#bPart I: Basics

#bSection 1: Introduction

Welcome to the CueClub clubbers guide, a comprehensive electronic manual containing everything you need to know to get the most out of CueClub. The guide is split into four parts. Part one covers the fundamentals of CueClub and how to access the main game features. Part two covers virtual chat rooms in greater depth. Part 3 is a collection of strategies and techniques for improving your game, and part four is a reference to the rules for each game.

#bLogin

When you start the game you will be presented with a login screen asking for some personal details. Do not fret - this information is required for the virtual chat rooms. It gives the computer players a little more information about you.

After submitting your details you will be presented with the main menu and all the game options. To start a new game, click on the game option.

#c#bSection 2: Game Modes

#bQuick Game

This option selects a game against a computer opponent. The player will be picked at random from one of the currently available chat rooms, and their level of ability will be determined from your current preferences - either easy, medium or hard (you can change the difficulty setting from the options menu). The number of games defaults to one, but this too can be changed from the options menu.

#bTwo Player

This option allows two human players to have a game. After entering your names and selecting your cues, choose your preferred rules to start the game. Remember to hand the mouse over to your opponent at the end of your turn.

#p#bChat Rooms

A unique feature of CueClub is the simulation of internet chat rooms - appropriately named virtual chat rooms. You may have already experienced real chat rooms before, in which case you should pick up this part of the game quite easily. If not then don't worry, it's straightforward enough.

CueClub contains eight totally different chat rooms, each with a unique theme. Enter an alias for yourself in the box provided if you wish. This can be your real name or a nickname. If the chat room is not too busy then you will be allowed in. Once inside, to talk to other players, just type text into the dialogue box at the top of the screen, then click on the appropriate button to send it, or press return. There are six send buttons available: 

1. Request (request a game)
2. Accept (accept a game)
3. Decline (turn down a game)
4. Greet (greet someone)
5. Chat (chat to someone)
6. Insult (insult someone)

When you click on one of these buttons, a menu will drop down with a list of the players in the chat room, and an entry at the top saying 'Everyone'. Click on this item to send your message to everyone. Otherwise, select the player who you would like to send the message to.

Then wait a few moments. Your message will appear at the bottom of the post list. If you're lucky you might even get a reply, indicated by posts with a finger pointing at them. If you miss a post you can always drag the scroll bar on the right of the screen to view them.

Well - did you get a reply? Maybe, maybe not! Keep trying - persistence pays. If the 'accept' and 'decline' button start flashing then someone is offering you a game. Click on 'accept' to see who it is, then click on their name if you wish to play them. To turn them down, go to 'decline' and do the same (or simply wait for them to go away!). You should keep an eye on their posts though, to see what game they are actually offering.

If you accept a game with another player, you will have to agree to a pre-match contract before playing. This is basically to warn you that something is at stake - namely your reputation. Agree to this and you're on with the game. Generally speaking, if you win then your reputation in that chat room will increase by one *, if you lose it will drop one *. Reputation is very important in the chat rooms. Part two explains this topic in greater detail.

Also on this screen is the chat room status panel. This is the panel on the far right of the screen and contains three buttons labeled 'members', 'matches' and 'rooms'. By clicking on these you can reveal various information on the chat rooms. The 'members' view (default) lists all the members currently logged into the chat room, and their statistics. Click on an entry in the list to reveal more personal data on that member. The 'matches' view lists all matches in progress in that chat room. This list will change over time as games end and new games start. Finally, the 'rooms' view lists all the chat rooms and how full they are. Click on one of them to jump to the foyer of that chat room.

At the bottom of the chat room status panel are a set of buttons under the headings 'Game type' and 'Number of games'. These buttons allow you to set your preferences for a game. Whenever you request a game these preferences will be stated in your posts, and other members will make up their own mind up if they wish to play to your rules. If you have no preference to which game you like to play, set 'Game type' to 'Any' and 'Number of games' to '?', and your opponent will be left to decide. In the case where both players request 'Any' game type, the match will default to 8-ball, and similarly, for both players requesting '?' number of games, only one game will be played by default.

#p#bTournaments

CueClub has two quite separate parts to it. The first is the chat room games, the second is the tournaments. Only by winning all eight chat room tournaments will you be granted access to the grand final - the CueClub tournament.

Tournaments are made up of sixteen players, fifteen of which are selected at random from a chat room. Players will have differing abilities and you have no way of knowing in advance who you will be paired with. If you win your match you will go into the next round. If not, you are dropped from the tournament and you will have to start again. Don't worry about saving, the game will auto-save your progress after each game, so you can come back to it another time.

