tennis' graphics won't bowl you over, and neither will the lack of celebrity tennis personalities. However, the handheld game's uber-accessibility and deep gameplay will have you serving and vollying like the super athlete your parents always wanted you to be.

Jeuxvideo.com (16 out of 20)

Virtua Tennis se positionne directement parmi les meilleurs titres du genre sur GBA aux côtés de Tennis Masters Series. Le plaisir de jeu révèle tout son potentiel en multijoueur, et le mode World Tour assure une durée de vie très convenable au soft.

Eurogamer.net (UK) (8 out of 10)

Having said that, taken in isolation, it's easily the best handheld Tennis game, and once you get over the inevitable (and possibly unfair) comparisons you're left with a game that's going to brighten up a lot of dull journeys for a long time to come, especially if you've got a mate who's up for some link-up action.

Game Informer Magazine (7.75 out of 10)

Another great entry for the handheld tennis crowd (all six of you!); Virtua Tennis has the same impressive and deep career mode featured in Virtua Tennis 2 for the Dreamcast. Basically, you’ll take both a female and male pro up through the ranks, competing in tournaments and using skill-building minigames like Disc Shooter and Burger Chef to boost your attributes. Heck, it even features a few new games that weren’t in VT 2 (or Tennis 2K2, as it was called on PS2). My only complaint is that the shoulder buttons (which lent a great deal of depth to WTA Tour Tennis) aren’t utilized in the single-player game, which means no drop shot.

Gaming Target (7.2 out of 10)

Probably the biggest thing going for Virtua Tennis is the slew of mini-games that are included. Set up as part of the World Tour portion of the game, wherein you must bring your player up from the bottom of the ranks, the mini-games are a series of drill that you use to hone your player's skills so that they can compete with the best. Each of the mini-games are unique and add a little something special to the overall experience. If you want my honest opinion, the mini-games are the only thing worth the price of admission.

GamePro (US) (3.5 out of 5)

Perhaps the most engaging of all video game sports titles spreads its addictive gameplay to the GBA. Even with sluggish controls and so-so visuals, Virtua Tennis still delivers, especially in the winning career mode where you train your custom-made athletes (both male and female) to become the number-one ranked in the world. Of course, the four-player action makes this tennis game an absolute blast.

Games TM (6 out of 10)

Despite its enormous number of events, the World Tour mode doesn't make GBA Virtua Tennis the classic it should be, though it does help combat some of the initial grievances. Once a character has been trained, the controls become slightly more responsive, though issues with ball visibility are still a problem. This game will certainly give you something to get your teeth into, but don't expect anything as balanced or intricate as the original.

Digital Press - Classic Video Games (5 out of 10)

Considering that everything else in this game follows it's counterpart to the tee (the menus look EXACT), why would they mess up the gameplay? It's obvious Sega's TLC was not used here or we would have a better playing title. Oh, and the music (which can't be turned off) has got to go. This console is capable of better.