After the title leaked on the classification board over the weekend, Big Ant has today revealed that AO Tennis is coming to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on January 16th.
The game is the first officially licensed Australian Open tennis game featuring Rafael Nadal on the front cover. It also differs from other tennis games in the sense that Melbourne’s Big Ant Studios have apparently been able to base player’s gameplay and difficult on their real life counterparts.
Ross Symons, the CEO if Big Ant had the below to say about player likeness:
“With previous tennis games, the world #1 would be challenging to beat, because his or her in-game attributes would be set to merely make fewer errors. That worked well at the time, but we’ve taken things to the next level. In AO Tennis Rafael Nadal is the hardest player to beat because in game he plays like his real life counterpart; he plays a game style befitting the #1 player in the world.”
The game will feature grass, hard courts and clay, but it’s probably unlikely that other Grand Slams will be named. It’s also unclear if Rafael Nadal and Angelique Kerber will be the only top players in the game.
The game will also have a full career mode where you start out as number 1,500 in the world and work your way to the top.
Craig Tiley, the Tournament Director for the Australian Open had the below to say about the game:
“We wanted to ensure this is the most authentic tennis video game ever created, so that our fans can not only have a great AO experience, but a great tennis video game experience. On top of all of that, they get a tennis experience from the couch which we hope leads them on to the court.”