Pure Pool
Platform- Nintendo Switch
Developer- VooFoo Studios
Publisher- Ripstone Publishing
Release Date- November 17, 2020
Number of Players- Up to 2 players
Genre- Sports, Simulation, Multiplayer, Lifestyle
Play Modes- TV, Tabletop, Handheld
Fun to play solo, but definitely made to play together pool is one of those parlor games that
has always had a certain allure to it, whether you have a table of your own or you prefer to
go to a pool hall or pub to play, it’s always been one of those games that just calls to some
people. Pure Pool does a very good job at capturing that and giving a fun, re-playable experience
that that can be enjoyed by everyone and anyone.
Easy to just pick up and play Pure Pool from VooFoo Studios is one of those games that you
can easily grab and go without having to worry about a huge learning curve which can be
rather off putting for some. This game definitely excels in that manner as the controls are
super simple whether you’re using the physical controls of the Joy-Cons or the onscreen touch
based controls. Honestly, who wants to spend an hour learning controls and game mechanics
just to knock a ball into a hole with a stick? Having this in it’s pocket (haha, see what I did there?)
makes Pure Pool extremely easy for the whole family to start playing with little to no explanation
required.
For what at first seems to be a small, singularly focused game Pure Pool has a whole lot more to offer than might be initially expected once you start looking at the challenges and modes that are
available. In the ‘Career List’ for example there are several different modes available which include familiar cue games such as US 8 Ball, Amateur 9 Ball and Amateur Snooker, plus there’s the ‘Challenges’ section which is a rather hearty list of mini games in all fairness. With plenty of different ways to change up the game, you’ll surely be as surprised as I was upon realizing how much content is actually in such a small package. Although, it is also quite surprising how many game modes and options are available in this tiny package of just a mere 421mb, which as you know, is extremely small for a game these days considering many games nowadays tend to be at least up in the double digits when it comes to file size…and measured in gigabytes, not measly little megabytes.
One of the things that’s really neat to me is that if you go into the ‘Players List’ in the menu, not only
are you able to challenge an available player in the list, but you can also download their “player DNA”
which allows you to basically practice against an AI version of that player in offline mode. The ability
to do this could be likened to ghost races where you play against either your own high score or fastest time, or that of a previous opponent in just about any racing game, ever. Definitely a neat inclusion on a game such as this since it absolutely adds replay value without adding excess bloat to the game. Sometimes simplicity is the best way to go and Pure Pool surely runs with that idea very well. While the game is straight to the point in terms of what it is, it’s also quite aptly titled as there aren’t a bunch of unnecessary bells and whistles like some games tend to have.
Another thing that in my opinion was very well crafted when it comes to Pure Pool is the audio and video.
Visually the game is rather beautiful with crisp and clean high definition graphics that don’t really have any
kind of noticeable issues such as cutting, clipping or frame rate issues. It’s definitely a very smooth and visually
pleasing game. The background music in the game is very well engineered and definitely feels reminiscent of what
one might hear in an actual pool hall and has quite the relaxing quality to it in the sense that you can just zone
out and lose yourself in the game, sometimes for quite a spell. If you are a fan of cue games such as pool and snooker it might be worth grabbing Pure Pool on the Nintendo Switch eShop for $14.99!
Disclaimer: Review Code Provided