Snooker is boring. There is a reason only three countries care about it, much like Basketball; there are three main areas where it has taken off, while the rest of the world ignores it. Snooker is the upper-class man’s pool; not that strange numbered American pool. I mean proper (“Blackball“) pool where there is a collection of red and yellow balls, one black ball, one white, and they fight to the death in the Thunderdome. No, but what we’re calling the proper pool is what I grew up playing, to the point of being offered a position on a team, after spending hours in pubs.

Either way, I grew up playing one thing, bought a snooker table for my house several years ago now, and never really played snooker. I would rather have practiced pool, so I did. My knowledge of the snooker came from my Granddad, who would watch it religiously and I would knit in the corner. Technically, this was the first time I had played snooker, and it is in a video game, I am not surprised.

First, I’ll say Snooker Nation Championship isn’t interesting, gripping, or even properly licensed in conjuncture with the WPBSA (World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association). As I’ve established, I wouldn’t be able to tell you how accurate the game is to the real world equivalent. In fact, from my experience, I would assume the time flashback mechanic would be against code three of the Interdimensional Snooker Federation. Jokes aside, there are a few moments where the game has been “gamified” for the purpose of making it a game.

Though, while we’re on the topic of things I found strange, or at least annoying, let’s speak about the menu controls. For starters, the main menu and its offspring all use the left analog stick to navigate instead of directional buttons, then when you want to change something, let’s say volume, this uses the right analog stick. In game menus, such as one that provides you the option to force the opponent’s retake of a shot or continue, this is controlled by the directional buttons on your left. How about navigating pages of content? L1 and R1. It is clunky, and I keep forgetting which menu uses which while playing.

Nonetheless, it is a fine arcade snooker game. Though I believe those who really do enjoy snooker want something a little more serious. If not for the fact they want to play snooker, it is the feeling of playing Snooker Nation Championship. I, a self-confessed idiot, could easily win against AI that would pull ahead for a moment at the break of a frame. Hitting the cue ball with the cue doesn’t feel weighted or powerful. Generally speaking, everything feels very much the type of pick up and play style of game one would expect from a free game.

However, as much as the gameplay makes Snooker Nation Championship feel similar to a free-to-play game, there is one particular “feature” which solidifies that ideal. The progression isn’t based on a character who you create and develop skills. No, cosmetic items such as a couple of different cues, arenas, or table cloths take the place of trophies and natural progression to become better. Admittedly, this isn’t the worst thing (that goes to menu controls), however, it is a little concerning seeing an in-game currency in the top right of a screen. Luckily, there aren’t any microtransactions or DLC packs to gain more currency, yet.

In conclusion, if you want a cheap arcade snooker game to play while very very bored, Snooker Nation Championship may give you something. Will it be fun? Maybe, if you were extraordinarily into Snooker and quite drunk. Conversely, you would have to be very boring to play for several hours while sober.

A PS4 review copy of Snooker Nation Championship was provided by Cherry Pop Games for this review.

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Snooker Nation Championship

$10.99

5.5

Score

5.5/10

Pros

• Ok arcade gameplay
• A lack of microtransactions

Cons

• Awful and inconsistent menu controls
• Lack of interesting game modes