The rules are a bit different than the ones we use for beach volleyball here in California.  Games only go to seven points and there are no side-outs, meaning that you can score even when you are not serving and that service faults result in a point for the other team.  These rules make for shorter games, especially since rallies usually don't last beyond three or four volleys.  Since the point of the volleyball is to earn money to buy a new swimsuit or gift, the developers probably wanted to spare you from long games.  This is actually a good thing, although for a different reason than intended.  The problem is that the volleyball games feel repetitive before too long.  The idle and cheering animations are very limited, so you'll see the same things and hear the same Japanese phrases over and over again.  Also, the controls are so limited that strategy and skill are almost non-factors in your success.  It's not that the volleyball game is terrible, it's just very simplistic and not very challenging.  When you lose points its usually for one of two reasons: your partner flubbed the ball or you couldn't see where you were standing.  The first issue can be made less of a factor by keeping your partner showered with expensive gifts as she'll play better when happy.  The second is a result of the fixed sideline cam.  The camera's main purpose is to keep the girls with the ball onscreen in all their glory and as a result the other side of the net often goes off-screen.  Needless to say, this can make it difficult to position yourself to receive a spike.

Each day on the island is divided into four phases, three daytime and one evening.  You can perform one action during each of these phases, be it playing volleyball, hanging out by the pool, or asking a woman to partner with you, although you are also allowed unlimited trips to the stores during the day as long as you visit them before the current phase's activity.  The night phase differs from the others in that the only available activities are a round of gift giving and a trip to the casino.  Since each day only allows you a few activities and some of these can be very short, the two week vacation can go quite quickly and you can play through it in about an hour.  This is not nearly enough time to collect even a fraction of the collectibles in the game, but your items will carry over to the next game.  There's not really any reason to place the time limit on the game other than to reset the relationships between the women and let you switch characters.  There's nothing different from one game to the next other than the opportunity to view the same opening and closing cutscene over again.

You might just want to pick up the calendar instead.

Graphics-wise the game looks really good.  The environments are detailed, colorful, and feature dynamic, time of day lighting.  The women look great, especially in the physics of gravity department.  They do come up a bit short in the skin texture department, though, as close-up zooms sometimes make the skin look like a coat of paint.  The hair does not look very natural either, and is not subject to the same laws of physics as other parts of the women's anatomy.  On the sound side of the coin, the game comes with an extensive soundtrack comprised primarily of perky pop tunes.  It actually fits the game's theme, but if you get tired of the soundtrack you can visit the island's radio station and queue up tracks off of your Xbox's hard disk.

At first the game holds a certain fascination, but before too long it will feel limited and repetitive.  The women in bikinis don't have much to offer after you tire of ogling them.  It's like dating a gorgeous woman with a vacuous personality and intellect, eventually you'll start wishing that there was more there and will want to move on.  When you take into account the fact that you are paying for a $50 swimsuit video, you can probably see that you're better off renting the game or getting the latest swimsuit DVD from Sports Illustrated.

In The End, This Game Hath Been Rated: 64%.  Unfortunately, beauty is only skin deep.

« Page 2