This reference describes the in-game control keys and how they effect mouse movement. Keys shown are the defaults which can be changed in Settings/Key Mapping.

You can also bring up an on-screen Quick Reference during game play by pressing F1. Note that the control keys shown are the defaults, you can remap the key/mouse commands in Settings/Key Mapping.

Keys to Access Menus/Info

Esc In Game Menu

Press the Esc-Key is a toggle that shows/hides the in game menu. The cursor is also shown so you can choose menu selections. The menu shown is game context sensitive and varies depending on the game, whose turn it is, if action is running, etc..

F1 Help – In Game Quick Reference

This key will bring up a full list of all control keys with a quick reference to their meaning.

Alt Cursor On/Off

Pressing Alt toggles the cursor on and off. Use this when you need a cursor to do something like selecting a player in the player list.

Ctrl-Z VP4 Website

Pressing Ctrl-Z toggles between the VP4 website view and the game view. 

 

Basic Control Keys

These keys are the most commonly used when playing VP4 Online. The first two, shoot and aim are all you really need to start playing.

S Stroke Cue Stick – Shoot

Hold the S-Key down and move the mouse backward for your backstroke, and then forward to strike the cue ball. The faster you move the mouse, the harder you hit the cue ball. Note mouse sensitivity can be adjusted in Settings/Mouse

A Aim Mode

The A-Key puts you into Aim Mode. If you are in Aim mode before shooting, Virtual Pool automatically puts you back into Aim Mode after you shoot. Move the mouse left or right to aim the cue. Move mouse forward or backward to change the tilt of the table.

E English: Move Cue Tip

Hold the E-Key and move mouse to change the tip position and apply spin to the cue ball.

Esc In Game Menu

Press the Esc-Key is a toggle that shows/hides the in game menu. The cursor is also shown so you can choose menu selections. The menu shown is game context sensitive and varies depending on the game, whose turn it is, if action is running, etc..

Alt Cursor On/Off

Pressing Alt toggles the cursor on and off. Use this when you need a cursor to do something like selecting a player in the player list.

Ctrl-Z VP4 Website

Pressing Ctrl-Z toggles between the VP4 website view and the game view.

B Butt of Cue Angle

Press the B-Key and move the mouse to change the angle of the cue stick. You will see the angle degree on the lower left-hand side of the screen. The most common use for changing butt angle is to shoot massé or jump shots. The angle will return to normal after the shot.

Left mouse Zoom

Hold the left mouse button down and move mouse backward to zoom out; move mouse forward to zoom in. The distance is remembered and returned to every time you aim.

M Move Cue Ball

Hold the M-Key down and move the mouse to move the cue ball. Move ball is only an option when you have ball-in-hand during a game.

X Examine Table

Pressing X gives you a momentary overhead view for as long as you hold the key down. Use this to get a quick view of the table layout and plan shots.

V View Mode

Press the V-Key to select View Mode and change your center of view (aim view rotates around cue ball). Holding the V key down and moving the mouse moves the view center (which you see as a yellow torus). Release the V key and move the mouse and you will rotate around the new center, you can also Zoom in and out. This allows you to examine a particular table area closely, such as examining a cluster of balls. Press A to return to aim mode, your view automatically returns to cue ball centered.

 

Other Handy Control Keys

These keys are less commonly but you may find some of them useful.

> Amplify

Press to amplify stroke speed.  When moving balls (M Move Cue Ball) allows the cue ball to move over blocking balls.

< Fine Tune

Press to fine tune with controls

Right Mouse Force Show HUD

Pressing the right mouse button forces showing the complete HUD over the game area. Note this is only useful if you reduced the HUD information by changing Settings/Misc/ Status HUD.

W Walk Back

Press the W-Key to step back and look at the table from a distance. Your view will walk back a couple of paces and stay there until you release the W-Key. Walking back is useful for shots where the pocket is not visible, like a bank shot

J Jump Cue

Pressing J toggles the jump cue on/off. You must have a jump cue in your cue case (See Ctrl-O, Open Cue Case) for this to work.

R Replay Last Shot

Press R-Key to replay the previous shot. You must be the player in control to replay a shot.

+ Increment Replay Rate

The plus + Key (or the =-Key you don't need the shift) increases the replay rate up to full speed (1). Changing replay speed also changes the replay speed for all players in the room.

– Decrement Replay Rate

The minus - Key will slow down the replay rate to a minimum of 1/32. The replay speed is shown at the bottom right of the screen.

C Adjust View Center

Hold the C-Key and move mouse to move the window center. The window center maps the 3D view to the screen. This allows you to offset the view. In other words if aiming and centered on the cue ball you can change where the cue ball is on the screen.

O Overhead View

The O-Key changes to View Mode and shows a direct overhead view. To return

to Aim view, press the A Key.

