What is Paddle Tennis?
Lay the devices flat with their edges touching and the court runs across all of them: the ball leaves one screen and comes in on the next where the edges meet, at the same speed and on the same line.
Every player guards a goal line on the court's edge where they sit and slides a paddle along it. All the lines are one length, so a phone defends as much as a tablet.
How a match goes
After a 3-2-1 countdown the ball serves from mid-court. The paddle's face is a shallow curve, so where the ball meets it sets the angle it leaves at, and every hit makes it 6 % faster, up to a top speed.
Two players duel, on two phones or one: the first to 5, 7 or 11 points wins. The Aim guide, on unless you turn it off, draws a dotted line to where the ball will meet your line.
Three or more play free-for-all, as in 3 player paddle tennis: 3, 5 or 7 lives each, and with none left your line turns to wall. Four devices can also split into two teams, and so can two devices with two players or more on each.
What you need
Phones, tablets or a mix, iPhone and Android together: two top edge to top edge, three in a T or a line, four in a cross or a line. Mismatched screens play even cells the smallest one's size, unless you switch on Whole screens.
One device is enough for two: a line at each short end of the screen, for two people, or for you and a bot.
Modes
- Arcade
- Power-ups pop up mid-court for whoever hit the ball last, and blocks to break stand in the way.
- Classic
- Just the ball, the paddles and the lines.
Why it's fun at a table
Arcade gets loud: Multi-ball splits the ball into three, a Fireball races off, a Curve shot bends your hits, a Shield wall saves your line once.
The seam is the best part: your return leaves your screen and lands right in front of your friend. With four, it's one of the party games on phones.
Paddle Tennis: questions and answers
Can two phones make one court?
Yes, lay them top edge to top edge and the ball crosses the seam.
Can two people play on one phone?
Yes, one at each short end, each moving a paddle from their own half.
Can four people play?
Yes, 4 player paddle tennis plays free-for-all or in two teams, and up to four can share a device.
Can I play against the computer?
Yes, add a bot at Easy, Medium, Hard or Impossible: alone it takes the far end of your screen.
Is it free with no app?
Yes, open bigboard.games in the browser on each device; nobody signs up, and starting a table takes four steps.