Review: Pool Nation (PlayStation 4)
With Pool Nation, the gameplay is king! Online or offline, the ease of control gives you the ability to pull off shots you wouldn’t dream of in the real world. The balls behave exactly as they should use the table surround to create the most unbelievable trick shots and view them back in super slow-mo.
Pros:
- Shiny crisp HD graphics. Aka the best balls in town.
- 5.59gb download size.
- Platinum trophy.
- Snooker/pool gameplay.
- Invert axis and sensitivity sliders.
- 3 camera types-TV, auto zoom and follow the ball.
- Shop-aiming level, locations, ball sets, decals, cues, and celebrations.
- Archives-watch saved matches/replays.
- Play-online, vs, daily bonus, endurance, practice and career.
- Daily bonus-4 shots, 3 balls and the more you pot, the more cash you win.
- 3 game types-snooker, 9 balls and 8 balls.
- Five aiming levels-off, extended, long, standard and champion.
- Career-six countries, choose 8 or 9 ball tour, aiming level (affects prize money) AI and rules.
- 3 AI difficulties-easy, medium and hard.
- Online-pool hall (arcade mode), play for cash, friendlies, leagues, and leaderboards.
- Overall player rank.
- Other bonus game types-8 ball UK, 3 balls, straight, rotation, golf, speed, and killer.
- 8 locations-Hawaii, Japan, Sweden, San Francisco, Manchester, New York, VIP lounge and pool hall.
- Tutorial pop-ups and descriptions.
- Easy to learn controls.
- Solid arcade gameplay.
- Slow-mo pocket shots.
- The right stick used to set power.
- Great fun.
Cons:
- Not a lot of music choice.
- Limited controller options.
- No commentary.
- Can be slow to bud up cash.
- No proper customisation.
- Limited solo play.
- Graphics - 9/109/10
- Sound - 7/107/10
- Accessibility - 8/108/10
- Length - 7/107/10
- Fun Factor - 8/108/10
Summary
It’s important to play with the best balls, especially if you like playing with others. Pool Nation is a really good arcade experience on the popular ball whacker Snooker and pool. You get a decent amount of game types (no John Virgo tricks hots though) and the whole game evolves around making a heap of cash and buying cool new equipment. The controls keep it straight forward and whilst it would be nice to have more music or commentary the game doesn’t suffer for it. Slow mo pocket shots should be the standard from now on and I hope we get to see more balls.
