Some thoughts on this game...

[Ed]

Some pros:

- Tournaments are fun
- Like that it does 7-ball! (never seen this anywhere else)
- AI plays a plausible game; it's not rubbish then hot ♥♥♥♥ the very next minute like many of the Virtual Pool 4 AIs
- Active devs and frequent updates
- Quite many customisables such as ball sets, table size, chalk colour, background, music tracks, etc.

Some negatives:

- Table looks distorted - when looking down it it looks too long, much longer than it is wide
- If, for example, the only ball on is the 2-ball, then the camera should immediately point to the centre of that ball when it's your turn, and not point aimlessly down the table! This is really poor and an annoyance. Ditto when it's the AI's turn, the camera should immediately look at the ball it intends to play and not rotate the view. Please fix this.
- Fine control of the cue ball like in VP4 or Shooter's Pool just isn't there, and spin feels wrong somehow
- I don't see any tournament vs casual table options like in VP4 with different table speeds, different pocket cuts, and different sized pockets
- The US table pockets are way too small - these are like buckets in real life!
- I cannot find a way to make it shuffle the in-game music tracks
- In 7-ball, the 7-ball should be striped as in the official/TV game

Overall, it's pretty entertaining and I recommend it; however, there are more realistic, hardcore billiards sims out there. This one leans slightly more towards arcade-like.

[Bulldog Interactive]

Thank you Ed, some good feedback there. We have more updates on the way so will definitely consider these points carefully. There is an option to change the table aspect ratio, go to Options > Tables > Global Settings, and set 'Proportions' to 2:1. In this same menu there are also options for table and cushion speed, sliding friction and size of pocket holes. Pocket jaws can be adjusted from the table design screen underneath the metallic plating options.

[Ed]

Awesome, thanks for the tips :) The more I play, the more I like. I've now experimented with the table options - speed, cushions and pocket size and cut - and have got it much more how I want it. One more thing I wanted to mention was the applause delay - I think this is way too long as it stands. The audience should clap much sooner when someone plays a good shot. Also, they will often clap when a player pockets a ball from what is an obvious fluke :)

[Bulldog Interactive]

Glad to hear you're enjoying the game Ed, it does certainly help to spend a little extra time setting up the many options. Thanks for the comments on audience applause - we will try and take a look at this shortly. Also, we have released update #67 today and have attempted to address some of the points above (auto camera focus, audio shuffle play, plus a new striped 7-ball). Patch notes are on the news page :)

[Ed]

Brilliant, many thanks. Other companies take note: this is what true customer service is all about!

[Ed]

I have updated my review of the game, btw. It's considerably more positive than it once was, now I have played the game more, learned more about it and have had your feedback, and requested changes so quickly implemented!

[Ed]

Update after today's updates: Very pleased with the changes to 7-ball, the improvements in the UI (more detail on the ball which is on), shuffling music tracks, and so on. However, I notice that the new feature of the camera immediately centring on the on-ball is not working. I have also noted this in the updates thread to make sure you see it.

I keep finding new features. I like the way, for example, in Euro pool you cater to both Blackball and the old international rules :)

[Bulldog Interactive]

Thanks Ed, we did just fix an issue on camera tracking in 9-ball pool. Try the latest update added today, hopefully this will solve it?

[Ed]

Thanks, guys. I will test it later today (it was 7-ball I noticed it wasn't working - I didn't try another billiards variant yet).

[Ed]

Update: tested the new auto camera focus (on the on-ball) with 7-ball, 8-ball, 9-ball, Euro pool and snooker. Working well as far as I can see. Nice work, chaps - thanks! The only instance, I noticed, when it isn't working properly is after an in-off.

[Bulldog Interactive]

That's good to hear. Another small update added today - there is a fix for camera focus following an in-off. It should be working fine now.

[Bulldog Interactive]

Just a note to say that we have also fixed the applause timing with the latest update #68. The theatre audience now respond with clapping more quickly when a good shot is played.

[Ed]

Thanks guys!