Play pool online, free

How to play

1. Open the Grid in your browser — on a computer or a phone — and walk in as a guest. You arrive at Virtua Cada’s door in the Tech Park; the stairs are at the back of the lobby.
2. Go up to level 2 and walk up to a free table. Press E (tap on a phone) to take it.
3. A friend takes the other cue at the same table; on your own, the house plays you.
4. Line up the cue, choose where the tip strikes the cue ball (low to draw it back, high to follow through, to one side for spin), set the power and shoot.
5. Walk round the table to see the shot, lock in to aim, or look down from above.

The rules: eight-ball

Break from behind the head string. The table is open until someone pots a ball on a legal shot: solids (1–7) or stripes (9–15) are then theirs. Hit one of your own balls first, then pot a ball or send one to a cushion, and you stay at the table while you pot your own.

A foul gives the other player the cue ball in hand, anywhere on the table. Clear your group, then pot the 8 to win; the 8 down early, or with a foul, loses the frame. No called pockets. You have 45 seconds a shot.

When every table is taken

When every one is taken, join the queue: when one frees up it is kept for you for 90 seconds. While nobody is waiting you can play again as often as you like; while people wait, a turn is one game.

More places to play pool in the Grid

Virtua Cada’s are not the only ones: the residents’ rec rooms of Carthage Point, Great Zimbabwe and the UniverseT Residences have pool and table tennis, homes with a games room have a billiard table, penthouses add up to two tables (on the roof terrace too), and offices can add one. They all play the same way.

Also in Virtua Cada

The games house has four floors: the Backlot and the Raceway on the ground floor, bowling on the first, pool and table tennis on the second, and fire bowls on the roof. See Virtua Cada.

Questions people ask

Can I play pool online for free?

Yes. The pool tables in Virtua Cada are free to play, as a guest, in your browser.

Can I play pool online with a friend?

Yes. Walk in together, go up to level 2 and take the two cues at the same table. Anyone else in the Grid can stand by and watch.

Can I play pool against the computer?

Yes. On your own at a table, the house plays you.

Does it work on a phone?

Yes. Pool plays on a phone with taps and drags, and on a computer with the mouse.

Do I need an account?

No. Walk in as a guest and play. A free account keeps your name and lets you talk to the people round the table.

Is it 3D?

Yes. The balls run, spin and bounce off the cushions in 3D, and everyone in the room sees each shot as it happens.

More games to play in the Grid

• 
  Free · up to 4 a laneBowlingEight lanes of ten-pin, with friends or against the house.
• 
  Free · 2 players or the houseTable tennisPing pong to 11, against a friend or the house.
• 
  Free · up to 8 driversThe RacewayRace round the city on its viaduct, or round Harbour Eight.
• 
  Free · up to 12 playersThe BacklotA multiplayer arcade shooter: co-op waves, free for all, Search & Deploy.
• 
  Paid · 1–8 playersLockworks escape roomsEight escape rooms to book and play with your team.