Games Archives - Official Blog-Phoenix Pop

How to Clean Yellow Pool Balls

August 19, 2019

Pool balls need to be cleaned every now and then so they can be free of smudges, stains, chalk marks and won’t get an old, yellow shade. A game of pool will be much better if you have shiny pool balls that roll on green, well-kept felt. So when you feel that your pool accessories and things have that tired, worn out look, here’s what you can do to make them shiny again. This article will go into how to clean yellow pool balls so that you can always keep your balls in good condition.

How to Clean Yellow Pool Balls

Don’t know how to clean yellow pool balls? You can try some DIY methods such as using soapy water or use professional pool ball cleaning products to maintain your pool table.

DIY or Professional Cleaning Product?

Are DIY methods such as soapy water better than professional pool ball cleaning products, or is it the other way around?

As it turns out, there’s a difference between them in terms of application. Regular soap and water can only be used on phenolic or plastic resin balls and not those that are made of ivory or wood. Plus, water and detergent can only clean the balls and not get rid of the yellow stain that shows up over time.

If you’re looking to remove the yellow hue out of your pool balls, then it’s best to use a professional pool ball cleaner. Most of the time these products double as a felt cleaner for an all-around pool cleaning treatment.

Cleaning Using Soap & Water

Heat up a pot of water, grab two buckets, a dish soap, a microfiber cloth and a towel.

Mix soap and water on one bucket, then soak your pool balls in it for about 5 to 10 minutes. Prepare lukewarm water on the other bucket. After the time is up, take out the pool balls and use a microfiber cloth to ‘buff’ them up for 20 to 30 minutes.

Then, rinse out the soapy pool balls by dunking them on the bucket of lukewarm water. Once you’ve taken out the soapy residue, use a clean towel to dry off each ball before returning them to the table or their respective container.

Cleaning Using Professional Products

If your pool balls have that yellowish look and you want them to be like new again, then a professional cleaner should do the job quite nicely.

A word of caution, as the chemicals can be too strong for materials other than phenolic resin balls. That said, follow the instructions on the label for the best results.

First, shake the bottle thoroughly before use. Get a microfiber cloth and put a few drops of the cleaner on it. Wipe a yellowing pool ball and polish the whole ball for about half a minute or so. Using another microfiber, wipe the same ball until there’s no trace of the chemical on it.

Do this on all the balls until you achieve the desired result.

You can even use pool tables and the game of pool as a different way to fundraise for your organization.

Conclusion

It’s easy to learn how to clean yellow pool balls when you have the right products, tools and know the right pool table basics. Gather a few microfiber cloth, your preferred restorer and professional cleaning product and half an hour or so to get rid of the yellow age spots and make them look like new again. For maintenance, regular cleaning with soap and water works in removing dirt and chalk marks. While your pool balls may be clean, it’s equally as important to maintain other parts of your pool table such as the leather pockets and more.

Types of Escape Room Puzzles

August 13, 2019

Escape room games can be great fun for you to play. It is fun and exciting at the same time. There are different types of escape room puzzles that you can opt for. While you are preparing for your first ever escape room, it can be exciting and daunting too. But you need to know about the puzzles so that you can solve them efficiently. Here are some of the common types of puzzles for escape rooms that you will find:

Types of Escape Room Puzzles

One of the best escape room skills to develop is knowing how to solve the puzzles quickly. Knowing the types of puzzles you’ll find in various escape rooms can help ensure you have an idea of what to expect.

#1: Number and Texts Puzzle

Number puzzles are mainly related to basic math. You can use these for solving puzzle solutions. For these you do not need to be highly skilled in mathematics. You need to be clever and have some presence of mind. Also, there are can be some equations that you have to follow. You also need to work on the crosswords puzzles and master the art of solving missing-letter puzzles. These types of puzzles are excellent to hide the solutions and clues for your escape room games.

