Cue Club 2: Pool & Snooker News

Hi Everyone,

We hope you're all doing ok. Over the last few weeks we've been working on a new update that addresses a number of items covering multiplayer, snooker, speed pool and other areas of the game. We hope you like the improvements and thanks once again for sharing your valuable feedback.


MULTIPLAYER

• When playing US 8-ball, Euro 8-ball, 10-ball, killer pool or snooker, and you're hosting a match against another human player (you sent the invite) then your chosen rule settings are now used for the match instead of the default rules. Also, your opponent will be shown a notice in the lobby before starting the game if rule changes apply. These can now be viewed in-game at 'Rules > Rule Variations'.
  

SNOOKER

• Implementation of the 'Foul and a miss' rule has been modified, and it can now be customised with 3 possible settings: 'Never called', 'Limit of three' and 'No limit'. The default option has been set to 'Limit of three' which can call a miss up to 3 times in succession. The 'No limit' option allows for potentially an unlimited number of misses (subject to penalty points). The 'Never called' option prevents misses from being declared.
  
  When a miss is given the incoming player has the option for balls to be replaced to their previous positions and making the offending player retake the shot. If either player requires penalty points to win then a miss will not be called. The rule variation applies to both offline and online snooker games. See 'Options > Rules Variations > Snooker'.
  
  
• The 'three consecutive fouls' rule which leads to a loss of the frame is now only triggered if the player has full-face visibility towards the 'on' ball when committing a foul, and the incoming player makes the offending player retake the shot with balls replaced.
  
  
• Fixed an issue where the red warning message displayed after the second consecutive foul showed the non-offending player's name and not the offending player.
  
  
• Added a foul of 7 points if reds are played in successive shots, or a nominated free ball is played followed by a red, in line with snooker rules.
  
  
• If a player is given a free ball and plays a non-scoring shot but leaves the incoming player snookered by the nominated free ball, then 4 penalty points are now awarded or the value of the ball-on, whichever is higher.
  
  
• Fixed an issue in 2D overhead mode where potted balls would sometimes become visible when rolling along the rail runners. This would occur after pressing the ESC key to bring up the menu.
  

SPEED POOL

• Added a menu screen at the start of a new game which shows the 3 fastest times for player 1. The menu also includes a useful tick box which automatically qualifies the player for online leaderboards by temporarily disabling secondary aim lines. Note that if you already have aim lines turned off then the tick box will not appear.
  

7 BALL POOL

• Fixed an issue that caused the balls to be racked in an anti-clockwise direction instead of clockwise. This occurred when playing with the table in 'Right-to-left' direction. See 'Options > Tables & Equipment > Tables > Global Settings > Table Orientation'.
  

CAMERAS

• Camera auto-switching between 2D and 3D mode is no longer active during replays, and is only used when playing a live shot. See 'Options > Cameras > Auto Switching (2D to 3D)'.
  

GAMEPLAY

• Fixed a bug where it was possible to leave the cue ball suspended in mid-air by dragging it over another ball and pressing the '0' or 'F10' key to re-rack the balls.
  

MENUS (New additions after 26 September)

• Moved rule variations menu from 'Options' to 'Game Rules', to match the in-game menu structure.
  
  
• Added previous and next page buttons to all menus where there are two or more pages.
  
  
• Added page numbers to general rules menu.
  
  
• Fixed some issues where text overlapped the in-game menu.
  
  
• Replaced tick boxes with radio buttons where appropriate.
  
  
• Swapped positions of 'File Management' and 'Game Rules' in the main menu.
  
  
• Various tweaks to localised text.
  
  
• Other minor fixes and enhancements.
  

Hi Everyone,

We hope you're all doing well. In this new update for Cue Club 2 we've taken onboard more feedback from the community with feature additions, improvements and fixes to several areas of the game. Please see below for a full breakdown.


CUES

• Added menu option to allow different cues to be chosen for games of pool and snooker. See 'Options > Tables & Equipment > Cues' and click the 'Pool' and 'Snooker' tabs at the top of the page before selecting your preferred cue.
  
