TV SPORTS: FOOTBALL
AMIGA PLAYERS GUIDE

BEFORE USING THE "LEAGUE" OPTION MAKE A COPY OF REEL2.
"Reel2" is not copy protected and contains league and season data. Make a backup of this disk. Be sure the copy is named "REEL 2" and not "COPY OF REEL 2" (consult your Amiga manual if you need more information on this procedure). Store the original in a safe location.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS.
1. An Amiga 500, 1000, or 2000 with at least 512K of RAM.
2. A joystick connected to PORT 2. (Some game options require a second joystick.)

GETTING STARTED.
If necessary, boot your Amiga with Kickstart 1.2. At the Workbench prompt insert "REEL 1" in the internal drive and "REEL2" in the external drive (if you have one). The game loads automatically. One drive users: follow the on-screen prompts to exchange disks. Never exchange a disk unless the program requests it.
NOTE: To skip the intro press your joystick firebutton. The screen will "freeze" as the COIN TOSS is loaded in.

MENUS AND GAME OPTIONS.
The main menu has four options:EXHIBITION, LEAGUE, PRACTICE, AND CLIPBOARD. To select an option move the joystick up or down until until the animating football is next to your selection, then press the firebutton.

PLAYING AN EXHIBITION GAME.
When the four EXHIBITION options appear, select one and press the firebutton. From the clipboard menu select a "visiting" team by moving the pencil to the desired team and pressing the firebutton. In ONE PLAYER and TEAMMATES modes the FIRST team you choose is the team YOU will control. The SECOND team you select (the "home" team) is your opponent. For TWO PLAYER games a second joystick, plugged into PORT TWO, must be used when selecting the "home" team. The game loads automatically once the teams have been determined.
NOTE: The TEAMMATES mode allows two humans to play against the computer. JOYSTICK 1 is the offensive captain and always controls the quarterback. JOYSTICK 2 is the defensive captain, and always controls the left inside linebacker. The "teammate" will be a wide receiver or running back on offense and any player EXCEPT the left inside linebacker on defense.

USING THE LEAGUE OPTION AND EDITING TEAMS.
The Cinemaware Football League (CWFL) always consists of 28 teams. Each team can have either a HUMAN or COMPUTER "owner". If you want to play in a league by yourself simply change the ownership of one of the 28 computer owned teams from "COMP" to "HUMAN". Or you can compete in a league with up to 27 of your friends; each friend choosing a team to "own" while any remaining teams are controlled by the computer. In multi-player leagues then, some of your games, depending on your schedule and the number of humans participating, will be against computer teams and some will be against other humans.

STARTING A NEW SEASON.
Select NEW SEASON and then choose EDIT TEAM. Now move the pencil to the team you want to own and press the firebutton. When the ROSTER screen appears move the pencil to the upper right corner where it says "OWNER" and push the firebutton once. The owner of the team should now be: "HUMAN". Move to the bottom of the page and select SAVE CHANGES. This makes a temporary copy of your new team in memory and allows you to change as many other teams as you like BEFORE you save everything to disk using the SAVE LEAGUE option. When you are ready to play a game, go to CONTINUE SEASON and press the button. You will see a schedule of the current week's games. A blue "C" indicates COMPUTER-controlled teams. A red "H" marks the teams that are HUMAN controlled. (If your team is not marked with a "H" it means you forgot to change the ownership and you must start over.) Move the pencil to the game that features YOUR team and press the firebutton. This game will now be highlighted. When you are ready to begin, choose "PLAY" at the bottom of the screen or CLIPBOARD to exit.
WARNING: When you begin a new season you ERASE any existing seasons on you league disk! You are allowed only ONE season and ONE league per disk. (If you want to run more than one season at at time simply make an additional copy of REEL2!)

CHOOSING "HOLD" OR "AUTO" MODES.
The right side of the weekly schedule screen has a status column that shows whether a game is in "HOLD" or "AUTO" mode. Notice that the games with one or more HUMAN owners default to HOLD mode while all computer vs. computer games default to AUTO. This means that those games will be played AUTOmatically, while the human games are on HOLD until a later time. While playing your league game on-screen, all the games in AUTO mode are actually being decided play-by-play off-screen. Also, if you don't select a game before you push "PLAY" all the games in AUTO mode will be resolved. You can toggle games between the two modes by moving the pencil to the status column of the appropriate game and pressing the firebutton. This allows two things: first, you can HOLD a computer vs. computer game and WATCH it later, wither to study your next opponent or just to enjoy a big game; and second, if your're competing in a multiplayer league and one of the players isn't available for his game, he can elect to have the computer simulation decide the game for him almost instantly! (NO ONE can advance to the next week until ALL the games from the current week have been decided, either by playing or by computer simulation.)

