The game is extremely easy for anyone to play, as the control set-up is very simplistic, however if you are finding it difficult you could always resort to the coaching mode, designed for beginners to the game, owners of the previous additions, however should encounter no problems.

The game offers a lot of competition; even the most talented of players will find the Championship tough to beat. You begin the game with a created player and you will find that even when you come up against other created player you will find him tough to beat and will need to bring out some good shots to overcome them.As I said the Championship will take you a while to complete, the game however does offer other modes such as Exhibition, Pool, Trick shots, Coaching and more. The gameplay of the game is good but you buying the game will probably hinge on your love for the game of snooker itself.

Graphically the game is not spectacular. The table and its surroundings look quite good and realistic, the players however don’t look as good as I feel they should do, they do resemble their real life counter parts but not in a huge way, fans of the game however will still be able to recognise their heroes without too much trouble.
This I personally think can be overlooked as the game plays so well and is fun so you shouldn’t worry if you’ll be able to tell your Mark Williams from your Ken Doherty because you will.

The games sound is good and the theme tune from the Championship broadcasted on BBC2 is included in the game, fans will know what I mean. The referee is also a good feature of the game, as, as in real life they respond to each ball potted, i.e. potting a red ball will result in a call of “One” from the referee, adding realism to the game. The crowd in the game provide atmosphere at the important events, while being fairly silent at beginning of tournaments, clapping only when you hit a good shot, but when you clear the table with a 112 they will erupt with cheers.

The games commentary is provided by snooker legend Dennis Taylor and I think is a good addition to the game, however sometimes it is a bit rough and often you will only hear him say something every two minutes or so.The commentator will also seemingly offer assistant to your computer counter part by suggesting a shot before he has even got out of his seat, and more often than not, the computer will take that shot, slightly annoying as it happens all the time, by no means a major problem though.
The games replayabiltity is also quite good as it offers various modes, including 8 and 9 ball pool, exhibition modes, trick shot modes you can play against your friends with a bit of two player action, so the games replayabilty is good.

The game overall is impressive, looks quite good apart from the players, is easy to get the hang of and plays very well, is very replayable and is a lot of fun. It can be appreciated by those unfamiliar with the game and those who are big fans, this is a good effort by codemasters and is worth the investment.

7 out of 10