Review

is an excellent PC port of one of the best early snooker games on the Spectrum and Commodore 64 computers. The game was revolutionary for its time-- offering mouse support, practice options, reasonable ball physics, and excellent control interface-- all in 1988. One glaring omission, however, is the complete lack of computer player: you have to either play both players yourself, or find a human friend to play against. This disappointment aside, Alex Higgins offers a smooth snooker game that will please all fans of the sport. Hitting the ball is done via an elegant four-step procedure: select the location to place the cue ball, shot direction, force, and finally spin direction and strength. The top-down view makes judging spin difficult, but a few rounds of practice are enough to allow you to line up perfect shots. Overall, Alex Higgins is a great snooker game that would have been near-perfect with an addition of computer players. As it stands, though, it is an excellent PC port of a Spectrum classic that is well worth a look.