ForeVR Pool Review

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Fast Facts

More Classic Gameplay from the ForeVR Team

The ForeVR Team has been on a roll lately on the Meta Quest 2. They released their first game, ForeVR Bowl back in May, 2021. Now three games later, ForeVR Pool takes the stage. With each game, bowling, darts, and cornhole, the ForeVR team has integrated a look and feel that spans all of their games, building their own ForeVRverse of sorts. Each game comes with a style that translates well in the varied party games but each has its own unique spin on the variety of locales and upgrades you unlock.

Ruling the Table

ForeVR Pool takes on the classic billiard-style game of solids and stripes or smalls and bigs, as I have also heard it said. Each match consists of 15 balls, each coloured and numbered, along with denoting whether they are solids or stripes. You start each match using the cue stick to hit the cue ball into the grouping in hopes to land one or more in a pocket.

There are three basic settings in ForeVR Pool games. You can set your default target mode from off, medium, or high. This setting allows you to see a white motion line showing the path of your shot. This mode is helpful when you are just starting out in ForeVR Pool and is a bit of a crutch for newcomers to the game.

You can also turn on or off the setting to have to call your shots for none of the balls, eight-ball only, or every shot. I prefer to call all my shots as to take out the nuance of ‘just hitting it hard and hoping something goes in’ style gameplay.

Lastly, there is a timer you can set within your matches that require the game to continue moving at a quick enough pace. This is especially helpful in online play where a 60-second shot clock missed results in a foul and forfeiting your turn.

Keep Your Aim True

Once you and your CPU or real-world human opponent have selected the rules and agreed, a coin toss occurs and the person to go first is selected. You can also wager the game which adds coins to the winner’s pot; more on that later.

Each person takes turns lining up their shot and taking aim at the cue ball. The best I can describe the gameplay mechanics is that you will use your non-dominant hand to set up your shot by pointing towards the table behind the cue ball. Once you have your shot lined up you can swivel your backhand or dominant hand to aim down the sights and line up toward the hole or wall you want to bank off of.

Once you have lined up your shot you can hold your dominant hand grip buttons to add top or backspin to the ball. If you know anything about pool or golf for that matter, adding spin will allow you to either push the ball forward in momentum or try and have it stop upon impact. Adding ‘English’ as it’s referred to can aid in lining you up for your next shot if your original shot is successful.

Consecutive Wins

As you rack up (pun intended) combos in ForeVR Pool, your character and your opponent will often emote in various cheers and jeers. ForeVR Pool also has colourful fanfare that accompanies each streak, many of which unlock an in-game accomplishment. Once I got in the swing of things it was easy to run a table from the break to the end, but real-world opponents proved more challenging.

ForeVR Pool, as well as other ForeVR titles, have a great online match setup. You can set up a private, room key-required hall for just you and your friends, or you can join a quick match. Within each match type, you and your opponents can hear and see one another’s avatars move around the arcade, bar, or pool hall. Challenging your friends to a match is super simple to set up, so long as you and your friends are already connected on the Meta Quest as friends.

The Look Shot

Visually, the ForeVR series of games all carry over the same style in their avatars and worlds. The pool halls themselves are filled with small nods to previous titles in the ForeVR game library. There are even little details hidden away in each hall for you to find. In ForeVR Pool, you can jump around to various spots like the dance floor, bar tables, and the jukebox where you can play music from YouTube.

The game boasts 50 custom cues and currently has five unique pool hall designs to walk around in. Your friends can even join you and hang out. As you progress through the game you gain XP. Once you level up, you unlock new cues each with varying abilities like power and spin. Each stick has a cool look as well from a lightsaber knock-off, candy cane, flaming cue, sparkles, and more.

8-Ball Corner Pocket

I’ve played a half dozen or so pool games, and while some are more realistic in style, ForeVR Pool has a flair for the theatrics. The game is easy to pick up but hard to master. It’s great for pick-up and play game sessions or long nights of just chilling and enjoying pool. If you are looking to shoot some stick with a buddy or go against random people in a game of pool, ForeVR Pool will scratch that itch.

Rapid Reviews Rating

4 out of 5

4

ForeVR Pool is out now and can be purchased via the Meta Store here