Overview:

Rockstar Games Presents: Table Tennis is a very simple game, not meaning that there isn't really much to it, but rather, that it doesn't try to do too much. It provides you (the gamer) with an almost perfect simulation of a sport that I'm sure most of us have played at some time or another. It truly is like Pong for the 21st Century.


Graphics: 9/10

I know, I know... It's ping pong/table tennis... How hard could it be to make it look decent, right? Well, it's not difficult to make a DECENT looking game of table tennis. It'd be very possible on the original Xbox, let alone the 360. Why the 9/10 score here, then? Because this game doesn't look decent. It looks absoultely stunning. The players are detailed sure... They have fingernails, and detailed faces, but if you want proof as to how detailed this game is, look at the character models in the viewer. They have that funky elbow skin, and detailed hair on their arms and legs (where appropriate). During the matches, the characters even sweat progressively getting wetter and wetter (I know... Gross) in the appropriate places (back of the neck, under their arms, and the front of their shirts) Screen shots don't really do this game justice. You have to experience it and see it in motion.


Sound: 10/10

The sound is great. Absolutely spectacular. Ball/table and ball/paddle contact sounds just as it should, with different parts of the table's sound varying. For example, the very edge of the table sounds much different than a clean bounce towards the center. There are grunts and groans when it looks like the character might make such a sound, along with after point chatter and taunts in the characters' native languages. The sound feature that I found most innovative, however, was the dramatic music. The serves start without music playing, but after the action begins to heat up, the music kicks in and really starts going after multiple multiple multiple volleys and returns. It makes the game feel really intense.


Gameplay: 9.5/10

This game controls great. It's easy to just pick up and play, but there is an unbelievable amount of skill involved if you're playing against opponents that are tough, such as other friends, or even later opponents in tourneys. The game is very responsive, and you really feel that you're controlling the paddle. The feature list isn't too long, that's for sure, but it's not meant to be that type of game. This is a quick pick up and play type, like it's meant to be the grand child of the all time classic, Pong.


Overall: 9.5/10

Sure, it's not perfect for everyone, but if you are old enough to remember, and appreciate, the age of classic gaming, when points mattered, and games didn't have to be extremely complex to be fun. Not every game has to be as expansive as GTA, or as deep as a Madden Franchise, they just have to offer a fun game, at a reasonable price; that's exactly what this does.



Jmann2k1