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Pool War is an excellent, very innovative 3D turn-based strategy game that plays like a cross between chess, pool, and an arcade game. As the company’s blurb says, “...it's very similar to a pool game set-up, but has a unique storyline attached. If you're a big pool fan (and I know there are lots of you out there) but want something a bit more interesting than plain vanilla, look no further than this! Pool Wars is an interesting game which involves you bouncing your balls all over the screen trying to destroy the enemy's balls (ooer)... Your balls can get special powerups and things which make them much more effective against enemy balls.” Although it doesn’t really need one, Pool Wars has a plot: a war has broken out between two formerly peaceful tribes of Pool Spirits when a sacred crown was stolen. As an army general of one tribe, your job is to lead your army to victory using a combination of pool skills, arcade reflexes, and strategic planning. Gameplay is similar to pool, except that each ball is an army unit. At the beginning, your troop consists of one king, three magicians, and six soldiers. The ultimate goal on each map (i.e. pool table) is protecting your king and killing your opponent's. You often need to defeat your opponent’s magicians first because of their powerful magic. The game plays just like any other 3D pool sim: rotate your view to line up your “shots”, i.e. where you want the unit to move. Then just hit the ball, and watch as ball soldiers/magicians/kings bounce off each other or enemy balls, performing their attacks. The game is fast, fun, and addictive, with plenty of new bonus items and surprises on each new map to keep the game interesting. The graphics are very sharp in 3D, and the animations smooth, with convincing ball physics. If you enjoy a pool game or arcade games in general, Pool Wars is well worth a look and in my opinion the registration price (the shareware version lets you play the game for 15 minutes, with one map available). Two thumbs up, way up! Note: There's now a sequel, called Battle Pool, sold on the official site linked below. Reviewed by: Underdogs | 
Pool Wars 
