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Top 5 iPhone games to play after Wimbledon finishes

How to beat those no-tennis blues

Top 5 iPhone games to play after Wimbledon finishes
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The annual bout of ball-thwacking known as Wimbledon is a curious and uniquely British phenomenon. Much as the Glastonbury festival attracts thousands of people who for 362 days of the year would rather listen to Paul Young than Neil Young, so too Wimbledon brings out all those 'tennis fanatics' who are strangely absent for the rest of the tennis season.

I'm not knocking it - I'd count myself among such people (maybe not the Paul Young part). Regardless of our fickleness, though, the pull of SW19 is undeniably powerful. When the tournament ends and the last cup is lifted, it leaves behind it a gaping hole in your leisure time.

You miss the sporting atmosphere, the camaraderie of the over-privileged commentary team and Boris Becker's comedy stereotypical-German act (it has to be an act, right?)

Here we have a few suggestions for iPhone games to fill that void. To be honest, we haven't discovered a grade-A tennis game on the App Store yet, so we've thrown in a few alternative choices. So here's our list of post-Wimbledon withdrawal cures in order of relevancy.

Top 5 iPhone games to play post-Wimbledon

Real Tennis 2009

Okay, let's start this list as we have no intention of going on - with a proper tennis game. Real Tennis 2009 is probably the best of a fairly mediocre bunch, in that it offers up a fully featured and solidly playable tennis experience.

Perhaps its defining quality is in the visuals department, with Gameloft painting an almost console-standard picture on your iPhone.

The controls are slightly clunky, and the game suffers from a lack of licensed players and stadia, but Real Tennis 2009 remains the best traditional tennis experience on iPhone. Perfect to ease those Wimbledon blues.

Tennis Slam

The only things tying Tennis Slam to Real Tennis are the word 'tennis' in the title and the core concept of whacking a ball over a net. The means by which this is achieved is very different, with Tennis Slam best described as a portable Wii Tennis.

If that means nothing to you, it plays a little something like this: you control both members of a doubles partnership, with the nearest one to the ball taking each shot.

You play the ball by flicking your iPhone at the appropriate moments, with ball-direction dependent on timing. It's very simple - perhaps overly so - but it's extremely good fun and perfect for a quick bash when you're out and about and pining for Sue Barker.

Table Tennis Star

Okay, so it's the wrong kind of tennis. But it involves whacking a ball back and forth, and what does the difference in scale matter when it's all being played on your wee iPhone? Table Tennis Star started out life as a very good mobile game, before being turned into this decent iPhone game.

The developer hasn't quite managed to translate the game to touch control particularly well, but the core quality of the ping-pong experience still shines through. With the emphasis on tricky spin shots rather than raw power, this is for all those Roger Federer fans looking to play a game of style and finesse.

Block Breaker Deluxe 2

Block Breaker Deluxe 2 wants you to keep an ever-moving ball in play in order to score points. Just like tennis, you see? Okay, so it's more 'tenuous' than 'tennis'. But perhaps a trip down this more abstract road is just what you need to wean yourself off of a pure tennis diet and back onto your formerly game-rich intake.

And besides, who among us doesn't think that tennis would be improved immeasurably by neon courts and bonus power-ups? I'd certainly pay to watch Rafa Nadal trying to handle a Multi-ball. On a side note, Block Breaker Deluxe 2 is probably the best Breakout clone on iPhone – and there are a few.

Rolando 2

The final approach to getting over Wimbledon-fever is to go cold turkey, to sever all ties with the grunty ladies and glowering men of Centre Court. And what better way to achieve this than by getting hooked on an all new, totally different but similarly addictive experience?

Tracy's covered why we love Rolando 2 in his recent review, but here's a summary for those of you who've stumbled into this article fresh from two weeks of untamed tennis hedonism: roll around colourful sentient blobs, tilt, touch, flick, collect stuff, big smiles.

Most importantly though, Rolando 2 won't abandon you after two weeks (sniff).

Jon Mundy
Jon Mundy
Jon is a consummate expert in adventure, action, and sports games. Which is just as well, as in real life he's timid, lazy, and unfit. It's amazing how these things even themselves out.