Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64, 2000)

A while back, on the failed Nintendo Virtual Boy game system, there was a game called Mario's Tennis, first of the Mario Tennis games. It got the job done as a decent, playable tennis game, while adding some cool 3-D effects, something the Virtual Boy was known for. Unfortunately, Nintendo could've done a lot more for that game, as it felt like an average tennis game, but with Mario characters. But hey, it was Mario's first tennis game, so that also means that its inevitable successor would be able to improve on the original formula, while adding a whole lot more.

Fast forward to the year 2001. The successor to the first game has been created, now titled Mario Tennis(without the "'s"). So what's so much better about this game than the first one? Pretty much everything in the game. Way more impressive 3-D graphics(at least, at the time), several different ways to play, a huge cast of characters from the Mario universe, and most importantly, great fun!

What's new in this game, first of all, multi-player. Something that the first game did not have, which just about made it obvious that it wasn't going to last long. Anyway, multi-player is loads of fun and the action never slows down, even with all four players on screen. It can also be very addictive, so I'm warning you, watch out!

Another feature is a unique one, the control scheme. The one used here in this game has to be the best that I've used in a tennis game. You now have the ability to charge up your shots by pressing a button twice, which will really send the ball flying. Shots such as lobs, drop shots, and smashes, are really easy to pull off, so there's no need to worry about that. I will say this, your character tends to slide a little bit after letting off of the control stick, but it's nothing that will destroy this game for you. It also depends on who you are using at the time. The control was actually fine-tuned in the Gamecube sequel, Mario Power Tennis.

Now for the modes in the game. You have a lengthy tennis tournament mode, or the standard game of tennis available, with your choice of how many games or sets you want to play. This is the mode you'll be playing most of the time. Other modes in the game allow you to play with Mario Kart styled items, play a game where you hit the ball through rings to get points, and if you need it, a little practice mode is thrown into the mix. The item box mode is a little fun, if not a bit cheap. Stuff like this works best in the Mario Kart series. Ring mode is also a nice distraction, and more fun than the item mode, in my opinion. The game gets even better if you have the Game Boy Color version and a Transfer pak, more on that in the next section.

Characters. Mario and the usual cast are back again, but here's where it gets interesting. Princess Daisy returns after a long hiatus, and a new character Waluigi makes his appearance here. His name actually makes more sense in Japan, so research this one. You can unlock more characters through tournaments, and if you complete all tournaments with a single person, they become a star character, more skilled. Not only that, but if you use the Game Boy version, the characters you have on the story mode, Alex, Harry, Nina and Kate(or whatever you named them),can be uploaded to the N64 and can be used there to gain EXP, so the replay value increases! This feature is sorely missed on the Gamecube and GBA version, though. Overall, don't miss out on this game! Buy it now!

A good mix of tennis and mario.
This game is better than the gameboy color version. In this game you play as a boy or a girl. The boy's name is Clay or you can change it and the girl's name is Ace or you can change that. You can have power shots to score easy instead of just playing to score and take longer, theirs power shots that can make the opponent move back or other things and theirs power shots to catch the ball if it is to far to reach.In this game you can walk around talk to people and some you can talk to and play them to get better and reach a better rank. You can also play as two people and grow levels and play mini games to make their special experience grow.You can play single and double in this game. In exhibition you can play as any body you vs in the game in any level like beginner, pro. You could sleep in your drome, mini games you beat you can play again in the mini game icon in the main screen.
This game is one of the best sport games I've play for the gba, a good game with real and the Mario world put together. Thanks for reading this review.

I love Mario Tennis. As far as the Mario games go for Nintendo 64, this is one of the best. Like Mario Kart, there are cups you need to complete with a win in order to gain extra characters, more courts and an advantage. While the fun never goes out of either of the two games, the challenge leaves Mario Kart much more quickly than it leaves Mario Tennis. There are 16 players in tennis and by completing certain tasks with each one, each task progressively more difficult, the game unlocks and supplies nearly endless possibilities. I would recommend this game to anyone who doesn't mind spending hours honing her (or his) skills in order to unlock the whole game.

I'd also recommend it to anyone who just wants to play tennis! The game play on its own can be hours of entertainment with friends.

Im not the worlds biggest tennis fan, but this game is very well done. Mario and more than a dozen classic Nintendo mascot buddies take to the tennis courts for this one, which like Mario Golf before it features simplistic graphics, and a nice fast arcade-style mixed with some deep control mechanics that you might overlook if you don't pay close attention. Mario Tennis delivers a solid single-player experience with lots of hidden secrets to keep you coming back for more, but it's the title's unsurpassed multiplayer experience that immortalizes it as one of the best games you can get for your Nintendo 64. All-in-all, the title features 16 playable characters including Mario, Luigi, Toad, Princess, Bowser, Baby Mario, Waluigi and more -- all with unique attributes of power, speed, control and spin, as well as a multitude of original courts and power-up weapons. I recommend playing this if you enjoy sports games at all.

Love this game. Its fun and entertaining many characters to choose from. For the special codes go to cheatsearch.com and put them in which unlocks more fun games to play