This was another PlayStation Plus from quite some time ago. I think it is worth mentioning that while all of these tiny freebies were all well and good, the quality of games offered by PlayStation Plus has gotten much better over the last year or so.
Moving on, I had hopes that an actual console game of pool would come equipped with more modes and depth than what you generally get from the online Flash games. Sadly, Inferno Pool fails to be much more than that. There are a few twists like Inferno Mode that tries to vary things up, but it does not really help. You can play either or nine ball, and there are some multiplayer options out there, but good luck finding anyone to play with. I had trouble when I first got this game, and when I fired it up again recently, there might as well have been virtual tumbleweeds blowing by, because no one was around.Sadly, the sound and music are both really, really poor. The graphics actually do fare a bit better, and is certainly a step up from online games of pool you might play from your browser on a PC - but that is really about the only area this game succeeds over those free options that have more people playing them.
With some of the PlayStation Plus games I got at the time, I had low to no expectations. Games like Mahjong and Rocket-Cars were at least relative surprises. I had hopes for something a bit deeper here, like more games or even a player/career mode to keep me invested longer, but Inferno Pool let me down on that front. The multiplayer was a good idea, but without a community to support it, it falls flat on its face.
"I really like pool. I stink at it in real life, but I enjoy it all the same."
ReplyDeleteSame here. I enjoy playing it, can play it, but would never put a bet on a game that I am playing. My strategy usually revolves around hoping the other person hits the 8 ball in...
"The multiplayer was a good idea, but without a community to support it, it falls flat on its face."
This is where Miiverse is nice. Games that have small communities, you can hop on Miiverse and say, "Going online now, looking for somebody to play with."
Not guaranteed that other people are watching at that exact moment, but it's a good way to try and find random people. I attempted it in Trine 2 a few months back, and it worked well. I saw people requesting online matches in ACIII on Miiverse, but never hopped over to them myself.
"...there might as well have been virtual tumbleweeds blowing by, because no one was around."
I love tumbleweed analogies. I used them at my last "retail/service" job all the time, to describe a situation that basically occurred daily. It would be a madhouse, 10 cars outside placing orders in one line, and I would be trying to make the 10 drinks, 10 milkshakes, 10 hot chocolates...just for the first car, only to turn around and realize I was in a ghost town. All of my co-workers seemed to get an "evacuate" order, except me, and it was on a daily basis.
ROFL - glad the tumbleweed suited you. I've been tossing that around forever. I too liked it at work - usually when an annoying customer would call in. Seemed like certain people on the team (no longer with us, thankfully) used to somehow pick *that* exact moment to head off to lunch or a restroom break, and I'd joke about tumbleweeds blowing through the office.
ReplyDeleteThat is handy with the Miiverse, because I have been playing a fair number of games lately that have small online communities still in place (this title, multiple fighter games, Dead Space 2, etc)
I get lucky in pool, more than I'm good. The hand-eye doesn't quite line up for me the way it does when playing a video game or shooting in basketball. :P
Thanks for commenting!