Virtua Tennis 3 - the 360 interview

GR: Virtua Tennis used to dominate the living room for multiplayer. What about Virtua Tennis 3 will bring it back to the forefront?

DM: The effort and work that has been poured into this title is immense. On our side alone we have aimed to really push the graphics with 1080p and fully utilize the 360's Live capabilities for all the on-line features. We think that the result is a truly enjoyable game!

Through Xbox Live you will be able to create teams with your friends, enter tournaments and really feel part of a tennis environment, while your friends and fans might just drop in and watch your game.

GR: What's the most important thing about making a tennis game?

DM: This is something that the Virtua Tennis series has been doing for years, and that's making sure the game is fun. This is a tennis game with a lot of clout, from the positioning of your player, to the speed and control that you have over the ball. You can play using your favorite tennis stars, with the addition of now playing online in a massive Virtua Tennis community.

GR: Virtua Tennis 3 is going to be one of the first 1080p games for the Xbox 360. How hard is it to squeeze out that kind of visual performance?

DM: Initially getting the game into 1080p resolution was pretty easy. Where the team had to put in some extra work was really in the tweaking stage to ensure the quality and full screen effects were the best they could be. From what you will be able to see, this should really pay off - the game really has the ability to shine at this resolution.

GR: What's better - playing in person on the sofa, or playing on Xbox Live?

DM: Personally, I prefer getting a few beers in, booting up the 360, seeing who is online and joining in with whatever's going on at the time.

I find myself playing games with other people for longer than I would have done on my own so I get loads more replay value from titles that I would historically have become bored with after a couple of months, banishing the game to the book shelf, so I'd say playing Xbox Live is better for me.