Players can perform several tennis shots using different controls for flat, top spin, slice, and lob swings.

[5] In 'Career' mode, the player is able to create a custom character with a create-a-player interface to rise through the ranks of an international tennis league.

[4] Players progress by winning 'coin' from tournaments and sponsorship challenges, allowing them to pay for training sessions and purchase new cosmetic upgrades.

[6] Top Spin was released by Microsoft Game Studios under the branding of XSN Sports, a series launched in 2003 following the launch of Xbox Live in the previous year with enhanced online capabilities for sports games, including for players to set up leagues, build tournaments and review data on the website.

[7] The game was supported by a roster of sixteen professional players, including Tommy Robredo, Jan-Michael Gambill and Michael Chang,[8] with the cover of the Xbox version featuring Lleyton Hewitt,[9] and the PlayStation 2 version featuring Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova.

"[12] GameZone found the controls of the game to be accessible and player-friendly, whilst "evolving" in difficulty and presenting a challenge for players of all skill levels.

[22] GamePro similarly described the gameplay as "responding intuitively and naturally right from the start", whilst noting the game "has its own quirks", such as power-up shorts and serves being "more challenging than they should be.

GameSpot wrote that the inclusion of Xbox Live support put the game "head and shoulders above the competition", praising the "good number of play options" and XSN Sports features.

[3] Eurogamer noted the career mode "could have been a lot better", citing the limited tournament pool of sixteen players and "lack of real competitions".

[13] GamePro commented that the pacing of the career mode was "a bit off as it's easy to train up your player too quickly.

"[17] Despite finding the career mode to offer a "good amount of entertainment", Game Revolution critiqued the game's skills system and training sessions as not "very thrilling", and the cash system to be "sort of useless" in its use to purchase cosmetic upgrades.

[15] The PlayStation 2 port of Top Spin received less favorable reviews due to the reduced graphics.