sport news Top Spin 2K25 review: After a 13-year hiatus the popular tennis gaming ... trends now
Spring time is here. The days are getting longer. And the gaming world welcomes a new tennis game.
Top Spin are back with the fifth iteration of their popular franchise in the guise of Top Spin 2K25.
It's been 13 years since Top Spin 4 was released and for many tennis gaming fans, nothing has come close since.
However, Top Spin 2K25 provides a clean winner.
Admittedly, this writer is accustomed to the Top Spin mechanics - having played its predecessors - and it was lovely to see the main controls haven't changed too much.
The popular tennis gaming franchise Top Spin is back with its fifth iteration: Top Spin 2K25
The gameplay retains a lot of its core that made it such a success over its previous iterations
There are three different versions of the game to play from Standard, Deluxe and Grand Slam
But do not fear if you are a beginner to the game as the controls are self-explanatory and you have tennis legend John McEnroe on hand to fine-tune your game.
McEnroe's guidance comes in the shape of the TopSpin Academy - one of several game modes that it provides. This mode leads players through Basic Lessons (demonstrating fundamentals in positioning, timing and shot selection), followed by Advanced Lessons (teaching power serves, lob shots and more), as well as Playstyle Lessons (showing off strengths and weaknesses of various playstyles).
It provides a welcome refresher for experienced users and a brilliant tutorial for those who are new to it.
Timing is everything with the game, something you are constantly aware of with every shot courtesy of the timing bar, with this writer's biggest struggle proving to produce big booming and accurate serves out wide or down the tee.
Where the game does serve up aces is in its realism when it comes to the gameplay and authenticity.
Beginning with the former, having played several exhibition matches on Hard (there are six levels: very easy, easy, normal, hard, very hard and legendary - which is unlockable) it felt like you were playing on court - such was the grind.
The AI provides a worthy opponent, playing on their character's strengths and making you work