Before playing your match, there may be other matches to be played first. Click on the 'Watch match' button to view a match between two computer players, or choose 'Skip match' to move onto the next. You may also skip a match in progress (except your own game). Click on the 'Play match' button to play one of your games. Remember, even if you are knocked out of the tournament, you can still watch the remaining games to see who wins the final. Please note that when a tournament game is in progress, you cannot start another game from the main menu. Either finish the current game or exit the tournament to begin another game.

If you manage to win a tournament, you will be awarded with a beautiful trophy, which will be on display in the hall of fame. You can still compete in the same tournament again (and even lose), but the trophy is yours to keep.

Winning a tournament is also a great way to improve your reputation. There is no deposit required to enter (unlike a chat room game), and your reputation is not affected by losing - so the risk is low, but the winner stands to gain a whopping THREE *'s! As a consolation prize, the other finalist will gain one *.

When you finally unlock the CueClub tournament, you will compete against the best of the best, from ALL the chat rooms! You, the bosses and the best players of each chat room will go head to head for the coveted CueClub trophy. The winner of this fine accolade will be awarded with a very special treat indeed!

#p#bPractice

To build up your skill level you will probably want to spend some time practicing your pots and ball control. The practice mode is an excellent environment to build up your skills in pool and snooker. With the ability to move all the balls around, it is possible to set up virtually any shot. Right click on any ball on the table to make it disappear. Left click on any ball in the stack to make it reappear on the table. Left click and hold to drag a ball around on the table.

#bSLAM!

When patience is running dry and you need a little light relief boot up this baby for some instant gratification! We have gotten rid of the cue in this mode, leaving you with just the mouse to hurl the balls around. It's not strictly a game as such, but it's a lot of fun, and it's a great way to check out the remarkable physics of CueClub!

#c#bSection 3: Game Controls

CueClub is a game played almost entirely with the mouse, and as such is extremely easy to play. However, there are a few controls which need to be learned. To make playing as simple and straightforward possible, most of the controls have been placed in a panel at the top of the screen, above the table.

#bCue Butt Elevator

This controls the vertical angle at which the cue strikes the cue ball. The default angle is zero, meaning the cue is parallel to the table. It can be raised to maximum of 75 degrees to perform swerve shots.

#bCue Ball Spin

This controls the amount of side spin and top or bottom applied to the cue ball. The view is from behind the ball and the crosshair indicates the desired area to hit the cue ball. The blue circle underneath indicates the actual area that will be hit. Sometimes these points will differ, for example, when attempting to apply bottom when the cue ball is against a cushion. In this case, it is impossible to apply bottom to the cue ball, so use the blue circle as the more accurate guide here.

#bPower Bar

This controls the amount of power used to play a shot. Low power is set with the bar to the left (barely visible), and high power is set with the bar to the right (fully visible).

#p#bButton Bank

On the far right of the control panel is the button bank. This contains an array of sixteen buttons to control things from chalking your cue to viewing the current match information. When you move the mouse over each button a short text description appears above it. Note that some buttons will be inactive, depending on the type of game you are playing, and what stage of the game you are at.

#bReplays

It is possible to replay any shot at full speed, half speed, quarter speed or one-eighth speed. Click on the corresponding button from the bank to activate the replay, or use the function keys (F1-F4). Note that it is only possible to replay a shot when the balls are at rest, and you will need to rely on the function keys when the computer has control of the mouse. A replay can be cancelled by clicking the right mouse button or pressing ESC. You can save a replay on the computer's hard-disk by pressing the 'Save shot' button (F5) and choosing a save-slot from the ten available. To call it back later, choose 'Load shot' (F6). This facility is ideal for storing those hard to repeat 'Golden shots', and you can even email your shots to friends with the game by extracting the relevant files from the 'CueClub\save\shots' folder. The recipient then simply drops the files into their shots folder before viewing from the load replay screen as normal.

If you have performed a particularly awesome shot - such as potting all the balls in Speed Ball from the break, you may wish to send it to the official hot-shot hall of fame gallery for everyone to download and admire. For more details visit: #bwww.bulldoginteractive.com/hotshots.htm

Full credit for your shots will be given.

#p#bPanel Swap Button

On the extreme right of the control panel is a button which resembles two arrows. Use this to swap between the control panel and the side view of the table.

#bPool Panel

When a ball is potted or when all the balls are down, this panel will be displayed. It is the side view of the table and contains from left to right, the cue ball bay, the object ball rack, and the object ball bay. If any region here begins to flash then you should click on it to continue. This may happen if the cue ball is potted, for example.

#bSnooker Panel

The snooker game contains two additional panels - one for each long side of the table. To indicate which side you are viewing, three arrows point down into the relevant pockets. Like pool, when a ball is potted the panel will switch to the side view of the table. However, you do not need to recover potted balls yourself - the virtual referee will perform this task for you (except in 'Practice' and 'SLAM!' modes). Note that when the referee is busy, you cannot play a shot, so please be patient. Apart from re-spotting balls, it is the referees responsibility to stop pockets filling up, and to clean balls that looks dirty.

