EA South Africa launched EA Sports Grand Slam Tennis in South Africa at a sporty event held in Johannesburg yesterday.

Upon arriving at the German Country Club in Paulshof, each attending journalist was given a few goods that would later prove to be essential in order for EA to carry out their cunning plans for us unsuspecting members of the press. A closer inspection of the contents of the bag revealed a shiny new tennis racket (Federer Grand Slam of course, being branded with EA Sports Grand Slam Tennis on the cover was a nice touch), a pack of three tennis balls, a water bottle, sweat bands for the wrist (pink for girl players, blue for boys!) and a long-sleeve branded T-shirt.

With my hands wrapped around a warm cup of coffee in an effort to offset the chilly weather that had enveloped most of the country, I happened to glance to my left and notice a number of tennis courts. It suddenly became apparent that EA had nefarious plans to get us normally couch-bound journalists, most of whom were gamers, to play actual real-life tennis!

Ralph Spinks, Product Manager at EA South Africa, welcomed the now somewhat nervous crowd before laying out the morning’s plans. We were each divided into groups of roughly seven players, before being herded off to a tennis court along with our own personal professional tennis coach. Wayne and I had the honour of competing in the Australian Open, with other teams heading off to Wimbledon and other famous venues.

Despite icy winds and biting cold, it soon became apparent that our tennis coach Justin took his job very seriously and was not going to rest until he had whipped us all into shape (a long shot, even on a sunny day) and equipped us all with a mean backhand. After making us take two laps around the court, army style, he demonstrated the finer details to an effective forehand, backhand and serve. Needless to say he made it look easy, especially since the main exercise that most of us gamers get is thumb workouts.

After each facing a number of different balls thrown our way, it became apparent that some in our group were more talented than others. Although Wayne began by hitting sixes into the next court, he soon honed his serving skills to the dangerous level, so much so that a few of us became afraid to face him in our match. After a couple of hours on the court we retired to drinks, some well deserved snacks and a chance to test our newly learned tennis skills in Grand Slam Tennis.

EA had eight Wii units set up with the game running so everyone got the chance to step on to the court, even the tennis coaches, who proved to be quite formidable in the virtual world as well. Right from the start you could tell that the game is more responsive thanks to the Wii MotionPlus, which clips on to the bottom of the Wii Remote and comes with a new Wii Remote Jacket to accommodate the extra length.

It’s hard not to notice that each shot is far more accurate, with the new accessory picking up the exact angle and speed of your shot which ultimately affects where the shot lands. This achieves two things, firstly more realism as you simulate how a real game of tennis would play out, and secondly making it far easier to outwit and outplay your opponent by making him or her run more, stretching to reach shots at the edge of the court and then right against the net in just a matter of minutes.

Graphically Grand Slam Tennis is very pleasing. As the only game to feature Wimbledon, it’s clear that nothing has been spared to ensure the adrenaline, competitiveness and skill from the real tennis court translates into the game. Step into the shoes of some of the world’s greatest tennis players, including Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Boris Becker and John McEnroe, or create your own player, before testing your skills in Grand Slam Career Mode, where only the best of the best can walk away with wins to all four Grand Slams at Wimbledon, the U.S. Open, Roland Garros and the Australian Open.

Developed under the EA Sports brand by EA Canada, Grand Slam Tennis has been designed specifically for the Wii to bring players into Centre Court, allowing you to feel like you are actually playing tennis, performing forehands, backhands, slices, lobs and drop shots, all the while in control of shot depth, ball placement and even racket rotation!

The game also includes Tennis Party mode where multiple players can enjoy a dozen party games including King of the Court, Tag Team and Drops and Lobs. Grand Slam Tennis boasts online capability so players can connect with new opponents in both singles and doubles, vying for points to add to your country’s placement on the Battle of Nations leaderboard. An added bonus is that you can keep an eye on the number of calories you burn in each match, setting personal goals to help you get in shape using the game.

Grand Slam Tennis will be available in stores this Friday, the 12th of June. You can grab yourself a copy of the game for R499 or bundled with a Wii MotionPlus accessory for R699. The Wii MotionPlus will also be available separately this Friday for R349.99 so you and your friends can all play tennis with added accuracy.