Arcade Pool (Amiga) | grapeswriting

Arcade Pool - Review

(Team17, Commodore Amiga Game, 1994)

Top of the pots or just a load of old balls?

They say that a good snooker or pool player is a sign of a misspent youth. Those of a certain vintage may well remember the unique ambience of their local snooker club - the dim lighting, the respectful hush from other players, the fog of cigarette smoke so thick you couldn’t see across the room (Ed. – “You are showing your age again Grapes!”) and that constant, reassuring, clackety-clack of the balls. It was a great way to pass time with friends and, while snooker was the game of choice for the purists, there was also always a queue of people willing to pop 20 pence down on the pool table for a quick, fun blast, utilising many of the same skills.

Crowded Market?

In 1994 the Amiga could already boast a couple of extremely highly rated snooker and pool games. Virgin Games’ Jimmy White’s ‘Whirlwind’ Snooker (1991) or Archer MacLean’s Pool (1992) were the class leaders, offering an impressively realistic three-dimensional take on the games.

Team17’s Arcade Pool offers a different approach, replacing the remarkable 3D trickery with top-down 2D pick-up-and-play simplicity. It is clear that this isn’t intended to be a simulation (heck, there’s even a sizable clue in the title!) - this is very much an arcade experience, resulting in a game that is far more straightforward to play and instantly accessible.

The Team That Could Do (Almost) No Wrong.

Regular readers will know that I am a bit of a Team17 fan-boy. I have always felt that their titles tend to look and sound amazing, often displaying a crispness and quality of presentation that most other Amiga games can’t match.

Not only that, but they had a knack of making their games really fun to play and absolutely nailing that gameplay experience. Even now, some of my favourite titles include Alien Breed II, Superfrog, Project X Special Edition and Worms. So, was Arcade Pool another Team17 hit to add to an already impressive list, or a miscued white, jumped off the table and into someone’s beer? Let’s find out!

Pots of Fun?

Arcade Pool was released as a budget title (costing just £10.00) in 1994 and offers just about every variety of pool you can imagine, including most of the UK and USA eight and nine-ball variants. There are single matches or tournaments to play as a one or two player game, along with other versions such as 9-Ball Challenge, Trick Shot, Survivor and Speed Pool. There are selectable difficulty levels and a host of other customisable options, enabling the player to change the look of the table and even the friction level of the baize.

Control is via the mouse; using the left mouse button to set the direction, power and spin of your cue ball, and then a right-click takes the shot. It is a simple system and works extremely well. An on-screen display that shows the aim-point and subsequent cue-ball path will be welcomed by the new player, but as you become more proficient this is another selectable option that can be turned off if desired.

The physics are generally pretty good, though when balls collide they seem to react with a very slight increase in velocity, apparently sticking two fingers up at Newton’s third law and this does feel a touch odd. Yes - it is an arcade title, but even in an arcade pool game the ball physics should be reassuringly accurate. And, unfortunately, they aren’t, quite. It is marginal though and, apart from this, the balls do go where you would expect them to, and the cue ball’s reaction to the different types of spin and side is pretty realistic.

Foul

However I do have one complaint and, in respect of the one-player game at least, it is a significant one. Unfortunately, some of the computer opponents are just too strong. In fact a significant number are outrageously skilled, and this is a problem, as they are simply too good to make the single-player game very much fun.

And I should be clear here - I don’t mean “too good” as in “potting balls consistently and finding the correct position for the next shot”. That would be frustrating, but perhaps more of a fair challenge and less annoying. What we have here instead is the computer not caring about position, but making crazy calculations, showing off, and repeatedly playing highly unlikely and bizarre trick shots; shots that a human would never see, let alone attempt. It’s as if the better CPU opponents are playing a whole different game; conducting an ongoing exercise in high-level maths and angles, the results of which only serve to constantly remind the player that they are playing a computer and leave them feeling that they have no chance. Even in Rookie mode, you might have your opponent snookered only to watch them play an extraordinary escape, making a two or three-ball plant off three cushions enabling them to go on and win.

Recognise Some Names?

Some of the disproportionately stronger computer opponents are named after the Team 17 gang, and if you are unlucky enough to draw Martyn Brown (their Creative Director of the time) in a tournament, you may as well surrender before breaking off!

At the time, Team17 were locked in a somewhat acrimonious dispute with Amiga Power magazine, covered in some detail by Stuart Campbell (ex AP writer, reviewer and stand-in editor) on the magnificent AP2 website here. So it is an interesting aside but perhaps no coincidence that the weakest computer opponents in the game are all named after Amiga Power staff!

Two-Up

In fairness, the two-player game provides a much more even and engaging test, and is a lot of fun. The Speed Pool option is a great challenge too. In fact, any game mode where the player doesn’t have to face-off against a computer controlled opponent is enjoyable and rewarding.

So the game looks great, sounds good, offers a plethora of play modes and options and, in two-player or the individual modes, provides a lot of instant enjoyment. The physics, while not absolutely perfect, are certainly close enough to make for some decent entertainment. It’s a shame then that the CPU opponents’ difficulty level spikes so disproportionately, effectively spoiling the one-player game.

I may be a Team 17 fan-boy but unfortunately this one has to go down as a missed opportunity.

Graphics – 67%

While the game is graphically simplistic, it still looks like a typical Team 17 title with distinctive colourful and beautifully crisp visuals.

Sound – 88%

The honky-tonk piano introduction music is fabulous, offering more than a nod towards Black and White Rag (the theme tune from Pot Black - a BBC snooker programme of the 70s). The ball and table sounds along with the crowd applause are all realistic and well sampled.

Grab factor – 95%

Instantly playable, a joyously simple control system coupled with an impressively thorough selection of options and play modes make this a doddle to pick up and play. And it has an online manual too - impressive!

Playability – 66%

The two-player game is glorious, the game is easy to play and the game mechanics generally work well. But watching a stupidly strong computer opponent in the one-player mode pull off endless trick shots gets annoying very quickly and does spoil things somewhat.

Verdict 79%

AG - October 2024

Featured in Amiga Addict magazine, issue 35.