#c#bSection 4: Options

CueClub features a wealth of options to choose between. Some are available right from the start and others become unlocked as you progress through the game.

#bMatch

This menu contains game difficulty, which sets the ability of the computer players, and match count, which sets the number of games to be played in any 'Quick game' or 'Two player' match.

#p#bTables

This menu allows you to customise the pool and snooker tables by changing the baize and table finish. Choose from an array of baize tints and textures, or choose one of your own from the custom baize library. To use one of your own you will need to use a graphics application to design your baize, then save out the file in PCX format. The design must be 600 pixels wide by 340 pixels high, and saved in 16 bit mode. Use the templates in the 'CueClub\custom' folder as a guide. The file must be called 'baize1.pcx' or 'baize2.pcx'   ...up to and including 'baize4.pcx'.

On the right hand side of the screen will be a preview of the table.

As with many game options, to see your new table design, you must start a new game by either selecting a new game from the main menu, or re-racking the balls at the table.

Only one baize pattern and finish is active initially, but more can be gained by progressing through the chat rooms (and there are a few hidden ones too!).

Note that the table settings are overridden by chat room and tournament games.

#p#bCues

This menu option allows you to change your default cue. In 'Two player' mode and 'Killer', where there is more than one human player, each may choose their own cue. But remember that not all cues behave the same. Apart from looking and sounding different, the longer cues can apply more power to a shot, but can apply little spin to the ball. The lighter cues however, whilst not very powerful, are great for performing shots where a lot of spin is required - such as the swerve shot. This is because they have a much finer tip.

Feel free to change your cue during a game, if the situation dictates it. However, you may wish to confirm with any other players first whether or not a 'swap cue' option is allowed before starting a game.

Only one cue is active initially, but more cues can be gained by progressing through the chat rooms.

You may use any of the available cues in any chat room. There are no rules to say you must use the house cue. Expect the bosses to use the official house cue, though.

#p#bBalls

This menu option allows you to choose the ball set for a game of pool. There are eight variations for U.S. pool, and sixteen for European pool. All ball sets behave identically, but you will find that some look better on certain tables than others.

Only two ball sets are active initially, but more can be gained by progressing through the chat rooms (and there are a few hidden ones too!)

Note that the current setting will be overridden by chat room and tournament games.

#bSpecial FX

This menu option allows you to toggle certain special effects. If you are affected by flashing lights then you may wish to turn the strobes and/or the disco lights off.

Remember that many of the special effects are costly to processor time, so you may wish to turn some off to help increase the frame rate.

#bAudio

This menu option allows you to change the volume of the sound effects and turn the CD music on or off.

#p#bDynamics

This menu option allows you to change the performance of the table, by increasing or decreasing the table speed and cushion speed. Note that this setting will be overridden by chat room and tournament games.

This menu also allows you to change the cue control method. There are four modes available:

#b1. Natural

This is the default setting. After setting the power with the power bar, click the left mouse button to play the shot. After a couple of practice strokes, the cue will dart forward and strike the cue ball.

#b2. Instant

This mode is similar to the 'natural' mode described above, but the cue darts forward instantly, without any practice strokes.

#p#b3. Catapult

This mode allows you to set the power without using the power bar. Click and hold the left mouse button, then move the mouse forwards and backwards to set the power (the further back the cue the more powerful the shot). Release the mouse button to play the shot.

#b4. Virtual

This mode is possibly the most realistic, but also the most difficult to master. Like 'catapult' mode, you do not need to use the power bar. Instead, the power is set by how fast you move the mouse forward. Click the left mouse button to begin the shot, then pull the cue back and push forward to shoot.

Finally, there is an option enabling you to toggle between manually chalking your cue and automatic chalking. With this option set to manual, it is possible to mis-cue if you forget to chalk on shots requiring a lot of side, top or bottom spin. With this option set to automatic, it is impossible to miscue.

#p#bRule Variations

This menu option contains lists of rule variations for U.S. 8-ball, Euro 8-ball and Killer. Each rule can toggled by clicking on the tick box beside it. For a detailed description of these rules, refer to the reference section (part IV).

Rule settings will be overridden by chat room and tournament games.

#bRestore settings

This menu option will restore all the options back to the default settings.

#c#bSection 5: Hall of fame

It's only fair to be able to brag off your achievements. Impress your friends with your hard earned records in the CueClub hall of fame.

#bTrophy Room

Each time you win a tournament cup it will be placed in the trophy room. There are nine to collect in total.

