After a few hours of play, it is apparent that it all seems to mesh together. Many of the tennis mini-games are too similar to each other; Sumo Digital needed to differentiate them drastically to make it interesting. The stages provided can be challenging at times with having players at the ready to press buttons at the appropriate time. The stages are also representative from past Sega video games with levels from House of the Dead, Super Monkey Ball, PuyoPop Fever and many more showing up. The stages with their mini-games often ask for players to accomplish a certain task such as hitting zombies, clearing out Puyos, or “tagging” the level like you would in Jet Grind Radio.

There’s also an ability that each character possesses called “Superstar Power.” It’s an ability that has players going into alpha mode to become faster and stronger with their shots, along with granting special attacks or trick shots. Gilius, from Golden Axe, will throw out his blue magic bottles that strike the other side of the court with lightning bolts and stun the opponents if they encounter them. Even though it all sounds fine and dandy, these special abilities aren’t the most alluring features to be added to the game as they become annoying when playing against your friends. But you won’t have to have them turned on all the time as there’s an option to turn it off prior to the match.

Developed by Sumo Digital, the makers of Virtua Tennis 3, Sega Superstars Tennis is full of mini-games, tournaments, quick-play matches, and the ability to jump online to compete in friendly matches. Sumo Digital opted to not include a career mode of any sorts, so in terms of replay value, gamers will have to look to the mini-games and the short tournament mode to find the longevity. Eight characters are available at the start while the other eight need to be unlocked through the mini-games. Investing your time into the mini-games is essential to get the most out of Sega Superstars Tennis.