Mario Tennis: Power Tour

What if tennis were not just about hitting the ball but about your own journey from klutz to champion? Mario Tennis: Power Tour from 2005 combines arcade tennis with the Mario series and a surprisingly deep RPG mode that turns a handheld sport into something addictive.

The gameplay foundation builds on the proven formula of the Mario Tennis series by Camelot: colour-coded strokes, topspin, slice, lob and smash, and above all a system where you strengthen a well-timed shot. Added to this is a story mode in which you create your own character enrolling in a tennis academy. Training, matches and gradually raising stats give the game an RPG dimension that ordinary sports titles lack, and it motivates you to play one match after another.

In terms of development, Power Tour builds on Mario Tennis for the Game Boy Color, which introduced the same combination of tennis and character growth. Camelot, Nintendo's go-to studio for Mario sports games, thus took its idea to a more elaborate form on the GBA. The Mario characters here serve as a link to the wider world of Nintendo, but the centre of gravity of the experience lies on your own career.

Culturally, Power Tour fits into the long tradition of Nintendo taking simple sports and enriching them with its own layer of depth and humour. The Mario Tennis series became a fixture and Power Tour ranks among its most valuable handheld instalments precisely thanks to its extensive career mode.

For a player looking for a sport on the GBA that lasts longer than a few matches, this is the ideal choice. The combination of brisk tennis and gradual character growth holds you to the screen surprisingly long.

Why play it: Arcade tennis with an addictive RPG career mode from the specialists at Camelot, a sport that offers far more than just individual matches.