About 8-Ball Pool
Play 8-ball against the computer. Pick Easy, Normal or Hard in the toolbar; the break alternates between you and the computer from game to game.
8-Ball Pool is the classic bar-room game on a green toy table. Break the rack, claim the solids (1 to 7) or the stripes (9 to 15), pot all seven of your group, then call a pocket and sink the black 8 to win. Play against the computer at three levels, or pass the cue to a friend on the same screen. The balls roll, spin and bounce with real physics, so follow, draw and side spin all work.
Also called: 8 ball, billiards, pool game.
How to play 8-Ball Pool
- Aim and shoot: press on the cue ball and drag back, away from where you want it to go, like drawing back a cue. The further you pull, the harder the shot. Let go to shoot.
- The aiming guide shows where the cue ball first touches a ball (the ghost circle), the line that object ball will take (yellow), and roughly where the cue ball goes after. Off a cushion it shows one bounce.
- You can also drag anywhere on the table to point the cue, then drag the power bar under the table and let go to shoot. On a phone this is the easiest way: aim with one finger, then pull the power bar.
- For careful shots, switch on Fine (or press F): dragging then turns the cue slowly. The arrow keys nudge the aim (hold Shift for bigger steps), up and down set the power, and Space shoots.
- Set spin on the cue-ball diagram: tap high for top spin (the cue ball follows through), low for back spin (it draws back), or to one side for english, which changes how it comes off a cushion. Tap the middle (or double-click it) to go back to a centre hit.
- With ball in hand a dashed ring appears round the cue ball: drag it wherever you like (behind the head string after a scratch on the break), then aim as usual.
- When you are on the 8, tap a pocket to call it before you shoot. The called pocket turns yellow.
Rules
- The break: the cue ball starts anywhere behind the head string (the dashed line). A legal break either pots a ball or drives at least four object balls to a cushion. If it does neither, the balls are racked again and the other player breaks. If the 8 drops on the break it is put back on its spot and play carries on.
- Open table: after the break nobody has a group yet. You may hit any ball first except the 8. The first time a player pots a ball without a foul, they take that ball's group (solids or stripes; if both drop, the first one down counts) and the other player gets the other group.
- Your turn goes on as long as you pot at least one ball of your own group without a foul. If you pot nothing, or only your opponent's balls, it passes.
- Fouls: potting the cue ball (a scratch); missing every ball; hitting the wrong ball first (not one of your group, or not the 8 once your group is cleared, or the 8 on an open table); and, when nothing is potted, no ball touching a cushion after the cue ball hits. After a foul your opponent has the cue ball in hand anywhere on the table (behind the head string after a scratch on the break). Balls potted on a foul stay down.
- The 8: once all seven of your group are down you shoot at the 8, and you must call its pocket. Sink it in the called pocket without a foul and you win.
- Losing on the 8: you lose straight away if you pot the 8 before your group is cleared (including on the same shot as your last ball), if the 8 drops in a pocket you did not call, or if you scratch on the shot that pots it.
8-Ball Pool tips and strategy
- Think one shot ahead. Choose the ball you can pot and still leave the cue ball well placed for the next one. The computer on Hard plays this way.
- Stun, follow and draw. Hit the centre of the cue ball on a straight shot and it stops dead after contact. A little top spin makes it roll through; back spin brings it back towards you. Back spin fades with distance, so it works best on short shots.
- A cut shot sends the cue ball off at roughly a right angle to the object ball's line. The dashed white line in the guide shows that path.
- Break hard and square into the front ball from just off the centre of the head string. A full-power break spreads the rack and usually pots something.
- When nothing is on, play safe: roll a legal ball gently to a cushion and leave the cue ball behind a cluster, so your opponent has no clear shot. Remember a cushion must be touched after contact.
- Side spin (english) is powerful off cushions but easy to overdo. Leave it at centre ball until the rest feels natural.
8-Ball Pool questions
How strong is the computer?
Easy misses a fair amount and never plans position, so it is a good way to learn. Normal pots most straight-forward shots, thinks about where the cue ball ends up and plays the odd safety. Hard pots nearly everything that is makeable, plans its position and plays safe when nothing is on. Changing the level starts a new game.
Can I play against a friend?
Yes: choose Same screen and pass the cue between you. The player strip above the table shows whose turn it is, each player's group and how many balls they have left. Each new game the other player breaks.
Is my game saved?
Yes, in your browser. The table is saved after every shot, so a reload carries on from where you were (a shot that was still rolling is taken again from the start). Your wins and losses against each computer level are kept too.
Why was that a foul? I hit a ball.
The most common surprise is the cushion rule: if nothing goes in, some ball (the cue ball or any object ball) has to touch a cushion after the cue ball makes contact. A gentle tap that just nudges a ball and stops is a foul. The other is hitting the wrong ball first, for example grazing an opponent's ball before your own.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. On a narrow screen the table turns upright to fill it. Drag anywhere on the table to aim, then pull the power bar and let go. Tap the cue-ball diagram to add spin, and turn on Fine for delicate aiming.
Is 8-Ball Pool free to play?
Yes. 8-Ball Pool on Kultured Arcade is completely free: no download, no account and nothing to buy. It runs in any modern browser on a phone, tablet or computer.
Do I need to download 8-Ball Pool?
No. It opens instantly in your browser and saves your progress on your device, so there is nothing to install and no sign-up.