E3 06: Virtua Tennis 3 Preshow Report

The Virtua Tennis series might have made its most recent appearance in late 2005 with Virtua Tennis: World Tour for the PlayStation Portable, but there hasn't been a new console entry in Sega's arcade-style tennis franchise since Sega Sports Tennis hit the PlayStation 2 in 2002, which makes the announcement of Virtua Tennis 3 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 an exciting development for fans.

Virtua Tennis 3 promises more of the same accessible, fast-paced gameplay that has defined the series over the years, though with a next-generation edge. Sega is touting photo-realistic graphics, detailed animations, and facial expressions that will allow for more accurate portrayals of the real-life tennis pros, and more challenging artificial intelligence. Like past editions, Virtua Tennis 3 will feature a career mode where you will travel the world, competing against real-life tennis pros in a variety of tournaments. You will be able to put yourself into the game with the player creation mode, which will feature a greater level of detail, as well as a ton of licensed tennis gear to equip your avatar with. Court-based minigames, which have been an integral part of past Virtua Tennis career modes, will make a return in Virtua Tennis 3, and fans can expect to see an assortment of both new and old minigames.

Though it might not initially sound like a lot has changed for Virtua Tennis 3, of possible significance is that the game is being developed by Sega-AM2, the studio responsible for the Virtua Fighter franchise, whereas past installments have been primarily the work of Crazy Taxi developer Hitmaker. Virtua Tennis 3 is currently in the works for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 and is slated for a spring 2007 release.