Bocce

About the game

3D bocce on five Italian courts: lay a ball beside the pallino from a crouch, lob over what is in the way, or knock a ball off the point with a raffa or a volo. Real rolling balls, a Tour of 35 levels, an endless Gauntlet.

Airporio Bocce is the game of the village court, played with one finger. The small white pallino goes down the court, then each side throws four balls at it; when all eight are thrown, the side nearest the pallino scores a point for every ball it has closer than the other side's best. And the side that is not nearest has to keep throwing until it is - so falling behind means throwing again.

Drag to put your mark on the court, then press and hold: your player goes down into the stance and weighs the ball, and a ring drifts up and down the court as any hand does. Lift your finger as the ring crosses your mark. Nothing is rolled afterwards - the ball goes for where the ring was, and a small map shows the head from above with rings at 20, 45 and 80 centimetres round the pallino.

Four deliveries. The Punto is laid down from a deep crouch and rolls to its mark. The Lob flies most of the way and runs a little, over anything in front. The Raffa is thrown hard along the ground off a short run-up to knock a ball away. The Volo comes down on a ball out of the air. The balls are real spheres: 107 millimetres and 920 grams, landing, skidding, rolling and slowing on the court's own surface, bouncing off the side boards and the back board, and clacking into each other - and into a pallino a tenth of their weight, which flies when it is hit.

The Tour takes you to five courts - a village square under plane trees, a seaside promenade where sand slows the ball and the court falls toward the sea, a vineyard terrace that falls two ways at once, an old clay court in a city park at dusk, and the quick synthetic carpet of a club hall - in 35 levels: drills (pointing, the wall, raffa, volo, the rescue, moving the pallino) and games against named players rated by how close they point, each court ending with its best player. Up to three stars a level. Then the Gauntlet: one game after another against better and better pointers, three lives, no last round.

Opponents throw through the same drifting hand as you, see it a moment late, read the court a little wrongly until they have watched a few balls roll, and choose between pointing and knocking by what lies round the pallino. Five camera views starting from behind your player, a Music button separate from the sound effects, a coach's notes and a map of where your balls finished after each game, eleven languages, keyboard and controller support. One self-contained file with no network requests, so it plays offline at 38,000 feet.

How to play

1. Bocce: a small white ball, the pallino, is thrown down the court, then each side throws four balls at it. You play red. When all eight are thrown, the side with the ball nearest the pallino scores a point for every ball it has closer than the other side's best. First to the target wins.
2. Whose throw: the side that is not nearest the pallino throws, and keeps throwing until it is nearest or has no balls left. Fall behind and you throw again.
3. Throwing: drag to put your mark on the court, then press and hold: the ball is weighed and the ring drifts up and down the court, a little from side to side. Lift your finger as the ring crosses your mark. Nothing is left to luck: the ball goes for where the ring was. The small map shows the head from above, with rings at 20, 45 and 80 cm round the pallino.
4. Four deliveries (the Delivery button, or Q and E): the Punto is laid down from a crouch and rolls to its mark; the Lob flies most of the way and runs a little, over anything in front; the Raffa is thrown hard along the ground to knock a ball away; the Volo comes down on a ball out of the air. The side boards and the back board are in play. A ball that leaves the court is dead, and a pallino knocked off the court or back over the centre line means the frame is played again.
5. The Tour takes you through five courts, drills and games, up to three stars a level. Some courts fall to one side: the arrow on the small map points downhill. The Gauntlet is one game after another against better and better pointers.
6. Camera: the camera button (or C) changes the view: behind the thrower, over the shoulder, at the pallino, from the side, and from above. The music button turns the music on and off; Sound in the menus (or M) silences everything.

Controls