The 2014 World Cup may be in in full swing at the moment but for tennis fans things are about to heat up as probably the most famous tournament is kicking off in London, UK. Yes, it's Wimbledon time again and if you find yourself in the mood you'll discover a pretty decent range of tennis games available for BlackBerry 10.
The following games are certainly not new but are real beauties. We took a look at them previously when they were released but I'm sure their popularity will increase over the next two weeks while the best in tennis slog it out on the grass courts.
Whether you are an all touch BlackBerry 10 user or a Q series lover you'll find some great gaming action in the selection below:
Play Tennis
Let's make a start with Play Tennis which comes initially as a free download. Within the app there are in-app purchases available and these are money bundles as you need to pay to enter tournaments. You'll have $20 to start with and entering a competition will cost you $5 - but if you win you'll get $500.
As well as the tournaments there is also 'free play' which you won't have to part with any cash for - a good place to practice. The game play is awesome with Play Tennis. You just use your finger to control your racket and it feels as good as a tennis game can be on any mobile platform. With decent sound effects and beautifully smooth animations the game really is a joy to play.
More information/Download Play Tennis
Stick Tennis
Once again another free download that does contain in-app purchases if you so desire. A real gem - Stick Tennis for all BlackBerry 10 handsets offers a load of different tournaments to choose from and initially you will be given a short tutorial of how the controls work. They are really simple though - serving is achieved by tapping the screen and then a second tap to hit the ball. After that, returning shots is all about swiping. You can swipe in any direction - the only downside here is that when performing an upwards swipe you need to get used to not swiping the phones bezel or it will minimize the app back into its Active Frame.
With decent graphics are VERY realistic sound effects Stick Tennis is a real beauty. Go and have a go yourself. I bet you will agree with me.
More information/Download Stick Tennis
Tennis Pro 3D
Tennis Pro 3D serves up four categories to play. The 'Tournament' one will not be accessible as you need to earn enough coins to enter, however you can buy coins through in-app purchases if required. But dive into the other three games and you are good to go. An instruction screen will pop up showing you how to perform moves. These are all done with screen gestures - in the direction you want the ball to travel. In addition you can swipe backwards with one finger for a lob shot or two fingers for a drop shot.
Your score is shown at the top right of the display and like other tennis games a pop-up will appear whenever you or your opponent score a point. And that pretty much sums it up. It does take a little getting used to as I initially found it quite easy to hit the ball out of bounds. But once you have the hang of things it's super fun, with great bright graphics and realistic sound effects.
More information/Download Tennis Pro 3D
Cross Court Tennis 2
Cross Court Tennis is very different control wise to the other tennis games we've already looked at. Over on the left of the screen you have a virtual joy pad for direction and over on the right is a 'T' tab and a 'S' one. The way it works is that you use the T tab to serve the ball and then when your opponent hits the ball back you press the T again which will automatically make your player run to the ball and hit it. However, this is where the joy pad comes into play as you can direct the ball in any direction. If you were wondering what the 'S' tab was for it's just a slice shot - which gives you a bit of variation.
Although I've only played the free edition I'm pretty sure that the full version will have an array of different style courts plus more. The graphics and sound effects are superb with Cross Court Tennis and I will more than likely purchase the full version myself.
More information/Download Cross Court Tennis 2
Tennis in the Face
Not so much of a tennis simulator this time. Your character (Pete Pagassi) must hit tennis balls at opponents to destroy them. Aiming is a breeze as you just place your finger on the screen where you want to shoot and then release to fire. The balls can ricochet and bounce off of walls/objects so although you may only use one ball you could end up hitting multiple opponents - that's the idea anyway.
The game is action packed and full of fast fun. The graphics and sounds help with the whole experience and really make the game a joy to play. I suspect that Tennis in the Face may well be one of those games that every BlackBerry 10 user will play at some point. It really is action packed. Priced at £1.50/$1.99 I would urge you to buy this one. But don't blame me if you get addicted - I'm just reporting the action.
More information/Download Tennis in your Face
Game, Set & Match
That's a wrap folks. I'm confident that there's something in the list to give you a tennis fix or get you in the mood for cheering on your favorite tennis star. Which of the above gets your vote as 'the best'? Let us know in the comments.
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