I was a huge fan of the Original Top Spin. I don’t have a 360 yet so I have not played Top Spin 2 until this PC version. I do not have a 360 controller but am using a Saitek Rumble pad that works pretty well even though I don’t like this controller very much for any game. So far I agree with the review but want to hit on the graphics issue in a little more depth. My setup is a 3800+ single OCed to 2.54 GHz, 1 GIG RAM, and a 6800GT. I know this system is getting out of date but still plays games like Oblivion etc. quite well with the right balance of settings. Well this game is unplayable in 1280x1024 which is the res I have played every game in for the past 3 years. It is just very choppy. So I am playing it in 1024x768 and it just does not look very good on my 1280x1024 native LCD. The main problem I have with this is there are VERY few graphics options to be able to tweak it to look better in 1280x1024. About the only thing you can adjust are shadows and 3 levels of crowd detail, and special effects being on or off. None of these seem to affect the game very much and so you are left having to lower the res. I don’t know it this game is using bloom or HDR, it kind of looks like its bloom but they give you no way to turn that off if so. That right there would make the game much smoother on older video cards.
Like the GS review and one other user’s review hinted at this game will still get choppy and hiccup on pretty good cards like a 7950GT etc. This game just chugs on all but top systems. I really hope they come out with a patch to fix this or add more graphics options you can turn off / down to make it run better. Because for the price of an 8800GTS I could almost buy a 360 where the game would look and run better anyway! So why would I buy an expensive new GPU just to play the PC version of this game? I guess I wouldn’t.
Bottom line, unless you have a very good system, I would say at least a 7950GT or better GPU, you will be frustrated with this game’s performance and choppiness in any res larger than 1024x768. If you have a lesser GPU than a 6800GT I would not even try this game as it would be choppy even in 1024x786!
Well finally got this game loaded up, 360 controller for windows works without a hitch. My first impression of the game is similiar to when I played it on the 360, not bad but not quite as fun as the first top spin. Surp... Read Full Review
If you like tennis or even play tennis , you will be impress with the hitting motion of the players , it is amazing. Starting a career is fun since you have to struggle your way to the top and this ain't easy. The firs... Read Full Review