#2: Physical Puzzles

There are some physical puzzles too that you have to master. It can be undoing knots or moving any large objects or any other physical puzzles. You never know what type of puzzles you will be given in the escape rooms. So, it is always better to prepare yourself for all types. It is important for you to remember that moving any object can be done at a particular direction. Teamwork is really effective with these types of puzzles. So, whenever there is something suspicious like an out-of-place shelf or cabinet, try to move it.

#3: Light & Sound Puzzles

There can be many puzzles related to the sound and light. Hence, it is very important to keep all your senses perfect. You have to listen very closely to the background sound. The ambient sound can provide you with some of the most important clues. You can also pay attention to the lights where it is shining more or not shining. Also, listen to the lyrics very carefully if there is a background music going on. This will help you to solve the puzzle more effectively.

#4: Hidden Objects

Sometimes the puzzles or clues can remain hidden. It can be hidden in plain sights like that of the books, drawers or shelf, but you need to find them out. The clues are not always presented through puzzles. It can also be kept in hidden places. You need to search the place thoroughly to find the hidden objects which can help in solving the puzzles. A benefit of escape rooms is how much they improve your attention to detail.

Conclusion

So, these are some of the common types of escape room puzzles. Besides these, you can also find other types of puzzles such logic puzzles, visual designs and combination designs. The key to beating an escape room quickly is by being alert all the time. If you are stuck at a point, it is important to listen to what others have to say. Since this is a team game, every opinion and perspective matters a lot in this escape room games.

Pool Table Basics – What the Pros Want You to Know

June 17, 2019

When you’re learning how to play pool, you’ll likely come across different terminology, strategies and variations of the game. For you to become an expert in pool, you need to master the game’s principles and equipment. However, let’s start with some pool table basics.

Pool Table Basics

Some pool table basics include knowing how to play and to position your body, how to hold the cue stick, and how to hit the ball.

A Step by Step Approach

The basic principles are quite simple and easy to understand. You can start by following a simple step by step approach, as that’s the best way to learn more about the game of billiards.

The body position
Holding the cue stick
Hitting the cue ball

The Body Position

Your body position must be comfortable yet stable. Be sure to wear comfortable clothes as the dress code is rather casual.

Mastering the Stroke

Ensure your feet are a little wider than shoulder-width apart.

Each person has a different preferred hand position. If you’re right-handed, hold the cue stick’s base with your right hand and rest the narrow end on your left. Do the opposite if you’re left-handed.

How to Position Your Leaning Hand

Put a beer cap on the pool table
Hide it with your hand
Open your three external fingers
Lift your thumb forming a V shape
Place the cue stick between your thumb and the knuckles of your index finger

Experiment with a few hand positions to get one that’s most comfortable for you. For instance, some people prefer to rest the cue stick in between their fingers in a flat style while others prefer to rest the stick on their index finger. Alternatively, you can try curving your index finger on top of the stick and put your thumb at the bottom of the stick. Some people find that this technique allows them to have better control of the cue stick.

When practicing your strokes, switch your eyes from the point you’re aiming for on the object ball to the contact point on the cue ball.

Hitting the Cue Ball

Hitting the cue ball shouldn’t be difficult once you’ve got everything else right. Place the cue stick’s tip about four inches away from the ball. Then position the cue on your leaning hand. Move only your back arm when shooting and the rest of the body should stay still.

It’s also crucial that you don’t twist your wrist when hitting the cue ball.

Making Shots

When you’re just starting out, try to hit the cue ball straight and with power.

You should also experiment with slow, easy shots. A softer touch will sometimes help your ball to ride the edge of the table and stay in a more defensive position.

Focus

Pool requires you to focus and pay attention to the overall game. So, keep your eye on the ball and try to tune out distractions the best you can.

Don’t get too frustrated or overly confident – the tables can turn in a second. Focus on improving your shots and things will turn out just fine.

