Spring is here, and, with our chance to step on to the court in Mario Tennis Aces drawing ever closer, Nintendo has broken details on Zone Shots, Zone Speed, and Special Shots in the Nintendo Switch exclusive.
Zone Shots
Zone Shots are a new type of shot introduced in this game. It’ll let you decide exactly where to aim your shot. The far corner of the court? Sure. The opposite side to your opponent? Go for it! Just use motion controls to pinpoint where that shot will go.
But that’s not all! The real strength of the Zone Shot is this. Take a Zone Shot head-on and your racket will be damaged. Three Zone Shots and your racket will break. The number of rackets you can bring to a match is decided beforehand, and if all your rackets break, you’ll lose the match by KO!
Aiming at places your opponent can’t reach is a good way to rack up steady points, or you can be more direct – hit your opponent head-on and take out their rackets! As you can see, Zone Shots bring a new dimension of strategy to the game.
Zone Speed
When your racket can’t quite reach the ball your opponent returns… When you can’t react quickly enough to a Star Shot… That’s when you need a little bit of Zone Speed!
When you use Zone Speed, the world around you will slow down while you chase those hard-to-reach balls. Remember the Zone Shots we introduced before? With some good timing, you can block them and avoid damaging your racket, and Zone Speed makes it easier to perfect that timing.
But be aware that you can’t just use Zone Shots and Zone Speed whenever you feel like it! They deplete your Energy Gauge, so you’ll need to use them sparingly. Judging whether to spend your energy on an offensive Zone Shot or some defensive Zone Speed is the key to tennis success.
Special Shot
Special Shot is the trump card that becomes available once your Energy Gauge is full. A Special Shot will max out ball speed and shot power. It’ll deplete a hefty chunk of your Energy Gauge, but it can break an opponent’s racket in one hit! It takes three Zone Shots to break a racket, which goes to show how much stronger Special Shots are.
If you’re winning and want to cement your victory, or losing and want to turn the tables, a Special Shot is the way to go. If a Special Shot comes your way, then you can avoid the risk of breaking your racket by letting it through.
However, if you know you’ll lose if your opponent gets one more point, then you’ll have to rely on your skill and judgement to return that ball however you can!
Mario Tennis Aces will release exclusively for Nintendo Switch worldwide on June 22nd.