  
• When using the in-game menu to change cue size (perhaps to perform a particular kind of shot), the setting is no longer saved to file, and so when a new match is started the cue size is restored to the original setting in the main menu at 'Options > Tables & Equipment > Cues'.
  

PHYSICS

• It is now easier to perform a standard 3 cushion break-off in snooker, making the cue ball clip an outside red and then travel between pink and blue into baulk. We recommend a dab of chalk plus some left-hand side if playing the cue ball into the left of the reds. Apply right-hand spin if playing into the right of the pack. Check out the AI section below for more info regarding computer players and breaking.
  
  
• Maximum cue power has been increased slightly for all cue sizes, allowing for more powerful break shots in pool and a better split of the rack.
  
  
• Default cue power now set to 20% to compensate for power increase. See 'Options > Controls > Advanced Settings > Default Power'.
  

CONTROLS

• Fixed an issue where it was possible to use keyboard input when the screen is transitioning between game and menu (or vice-versa), which could lead to flickering when using the ENTER key, or menu navigation issues when using the ESC key.
  
  
• 7 and F7 keys can now be used to restore the previous shot in practice mode before the balls have finished rolling, reducing wait times.
  

LEADERBOARDS

• Expanded offline leaderboards for snooker breaks and speed pool times from 100 to 200 entries.
  
  
• Fixed an issue where occasionally two player's names would display on the same line when viewing online leaderboard scores.
  
  
• Fixed an issue that limited the max number of entries to 128.
  

AI

• AI players now use the conventional 3 cushion break-off technique in snooker (with 6, 10 or 15 reds). When playing on harder difficulty levels they will generally perform a cleaner break-off than lower ranked opponents.
  
  
• In snooker, AI players are now less aggressive when clipping the outer reds on the break shot.
  
  
• Fixed an issue where the AI player would occasionally make a strange shot choice in snooker and play a colour that is not an obvious ball to play, when other easier pots are available. A similar issue may have occurred in call shot games of 8-ball and 10-ball pool.
  

MULTIPLAYER

• Fixed an issue where a disconnection error would appear if online chat had been disabled in menu options, and no shot had been played for several minutes even though the internet connection was still active.
  
  
• Exiting a match early now awards points to your opponent for those frames that your opponent has already won. If the exit was made in a snooker match when you are behind on points with snookers required then points shall also be awarded to your opponent for that frame.
  
  
• Other minor fixes and enhancements.
  

Hi Everyone,

In this latest update we've introduced more improvements and fixes to controls, gameplay, multiplayer scoring, and menus.


CONTROLS

• Added fine aim control to give better precision when lining up shots. Press the left ALT key and move the mouse to activate this feature.
  
  
• Added option to toggle cue power increments between 0.5% and 1% when using '+' and '-' keys. See 'Options > Controls > Advanced Settings > Power Increment'. Default setting is now 1%. The 0.5% increment (if selected) works in the range of 0.5% to 20% power.
  
  
• Fixed an issue where pressing the ALT key with 'E', 'Q', 'H' or 'V' could prevent the keypress function from deactivating after the key is released.
  
  
• Fixed an issue when using ALT + TAB to switch applications. When tabbing back into CC2 the in-game menu would be greyed out if that menu had previously been minimised.
  

GAMEPLAY

• Conceding a frame is now only possible in games of snooker when the player is behind on points and requires snookers to win.
  

MULTIPLAYER

• To avoid a potential exploit, points can now only be earned by winning matches and not by your opponent exiting early.
  

MENUS

• Pool pocket logos are now displayed on the side of the table in the tournament opponent menu, if these have been enabled in table options.
  
  
• Fixed an issue where the Killer tournament trophy was not labelled correctly in the achievements menu (Polish language only).
  
  
• Various improvements to localised text files.
  
  
• Other minor fixes and enhancements.
  

Hi Everyone,

We're pleased to release another new update to Cue Club 2 today, with some nice new feature additions requested by the community, plus a few bug fixes too.


CUES

• Added support to change the size of the cue during a game. From the menu, select 'Change Cue' and pick from one of the three sizes available. This can be useful if you prefer to use a longer and heavier cue for break shots, or wish to use a shorter and lighter cue to play an extreme swerve shot.
  

