As you may have noticed, we launched our redesigned website and forums this past Monday. However, the process of migrating the old site over to the new one actually started quite early on Friday morning last week. This meant we weren’t able to post our normal weekly features like the Game of the Week and our podcast. So! Because I don’t think we’ve ever missed a Game of the Week before and also because it wouldn’t be fair to the many excellent games that came out last week to miss out on the chance, we’ll be doing a double dose of Game of the Week posts today. This first one is from all the games that came out last week, and shortly after posting this, we’ll do our normal Game of the Week based on the games that came out this week. Cool? Cool.
Now without further ado, our pick for the Game of LAST Week is…
Pocket Run Pool
Surprise! Developer Zach Gage has once again taken an established game formula and put a wicked spin on it to create something that feels totally fresh, and we’ve ONCE AGAIN fallen in love with it. We’ve seen this sort of thing before from Gage with Solitaire, Poker, and Chess, but now he’s gone and turned billiards on its ear with his latest game Pocket Run Pool (Free). At first glance, Pocket Run Pool looks like any number of other pool games available on mobile. You play from a top-down perspective, sliding your finger around to aim your shot using a guide line and then actually hitting your shot by flicking on a pool cue. The harder you flick, the harder your shot. If this was simply a regular pool game Pocket Run Pool would be average at best. The physics are just OK and aren’t nearly the level you’d expect from a full-blown simulation.
But this isn’t just a regular pool game. The “twist" is that each pocket on the table has a multiplier attached to it. After a shot is made, the multipliers rotate clockwise and should you pocket the 8 ball (which would normally end your game, but not here) then the multipliers switch to random pockets. Your goal then is to try and make all the balls into the pockets with the number on each ball being multiplied by whatever the multiplier was on the pocket you made each one in, thus giving you a total score at the end. You also only get 3 extra balls so should you miss a shot or scratch while shooting one of those “lives" will be taken away.
That doesn’t sound terribly exciting when I explain it with words, but that scoring mechanic makes all the difference for Pocket Run Pool. Suddenly you’re not just looking for the easiest shot to make based on the layout of the table, you’re instead actively trying to hit as many balls as you can into the top 10x multiplier, and it completely changes up whatever normal strategy you’d use for playing pool. Now you’ll be trying to set up shots so you can make a ball in the 10x multiplier, and then be ready to make another one into where the 10x moves to. Obviously this doesn’t always work out, and striving for that perfect game gives Pocket Run Pool a tremendous “just one more go" aspect.
Like I said, the physics aren’t pure sim-quality in Pocket Run Pool, but they aren’t trying to be. It has a much more arcadey feel that complements the score chasing perfectly. And once you get used to how the physics work you’re off to the races chasing those multiplier pockets in a number of cool modes that are on offer. This is also a free game supported by ads, with a one-time purchase of $3.99 to remove those ads and unlock some additional modes and features. So there’s no reason not to give the excellent Pocket Run Pool a try, or read about it in our full review, as it’s easily become one of my favorite go-to games as of late.