Bottom Line

Like all types of cue sports, pool takes some practice to get the hang of. There are various types of games but once you know the pool table basics and practice your shots, you should have an easy time playing most types or variations of pool games. If you decide to invest in a pool table of your own or maybe try to hold a fundraising pool tournament, be sure to maintain it in order to play your best as well.

Escape Room Skills – Physically and Mentally

June 7, 2019

Escape rooms are very interesting and fun to participate in. Besides being exciting and interesting in nature, there are some amazing benefits to immerse yourself in a real escape room scenario. There are some amazing benefits of playing escape room. There are some escape room skills that you can master to help you in this game as well as in your life. These are:

Escape Room Skills

Do you know the benefits of an escape room? Escape rooms help build various skills, such as creative thinking, and attention to detail.

#1: Brain Exercising

Live escape games are a challenge that players take to get out of a room exercising their brain and finding clues. They have to do something very unusual as well as very different. This game requires people to think a bit out of the box. The challenges are real and this is a game that you have to play out of your comfort zone. Brainstorming is one of the skills that you have to master in order to escape the room. There are many clues that are hidden in the room that you have to find and match with other in order to find a way out.

#2: Competitive Drive

With the clock ticking and you have only 60 minutes in hand for escaping the room, you have to be fast and competitive in nature. You have to solve the puzzles quickly and get the clues to find your way out from the room. This increases the competitive mindset and helps you to be more attentive and efficient.

#3: Concentration

Many people play live escape games all across the world. Though the game is exciting and for fun, it demands great concentration. You have to be present in the game and focus. Notice everything that is around you as anything can lead you to the result. You have to solve complex puzzles, find answers to the riddles and get clues to get out. You cannot keep thinking about other things when focusing on one puzzle. Concentration and attention to detail are important.

#4: Creative Thinking

No matter how talented you are and experienced you are in this game, without the skill of creative thinking, you cannot find possible solutions. You and your team will have to think out of the box and recognize some of the patterns or numerical sequences that can be helpful in the game.

#5: Awareness

Playing the escape room games can increase the level of awareness in people. You have to be intensely aware of things and search for them. There are several things that we are not aware of in normal life but can have a great value. The heightened level of awareness is important for the escape room.

Conclusion

So, these are some of the escape room skills that you can adapt or master when you are playing the escape room games. In an escape room scenario, you may find it quite confusing at times. But you need to remember to concentrate and brainstorm with your team. When you are thinking a bit out of the box and looking for some clues, you will likely to get them.

Escape Room Dress Code

May 17, 2019

In recent years, escape rooms have become a quite popular activity for groups of friends, work colleagues, and families. They are fun and exciting and offer an unforgettable experience for people of all ages. You don’t actually need to have any experience in puzzle solving or be a genius to participate in an escape room game. All you need is an open mind, positive attitude and team working skills to enjoy them!

Escape Room Dress Code

Whether you are participating in an escape room just for fun with your friends or family, or for team building with your workmates, you might be asking yourself what to wear for the occasion. Well, for an escape room game, you’ll want to wear something not too tight to hinder your ease of walking around. Thus, comfort should be your top priority since some escape room activities can be highly physical. To help you in choosing what to wear for escape room games, we’ve rounded up some few tips to help you out.

Comfort is Key

When it comes to the right attire for an escape room, we can’t overemphasize on the importance of choosing comfortable clothing and footwear. You need to choose shoes and clothes that you are comfortable walking around in. Although escape room games are mainly puzzles and mental challenges, they also involve some physical activities. For instance, you might be required to crawl on the floor, climb, bend down, or even jump as you try to look for the Escape Room Dress Code clues. So, it’s critical to choose clothing that will allow you to move with ease and footwear that won’t fall off or hurt your feet as you race to solve the mystery before the time is out.

Avoid distracting clothing

Another important thing to remember when choosing what to wear for an escape room game is to stay away from wearing accessories or clothes that distract your team members. Remember you and your team members need to be focused to solve the mystery at hand so anything that might take their attention away. Avoid wearing brightly patterned clothes or bracelets and other jewelry that jingle when you’re moving.