EDITING A TEAM.
Whenever you start a new season you have the option of editing a team. You can change the team name and initials, owner, player names, player rankings, and player ratings. Just move the pencil to the item you want to change and press the firebutton. The flashing red cursor should appear in the first column of the input area, and move from left to right as you type on the keyboard. Be sure to type slowly and deliberately. When entering names be sure there is a first and last name ONLY! To enter a name like Boom Boom Barnett, which is broken into three parts, you should use a hyphen like this: "Boom-Boom Barnett". A player's last name should not exceed 10 letters.

You can also change a player's rankings. The RANKINGS determine the total number of "talent points" that a player is allocated. The best player on your team is give 24 points, the second best player gets 23 points and so on. The points are then divided among four different areas: SPEED, STRENGTH, HANDS, and AGILITY. You CANNOT give a player MORE or Less total points that he was allocated. So if a player has 20 talent points and you have given him 5 points in each of the first three areas, the computer will ONLY accept a 5 in AGILITY. Also, when you change a player's RANK, you must enter leading zeros. (The computer is expecting TWO digits.) When you are done with your team, select SAVE CHANGES and press the firebutton. When you are through editing, choose SAVE LEAGUE from the league menu to save your new team(s) to disk. An editing session permanently modifies the team on disk. Several editing sessions may be used to create a multi-player league. When all players are satisfied with their teams, select CONTINUE SEASON to begin league play.
NOTE: EVEN IF YOU DON'T EDIT A TEAM, WHENEVER YOU BEGIN A NEW SEASON YOU MUST USE THE SAVE LEAGUE OPTION!

USING THE PRACTICE OPTION.
Football is a game of fundamentals, and the only way to improve your fundamentals is by practicing. There are two ways to practice:

PRACTICE PLAYS:
This option allows you to practice handoffs, fake handoffs, pitches, punts and most importantly you PASSING! The play-calling screen will remain up for an indefinite amount of time allowing you to analyze the play diagrams. Once you have selected a play you can hike the ball immediately. You will return to the pay-calling screen whenever the play is over, for example, running out of bounds, or following an incomplete pass. You have unlimited downs, on time limits, no penalties, and you are returned to the 20 yard line after each play. To exit the practice mode and return to the main menu, simply reboot your Amiga.

PRACTICE KICKING:
During a game there are two ways you can kick field goals: you can have the computer kick for you, OR you can kick the ball yourself. A good human kicker will have a slightly higher chance of success, so if you plan to do your own kicking it is important to practice your timing. )See KICKING FIELD GOALS for more details.) To exit the kicking game simply reboot your Amiga.

USING THE CLIPBOARD TO STUDY LEAGUE STATS.
To use the CLIPBOARD option you must have a league-in-progress on your league disk. Statistics generated during EXHIBITION games will NOT be saved. The CLIPBOARD menu gives you the following choices:

VIEW SCHEDULES:
This is a weekly schedule of league games. The "+" and "-" buttons at the top of the screen allow you to go forward or backward in the schedule. Move the pencil to the "button" of your choice and press the firebutton. Scores of games that have already been resolved will appear on the weekly schedules. Those in red indicate losing efforts while the blue scores mark victories. When viewing playoff schedules in mid-season, teams will appear according to the current standings.

VIEW STANDINGS:
The STANDINGS screen allows you to analyze the record of every team in every division. From left to right you can see: Wins, Losses, Ties, accumulated Points For, and accumulated Points Against. Also, by moving the pencil up and clicking on a team, you can view it's schedule. The schedule shows a complete list of opponents, and tracks scores of games that have already been played. At the bottom of this screen is the "OPPonents WIN PCT". This is calculated by adding up the total number of opponent victories and dividing by the number of games.

LEAGUE LEADERS:
You can view LEAGUE LEADERS in six catagories. Move the pencil to the category you wish to study and press the firebutton. The upper half of the screen will now display the top ten performers in the league in the category you selected. The numbers highlighted in red indicate the "STAT" by which the performers are ranked. Each STAT at the top of the screen is a "button" and can be clicked on. For example, if you call up the LEADING RUSHERS, you will first see the ten players with the most rushing ATTempts. To see which rusher has the highest "average per game" move the pencil up to the stat: "/GAME" and press the firebutton.

