Taking a look back at the games Rockstar has developed; one might be a little bit confused when seeing their new title on the rack. The name Rockstar has been synonymous with violence. Rockstar tackling table tennis sounds a little bit like Jenna Jameson tackling Shakespeare. Which is why there are so few people excited for this game, and that is truly a shame. Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis one of most intense and enjoyable games available for the 360. One must give credit were credit is due, Rockstar actually made a game about ping pong, that is infinitely more enjoyable than actually playing the game in reality.

Features

• Graphics so realistic, that only Fight Night Round 3 rival them
• Intuitive controls that are easy to learn and fun to master
• Character animations that mirror the momentum of the match
• Virtually lag free online play
• One of the easiest next gen games to make a drinking game out of

Pong to the 360th Power

Rockstar Presents Table Tennis is one of the most visually pleasing games to hit the 360. The character animations are of such a high quality that they actually effect how much the player is immersed in the game. The amount of detail that has been placed into this title is quite impressive. The clothes on the players appear as a separate entity, and once the player begins to sweat it is visible on their apparel. Hell, there is even a rumor going around that the most recent patch for the game has decreased the previously overly well endowment for the male players in the game, if that’s not attention to detail, I have no idea what is. If only Rockstar could send a patch my way, and do the exact opposite, my girlfriend may not mind me playing video games so much. Another very nice touch to the overall feel of the game is that they made the players actually look human, not like they just finished a long day of starring vacantly into a camera for some God damn soulless Gap or Calvin Klein add; and then decided to take their surgically altered bodies and newly formed noses for a nice round of table tennis. It may seem small, but that is a very commendable move on Rockstar’s behalf. They could have easily have put their female players in bikini’s, given their breasts an engine all their own, and sold quite a few more units, I’m looking at you Itagaki.

Thank You Sir Can I Have Another!
The control scheme is quite intuitive, but Rockstar was nice enough to include a training option in the menu. Once you get used to putting the right kind of spin on the ball, and conquer placement, the game really opens up. In a good rally one can get into a zen like state of mind that is reminiscent of playing paddle ball on the beach with a friend of family member, because face it, you were never good enough at ping pong to hit it back and forth more than a handful of times, and that time you could have practiced you spent playing video games. Rockstar has added a rally counter at the bottom right hand of the screen that not only adds pressure to a high scoring rally, it adds replay value, and the ability to create multiple forms of drinking games around it.

The animations are smooth and the fluidity of the character and idle stance to an active hit never seems mechanical. Even the transition from a focus shot (essentially bullet time) back to the game is smooth. This game exudes class, yes, a Rockstar game…exuding class. The only small eye sore that I have noticed are the scores in the right and lefts corners that occasionally blink. It is a small detraction, but in a rally that nears 100, any distraction from the game is irritating.

Ping Pong
In line with the high quality and attention to detail, Table Tennis’s sound design and character voices are top notch, this will seem like a given until you play games like Time Shift and realize voice acting isn’t always so easy to nail. The in game sounds fit quite well, but never draw an overt amount of attention to themselves. The crowd sounds are convincing and flow with momentum of the match, that being said, it would have been nice to actually see the crowd here and there. There is some in game music, but it only kicks in once your rally hits 15. It is a nice touch that adds to the intensity of the match and never seems forced.

Fault
Now it’s time to stop giving the good old folks at Rockstar the preverbal reach around, and nicely ask them to put their collective pants back on. There are a few things about this title that will irritate some folks. The lack of career mode is surprising, and it would be nice to have the ability to create a character (if only to have them play in their underwear). I know Rockstar is going for a “no frills” gaming experience, but the occasional frill adds replay value, even something as small as buying new paddles, or shoes, or grip tape, or whatever the hell professional Table Tennis players do, because I honestly have no idea, and have never cared until now. If not for an almost flawless online experience this game would lose an immense amount of replay value.