Virtual Pool (PlayStation)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 3.5 stars Very good
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 7.4 (3.5 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Josh Smith
• Reviewed on: 01/03/1997
• Updated on: 05/02/2000
• Released on: 02/28/1997
• Originally published on GameSpot: Virtual Pool (PlayStation) Review

For a pool title to be enjoyable, three features are essential: realistic physics, multiple points of view, and total control of the cue ball. Virtual pool has all three. The physics feel great: Balls go where they're supposed to and bank realistically (which in my case means my shots fail just like they should). The table is viewable from almost any angle, from right behind the eight ball, to underneath the table itself. Players may even view the action from directly overhead (something only Wilt Chamberlain could hope for in the real world). Control of the cue ball is also excellent: Hitting the ball at different points and speeds creates a wide variety of special effects. And because cue ball control is so good, putting English on the ball is never a problem. The cue stick speed control is awkward at first, but it soon becomes second nature. The PC version's mouse control would be a welcome addition but the Sony Mouse isn't supported.

Gameplay itself offers numerous possibilities: two-player, player vs. CPU (with 15 different levels of difficulty, from inept to masterful), and a one-player practice "free pool" mode. Games include 8-ball, 9-ball, Straight Pool, and Rotation. My favorite use of the game, however, was as a kind of billiards laboratory, trying out more liberal applications of English, slower shots, or more outlandish banks than I would dare use in a real game.

Virtual Pool does suffer from an abysmally slow frame rate (entire breaks seem to occur in four to five frames), and certain angles are a little fuzzy. The images in the score board are also a tad unclear. Don't expect any texturization, either; the felt is one solid block of green (or cyan, or tan). Sonically, the balls clack, thump off the banks, and yield a satisfying thunk when sunk. Predictably for a pool game, these sounds are few and far between, leaving a disquieting silence in between shots. The music is a bizarre hodgepodge of outdated hard-rockin' ballads and love themes. If Return to Porky's II came out straight-to-video, this would be the soundtrack.

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