Disclosure: Meeple Mountain received a free copy of this product in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. This review is not intended to be an endorsement.
Snooker has never made sense to me. On those rare occasions when an American has cause to observe snooker, it seems impenetrable. Some balls get pocketed, and stay that way. Others get pocketed, and a man with white velvet gloves puts them back on the table. It’s all very quiet and intentional and I haven’t the slightest idea as to what’s going on. Not that I ever read the rules.
Carrooka, handmade in England by carpenter Jack Furnival, is an attempt to bring snooker into the home, a marriage of billiards rules with the disk flicking of crokinole and carrom. It’s a beautifully realized idea. The level of craftsmanship is immediately impressive. If the price tag (around $220) causes you to catch your breath, just know that it is justified. One man made this massive thing, with evident care and attention, out of high-quality materials.
All of that is well and good, but means little if the game is not fun. Carrooka is excellent. My first few games were with the pool variant, Pool8, which I found lackluster. Once I internalized the rules of snooker and changed to the original format, Carrooka came alive. The short version, for those uninitiated: You have to alternate between pocketing a red token and a token of any other color, calling the colored token prior to making your shot. The colored tokens, which are worth varying amounts of points, get placed back on the board when potted. You’re incentivized by the scoring to think multiple shots ahead, and, crucially in a dexterity game, to take risks.
The board and the disks allow for nuanced shots. Practice with Carrooka really does make perfect. I was so invested in the game that I found myself racking up practice rounds to hone my technique. If you want a dexterity game with some meat on its bones, something the genre is not exactly known for, Carrooka will do you just fine.
The most inspired decision with Carrooka is a Lazy Susan base, which allows for players to easily position themselves for the optimal shot. You don’t have to constantly shuffle around the table, which is a real blessing. Carrooka is a game you can play from your seat, another thing that makes it a rarity among dexterity games.
What criticisms I have are fully centered on the American pool module. For some reason, the game itself feels flat. Something about the rules of snooker make Carrooka more dynamic in this format, while pool falls apart. Beyond that, the Pool8 tokens have begun to chip with relatively little play. Compare that to the snooker pieces, which are solid wood and, after about a dozen plays in the last month, show no sign of wear.
Carrooka is a luxury product, for those with the funds and the space to accommodate it, but it is well worth the investment if you are so able. It rewards practice and dedication, but it’s also fun for people who are terrible at it. What more could you want from a dexterity game?
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