The tennis game on Wii Sports is very simple to play. It is available for one to four players. The computer level depends on how many skill points you have. The higher the Skill Point level, the tougher it gets to beat the computer-controlled team. You can select which person will occupy the four spots on the tennis court, and who is going to be on which team. You can also put a computer-controlled character in for one or all of your positions.
Learning how to play Tennis[edit]
Everything in this game can be controlled using actions with 
. Running around the court is controlled automatically, so the player only needs to worry about hitting the ball.
Normal Shots[edit]
Hold as if it is the grip of a tennis racket and swing it as you would a normal racket. The game only seems to differentiate between 'backhand' swings and 'forehand' swings — it does not recognize overarm or underarm shots, and it will just translate these to a valid type of swing.
The aim of your shots depends purely on the timing of when you hit the ball. The exact angle depends on whether you are playing right or left handed and whether you are hitting a backhand or a forehand shot. For example, if you are right-handed and you are hitting a forehand shot, if you hit the ball early it will 'hook' and aim to the player's left. If you hit the ball late (when it is close to your body), it will 'slice' and aim to the right. Experiment with all these combinations to see how they affect the aim of your shot.
Adding Spin[edit]
The is sensitive enough to recognize the angle of the holder's wrist when the ball is struck, and this is used to add 'spin' to shots. This process is instinctive and works as it would in a real tennis game. For example, if you motion as if you are hitting over the top of the ball, this will produce a low shot with topspin, or if you motion as if you are 'slicing' the bottom of the ball, this can produce a 'lob' shot with a lot of backspin.
Serving[edit]
To toss the ball up in the air, flick upwards with your wrist (this can also be done by pressing 
). Then when you want to strike the ball, make the motion of a serve as you would if you were playing tennis for real. The game will recognize overarm or underarm serve motions (or even just a timely flick of the wrist if you are not feeling active).
To achieve a Power Serve, toss the ball as normal and then strike it when it is at its highest. If you hit it at the very peak of its toss, you will hit a very powerful serve and a trail of smoke will follow the ball. Such serves are quite hard for the other player to return, and may result in you getting an ace (if you are facing a Pro they will usually return the shot).
Scoring[edit]
The game is played like real tennis. You can select from sets of either one, three, or five games. Winning 2 out of 3 games in best of 3, or 3 out of 5 games in best of 5, wins the set. Unlike real tennis, play ends after winning the requisite amount of sets, rather than accumulating sets to win matches.
An out occurs in the following situations:
- Hitting the ball out of bounds.
- Not getting the ball over the net.
- Overshooting the court.
- Letting the ball bounce twice.
The word "Out" pops up on the screen where the ball went out of bounds and the audience says “you’re out” as the other teams gain more points.
The points go up through the following scores:
- 00 (commonly called Love)
- 15
- 30
- 40
The last service, which can potentially win the game or set, is referred to as game point or set point, respectively. A player or team must "win by two", meaning upon reaching the score of 40, the player or team must win the next point, or a subsequent set of two points in a row to win the game. When both sides have a score of 40, they are said to be at deuce. To keep track of which side can potentially win the game with the next service, that side is said to be at advantage. If the side at advantage then loses the point, the score reverts back to deuce, with the next point deciding to whom advantage will go.
Play Modes[edit]
There are several choices of how to play the game in single player and multiplayer modes:
Single Player Mode[edit]
- Play as both members of one partnership, against 2 CPU controlled opponents
- Play with a CPU partner against 2 CPU controlled opponents
- Play as one member of each team (this does not affect your score)
- Play in three or all four positions (this does not affect your score)
There are also other combinations but they are a little pointless, and you only get to improve your skill level by playing against CPU opponents. Each time you play a match, the computer chooses opponents who have a similar (usually slightly higher) skill level to the player.
Two Player Mode[edit]
In two player mode there are five choices of how to play the game:
- Both players team up against two CPU controlled opponents
- Each player pairs up with a CPU controlled partner
- Each player plays as both members of a team and they face each other
- Both players team up against themselves or one person on each team (Example: P1/P2 vs. P1/CPU)
- One player plays as both members of their team and the other plays with a CPU controlled partner
Three Player Mode[edit]
There are a couple of ways to play in three player mode.
- Two human players against one human player and a CPU controlled partner
- Two human players against one human player playing as both members of his/her team
- One of the human players play one position on each team (Example: P1/P3 vs. P2/P3)
Nobody can increase their skill level in three-player mode.
Four Player Mode[edit]
There's only one way to play four-player tennis: classic two-on-two doubles.
Bonuses[edit]
As your level increases toward pro level in Tennis, the crowd gets bigger. However, there is a little trick you can do if you're tired, bored, or just want to watch someone else to play. Click on yourself until both teams have the "?" by them. Do this and you will be able to watch two computer-controlled teams play against each other. You can move the camera by using 
.
To add an extra challenge, you can try playing with two Miis, both controlled by you, one with each hand (you need two Wii remotes). This can be used to handicap an experienced player when playing against either one or two less experienced players, or for adding an extra challenge after becoming pro.
If it is a long round, you will see that the computer-controlled team will start to sweat and lose their focus. This can help you on the harder rounds!
There are two different cheers that come from the audience. One is just simply applause. The second cheer is when the entire crowd says "wow" when you win a game. To get the second cheer instead of the first, make the losing team win a round and make a stunning comeback.
The amount of players watching you on your side of the bench depends on how high you skill level is. The higher it gets, the more people will be watching and cheering you on.
After a round, a slow-motion will play, showing you how the ball went out of bounds. If the ball goes near the benches, you will see the Miis jumping up and down very slowly as well! To skip the slow-motion replay, press .
If you hold 
when the screen is black right before the game, the tennis court will be blue (the same court all the tennis training takes place at).
Unlike on Baseball and Boxing, the first pair of computer controlled players on one-player mode ("Matt" and "Miyu") aren't the lowest leveled. If you lose against them, you'll face even lower-ranked players. The lowest level player in Tennis is "Hiroshi", who always has a skill level of 0.
Skill Points[edit]
You can increase your skill level only by playing the game in single-player mode and by not changing the computer controlled team. You can have two players play a game of Tennis, but you both have to be on the same team in order for this to work. There is no way to increase your skill level in three and four player modes.
The amount of skill points you get or take away depend on if you win the match and your performance. If you lose, chances are you will lose points, but if you win, you might gain more. By the time you get to the Pro level (via reaching 1,000 skill points), you will face off against two people with a 100 skill difference. Reaching Pro ranking in tennis, generates a Wii Message in the main channels view, and causes further games played to be played in front of a larger crowd. If you beat an opponent who has skill level of 2,000, you get a congratulatory message sent to your Wii Message Board saying that you have beaten a tennis champion. "Elisa" is the champion for tennis.
Points are added to the player's skill level based on an algorithm that depends heavily on the differences between the player's and computer's skill levels. Holding how well the player does against an opponent constant, the player will receive less points if the opponent is of lower skill level, and more points if the opponent is of high skill level. You will also find that when you play CPU players with a comparable skill level as yourself and win - you might even go down because you have not won convincingly enough - if you play CPUs who are less skilled than yourself, you will go down unless you win without allowing them to get to deuce - or you will only get a few points if you win outright.
Computer characters max out at 2,000 skill points, so a player with over 2,000 points will experience diminishing returns for subsequent play. At a skill level of more than 2,000, it is possible to win and still lose points. There is a maximum skill level you can achieve, at which time you will receive zero points for an absolutely perfect game against the highest rated characters.