Mario Tennis Aces cheats and tips - Tennis tips to take you from small time to star

In tennis, you use rackets to hit a ball over a net. Next tip.

No, right, that's a joke, that's not the whole tip, come back!

In Mario Tennis Aces you'll be using the four face buttons to volley the ball back and forth on the court.

A activates Topspin. B is a Slice. Y is a Flat. An overhead Lob is forward and X, while a low Drop Shot is down and X.

Hold the stick to the left or right as you charge up your shots to angle the ball in that direction. Use it to confuse your opponent.

You can charge your Special Meter in the top left by charging up each volley by holding the button before the ball comes to you.

This is a double-edged sword however. If you charge you lose your mobility, so if a curveball comes at you, you might not be prepared to catch it in time.

The special meter is essential though for slowing down time with R, as well as performing Star and Special shots.

Tap the right stick in any direction, or double tap X while pressing a direction on the left stick, and you'll leap in the direction you pressed, special meter allowing.

These trick shots essentially allow you to reach balls and volley that would otherwise be incredibly difficult to catch.

Start working them in to your game plan slowly at first, and they'll quickly be an important part of how you play. Mario's trick shot jump even lets him dodge obstacles in Adventure Mode!

There's a decent variety of courts to play on in Mario Tennis Aces, and each offers a unique mechanic which changes up gameplay.

In some courts there will be obstacles on the net - Piranha Plants will eat a ball, and then spit it back onto the other side of the court to disorientate. Mirrows will absord a ball in one colour, and spit it out through another.

The ground type changes the way the ball bounces too. Sand will lower bounce quite a lot, making Drop Shots more deadly there than ever.

When a ball is being hit at you with proper velocity - a special shot - you'll need to volley at the perfect time to reflect it.

You can use special meter to slow down time by holding R, and during this time, you can move towards the ball and hit it in the perfect spot. For my money, the best spot is to have the ball right next to your character, so you're perfectly parallel with it.

This slow down mechanic can also be important for those big shots that make you nervous, but watch out that you don't use them too often and run out of special meter!