Table Tennis Anyone?

Yes, you heard correctly. No, it's no April fools joke. Rockstar Games, makers of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas™, Midnight Club™ 3: DUB® Edition, and Manhunt, is making its next-gen debut with Rockstar Games presents Table Tennis.

Just to be clear, this isn't table tennis amped up with animal characters, floating power-ups, crazy environments, or out-of-whack abilities. This is pure, unadulterated ping-pong at its very finest. It's not ping-pong like you play at your local rec center, though.

Detail down to the last freckle.

Straight Up, No Tricks
This is hardcore, lightning-quick table tennis the likes of which most people haven't seen outside of the Summer Olympics or Forrest Gump. A one hundred mile per hour rally is enough to get your heart pounding and your palms sweaty, and once you get the hang of it, you find that each point can offer the thrill of victory or the agony of defeat.

Rockstar Games presents Table Tennis is a
shot out of left field, but a very welcome one.

It's a bold statement to be sure, but if one thing is for certain, Table Tennis is about doing one thing, and doing it perfectly.

Grab a Paddle
Table Tennis controls with a dual analog setup. Though it seems tricky at first, a mere ten minutes of gameplay gets you acclimated to the controls:

• The left analog stick moves your character around the table so you can set up your position to return the next shot.
• The right analog stick controls the type of shot you hit. Hold forward to put topspin on the ball, hold back for backspin, and left or right for a hook or slice. Plus, you can combine the different direction to put side-spin and back or topspin on the shot simultaneously.
• Once you use the right analog stick to choose your shot type, the left analog stick stops moving your character and starts controlling where the shot will go. The controller also vibrates when you push long enough in a direction for the shot to be in danger of falling off the table.

Look, he's married.

Crucial Spin
Table Tennis offers an extra layer of depth in the need for spin recognition and control. Nearly every shot will have significant spin, and with a heavily realistic physics engine taking into account the speed of the ball hit, the friction of the paddle, and even the air current around the ball, countering the shot with the correct spin is vital.

For example, adding right-hand spin to a left-hand spinning shot will merely straighten out the ball, while hitting backspin on a topspin shot will kill the power, deaden the ball, and likely drop it right into the net. Luckily, the ball glows a different color based on how it's spinning; if you're really observant, you can literally hear what spin is placed on the ball by the sound it makes.

The pensive Liu Ping.

Looking Good
Graphically, Table Tennis shines with its focused visuals. The character models, which rival any of those on other next-generation games, come to life with nuanced animation.

Rockstar Games brought in real pros for motion capture, but better yet, the animation engine produces spontaneous routines that make the motion capture seamless, even when dealing with a shot or reaction that wasn't taken into account. Facial animations, cloth physics, sweat-drenched uniforms, and after-point reactions all add to the immersion and emotion of the match as well.

Rockstar Games presents Table Tennis is a shot out of left field, but based on a few hours of gameplay, a very welcome one. It's not often an announced game is a complete surprise, let alone a sweet one like this. Table Tennis also marks the first budget title for Xbox 360, clocking in at $39.99 as opposed to the usual $59.99. Expect to get your greedy gamer hands on it just after E3, as it ships on May 22, 2006.

Article by Ryan Treit