STACK #164 June 2018

GAMES FEATURE

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To celebrate MarioTennis Aces' release for the Switch this month, we take a look back at the rest of the MarioTennis franchise. Words Alesha Kolbe trades Ace of

Tennis features 18 playable characters and a number of new areas – some heavily inspired by the Mario universe. Gimmick courts were introduced, with different elements that would affect gameplay. The game was later released on the Wii in 2009. Mario Tennis: Power Tour (2005) Mario Tennis:

Mario’s Tennis (1995) Developed by Nintendo, Mario’s Tennis was a launch title for the Virtual Boy when it released in 1995. You could play games of tennis as one of seven different Mario characters, in single-or-three-

game tournament modes, in singles or doubles, on easy, normal, or hard difficulty.

of 16 characters in 1-on-1 or 2-on-2 games, in one of four game modes. The game attracted criticism for not letting you match-make with friends, but still sold relatively well. Mario Tennis Aces (2018) Releasing this month for the Nintendo Switch, Mario Tennis Aces will be the first instalment in the Mario Tennis series since Mario Tennis: Power Tour to feature a story mode. You’ll be able to use your Joy-Cons to create ‘zone shots’, and there’s even an online multiplayer mode.

Power Tour was released for the

Game Boy Advance in 2005. It is most fondly remembered for its loveable

Mario Tennis (2000) Developed by Camelot Software Planning, who would go on to develop the rest of the series, Mario Tennis

story mode, and the improvements it made upon the GameCube version the year prior.

Mario Tennis Open (2012) Seven years later, Mario Tennis Open was launched on

released in 2000 for the Nintendo 64 and the Game Boy Colour. This was the game

the Nintendo 3DS. The game makes use of the 3DS’s touch screen

that introduced Waluigi to the Mario universe, and you could unlock new content using the GBC Transfer Pak.

for some shots, and you can also use the console’s gyroscope to turn the camera.

Mario Power Tennis (2004) Released on the GameCube in 2004, Mario Power

Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash (2015)

Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash released for the Wii U in November 2015. You can play as one

Camelot Software Planning Camelot Software Planning – otherwise known as Camelot Co. Ltd – is a Japanese video game developer established in 1990. The development company are best known for their Mario Tennis and Mario Golf games, however they also created many of the Shining games.

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JUNE 2018

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