Older generations will certainly remember the early 2000s, when Virtua Tennis and TopSpin were two excellent game series based around the yellow felt ball. The last offshoot, TopSpin 4, was released eleven years ago and the genre has been very quiet since then. With TopSpin 2K25, the series is finally (albeit surprisingly) returning to the screens. Our TopSpin 2K25 review shows that the tennis simulation has lost none of its fascination.
TopSpin 2K25 at a glance
| Title | TopSpin 2K25 (Official Website) |
| Genre | Sports game / Tennis simulation |
| Developer | Hangar 13 |
| Publisher | 2K Games |
| Release date | 26. April 2024 |
| Platforms | PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S |
| Number of players | 1-4 |
| Price | € 64.99 * |
TopSpin 2K25 Review: Finally a good tennis game again
- excellent, realistic gameplay
- new options for beginners and pros
- motivating timing system
The dry spell for tennis fans who want to chase the yellow felt ball around the court virtually has finally come to an end. After past attempts to revive the genre with titles such as AO Tennis or Tennis World Tour failed due to the quality of the games, TopSpin 2K25 sees the top dog return to the center court. This comes as quite a surprise, as 2K Games only unveiled the title in March.
From a gameplay perspective, the fifth offshoot picks up exactly where its acclaimed predecessors on the Xbox 360 left off. TopSpin 2K25 presents itself as a genuine simulation of the sport and builds on part four in terms of gameplay.
This fact alone should be enough for fans to know: The basis is right. And indeed it is, because from a gameplay point of view, the title reproduces the real sport so accurately and well that there is hardly any room for improvement.
Instead of somehow getting the ball over the net, 2K25 is all about perfect timing. Positioning to the ball and a lot of feeling. The sim is beginner-friendly enough to allow newcomers to quickly achieve their first successes. And yet the gameplay offers so much depth that professionals can inflict damage on their opponents with centimeter-precise smashes.
The four basic shots such as top spin, slice and lob need to be timed perfectly. To achieve this, TopSpin 2K25 displays a corresponding bar when you hold down the action button, which indicates in a green area when you should release it for the perfect shot.
If you succeed, your shots will not only be much more powerful but also much more precise over the net. With good timing, this also works quite well, while returns hit “too early” or “too late” are easy to counter.
It takes a little while to get a feel for the timing and positioning of the ball, but then the shot system becomes second nature and you can chase your opponent around the court without looking at the bar.
In addition, the different surfaces such as sand, grass or a hard court have a realistic effect on the gameplay and the trajectory of the ball. And so TopSpin 2K25 achieves a gaming experience that is a lot of fun and makes us really cheer along in our chair as we play, in a way that hardly any other sports game can.
All beginnings are difficult
- extensive tutorial
- varied game modes
- Online multiplayer with cross-play
To get going faster, you should first pay a visit to the TopSpin Academy. In this tutorial, the game familiarizes you with the basics and advanced techniques in various exercises. The whole thing is curated by tennis icon John McEnroe, who is also playable in TopSpin 2K25. The fact that the ex-professional, known for his quick temper, provides calm and objective assistance is both a blessing and a curse, as broken rackets would have been quite funny if you had made a mistake.
But TopSpin 2K25 also has a lot to offer beyond the tutorial. In solo mode, for example, you can compete in exhibition matches either alone or in doubles, in which you can choose from 25 professional tennis players. These include current players such as Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Świątek, as well as legends from the 2000s, 1990s and 1980s. For example, Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Steffi Graf will be making an appearance.
The roster is manageable, but has a lot of quality to offer. Especially as 2K Games wants to add more players as free updates after the release. However, a little more choice at the start would have been nice. The centerpiece for solo players is the career mode, for which you cobble together your own player and work your way up to the top of the tennis world rankings.
There are also various multiplayer modes on a console or online, where single matches and tournaments are available. In the World Tour, you compete with your pro against other players and compete in various tournaments, while the 2K Tour offers varied and time-limited challenges.
Fortunately, TopSpin 2K25 can not only be played online on one platform. Thanks to cross-play, cross-platform matches between PC and consoles are also possible. Top. At the time of testing, there weren’t too many players on the servers, but they were stable. Let’s hope that this will still be the case when the number of players increases at release.
The career mode of TopSpin 2K25
- Career mode with 20-25 hours of playtime
- motivating level system
- Microtransactions available
By far the most extensive and motivating game mode in TopSpin 2K25 is undoubtedly MyCAREER. Here you can let off steam in an extensive editor to cobble together a professional to your liking. Once this is done, you start at the bottom of the tennis world rankings with the aim of winning the four major Grand Slam tournaments.
