Play Championship Pool Online

Championship Pool on the Sega Genesis is one of those games that looks simple at first—just a top-down pool table with basic controls—but ends up being weirdly addictive once you get into it. The aiming system takes some getting used to: you position a cursor where you want to hit the ball, and the game shows you a ghostly preview of where the cue ball and first contact ball will go. It’s helpful, but don’t expect perfection—long shots or sharp angles can still surprise you.

The tournament mode is brutal. You’ve got to beat 32 opponents in best-of-seven matches, and if you lose even once, you’re out. The AI opponents don’t actually take visible turns—instead, the screen flashes a portrait of them, and suddenly the table’s rearranged. It’s a little jarring, but it keeps things moving.

Where the game really shines is in the party modes. You can play standard 8-ball or 9-ball with up to eight players (good luck keeping track of whose turn it is), or try weird variants like Three Ball or Speed Pool, where you’re just smashing balls in as fast as possible. The physics aren’t perfect, but there’s something satisfying about lining up a tricky shot and watching the ghost preview nail it before you even take the shot.

It’s not the flashiest pool sim out there, but it’s got enough depth to keep you coming back for one more game.