Ten Favorite Video Games of All Time, #10: Mario Tennis

It’s been awhile since I did a series, so I figured it was high time for another.  Since I did a countdown of my favorite TV shows, I figured I could do it for my favorite video games as well.  Unlike the TV post, I’m going to do ten posts in this series.  Believe me, it was hard enough narrowing this list down to just ten (some great games, like Donkey Kong Country, Metroid Fusion, Mario Kart 64, NCAA Football 2005, Super Street Fighter II, Super Mario 64, Police Trainer, and Pokémon Gold and Silver, didn’t make the list). Like I said with the TV shows and other similar posts, this is not a ranking of what I believe to be the best games of all time.  I haven’t played near enough video games to have the authority to make a list like that.  These are simply the ones that I’ve played that I most enjoyed.  It’s also going to reflect a lot of my personal biases.  It’s going to be very Nintendo-heavy, as probably predicted.  I don’t play a ton of RPGs, so you’re not going to see any of them on the list.  I’m also not overly fond of survival/horror games, so those will be missing too.

Without further ado, let’s get to the tenth game on the list, Mario Tennis.

I tend to be more of a fan of the party-ish games in the Mario series more than the core platform/adventure titles (mostly because those games can be as much of a source of frustration as enjoyment at times).  Mario Tennis is probably my favorite in that vein.  As the name implies, the player selects from several Mario series characters such as Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, Birdo and Boo and play in singles or doubles tennis matches.  This game introduced the character of Waluigi, the “evil twin” to Luigi in the same way Wario is to Mario.  Each character has different strengths, such as power (Bowser), speed (Yoshi), technique (Daisy), trick shots (Boo), or all-around strength (the Mario Bros.).

This brings me to another point.  Most people don’t think of party games like this as having a ton of strategy involved.  Players usually just try to do the most powerful action and score the most points.  That isn’t going to help you at the higher levels of Mario Tennis.  Depending on which buttons you hit, you can perform slice, top spin, and smash shots that depend as much on finesse as power.  Also, if you find your opponent is straying too far from the net, you can pull off a drop shot, essentially like a bunt in baseball.  Or if they’re too close to the net, you can perform a lob and sail the ball over their head.  This interesting combination of shots combined with the character you choose dictates the strategy.  Oh, and the court you’re playing on makes a difference too.  The ball moves slower on clay, faster on grass, and really fast on the composition court.  Players can also unlock more courts by advancing further in the game or by linking the Game Boy Color version of the game via the N64’s Transfer Pak.

Gameplay mostly consists of playing one’s way through singles and doubles tournaments that advance in difficulty the further one plays.  Players familiar with the Mario Kart series will recognize the Mushroom Cup, Flower Cup, and Star Cup designations.  There are also several special modes, such as Ring Shot, where the player seeks to win the tennis match while also hitting the ball through rings that appear above the net.  Bowser Stage turns everything topsy-turvy, and incorporates items such as mushrooms and shells that players can use on their opponents Mario Kart-style.  Finally, the Piranha Challenge challenges the player to return as many balls hit at them by a Piranha Plant as possible without missing any.  This mode can get especially nerve-racking when the player’s streak reaches a certain level and each return becomes super-important.

The Ring Shot mode was one way in which Mario Tennis put its own spin on the game.

I particularly enjoyed this game because of its immense replay value and surprising strategic elements, and also because of one of those weird useless talents I have.  Growing up as an only child, I frequently didn’t have anyone to play the game against.  But because of the way the N64 controller was precisely constructed, I found that I could play a two-player game by myself, with each hand controlling one controller.  I kept playing the game from its release in 2000 until I finally packed away my N64 in 2007.  The Game Boy Color version of the game is fun in its own right too, with an adventure-style mode where the player controls an amateur tennis player making his or her way through the Royal Tennis Academy, going on a professional tour upon graduation.  The player could even transfer character data from that game to the N64 version and use their character in matches, which would then earn them experience points when they transferred their character back to the Game Boy Color.

Mario Tennis introduced the character of Waluigi, who would become a staple in later franchise games.