STATS BY TEAM:
Complete stats are kept for each member of every team in the CWFL. To look at a team's stats first choose STATS BY TEAM from the CLIPBOARD menu. When the team menu appears select a team. The first "page" you will see is a comprehensive analysis of the team's overall performance thus far in the season, including TURNOVERS (TRN) and a breakdown of the total scoring by quarters. The second page is accessed by choosing IND.OFFENSE at the lower left of the TEAM STATISTICS screen. The third page is IND.DEFENSE and the last is the team's ROSTER. At any time you can return to the CLIPBOARD menu by moving down to the lower right and selecting CLIPBOARD.

HOW TO PLAY THE GAME.
After you have chosen the type of game you want to play, and following the PRE-GAME SHOW, you are ready to begin. TV SPORTS:FOOTBALL was designed to be easy for beginners, so the game will play all by itself, even in the TWOPLAYER mode. Until you move the joystick to "take over" the computer will always try to control the flashing player. On offense the player with the ball will always flash, and once you have "taken control" by moving your joystick, the computer cannot regain control, even if you release the stick. For information on controlling the defense see "DEFENSE".

THE COIN TOSS.
The VISITING team always makes the initial selection of HEADS or TAILS. The team that wins the toss can choose whether they want to KICK or RECEIVE. (The team that RECEIVES the opening kickoff will KICKoff to start the second half.)

THE OPENING KICKOFF.
The right halfback of the RECEIVING team will get the ball after the kick. After he "returns" the ball upfield and either scores a touchdown or is tackled by the defense, the play ends and the PLAYCALLING SCREEN appears.

THE PLAYCALLING SCREEN.
The playcalling screen is not only used for calling plays, but also functions as a scoreboard showing: the game clock, team names (the small football icon marks the offensive team), the score by quarter and the total score, the DOWN number from 1-4, the yards TO GO for a first down, and the position of the football ON the field. (The arrow after the word "ON" indicates which half of the field the ball occupies. If it is pointing UP it means the football is past the 50 yard line and in the UPPER half of the field. Conversely, if it points DOWN it means the ball is more that 50 yards from the opponent's goal line.) Also displayed on the playcalling screen is a small red box marking the quarter from 1-4, and 6 red lights showing the number of timeouts remaining for each team. Each team is allowed 3 timeouts per half.

CALLING PLAYS.
When you are ready to call a play, whether you are on offense or defense, refer to the two joystick icons in the lower half of the screen. To choose a formation simply move the joystick DIAGONALLY toward the formation you have selected. When both side have made their decision, the offensive and defensive PLAYS are displayed. Again, move the joystick diagonally to make your selection. If you have not called a formation or play in fifteen seconds the computer will call one for you. However, if no joystick input was detected on the previous play the computer will begin calling plays in a about five seconds to expedite gameplay. TV SPORTS:FOOTBALL, over a period of time, actually "learns" your playcalling tendencies. So whenever YOUR team calls plays on its own (say you had to leave the room for a few minutes) the computer attempts to make the same choices you would have made.
NOTE: YOU CAN DOUBLE THE NUMBER OF OFFENSIVE PLAYS BY REVERSING THEM. TO DO THIS, HOLD DOWN THE FIREBUTTON WHILE CALLING YOUR PLAY. THE PITCH LEFT NOW BECOMES A PITCH RIGHT, CROSSING PATTERNS TO THE LEFT BECOME CROSSING PATTERNS TO THE RIGHT, AND SO ON.

CALLING TIMEOUTS AND PAUSING THE GAME:
To call a timeout you must push the firebutton on your joystick before a formation is selected! The game is now in PAUSE. To return to play, push the firebutton again. Timeouts are useful because they stop the game clock until the START of the next play. The game clock will also stop automatically at the end of every quarter and following an incomplete pass, a run out of bounds, or a change of possession.

OFFENSE.

THE QUARTERBACK:
As the Quarterback you are the initial ball handler and are responsible for making last second decisions "at the line." One decision a quarterback must make is whether to send his wide receiver in motion. To do this just move the joystick left or right before the play begins. You can "hike" the ball, and initiate play, as soon as you hear the quarterback calling "HUT HUT--". There are TWO ways to hike the ball:

PUSH THE BUTTON:
Pushing down on the button to hike the ball means you want the quarterback to follow the diagrammed play and make a handoff or pitch at the earliest opportunity. You CANNOT pass the ball if you hike it with a button press. As soon as the running back has the ball he will begin to run automatically. Move the joystick at any time to "take control".
(To make handoffs from the SHOTGUN formation you need to hold the button down for at least 3 seconds.)

