Inside Hotwire 3D

Smash Court Tennis 3 is making its debut on the Xbox 360. The most significant change in the third installment is the serve system. Gone is the scrolling bar that indicates power and timing. It has been replaced with an innovative “ring” mechanism around the ball. When you serve, a large ring occupies the ball and when it hits the apex of your serve, the ring becomes smaller, telling you to take the shot. If you have played the previous smash court games, the gameplay will be familiar to you. You have your typical lobs, top spins, and slices at your disposal as well as taunts. Holding one of the face buttons increases the force behind your shots, while tilting the left analog stick allows you to define where you want the ball to go.

Graphically, the character models on the latest build look incredible and the animation is relatively smooth so far. The game uses TV-style layout to get you to feel the realistic nature of tennis, and it provides you with various cinematic replays for your remarkable highlights. Superstars like Roger Federer, Martina Hingis, James Blake, Maria Sharapova are among the athletes included in the game. Each athlete is equipped with four stylish outfits before you hit the court. During the game, tennis players will react with emotion—be it with dissatisfaction or gratification when you lose or gain a point. Needless to say, we didn’t get enough playing experience on the game, but overall, Smash Court Tennis 3 is progressing quite nicely. The game is expected to be released sometime in October 2007.