8-Ball-Billiards

How to play

A cue appears when you click on the white ball. In front of the cue you will see a yellow line with an image of the white ball. This shows the direction of the shot. You can rotate the cue in the desired direction by moving the mouse while holding down the left mouse button. The magnitude of the shot will be shown by changes in the length of an arrow. Once you let go of the mouse button, the white ball is played. A rebound only occurs if you aimed beyond the edge of the table. In the upper left-hand corner of the table you will see a display indicating which balls are being played by the current player and how many balls still have to be sunk.

Each player is given 2 minutes for their first move. While that move is being made the clock counts down. Providing the player completes his/her move within 15 seconds, an extra 15 seconds are granted for the next move (this time is added to the remaining time on the clock). The maximum time limit is 2 minutes.

For example, if a player needs 30 seconds for his first move, he shall then have 1 minute and 30 seconds for his next move. However, should he manage to complete his next move in just 5 seconds, he shall have 1 minute and 40 seconds for the next move, not 1 minute and 25 seconds (1 minute and 25 seconds of remaining time + 15 bonus seconds).

Rules of the game

This is a pool game for two players. A total of 16 balls are used, seven solid and seven striped, as well as one black and one white ball. The player who opens the game starts. Before the start of the game, the ball can be placed anywhere in the left quadrant. Once a ball is sunk (except during the opening shot or a foul), this decides who plays solids and who plays stripes. From this point on, players may only play balls with their own pattern. As long as a player keeps sinking his or her own balls, it is his or her turn.

The object of the game is to sink your own balls in as few rounds as possible. Finally, the black ball also has to be sunk in the correct pocket. The first player to correctly sink all seven of his or her balls and then the black ball wins. If a player causes a round to end prematurely, the opponent wins. A game ends in a draw if neither player is able to sink a coloured ball after 20 shots.

A player commits a foul when

• s/he pockets the white ball
• s/he plays no ball or the wrong ball
• s/he pockets the black ball prematurely
• less than four coloured balls touch the edges or none are sunk during the break
• after the first contact between the white ball and another ball no balls are sunk or not even one touches the edges

The player who was fouled can place the white ball anywhere on the playing field and continue playing.

The game is over once one of the players has sunk all of his or her balls including the black one. The game also ends if the black ball is sunk prematurely. The player who does this loses. This also applies if the black ball is sunk during another type of foul (see above), or if the black ball is played into the wrong pocket.

The scoring system

No points are given in 8-Ball Billiards. Only games won or lost are counted.