PULL BACK ON THE STICK:
If you want to throw a forward pass you MUST hike the ball by pulling back on the stick. This gives you total control over the quarterback. You can drop back, roll to the left or right, or even attempt to run the ball. (A quarterback sneak.) You CAN make handoffs and pitches by pushing your joystick button whenever a running back is near.

THROWING THE FORWARD PASS:
While controlling the movements of the quarterback BEHIND THE LINE OF SCRIMMAGE (the position of the ball when the play started) release the joystick so the quarterback stops moving to enter PASS MODE. By moving the joystick left and right you can make him "point" to virtually any spot on the field. (TO BREAK OUT OF THIS MODE AND RUN YOU MUST MOVE THE JOYSTICK EITHER UP OR DOWN.) To pass the ball in the direction you are pointing simply press and HOLD your joystick button. The green "x" shows you where the ball will land, and marks the middle of the "catchable range". As long as you hold your finger on the button the "x" will continue to move up the field. The STRENGTH rating of the quarterback determines how far the ball can ultimately travel.) At the moment you release your button the "x" will stop moving, the nearest eligible receiver will be "activated" and begin running towards it, and the ball will be halfway between it and the quarterback. It is VERY important to "lead" your receivers. This means that you should throw the ball far enough in front of them so that they get to the "x" the same time the ball does. Practice throwing passes in the PRACTICE mode first. And expect to throw a lot of interceptions in your first few games. After a while you will learn to "read" the defense, and your interception rate will go down while your pass completion percentage goes up.

CATCHING THE FOOTBALL.
The "x" on the field marks the middle of the catchable range. The closer an offensive player is to the "x" when the ball comes down the better chance he has of catching it. However, if a defensive player is there at the same time it is possible that, based on the HANDS ratings of the two players, the ball will be "KNOCKED DOWN" or even "INTERCEPTED". To try a diving catch push the firebutton and the player you are controlling will dive in the direction he is running. Sometimes this is the only way to catch a ball that has been overthrown or underthrown. Practice diving catches in the PRACTICE mode before attempting one in a game situation.

RUSHING (RUNNING).
There are two types of running plays: runs up the middle and runs to the outside. Running up the middle requires a good offensive line; it is their responsibility to open a "hole" for you to run through. When you find the hole, get through it as quickly as possible, before the linebackers have a chance to react. Running to the outside requires more speed and quickness. Whenever you carry the ball you should NEVER just run right at a defender. Let him get close, then cut to the left or right and try to avoid him. This works best when your AGILITY rating is better that his.

RECOVERING FUMBLES.
Fumbles are a random occurrence based on the STRENGTH of the tackler, the HANDS of the ball carrier, and the severity of the "hit". (Diving tackles cause almost twice as many fumbles as regular tackles.) After a fumble, the FIRST person to push and hold his firebutton will recover the ball.

PUNTING.
Punting the ball is similar to throwing a long pass from the SHOTGUN formation. Hike the ball by pushing the firebutton OR pulling down on the stick. When the punter catches it move your joystick left or right to point in the direction you want to kick. Then hold the firebutton down to punt the ball. For a long kick try to release the firebutton just as the ball leaves the punter's foot. The better your timing the farther the ball will travel. If you are near your opponent's end zone, you will want to aim the kick to go out of bounds near his goal line. Don't let the kick go into his end zone, however, or it will be a TOUCHBACK and the offense will get the ball on the 20 yard line.

KICKING FIELD GOALS.
There are two ways to kick a field goal. You can let the computer attempt the kick (if so, hike the ball by pushing the firebutton), or you can try to kick it yourself (hike the ball by pulling back on the stick). Both attempts will be based on the ratings of the kicker and the timing of the kick, but the computer will only use "above average" timing, so a human with a little practice could be more consistent. There is a box in the lower right corner of the field goal screen with a picture of a football. Use this as a guide to WHERE on the football you want to kick it. As soon as the ball is hiked a horizontal red line will begin to move from the bottom of the football to the top. While it's moving you can slide the vertical blue line in the diagram left or right with your joystick. Before the fed line goes past the halfway point on the football, push the button to stop it. The spot where the fed and blue lines intersect is the spot on the football that you are kicking it. So to kick the ball high and short you would stop the red line near the bottom of the football diagram. To kick it long and low (the lower it is the greater chance it has of being blocked, see BLOCKING FIELD GOALS) you would leave the line at the halfway point WITHOUT GOING PAST. If you go past the halfway point you will "top" it and send it tumbling along the ground. To kick to the left you should aim the blue line to the RIGHT side. And if the goal posts are to the right you should position the blue line to the LEFT. If you attempt a straight kick but it sails off to the left or right the kicker probably has a low ACCURACY rating. The POWER rating will determine the maximum distance a kicker could kick, although no field goals may be attempted beyond the 50-yard line. (The kicker's ACCURACY rating is figured by adding his HANDS and his AGILITY together and dividing by two.)

