Foosball Maniac

Foosball is quite the popular game in amusement parks and sometimes pubs, since it is highly entertaining and it requires a decent amount of skill in order to be played well. However, owning a foosball table can be quite pricey, not to mention the fact that they are pretty loud and you might end up annoying your neighbors, roommates, or parents.

Foosball Maniac is a simulator that allows you to enjoy the sport without spending a lot of money and with the possibility to mute all the sounds. You can also use it to practice your reaction skills for the real thing, especially since the controls are very similar and intuitive. The AI opponents are not very challenging, on the other hand, so you might not want to get used to a weak competition.

The table is modeled to resemble reality as closely as possible, although the graphics engine is not very powerful and it can't handle reflections or shaders too well. For all practical purposes, though, the game is as close to the real thing as possible, especially when it comes to the physics engine and the way the ball responds to your hits, as well as the motion of the rods.

Although the game asks you to beat the AI opponents in order of their skill level to unlock them, it is worth mentioning that at least the first two are incredibly unresponsive and slow. Most of the time, when the ball is in reach of them, they take too long to perform a move and a Deadball is played, which resets the ball in the middle of the table for a fresh round.

In fact, the AI is unresponsive most of the time and they make the game pretty difficult to enjoy, given the fact that you are playing alone and half the match you are actually waiting for the ball to be reset. The good thing about the game is the control, since you can flip the rods using the mouse, which is very intuitive and easy-to-use. You can change between the rods by simply selecting them using the keyboard, which comes in handy when you need to demonstrate your quick reflexes.

All things considered, Foosball Maniac can be enjoyed for a short while, but the AI issues can seriously keep you from coming back for more. A few more customizations options would have been welcomed as well, considering the fact that you cannot really setup the matches.