While the simplicity of the controls worked great for the PSP version of the game, when I got the brand new release of the game for the Xbox 360, I was greatly disappointed to find out that the game physics and control style have not changed one bit since the previous version of the game, Virtua Tennis 3.

I hate to say it, but it seems that Virtua Tennis 2009 is just about identical with its predecessor with just a few minor changes. Some of the older pros are no longer in the game and some new ones have made their debut. But what has remained constant is the 4-button style of gameplay (realistically speaking, it is only a 3-button style). There are 3 shot types available in this game: Top Spin (a normal shot), Slice (the defensive shot) and Lobs (used to lob the ball over your opponent, assuming that he is close enough to the net). On the Xbox controller, A, B, X and Y are used to initialize one of the shots. So as you can see, even though the game claims to utilize a 4-button system, in fact it is only 3 buttons with one doubling for one of the shots.

TIMING seems to be what this game is all about, but in reality it only works half well. The manual claims that your timing and position on the court and in relation to the ball determines the actual game physics. For the most part is true. Time the bouncing of the ball right and be in the ideal spot on the court and you will make a good shot. Swing too early or too late and your shot will be off. That works partially well. While there is definitely a major difference in the look of your shot depending of your timing and positioning, the lack of a more complex button system actually makes this game fall right in the button-mashing category. About the only way to really score a point is to run your opponent from one end of the court to the other over and over again until he or she finally misses a shot. Hitting the ball out of bounds or into the net is almost impossible. 90% of the hits tend to drive the ball in the court regardless of your positioning or timing when you hit the ball. The only part of the gameplay and controls section of the game that is worth praising is the way that serving works. The left stick on the Xbox 360 controller can be used to fine-aim the serve in your opponent's court. Even the experience system, although it has a progress bar that fills up, once the bar is full it resets itself and you have to fill it up with experience once again. I hope that all that earned experience goes somewhere, but since SEGA took out the character information sheet in regard to your player's progression, all I can hope is that all that experience that I've earned goes towards some sort of an imaginary skill.