Tennis was among the titles Nintendo had ready for the very first months of the Game Boy's existence, and it brings a classic tennis match to the handheld in a simplified but functional form. The player controls one of two tennis players on a court shown from the side, and the game offers both singles and doubles matches, with a link cable connection between two consoles also available for playing against another person. The player can choose from several characters with different attributes, which brings at least a bit of variety to the simple concept, even though this is one of the technically simplest titles in the console's early library.
The controls are straightforward – the player moves around their half of the court and times their shots so as to hit the ball at the right moment and set both its direction and power. On the monochrome display, the movement of the players and the ball remains legible despite the low resolution, and even though the game lacks the depth of later sports simulations, its simple rules and quick matches made it an ideal title for short play sessions on the go. The sound is minimalist, limited to short shot and scoring effects, in keeping with the handheld's technical capabilities of the time, but it still lends matches an appropriate rhythm and tension when the score is close.
Today, Tennis is seen chiefly as an example of how, from the very start, Nintendo designed its portable console with undemanding sports entertainment in mind too, playable in short bursts between other activities. Even decades on, the game remains playable thanks to its clear controls, and for collectors of early Game Boy titles it stands as an important reminder of how a simple sports genre could work on a pocket-sized monochrome display without any need for complicated systems or menus, a far cry from the significantly more complex sports simulations a modern player would expect from tennis today.
Why play it: For clear controls and undemanding sports fun in short bursts, it's a reminder of how simply a sports genre could work on a pocket-sized monochrome display without complicated menus.
Game 74 of 147 for Nintendo Game Boy
