Ace Storm

About Ace Storm

Ace Storm is arcade tennis that keeps the part most browser tennis games throw away: the scoring. Points run 15, 30, 40, deuce and advantage, games stack into a match, and a rally can swing from comfortable to lost in two shots. The ball bounces properly too — let it bounce twice and the point is gone, so every rally is a small race to get your racquet there in time.

The swing is a timed input rather than an automatic return, which means whiffing is a real outcome and a badly judged approach costs you the point outright. Direction comes from what you hold as you swing: right for a deep drive, left for a drop shot just over the net, and a high ball or a mid-jump swing turns into an overhead smash. Beyond the ten-rival court ladder there's a quick match at two, three or five games, and a four-player knockout cup.

How to play Ace Storm

Run with the arrow keys or A and D, jump with W or the up arrow, and press Space to swing. Unlike most browser tennis, the swing is a real timed input — mistime it and you whiff entirely, which means getting to the ball early matters as much as reading where it will land.

Direction comes from what you hold as you swing. Hold right for a deep drive to the back of the court, hold left for a drop shot just over the net, and hold nothing for a flat rally ball. Swing at a high ball, or swing while in the air, and it becomes an overhead smash. Let the ball bounce twice and the point is gone, so every rally is a small race.

How to play Ace Storm

1. Choose a game speed on the menu (Slow, Medium or Fast), then pick Court ladder, Quick match, Arena or Knockout cup. Quick match lets you set the length first: Short at 2 games, Set at 3 or Long at 5.
2. When "press 💥 or tap to serve!" appears, press Space. The serve is placed into the far court for you, so there is nothing to aim; use those first moments to move towards the middle of your baseline.
3. Let the ball bounce before you play a ground stroke. A ball at waist height that has not landed yet cannot be hit and your swing will whiff; only a ball skimming the court, or one high enough to smash, can be taken before the bounce.
4. Pick your shot as you swing: Right for depth, Left for a short ball, nothing for a rally drive. Jump with W or the up arrow to take a high ball as an overhead.
5. You win the point if your shot bounces twice on the rival's side or they put it out or into their own half. The top bar shows the game score in tennis terms, from 15–0 through Deuce and "Adv".
6. Games are first to four points with a two-point lead, and the serve changes hands after every game. The match ends the moment someone reaches the target number of games.

Ace Storm tips and strategy

• Steer your smashes. Holding Right during a smash sends it to the back of the rival's court, and holding Left drops it just past the net. Hold nothing and it lands mid-court, the easiest version to run down.
• Drop shots have to be played from the front. From deep in your own court, every shot is pushed to at least mid-court on the other side, so a Left-held drop from the baseline sits up nicely for the rival. Step in before you play it.
• Half-volleys are allowed. If the ball is right down at court level you can strike it before the bounce, which is handy when a deep ball would otherwise skid past you.
• No tiebreak, no two-game cushion. Matches end as soon as one player reaches the target, so a Full set can finish 6–5.
• Your opponent scales with you. Rival footspeed rises with your XP, and Quick match picks an opponent's skill from your XP too. A run of quick wins makes the next match noticeably harder.
• Straight-games wins earn top stars. On the ladder, winning without dropping a game earns three stars, and any other win earns two. Taking a game to love on the way to a match win also earns the Love game badge.

Modes and progression

The Court ladder is ten rivals in a row, each running faster and returning deeper, and every ladder match is first to two games. The Arena is separate from it and asks the same tennis four different ways. Full set is first to six games against a steady rival. Sudden death is a single game against the best player on tour. Gauntlet lines up three rivals back to back, first to two games each, and one defeat ends it. Title match is first to four games against a seeded opponent.

The Knockout cup is a semi-final and a final, both first to two games. The other semi-final is settled off court, and the stronger of the two rivals is the one waiting for you in the final.

Ranks run from Ballboy through Baseliner, Volleyer and Smasher up to Grand Slam at 6,800 XP. Badges for 20 smash points and five aces count across all your matches, not in one go. Coins buy racquet finishes in the Shop, from the free Wood classic to the 5,000-coin Diamond; they are cosmetic and do not change how the ball comes off the strings.