| Introduction
Droopy was arguably one of Tex Avery's greatest creations,
and every animation fan should own at least one video
or DVD compilation of the hapless McWolf being chased
by the tiny melancholic hound. Droopy's Tennis, however,
not only includes everyone's favorite canine but also
many of the other creations that appeared alongside
him in the animated shorts.
Producing a licensed sports title of some distinction
is no new thing though, and Tennis games in particular
are still being compared with the wonderful Mario Tennis
and the even more recent Snoopy's Tennis. Have Droopy
and friends got the on-court skills to beat their opponents?
Read on to find out.
GamePlay
As with all sports titles these days, there's always
more than one way to tackle the game. Arcade Mode offers
both Classic and Cartoon; the Classic option allows
you to play according to the official rules, while the
Cartoon option is very unpredictable, throwing up bonus
items and animated mayhem. In Tournament Mode, you must
work through the ranks to become the top tennis player.
This starts with the most basic of tasks, so before
you're even allowed to start playing against real opponents,
you'll have to successfully complete five training sessions.
In keeping with the zany animated theme, there are
bonus items to help or hinder your progress, ranging
from a spring that sends the ball in all sorts of directions,
to an Exploding Clock that robs you of a point if it
detonates on your side of the court. The Multiplayer
options are wonderful, allowing up to four players to
battle it out at any one time and the easy-to-use password
system rounds off a title which is not only simple to
set up and adapt to your needs, but also a joy to play.
Controls
The success of any Tennis game I've ever encountered
rests squarely on the shoulders of the control system,
but more often than not, this is the very area that
designers seem to ignore. Fortunately, that's not the
case here. Droopy's Tennis plays beautifully with some
of the best opponent AI I've seen in a sports game.
If that's not enough to convince you, the Tournament
mode features a varied training session where you must
hit and knock down a variety of moving objects. While
this improves your overall skills on the court, it's
also great fun and a welcome break from the normal tennis
action.
Graphics
The visuals and animation throughout are wonderful,
and the developers have taken great care to maintain
the authentic feel of Avery's classic animation. What's
most interesting here is that the characters actually
retain their personality through their various animations,
so while McWolf is fast and very excitable, Droopy tends
to be more methodical and shuffles around. The various
menu systems and cut screens are also very well designed
and implemented; fans of cartoons in general will be
delighted with the overall presentation of the game.
Sound & Music
The music is great, and will no doubt catapult almost
everyone squarely into cartoonland. As soon as the title
screen is shown, you're treated to a variety of 'animated'
soundtracks that suit the title perfectly while pushing
the gameplay along nicely.
The sound effects are fine but far more basic, and
limit themselves to a minimum of tennis sounds. As I've
commented many times before though, you really don't
need or want much audio in a title of this nature, as
it tends to distract from the game rather than enhance
it.
Final Comments
I've sampled more than a few sports Sims over the
past few years, with the majority plagued by poorly
designed and implemented control systems that can provide
an incredibly frustrating gaming experience. The fact
is, the success of any title rests on its playability,
and Droopy's Tennis has this by the bucket-loads.
It's also great to look at, and the environments
and background animation demonstrate the developers'
incredible attention to detail. Add to all this a link
option where you and a friend can have a two-player
experience with a single copy of the game, and you're
looking at a tennis game that can't be ignored. Good,
clean fun for sports fans of all ages.
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