Tennis Cup

Tennis Cup is a tennis simulation game developed and published by Loriciel in 1990 for the Amiga, with subsequent ports to other platforms. The game was designed to provide a comprehensive tennis experience that combined arcade-style gameplay with realistic tournament progression and player management elements.

The game offers multiple gameplay modes, including exhibition matches, tournament play, and a career mode where you guide a player through the professional tennis circuit. You can choose from various real-world tournaments, each with different surface types that affect ball behavior and player performance. Clay courts slow down the game and favor baseline players, while grass courts speed up play and benefit serve-and-volley tactics.

Tennis Cup's visual presentation showcases the Amiga's capabilities effectively. The tennis courts are rendered with good detail and proper perspective, while player sprites are reasonably well-animated for the era. The different court surfaces are visually distinct, and the game successfully conveys the atmosphere of professional tennis with appropriate crowd reactions and stadium environments. The animation, while not groundbreaking, provides clear visual feedback for different shot types and player movements.

The control system attempts to balance accessibility with depth. Players can execute various shot types including topspin, slice, and volleys using different joystick movements and button combinations. The timing-based mechanics require practice to master, as proper shot placement and power control become crucial for success against tougher opponents. While the learning curve can be steep initially, dedicated players will find a satisfying level of control once they adapt to the system.

The AI opponents provide varying levels of challenge, with each computer player having distinct playing styles and skill levels. Some favor aggressive net play, while others excel at baseline rallies or possess devastating serves. This variety keeps matches interesting and forces players to adapt their strategies accordingly. The tournament progression feels authentic, with seeded players and realistic bracket structures.

One of Tennis Cup's strengths lies in its attention to tennis authenticity. The game includes proper scoring systems, different tournament formats, and surface-specific gameplay mechanics that affect strategy. The career mode allows players to improve their character's statistics over time, adding an RPG-like progression element that extends the game's longevity.

However, the game suffers from some control precision issues that can frustrate players during crucial points. Shot placement sometimes feels inconsistent, and the timing windows for perfect shots can be unforgiving.

The sound design provides adequate atmosphere with crowd noise and ball impact sounds, though the audio lacks the dynamic range and variety that would truly immerse players in the tennis experience.

Tennis Cup represents a solid, if unspectacular, entry in the tennis simulation genre. It is probably the most realistic on the Amiga, if compared to other arcade-like games like Center Court 2. While it doesn't revolutionize the formula established by earlier tennis games, it provides a comprehensive and reasonably authentic tennis experience.