Mario Tennis Aces impressions: unrelenting pressure in multiplayer
https://www.polygon.com/nintendo-switch/2018/6/3/17422930/mario-tennis-aces-impressions-multiplayer-demo-nintendo-switch
Mario Tennis Aces is a game of pressure. Relentless pressure, if you’re going to play against live competition. I figured this out about six matches into the demo tournament Nintendo staged this weekend — and I got throttled in all of them. I had a brutal introduction to the game’s multiplayer, sometimes perturbed by lag, and frequently determined by who built up their energy meter the fastest to unleash near-unstoppable attacks.
The game, launching June 22 on Nintendo Switch, does give players some defensive tools, such as a “trick shot” that is more about getting a player to the ball in a hurry, and the ability to slow time. But against a human player, once placed on the defensive, it is hard as hell to retake control — and in Mario Tennis Aces, even a modestly skilled receiver can take it away from the server on the first return.