As is typical for the genre, your pro starts with manageable stats, which you can increase by completing tasks and winning matches. In a total of eight categories, such as forehand, backhand, power and speed, you can choose to distribute the attribute points you gain freely or have the game distribute them based on your preferred playing style.
While you barely hit a serve into the court at the beginning and run out of breath pretty quickly, your character develops into a real contender for tournament victories over the course of your career, which is incredibly motivating.
However, it takes a lot of time and energy to get there. In the TopSpin 2K25 career mode menu, you work through this month by month. In each month, you can complete training sessions, tackle special sponsor challenges with their very own rules or compete in tournaments.
Alternatively, and also very important, you can take a breather. Because if you put too much strain on your character, you risk injury, which can set you back for months. Little by little, you will attract new sponsors or hire trainers to improve your skills in certain areas.
Especially in combination with the varied tasks, MyCAREER is the game mode in which TopSpin 2K25 keeps you glued to the ball the longest. It takes around 20-25 hours to reach the top of the tennis world rankings. So the scope is just right.
However, the microtransactions, for which the sports games from 2K Games are now notorious, are once again a source of annoyance. The in-game currency VC is quite rare, but if you like, you can simply buy it for real money. Fortunately, the tennis world is not quite as brazen as the WWE and NBA games and the microtransactions are purely optional, although successes can be achieved quite quickly even without real money purchases.
Strong presentation, decent technology
- harmonious atmosphere
- excellent soundtrack
- good graphics, but could do with a little more detail
From a graphical point of view, TopSpin 2K25 is perfectly fine. The leap from its eleven-year-old predecessor is of course clearly recognizable, but the tennis game cannot keep up with the quality of NBA 2K or EA Sports FC. The character models and spectators simply lack detail. At least the arenas are much more detailed and lively in comparison.
However, the title makes up for this with an all-round harmonious atmosphere. From the harmonious run-in of the players before the game, to the smooth animations and the reactions of the players, TopSpin 2K25 looks absolutely coherent. The fact that the players also leave realistic marks on the various courts is also absolutely fitting and adds to the atmosphere.
This is also supported by the excellent soundtrack. The players’ voices change depending on the situation on the court, the sneakers squeak on the floor on the hard court and the hits are staged with great force.
The whole thing is accompanied by an excellent licensed soundtrack featuring artists such as Fall Out Boy, Swedish House Mafia and Calvin Harris, which perfectly accompanies the cutscenes and runs into the arena. The only thing the title does without is a commentator, which personally doesn’t bother me at all, as I usually mute it in sports games anyway.
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TopSpin 2K25 Review: Conclusion
I was personally delighted that the series would make a surprise comeback with TopSpin 2K25, but I was even more pleased that it would turn out so well from a gameplay perspective. In terms of gameplay, the new part of the series picks up where part four left off and adds some fresh nuances to the gameplay that was almost perfect at the time, which should please newcomers and pros alike.
Long-term motivation is provided above all by the career mode, which with its upgrades and development options will easily keep you glued to the screen for 20 hours. But TopSpin 2K25 should also keep players glued to their screens in online multiplayer, as there is plenty of variety on offer here too.
Combined with the harmonious atmosphere, the impeccable controls and the excellent soundtrack, the result is a coherent overall package that easily puts all tennis games of the past eleven years in the shade and can compete with the greats of the genre.
Although the graphical implementation could certainly have been better and the title would have benefited from a few more licensed players, the simulation doesn’t really offer much cause for criticism apart from that. Fortunately, the microtransactions are also pleasantly restrained by 2K standards. So if you fancy a really good tennis game again, TopSpin 2K25 is the game for you.
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Pros
|
Contra
|
|---|---|
| realistic gameplay varied stroke variants & play styles successful timing system |
– no contesting of referee decisions – Timing display not always visible |
| extensive tutorial different levels of difficulty impeccable controls |
– quite high entry hurdle – challenging even at the easiest level |
| extensive career mode fun challenges varied online modes |
– manageable roster – no real mini-games |
| harmonious atmosphere & presentation buttery smooth animations excellent soundtrack |
– somewhat poorly detailed character and spectator models – no commentators |
TopSpin 2K25
Gameplay
Balance
Scrope
Graphics & Sound
91/100
The king of the genre is back and has lost none of its fascination. TopSpin 2K25 is an outstanding tennis simulation that impresses with its impeccable gameplay, coherent scope and motivating modes.
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