One of the first things to note when you start the game is the lane conditions. Before you start to bowl you'll be told how the lane is playing and the effect it'll have. Amateurs will flick past this without a second thought, but it's important to take note of these, as it'll have quite an effect on how you play.

The lanes can alter the performance of the ball quite radically. Some, for instance, may swing the ball to the right, others to the left and if you're really lucky, it might play straight. The lane report will tell you which direction it's moving the ball, but it doesn't tell you how much. Note how much the ball's veering off course on your first couple of tries, and alter things accordingly. You can either change your aim or add a bit of after spin to the ball to compensate any movement the lane might be causing.

The lane report also notes how heavily or lightly waxed the lane is. If there's a lot of wax on the surface, then the ball will not spin so much. If there's hardly any wax, the ball will obviously spin quite a lot. The important thing to remember though, is that the amount of wax changes as the game progresses. As more and more balls are hurtled down the alley, the wax wears off, meaning the ball will spin more and more the farther you get into a game.

The bowling balls are different colors. The colors represent the weight. Each weight performs in different ways, some spin well, others are fast, and some are just so heavy they bulldoze through all the pins.

• Orange, 8lb, good for spinning and good speed, but easily deflected. Best for those tricky splits and when you're after only one pin.
• Green, 10lb, good for spinning, average speed and average deflection. Good for little clumps of pins.
• Blue, 12lb, average speed, just above average spin and not easily deflected. Good for all round use.
• Purple, 14lb, a bit sluggish speedwise and bad for spinning, but can blaze a path through most pins. Good for blasting away clumps of pins, or on your first throw.
• Grey, 16lb, the big 'un, slow and bad for spinning, but once this one gets rolling, nothing's going to stop it.

As with real bowling, the game is all about using each one at the appropriate time and also finding out which is most suitable to you.

If you're aim is bad, you may want to choose a light ball, so if you send it off in the direction of the gutter you can put on some spin and turn it into a good shot. If your aim is okay, there's no reason why, especially on the first throw, you can't pick the big 'un and blast as many pins away as possible.

Learning how to use deflection is also important, especially for split pins. Generally, if the ball is deflected off course by a pin it's bad news, but sometimes you may want the ball to deflect so that you can hit another pin. If this is the case it's best to use a light ball.

As well as the above there's plenty of other handy little tips that can be picked up through experience. One of the most important is where to position the bowler to get the potential out of a shot. Sometimes it's best not to line up straight in front of the pin you're aiming at, but to come at it from the side, or use a bit of spin.

Also the little arrow that flickers around in front of the bowler goes faster the more oomph you put behind the ball. Sometimes it's best to throw a little bit slower and get the direction right, rather than just throw as hard as you can and hope it goes in the right direction.

Even if you do end up aiming it straight at the gutter, don't give up on it. If you see it veering down one of the sides slap some spin on, by pressing left or right on the joypad after you let go and it will end up heading for the pins. Even if you just get one, it's better than nothing.