ACHIEVEMENTS

• Added silver and gold trophies and Steam achievements for gaining 5,000 points and 10,000 points in multiplayer. The existing award for earning 1,000 points is now the bronze trophy.
  

GRAPHICS

• Added an option to toggle the display of the Cue Club 2 logo on the outer edges of the pockets in pool and snooker (3D mode). See 'Options > Tables & Equipment > Tables > Global Settings > Pocket Logos'. Default setting is 'On'.
  

CONTROLS

• Added support for 'H' and 'V' keys to adjust horizontal and vertical spin on the cue ball whilst moving the mouse. Note that pressing 'H' resets top spin to zero, and pressing 'V' resets side spin to zero. To adjust both together use the 'E' key (for 'English').
  
  
• Added support for 'C' key to reset spin and return the cue to the centre position.
  

CAMERAS

• Fixed an issue that failed to return the camera view to 2D mode at the start of the next frame in a match, when auto switching (2D to 3D) is enabled.
  

MENUS

• Fixed an issue that presented the 'progress will be lost' message in the menus when trying to exit after the match had actually been completed.
  
  
• Fixed an issue that stopped the 'Fast Aiming' control method being saved when changing from 'Options > Controls > Mouse and Keyboard'.
  
  
• Fixed an issue that displayed the pool table instead of the snooker table in the background of the tournament opponent screen when snooker was selected.
  
  
• Other minor fixes and enhancements.
  

Hi Everyone,

We have another update today containing further fixes and improvements to the game. See below for a full breakdown of the changes:


PHYSICS

• Increased available power when playing shots with high cue elevation, allowing for longer and more impressive swerve shots to be played.
  
  
• Increased angle deflection when playing off a cushion with side spin applied to the cue ball.
  
  
• Improved break shot dynamics in snooker. Soft collisions against the outer reds are now less likely to split the pack too far.
  
  
• Default cue power setting on the break shot in snooker has been re-calibrated for each table size, taking into account the size and weight of cue chosen by the player.
  

A.I.

• In snooker (6, 10 and 15 reds), A.I. players now use slightly less power on the opening shot to make safer and more tactical breaks.
  

CONTROLS

• Cue power can now be increased in 0.5% intervals up to 20% power for increased precision. Beyond this threshold power will increase in 1% intervals up to 100%.
  
  
• When setting power using 'Automatic' cue control method, forwards and backwards mouse movement has been re-tuned to give finer control. This setting can be changed from 'Options > Controls > Advanced Settings > Power Adjustment'.
  
  
• When using '7' and 'F7' keys to restore a previous shot in practice mode, and fast aiming is enabled, the aiming target is now restored to its previous position if the target is currently visible on the table.
  

AIMING

• Fixed an issue where the secondary aim line sometimes did not display as a fan, when setting up a long distance swerve shot and a potential deviation to the cue path exists.
  

LEADERBOARDS

• The re-upload button is now permanently shown on offline snooker and speed pool leaderboards for all newly qualified entries to the Cue Club website leaderboards. The button resembles a small globe and appears to the right of the record entry. Please note this button appears for new records only, created after this update. Qualified top 100 records are automatically submitted, but the button allows for further attempts to be made as a backup.
  

MENUS

• Fixed an issue where 'Fast Aiming' and 'Cue Control' menu options sometimes became permanently greyed out when changing settings in 'Options > Controls > Basic Settings'.
  
  
• Fixed a similar issue for 'Use Default Screen Resolution' in 'Options > Display > Graphics Settings'.
  
  
• Fixed a similar issue for 'Room Colour' in 'Options > Match Settings > Competition Venue'.
  
  
• Fixed a similar issue for 'Allow use of 2D Camera' in 'Options > Cameras'.
  
  
• Fixed a similar issue for 'Number of Games' in 'Games > Quick Match > Killer Pool'.
  
  
• Fixed an issue where game controller navigation around certain menu buttons was off-centre.
  
  
• Other minor fixes and enhancements.