Skip to content

Play

Pelota is a singles tennis game: you against the computer, or against a friend on the same computer. This section gets you started.

Get the game

When a build is published, it is on the releases page of the GitHub project. Download the file for your system, unpack it and start pelota.

Game modes

Match
Pick your player and your opponent, then play a full match on the stadium court. Each side can be played by the computer, the keyboard or a gamepad. So you can watch two computer players, play against the computer, or play against a friend.
Training
You alone on court with a ball machine on the far baseline. Move around freely and ask for a ball whenever you are ready (E or the right trigger). After each of your shots the screen shows whether it landed IN or OUT (or went into the NET) and how fast it was. This is the best place to learn the timing.
Training: the ball machine is on the far baseline. The green ring and line at your feet show where you can meet the incoming ball; the big ring on the far side shows where your shot will land.
Training: the ball machine is on the far baseline. The green ring and line at your feet show where you can meet the incoming ball; the big ring on the far side shows where your shot will land.

The rules in short

Pelota plays real tennis rules: points go 15, 30, 40 and game; at 40–40 (deuce) you need two points in a row. Six games win a set, but you need two games more than your opponent; at 6–6 a tiebreak to 7 points decides. A match is best of three sets.

A serve must land in the service box diagonally across; if it misses you get a second serve, and if that misses too it is a double fault and the point goes to your opponent.