DEFENSE.
Before the quarterback hikes the ball you have several defensive options: you can "control" any of the four defensive backs or linebackers you wish, you can move the defense around, and you can change the assignment of any player to "BLITZ".

CHANGING PLAYERS:
You can change defensive players (BEFORE the play only), by pressing the firebutton. Keep pressing it until the player you want to control is flashing. Be careful not to push the firebutton after the quarterback begins to call "HUT HUT--" or your player will DIVE and you won't be able to control him until he gets up again.

MOVING THE DEFENSE AROUND:
While a player is activated you can move him anywhere on the field you wish, EXCEPT across the line of scrimmage. If you move across the line and make contact with an offensive player you will be called for ENCROACHMENT. Or if you past the line when the quarterback hikes the ball you will get a OFFSIDES penalty.

CHANGING A PLAYER'S ASSIGNMENT TO "BLITZ":
Before the ball has been snapped, activate the player who you want to BLITZ, then hold down your firebutton and pull DOWN on the stick to change his assignment. It won't matter if his assignment was already BLITZ, and you can change as many players as you like, or have time to change. (It's sometimes a useful strategy to BLITZ a cornerback if there are no wide receivers lined up opposite him on the field. But be careful that the offense doesn't send a wide receiver in motion, or you could leave him uncovered.)

DIVING TACKLES:
To make a diving tackle, just push your firebutton while the defensive player you control is moving and he will dive in the same direction. There are advantages and one big disadvantage in attempting a diving tackle. The advantages are: diving tackles cause more fumbles, it may be the ONLY way to catch a speedier player, and if you hit the ball carrier head on you will push him back several yards. The big disadvantage is that you are committing yourself, because you only get one chance to make the tackle. If you miss you could be giving up a touchdown.

BLOCKING FIELD GOALS:
It is very difficult to block a field goal. It must be a low kick and your timing has to be perfect. Move you joystick left and right to position the middle linebacker between the kicker and the goal posts, and just after the ball is in the air push your joystick button to jump.


HINTS AND STRATEGIES:

1. There HUNDREDS of variations on each offensive play. Use the PRACTICE mode to experiment. And during a game, learn to "set up" your opponent by running a different variation of a play the defense is used to. For example, pitch the ball to your left halfback two or three times; then, when you need a big play, "roll" to the left like you normally do on a pitch play, but when the defense moves down to contain the run, stop and fire a quick pass up field to your wide receiver.

2. On DEFENSE, the computer players will respond to the pass more quickly when you've called "PASS DEFENSE".

3. Football is a game of "reading and reacting." Learn to read the defense BEFORE you begin each play, and especially AFTER the play has started. There is a BIG difference between passing to a man who is in ZONE coverage and a man who is being covered MAN TO MAN. If you don't like what you see down field, try to "dump off" a short pass to the nearest running back, or keep the ball yourself and run with it. If the DEFENSE is blitzing and you can't find an open receive, try to throw the ball out of bounds, it beats being "sacked" behind the line of scrimmage, and it's certainly better that throwing an interception.

4.. Remember that a 6-1 defense, while not allowing many holes to open in the offensive line, gives you only ONE man deep. This isn't a lot of protection if the QB comes up in the SHOTGUN and decides to throw a bomb. Be careful--DON'T GET BURNED! (The 4-3 has TWO men deep, and the 3-4 has FOUR deep men.)

5. If you don't like the initial play of formation you've selected on the PLAY-CALLING screen, you can choose a new one as long as the play or formation you want is still visible on the screen.

6. If you don't have time to play all 16 games on your schedule, let the computer play the first 8 AUTOmatically.

7. If you decide to run a multi-player league elect one player, or even a non-player, to be the Commissioner. The Commissioner's responsibilities could include: collecting a small "entry fee" from all the contestants (for buying trophies etc.), maintaining a videotape library of each game (players could then use the library to scout their next opponent), and setting time limits for every game (contestants have a week to resolve all games before the commissioner user the AUTO play mode.)

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