About Carrom
Carrom is the tabletop game of India and the Gulf: a square plywood board with a pocket at each corner, nine white and nine black men, a red queen, and a heavier striker that you flick from your base line to knock your colour into the pockets. This is that board in the browser, with the sliding physics that make the real game what it is: men skid and slow on the powder, click off each other, rebound from the cushions and drop into the corners, and a thin cut sends a man along the rail into the pocket.
Slide the striker along your base line, press anywhere on the board, pull back to set the direction and power, and let go. A guide shows where the striker will travel and which way the man it hits will go, and you can shorten it or switch it off when you want the real thing. You keep striking while you pocket your own men; the queen must be covered by one of your men in the same strike or the next, or she returns to the centre; sinking the striker is a foul that puts one of your men back on the board; your last man cannot go before the queen. The board ends when one player has sunk all nine, and points are the rival's men still up plus three for a covered queen.
The computer opponent plays the way a person does: it lines up each man with each pocket, rehearses the best few shots with the same physics before striking, and on Hard it aims finer and banks more men off the cushions. Easy misses and fouls like a beginner. Pass-and-play turns the board round for each striker, and the practice table lets you clear all nineteen pieces alone. Three finishes, Classic, Rosewood and Midnight; wins against the computer earn points toward a public Top 10.
How to play
- Pick a rival: the computer on Easy, Normal or Hard, a friend on the same device, or the practice table.
- Slide the striker along your base line by dragging it or with the arrow keys.
- Press anywhere on the board and pull back: the dashed line shows the striker's path, the green line shows where the man it hits will go. Release to flick.
- Pocket your own colour to keep your turn. Cover the queen with one of your men in the same or the next strike.
- Sink all nine of your men, queen covered, to win the board.
Controls
| Drag on the base line | Slide the striker |
|---|---|
| Press, pull back, release | Aim, set power, flick |
| Left Right | Nudge the striker |
| N | New game |
| M | Sound on or off |
Tips
- Soft shots pocket more than hard ones. The guide tells you the line; power only needs to get the man there.
- A man against the cushion goes in along the rail: aim a little into the cushion and let it roll to the corner.
- Do not chase the queen before you have a man near a pocket to cover her with.
- When nothing is on, play a safe touch on your own man rather than a wild hit that scatters your men toward the rival's pockets.
Questions
Can I play carrom against the computer?
Yes, on Easy, Normal or Hard. The computer lines up each of its men with each pocket and tries the best few shots with the same physics before it strikes. Hard aims finer and plays more bank shots; Easy misses and fouls like a beginner.
Can two people play carrom on one phone?
Yes. Choose Friend and pass the device between strikes: the board turns round so each player strikes from the bottom of the screen.
What happens if the striker goes into a pocket?
It is a foul and your turn ends. Any men you sank with that strike come back to the centre; if you sank none, one of the men you pocketed earlier comes back instead.
What if I pocket the queen and do not cover her?
She goes back to the centre. To cover the queen you have to pocket one of your own men in the same strike or the next one.
Can I pocket my last man before the queen?
No. While the queen is still on the board, your last man comes straight back to the centre. The queen has to go first.
How are points counted?
The player who clears all nine men first wins the board and scores one point for each of the rival's men still on the board, plus three if they covered the queen.