8-Ball guide

Goal

Pocket all of your group of balls (solids or stripes), then legally sink the 8-ball in a pocket you call. The first player to do so wins the match.

Taking a Shot

• Drag near the cue ball to aim, pull back to set power, then release to shoot.
• The spin control adds english (sidespin), follow (topspin) or draw (backspin), which changes where the cue ball ends up after contact.
• When placing the cue ball, click the table or aim with the arrow keys, then press Enter or Space to set it down.

The Break

• The breaking player places the cue ball behind the head string and hits the racked balls to open the game.
• A legal break either pockets a ball OR drives at least four balls into a cushion.
• An illegal break re-racks and the break is replayed.
• Pocketing the 8-ball on the break re-spots it (or re-racks) - it is not an instant win or loss.

Group Assignment

• The table is "open" until the first legal pocket after the break.
• The group of the first ball you legally pocket becomes yours: solids (1-7) or stripes (9-15).
• Your opponent is assigned the other group automatically.

Fouls and Ball-in-Hand

A foul ends your turn and hands the cue ball to your opponent as ball-in-hand (they may place the cue ball anywhere on the table). Common fouls:

• Scratch: pocketing the cue ball.
• Hitting your opponent’s ball first (once groups are assigned).
• No rail: after contact, no ball is pocketed and no ball reaches a cushion.
• Whiff: failing to hit any ball at all.

Three-Foul Rule

Three consecutive fouls (across separate turns, without a legal shot in between) is an automatic loss. Pocketing a legal ball resets your foul count to zero.

Push-Out

Immediately after a legal break you may declare a push-out: play any shot with no foul rules applied (useful to escape a snooker). After your push-out:

• Your opponent chooses to either take the shot themselves or pass it back to you.
• A push-out can only be declared once, right after the break.
• Pocketing the 8-ball on a push-out is still a loss.

Called-Pocket Endgame

• Once you have cleared all of your group, the 8-ball is your target.
• You must call which pocket you will sink the 8-ball into before shooting.
• Sink the 8-ball cleanly in the called pocket to win.
• Sinking it in the wrong pocket, scratching on the 8-ball, or pocketing it early is an instant loss.