Ctrl-O Open Cue Case

Clicking will open up your Cue Case (in VP4 website) to show you the cues you own. Select which cue from each category (Play, Play UK, Break, Jump, and Shaft), then press Update. Your cue in-game will update momentarily.

Ctrl-; Show Table Settings

Pressing Ctrl-; opens up a window with information about how your table is setup in the game you are playing.

Ctrl-G Show Game Rule Settings

Pressing Ctrl-G opens up a window with information about the game rules setup and handicapping. Note that the basic setup is not shown here as the HUD overlay has all that information.

 

Game Specific Control Keys

These keys only apply to certain games.

Ctrl-C Call Shot

Ctrl-C brings up the Call Shot dialog. The normal use requires selecting a ball and a pocket, but depending on the game and situation it could be just a ball or a pocket. Not all games require call shot and the custom rules setting allow turning on call shot for many games that by default do not call shots.

Ctrl-M Miscall Declare on Previous Shot

Virtual Pool 4 uses the honor system for calling most shots as calling them all the time gets tedious. If you pocket the wrong ball or put a ball in the wrong pocket, you can declare a Miscall by pressing Ctrl-M.

Ctrl-P Push Out

Ctrl-P is only available after a break in 9-Ball and 10-Ball. The player who has control of the table has the option of calling a Push Out. This allows the player to strike (push) the cue ball to anywhere on the table, and does not require the player to hit any ball or rail. The next player then has the option to take the next shot by shooting, or pass it back to the player who originally called the Push Out by pressing Ctrl-P.

Ctrl-[ Call Safety

Pressing Ctrl-[ calls a Safety shot. Call Safety is only available in Straight Pool, World Rules 8-Ball. You do not need to call a safety unless you intend to pocket a ball on a safety play, and have the turn pass to your opponent.

D Designate Ball On

D-Key brings up a dialog for selecting ball on. Designate Ball On is only available when playing Snooker. This is used to select the ball the player is attempting to shoot. It must be specified when shooting a color after pocketing a red ball. Note that the common way of doing this is just aim at the colour you want to pot and press S and the ball is auto-nominated. You can also use the number keys to nominate colours.

2–7 Select Ball On

When playing Snooker, and having made a red, pressing the any of the number keys between 2 and 7 nominates the colour with that point value. Note that the common way of doing this is just aim at the colour you want to pot and press S and the ball is auto-nominated. Also you can use D Designate Ball On to pick from an overhead view.

N Nominate Free Ball

N-Key brings up the select free ball dialog. Nominate Free Ball is only available when playing Snooker. This is used to specify a “free ball”. A free ball can be selected when your opponent fouls and leaves you snookered.

 

Chat Control Keys

/ Chat

Press the /-Key to send a text message to a remote player. Pressing Enter when you are done sends your message to the remote player. Pressing Esc cancels the current message.

Down Chat Scroll Down

Scroll chat window down one line.

Up Chat Scroll Up

Scroll chat window up one line.

Page Up Chat Page Up

Page chat window up.

Page Dn Chat Page Down

Page chat window down.

Ctrl-Up Chat Expand

Expand chat window by one line.

Ctrl-Down Chat Shrink

Contract chat window by one line.

 

The Rest of the Control Keys

Ctrl-A Set Adversary Shooting View

Sets the camera view used while remote player is shooting. Go into View Mode, change to the view you want, and press Ctrl-A. To activate this view you must select Settings/Camera/Adversay/User Defined.

Ctrl-U Show Adversary View

This moves the view based on what is set in Settings/Camera/Adversary. When your shot ends this operation automatically occurs. But if you do some viewing (using something like V View Mode) while you opponent is shooting and you want to return the the Adversary view, press Ctrl-U.

Ctrl-0 Save Last Shot

Pressing Ctrl-0 after a shot allows you to save just that shot. You also have the option of posting the shot to the VP4 Online website and/or Facebook. Note that this is only available to the player in control.

Ctrl-Q Quit Current Match

Ctrl-Q quits the match. You will get a confirmation prompt.

Ctrl-R Resign Game

Ctrl-R forfeits game for the player shooting and your opponent gets a win..

Ctrl-T Change Player Turn

Pressing Ctrl-T causes the shot to go from one player to the other without movement of any balls or assessment of any fouls. Typical use is if a player bumps his mouse or does something accidentally and you feel sorry for them.

Ctrl-W Set Momentary User View

Sets the camera view for user momentary view (Y-Key). Go into View Mode, change to the view you want, and enter Ctrl-W. To see that view in game any time, see Y Your Momentary View.

Y Your Momentary View

Shows the user configurable momentary view while the Y key is held down. To set the view, see Ctrl W Set Momentary User View.

F9 Frame Rate

Toggles frame rate display. The frame rate shows in magenta colored text on the lower right part of the VP4 window. Note it is instantaneous so to get a true reading do it while the balls are rolling.

F11 Screen Shot

Takes a screen shot and store it in My Documents\Celeris\Virtual Pool 4 Online\vpfiles\screenshots