Maxim Balls could have been just a billboard for the Maxim brand...well, it is a billboard for the Maxim brand. However, unlike when you buy Maxim for Men hair dye, you won't feel nearly as weird about purchasing this product. Maxim Balls is a decent little billiards game that plays well, but it lacks any variety whatsoever.
Airborne's Maxim Balls is essentially pool without the rules and all that unnecessary stuff. You have a handful of seconds to knock the balls--in no particular order--into the four corner pockets. Hitting balls in puts more time on the clock and adds to your score. Each progressive level adds another ball or changes the layout of the rack.
The controls are simple but effective. A stick juts from the ball and can be turned clockwise or counterclockwise by 6 or 4. The 2 and 8 keys increase and decrease the power of the shot, indicated by the length of the line as well as the helpful power meter on the right side of the screen. The 5 key starts the shot.
Extra points seem to be given for bank shots and quick firing, though you won't get enough momentum to do double shots or multiball connections. Even so, the physics engine is pretty accurate, especially considering the simplicity of the game.
A few problems mar Maxim Balls, the most obvious one being the repetitive nature of the game--every level is essentially the same, so more variety would have gone a long way. Secondly, the music sounds like 200 jack-in-the-boxes being run over by an Escalade. Finally, completing a level gives you a drawn "centerfold" saying stupid frat boy fantasy lines.
Those missteps aside, Maxim Balls is a straightforward, reasonably fun game for those who enjoy pool but don't want to relearn it on the cell. However, if you're looking for any of the titillation that the Maxim brand is known for, you won't find it here.
