Five Magic Shots: A Beginner's Strategy for Wii Tennis

UPDATE: I don't blog here anymore. My new project is TrailBehind - a website for hikers and campers. I made a new blog on my site too.

These five shots will serve you well.

Magic Shot #1 - Smashing the Slow Serve (Forehand)
If your opponent dares to loop one over the net to your forhand, swing a bit early with little to no wrist action. If you can do this well-timed with a quick swing, it is a usually unreturnable Agassi-like chop across the forecourt.

Magic Shot #2 - Backhand Return
I find the best way to hit back any serve to my backhand is to return the ball with a quick top-spin flick of my wrist, as quick as I can swing and flick, timed a bit early to send it right. This works equally well against slow and fast serves.

Magic Shot #3 - Backhand Follow-Up
If they manage to return a Magic Shot #2, the ball is almost always hit squarely at your net man, since it's hard for them to get around on the ball. You can usually hit it right down the middle or left to take the point.

Magic Shot #4 - Quashing the Looper
If your opponent tries Magic Short #2 and hits it to early, it will almost always go in range of your net man, and you can similarly put the ball away.

Magic Shot #5 - The Fast Serve
Hit the ball at the top of the arc. You have to wait about a second after you toss before you come down fast and with as much topspin curve as your wrist can muster.

If you play a lot of tennis, or even have just read Infinite Jest, you probably understand the analogy that tennis is like "chess on the run." This analogy to chess is even more poignant in Wii Tennis, because the framework for moving around is pretty much constant. The game is an equal balance of tactical skill and strategic skill, and this makes it my favorite of the Wii sports games.

Learn the various shots and curves and think about how the come together to form a complete game.