Pure Pool

Genre: Sports (Pool)

Players: 1-2 Competitive (Local Alternating / Online Alternating)

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Review:

Pure Pool is a Pool game that originally saw release on PC and Xbox One in 2014 and got ported to PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch in 2020. However, more than just Pool, this package contains numerous variants, such as the standard 8-Ball, 9-Ball, and Snooker.

Graphically, Pure Pool is surprisingly impressive. The amount of detail in everything here is absolutely phenomenal. You can see the wood grain in the cue, the fibers in the table, details in the light reflections in the balls. The bar the table is positioned in has lots of nice details and excellent lighting, a bustle of shadows around the edges of your vision, and there are some exquisite touches like the lights dropping down when you make a critical shot, or the dust bursting off of the cue in slow-motion when you make the shot that wins the game. The lack of character models for the players does make the experience seem a tad anaesthetic, but overall, this is without a doubt the best-looking pool videogame I have ever played,

It may also be the best-sounding pool videogame. The subtle noises of the balls colliding with the table and each other, the murmur of the crowd, the clapping for the house band after every one of the jazzy songs that plays – everything here really builds an atmosphere that’s absolutely perfect for the game.

What’s really surprising about the presentation is how absolutely seamless everything is. After a brief initial loading when the game starts, players can swiftly jump from one game to the next without any loading. Have a bad break and want to restart? Jump into the menu, and the game will instantly reset all the ball positions. Want to change over to the snooker table? The camera will zoom over and you can get started right away, no waiting. There are very brief moments where the framerate drops, but otherwise, everything is smooth, clear, seamless, and instantaneous. So not only does this game look great and sound great on the Nintendo Switch, but you can get right to the gameplay way faster than you would expect.

So how is that gameplay?

Well, I’m going to put the biggest caveat right at the front – do not expect motion controls or the touchscreen in this game. This seems to be a straight port of other versions, and doesn’t appear to have any interest in making use of the Nintendo Switch’s unique features. So if that’s what you want in a pool game on Nintendo Switch, you’ll have to keep looking.

However, if traditional gamepad controls are fine by you, know that this game plays almost as good as it looks and sounds. The dual analog stick controls work beautifully to adjust your aim and speed of impact, the game provides useful guides that give you an indication where your ball will go without giving it away, players can adjust the position and angle of impact to get spin. If I’m controlling a pool game using a gamepad, this is exactly how I want it to feel.

What’s more, this game provides a pretty good amount of content. In addition to being able to play 8-Ball, 9-Ball, and Snooker at multiple challenge levels, the game includes a variety of minigames, such as trying to clear a table as quickly as possible or trying to clear a table without making mistakes. The multiplayer is also facilitated by a “DNA” feature that allows you to download a copy of the play data of other players (including development staff) that simulates their playstyle so you can play against a facsimile of them even when they aren’t personally available to play, a clever inclusion.

Really, if I have one major complaint to make about this game beyond the lack of Nintendo Switch-specific features, it’s that the camera doesn’t give players enough options. You can’t move it independently of the shot you’re lining up, you can’t get a bird’s-eye view of the table, and you can’t use it to see the shot predictor from another angle. Also, while I’m nitpicking, I wish there were more tutorial content to help players learn the different rule variants, as well as to help them improve. However, while this certainly isn’t ideal, it doesn’t bring down what is otherwise the best Pool videogame I have ever played. (Note: I don’t know if I missed it in my original review or if it has since been added, but this game does have touchscreen controls now. I have tested them out, and they’re pretty good)

I’m not done praising this game, either. I just called this the best Pool videogame I’ve ever played, but it gets even better – this game is selling for $15, an absolute steal. At this point, if you want a pool videogame on Nintendo Switch, and aren’t bothered by the lack of motion and touchscreen controls, this is an absolute no-brainer – Pure Pool is a must-have. I can point to a few areas where it could be improved, but overall this package is way better than I would have ever expected it to be, and at a far more reasonable price than I would expect to find a game of this caliber. Do not miss it.

tl;dr – Pure Pool is quite possibly the best game of Pool I have ever played that didn’t involve picking up a real cue. This game looks absolutely gorgeous, sounds great, plays great, has plenty of content. There are a few areas where I could nitpick – it doesn’t have motion controls, could have used more tutorial content, and players should have been given more control over the camera. But even with these minor issues, this is still an absolutely phenomenal game of Pool at a fantastic price.

Grade: A-

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