Codies unveils Rafa Nadal Tennis

Codemasters has announced plans to release Rafa Nadal Tennis for the Nintendo DS this December, which not only features touch-screen controls but also allows you to play with up to three friends on a single game-card. Ooh.

Developed by Spanish chaps Virtual Toys, the game lets you move your player around with the stylus and then use sweeping gestures to perform serves, lobs, drop shots, power shots and so on.

There's also a d-pad control option if you prefer, with a Tennis School tutorial mode that adapts its lessons depending on your control preference.

The meat of the single-player game will be found in Career mode, which offers 20 tournaments in 17 international locations, and allows you to play as Nadal himself or roll your own character instead.

There'll be five key performance attributes - serve, forehand, backhand, smash and speed - that you can upgrade by earning credit from matches, and you'll also win money to spend on new equipment or hiring a doubles partner.

And if you want to play with other people, as mentioned you'll be able to go head to head or even play four-player using just one copy of the game, thanks to the DS' wireless networking and single-card multiplayer options.

See elsewhere on the site for some shots of the game in action.