Mario Tennis: Power Tour

Mario Tennis: Power Tour is a sports simulation game developed by Camelot Software Planning and published by Nintendo, released for the Game Boy Advance in 2004.

This entry in the Mario Tennis series moves beyond simple exhibition matches by incorporating significant role-playing game elements. You begin by creating your own original tennis character, choosing their appearance and then guiding them through a story-driven adventure. The core of the gameplay involves not just playing matches but also training your character to improve their abilities. This includes participating in various mini-games and drills designed to boost stats like power, speed, spin, and technique.

Progression in Mario Tennis: Power Tour is tied to this character development. As your player's stats increase, they become more capable on the court, allowing you to tackle tougher opponents and more challenging tournaments. You'll learn new types of shots, such as slice serves, powerful groundstrokes, and delicate drop shots, by completing specific training objectives or by advancing through the narrative. The game provides a structured path to becoming a tennis master, blending the familiar arcade-style tennis action with RPG progression.

The narrative follows your character as they join a tennis academy and strive to become the best. Along the way, you'll encounter familiar Mario characters who act as coaches, rivals, or mentors. The matches themselves require precise timing and shot selection, with different buttons assigned to various strokes like flat shots, topspin, slice, and lobs. Mastering these controls is key to winning, especially as the difficulty ramps up in later stages of Mario Tennis: Power Tour.