(Updated on the 02/04/2025)
Miracle Pool is said to be the best VR pool/snooker game currently on the market and one of the best mixed-reality games you can experience. However, because Meta Oculus does not allow head tracking behind the headset, playing (and developing ) a cue sport game is pretty tricky, as you typically hold the cue behind your head and body in real life.
It’s also probably one of the hardest games to develop and get right in VR. The physics in this game are near perfect. The developers have done a great job and frequently update and improve the game.
This game could be used as a training aid for the actual game.
Having played many players online, I can see their frustration when they miss shots, hence the reason for this article.
I have played pool and snooker casually since around 1998. These tips and techniques will give you more accuracy as if you were playing for real.
You can use some, not all, of these tips to suit your height, playing style, and cue action.
Equipment needed:
Handstraps (for the bridge hand)
Solid table
Tablecloth (so it feels more immersive)
Setting up the table
The table I use is around 4 feet by 2 feet. But use one that fits in your space and suits your height. You need a table so your bridge hand is stable and solid. I have the table a bit higher than a real snooker or pool table, as going any lower playing in VR makes my neck stiff. I am around 6 feet tall.
I use large footbag clips to clap the tablecloth around the table.
Adjust the table height (in the game) so the table bed is approximately halfway through the hand controller, and the cue’s tip hits the cue ball’s centre.
See the video below as an example. See how the hand slightly sunk into the table. This ensures your cue tip is at the centre of the ball.
You then adjust the angle cue to apply spin when needed.
Because you can’t adjust the height of the bridge hand like in real life to apply top and bottom spin due to the hand controller in your bridge hand, you have to cue with a slight angle, which takes away parallel cueing like in the actual game.
Your bridge hand can be like the one in the picture below. Use your little finger as support.
Bridge hand example:
For bridging over balls and by the cushion/rail, your bridge hand can below like this:
Or like this. It’s a bit more solid.
The next part is the most important. The grip on the backhand should be at the back of the hand controller. This is the key to making your cueing more accurate.
Just grip the controller with your two front fingers behind the side trigger button and let your ring and pinky fingers hang behind. This will take some time to get used to, as we are used to holding the controller all the way up with other games.
With the cue action, adjust the table to suit your height so your chin is as close to the cue as possible and the back controller (my left hand in this case) is as parallel as possible.
In the video below, start your cue action by your chest, as when you follow through when you play for real.
This is the complete opposite of how you play in real life, but this is due to the fact that the headset only tracks at the front. It’s like playing when you play with a mini cue when you play on one of those four or five-foot mini tables. See below:
How it looks in the game:
How to aim
Watch this video on how to aim. The principles apply in VR as they do in real life.
How to do jump and masses shots
Hold the controller like this
Move it up and down like this:
To do a jump shot, hit the cue ball at the back end of the cue ball, and to do a masses shot, you need to hit the cue ball more to the top of the cue ball. It’s the same as in real life.
You can find videos on YouTube on how to do this. It does take a fair bit of practice.
Examples of jump and masses shots:
I did try this. It does help with immersion, but you need enough room to use it, which I didn’t. Also, the cue’s weight does not match the balls, which obviously weigh nothing in VR. But you may want to use it.
Here are some snooker break examples with the cueing tips I have suggested above:
Here are some more examples with aim assistance. You can start with that as a beginner.
I hope these tips help improve your game and experience. I will update this article with more tips and videos when I learn more or if they change or update the game.