Chalk Dust
It’s probably a little early to be declaring it a glorious mid-summer, but that hasn’t stopped the retro funsters at Hamster from donning the visors and shades for this week’s Arcade Archives release, Pro Tennis: World Court. Now available to download on PS4 and Nintendo Switch.
Released to Japanese arcades in 1988, Namco’s tennis take allows one or two players to battle it out on the court, either in one-on-one or two-vs-CPU matches. While the rudimentary tennis sim only has a meager selection of three international courts, (New York, London, and Paris), credit must be given for its roster of twenty playable characters… two of which are ROBOTS. Holy shit. The gameplay itself consists of typical tennis play, and includes faults, nets, deuces, and one-to-three set matches.
Check out the action in the video below, courtesy of YouTuber Game Trailers.
Pro Tennis: World Court would be ported to the PC Engine in 1989. The revamped “World Court Tennis” featured improved visuals, four-player support, and even a single-player story mode. A full sequel, Super World Court, was released in Japanese arcades in 1992. Hopefully, Hamster will get around to adding that title to the Arcade Archives in the near future. As the publisher appears to be going all-out on Namco releases as of late, it seems a likely addition.
Pro Tennis: World Court is available to download on PS4 and Nintendo Switch, priced at around $8.
