Tennis
Racket sports seem to have disappeared under the surface in the past couple of years with Top Spin 4 being the last main release in 2011. The sport has fluctuated sporadically within the video game world with Mario Tennis and Virtua Tennis being commercial successes during their respective times. There hasn’t really been a definitive tennis game despite EA’s attempt with their Grand Slam Tennis series that is now discontinued.
Tennis is growing as one of the worlds most popular international sports, especially for women, behind the likes of soccer and cricket. Grand Slam events, such as the U.S Open and Wimbledon, attract millions of views across the world with the prize money increasing annually for players. The winner of the Australian Open would win $2.4 million, and with more top-class tennis players joining the ranks, the competitions get fiercer and more entertaining.
Tennis video games have always had short-lived success, and fall into the same trap as many other sporting games in how they become monotonous and repetitive. The games lacked distinction away from graphical updates and the game modes ranged from simplistic tournaments to exhibition modes. Despite EA attempting a ‘Be A Pro’ style of career mode in Grand Slam Tennis 2, it lacked the depth and progression other main releases had, such as FIFA and NBA Live.
There have been numerous releases for tennis games in the past, but it’s difficult to pick one that defines the sport. Questions still have to be asked as to whether to follow the pathway of alternate sporting games, like FIFA and their yearly (yet uneventful) releases, or to try something different as per NBA 2K. Tennis video games have always had short-lived success, and fall into the same trap as many other sporting games in how they become monotonous and repetitive. The games lacked distinction away from graphical updates and the game modes ranged from simplistic tournament to exhibition modes. Despite EA attempting a ‘Be A Pro’ style of career mode in Grand Slam Tennis 2, it lacked the depth and progression other main releases had, such as FIFA and NBA Live.
As many players, who enjoy sport video games, there is always a dream to emulate their heroes and the most successful sporting games have achieved that. Tennis deserves a great video game, but fans may still have to wait longer before a developer decides to really go for it.
Cricket
When India defeated Pakistan in the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup, over 66 million people tuned in to watch around the world. The repeat of this match in the currently ongoing World Cup attracted a billion viewers. Insane viewership, incredibly popular around the world, and yet cricket has not had a truly great video game.
Looking at the past releases of cricket related video games, not a single one stands out as properly defining the sport. From Ashes Cricket, International Cricket Captain and even Brian Lara International Cricket, the fundamentals of a game are there but just a major lack of depth. There is a lack of direction, but the good news is that this is steadily improving.
The release of Don Bradman Cricket 14 in 2014, on Playstation, Xbox and Microsoft Windows, features numerous game modes including Career Mode, that players can experiment with. The game allows customization of a young 16 year old cricketer as you move up the ranks into international stardom. This is a major step for the cricket video game scene and provides a lot of positivity going into the future. Despite the success of the game modes, Don Bradman Cricket 14 was released with several bugs, unrealistic AI and very slow menus and animations.
Still lacking depth in the overall ‘career mode’ aspect, Don Bradman Cricket 14 is a positive step forward with many opportunities to push these features further.
Matching the amount of young players moving up the ranks fast within the sport, Don Bradman Cricket 14 does everything right in giving players an opportunity to emulate cricket professionals in the game. But, a lot of work still needs to be done before cricket receives the great sports game it truly deserves.
Quidditch
From the magical world of Harry Potter, comes one of the most thrilling sports of our generation – Quidditch. Involving flying on broomsticks, mercilessly beating other players with heavy balls, and scoring through three hoops, Quidditch sits at the core of our growing generation as a sport needing a game.
Interestingly, Quidditch has become a reality and since 2005 has formed numerous international events around the world. Players run around a field with a broom between their legs throwing balls around with increasing television and international popularity. Involving many of the concepts introduced through the movies and books, players have an aim to score more points than the other team whilst also chasing down the Golden Snitch.Governing bodies, international and national teams have formed and even a World Cup scenario takes place each year.
There has been a single, standalone, Quidditch game released known as Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup where players can play as different countries along with the four houses of Hogwarts. The game was released on the Playstation 2, Xbox, Nintendo Gamecube, Microsoft Windows and the Game Boy Advance back in 2003, and fans will be awaiting the possibility of a new release. Especially with the completion of the book and movie releases, this could be a positive way for the Harry Potter franchise to continue.
There has been no information regarding a new Quidditch video game, but the opportunity and possibilities are there for a developer to take.
Are there any sports, be they real or fictional, that you feel deserve a great sports video game? If so, feel free to share.
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