Choose Close-fitting Attire

Choosing close-fitting clothing such as sportswear or gym outfit is also a good idea when going to escape rooms. This is because it will be comfortable and you’ll be able to move freely around the room. Some people even choose to wear their favorite superhero costumes to make the adventure more fun and memorable.

Don’t Forget Your Reading Glasses

Remember escape room games usually test a variety of skills. You and your team members might at some point be needed to read something in order to move to the next puzzle. So if you are visually impaired, don’t forget to bring your reading glasses with you. Otherwise, you might find yourself stuck or inconvenience your team members. The same applies if you have hearing problems. Make sure to carry your hearing aids to make your experience better.

These are some of the things to consider when choosing the right escape room dress code. Safety and comfort should be your top priority to help you easily complete the escape room.

Escape Room Benefits – Improve Various Skills

April 23, 2019

An escape room is simply an immersive experience that encourages participants to cooperate, get clues, and solve problems to complete a given mission. These activities are often learning and cognitive experiences for many people, as well as provide a great gaming experience. Also, escape rooms can be a great opportunity for players who are looking for scenarios which can be educationally-enriching and make them feeling content, intelligent, and happy. If you are still hesitating about this form of entertainment, here are some escape room benefits to know.

Escape Room Benefits

Below are some of the main benefits you can experience when you try an escape room.

Improve Creativity

One of the most important benefits of escape games is that they provide participates great opportunities to employ their mind to solve problems creatively. Most of these activities require you to challenge yourself and your teammates to think outside of the box. From difficult riddles to hectic physical exercises, escape rooms can be a great place to break from normal life and live with your creativity. More importantly, these experiences can transition into many areas of your life and improve your productivity.

Enhance Collaboration

Even in those settings in which collaboration already exists, encouraging teamwork and cooperation in a new context like escape rooms could stimulate idea and communication synthesis skills in participants. Dealing with a new group of issues in a strange environment could break the daily routine of people who just collaborate with their own colleagues in the same departments. In other words, escape games provide a great opportunity for us to mix and match between different teams from various departments in the same organizations. As a result, there will be many challenges to help them work more efficiently with new faces.

The team which struggles together will stay together. Escape games allow different people to face and overcome the same challenges, thus building empathy between them. Even though victories can be significant, struggling and failing together could also be valuable lessons because it provides team members with a great opportunity to express their appreciation, responsiveness, and compassion.

Reduce Stress and Have Fun

If you are stressed from your daily work, then escape games can be a great option to have fun and get away from stress. With many interesting activities and challenges, you can get great joy and satisfaction from dealing with new information or cooperating with new people. As a result, this will increase your adrenaline and give you a sense of achievement when the mission is completed.

Increase Your Motivation

Problem-solving activities and physical movements in an escape room would trigger your brain to produce more dopamine. This substance does not only encourage the brain to have a greater sense of pleasure, but it would also be important for improving your motivation. In addition, these activities can create a pattern of challenges to success, thus creating a positive connotation and training your cognitive system to incentivize achievements in the future.

In Conclusion

Overall, playing in an escape room is fun. All the escape room benefits and psychological satisfaction that you get from participating will make you feel entertained and help improve many skills. Thus, it is a great option for personal entertainment, work events, or team building activities.

How to Maintain a Pool Table

April 2, 2019

A well-maintained pool table will not only play better, but also last longer than one that’s neglected. The most important thing about getting the most out of your pool table is to keep it in good condition. Whether you’re a competitive player, or a casual player who enjoys the game only over the weekends, here are a few tips on how to maintain a pool table.

Coverage

Start by giving your pool table the best protection when it’s not in use by covering it with a specially designed cover. Vinyl covers protect your table from dirt and dust, the damaging rays of the sun, kids, spills, pets, high levels of humidity and moisture and other random contaminants. Be sure to choose the right size of cover for your table.

Table Position

Pool tables are best kept away from sunlight. Avoid positioning your pool table near windows as the rays of the sun can easily fade the wood and damage the felt. Similarly, wooden pool tables shouldn’t be placed in rooms with high humidity levels. You wouldn’t want the wooden surface to get mold or dry either.

Safe Playing Practices

You can prolong the useful life of your table by taking a few precautions when playing pool games. For instance, avoid chalking the tip of your cue on the table to prevent the dust from damaging the felt. That helps to protect the cloth from dust that can affect its smoothness. Similarly, you want to avoid shots that involve digging the cue’s tip into the cloth as that may cause small scratches can lead to major tears.

Another useful tip is to take off or avoid playing with loose jewelry as they can prick the cloth and eventually damage it. Loose watches and bracelets can also scratch and dent the rails of your table.

Ball Cleaning

Every now and then, clean the balls with a soft cloth and billiard ball cleaner, or some warm water and soap. Properly cleaned balls will keep the cloth, cues and cushions in better condition.

Cloth Cleaning

Keep a soft bristle brush handy and use it to sweep chalk, talc and dust away from the table. You can also use it to clean the table after every game or during gameplay, if necessary. The trick here is to sweep gently yet briskly in one direction, preferably towards the pockets, which can be clean with a soft piece of damp cloth. It’s also advisable to give the cloth a proper cleaning by vacuuming it regularly. Set the vacuum cleaner on a low setting and avoid using an attachment with a brush.

Frame Cleaning

Clean the area under the rail with a soft bristle brush and clean the rail, legs and cabinet with a dry soft piece of lint-free cloth.

Bottom Line

All these tips on how to maintain a pool table should help you to get the most out of your pool table and extend its useful life. Have a rule that there’s no drinking or eating at the table, and chalk your cue away from the table. Taking precautionary steps will help keep your pool table in top condition.

How to Quickly Beat an Escape Room – Tips from the Pros

March 15, 2019

Do you want to know how to quickly beat an escape room? Are you looking for some tips to enjoy your escape room activities and to register a win? If yes, then you are in the right place. This article will offer some useful tips to make your escape room adventure more fun and less stressful.

How to Quickly Beat an Escape Room

Make Your Team

If possible, play with your friends. It will ensure better communication. If it is a public-booking room, you might have a few options to choose your team. However, make a conscious effort to play with a small team. When there will be more players, it will only make the room congested and everyone will not have enough things to do. If you choose private rooms, you might need to spend more. The benefit is that you will have the freedom to choose your team members and team size.

Work Collectively

All of your team members should come together to find out a solution when in an escape room. Take the help of your team members to solve a puzzle. Also, you need to listen to your teammates. Even if they have crazy ideas, try them to have a different experience. You never know, these might get you closer to the solution.

Yell Out Loudly

You need to yell out if you find something or solved something. Escape rooms games can be easily won when two members of a team find related items such as keys, locks, or patterns in different places. If you find something, yell out loudly to make it known to all of your team members.

Think Differently

All your team members need to act smart to solve the puzzles. Some puzzles are too hard and you might dismiss it in the first glance even without trying to solve it. The better solution is to try to solve them before heading towards others. Otherwise, you might not be able to solve others as these are closely related.

Do Not Focus on One Puzzle Only

You are there to be a contributor to the puzzle. Do your part and then go for the next one. You should never act a spectator. It is easy to be a spectator when an exciting puzzle is in progress. However, you need to work more efficiently to get success fast. If there is only one puzzle, then all the team members will do their best to solve it.

Get a Discard Pile

You need to separate objects into used and unused piles. This will prevent reexamining the same objects again and again. Also, organize the objects neatly to use them whenever required.

Bottom Line

In addition to all of the tips mentioned above on how to quickly beat an escape room, search your room thoroughly and listen to your host to come to a quick solution. If it’s required, you can also ask the host for hints if you and your team is feeling stuck.