COURTESY OF GILROY PIRATE OF THE SOUTH 22 FEB 1987 ************************************************************ GRIDIRON! VALIDATION CODE LIST A B C D E F G H I J 0 E60 8E3 47A C55 0E4 AD7 21E 8E9 AA8 F08 1 102 9BD FAC 97F 526 2D1 3F0 E33 28A 825 2 B74 127 D2E DB9 A38 65B 912 78D 43C 1CF 3 A36 9A1 D80 783 49A 7F5 A04 B77 C3E 6B9 4 DC8 1AB 522 95D CCC E1F 346 471 B10 4D3 5 AAA BC5 C94 9C7 F4E 359 558 0FB 532 F2D 6 95C E6F 056 341 CA0 623 4BA 395 324 C17 7 65E 429 0E8 44B 942 8FD 9EC 2BF 166 611 8 230 B73 2CA F65 DB4 267 16E 8F9 078 B98 9 152 6CD E7C B0F 676 CE1 BC0 4C3 4DA F35 10 C44 CB7 07E 1C9 408 6EB D62 89D 70C 75F 11 F86 781 950 213 AEA 305 ED4 807 38E E99 12 B98 63B D72 E6D 39C 7AF C96 681 AE0 363 13 4FA AD5 564 D57 A9E F69 728 98B 182 83D 14 42C BFF DA6 951 070 8B3 30A 6A5 FF4 3A7 15 5AE 439 6B8 0DB 992 60D 8BC 44F 2B6 021 16 A00 203 51A 675 E84 DF7 4BE D09 A48 C2B 17 5A2 7DD 14C 09F BC6 AF1 790 F53 B2A A45 18 114 C47 7CE 9D9 1D8 B7B 5B2 DAD DDC 0EF 19 8D6 9C1 920 0A3 53A 215 7A4 E97 EDE AA9 20 D68 ECB 9C2 77D E6C 53F 9E6 C91 EB0 5F3 21 34A DE5 234 4E7 9EE F79 CF8 61B 1D2 54D 22 2FC D8F EF6 361 840 F43 55A DB5 0C4 F37 23 8FE 849 088 16B DE2 71D B8C 9DF 806 E31 24 5D0 C93 B6A 185 354 D87 C0E 519 818 0BB 25 DF2 CED 81C A2F 516 D01 760 DE3 57A 955 26 9E4 FD7 31E 5E9 3A8 40B 202 6BD 8AC E7F 27 626 FD1 CF0 333 38A 525 474 627 E2E AB9 28 338 B58 A12 48D D3C 6CF B36 6A1 680 C83 29 59A AF5 304 077 D3E 389 6C8 6AB 622 65D 30 5CC 31F 446 171 410 9D3 BAA 8C5 594 EC7 31 04E 059 E58 5FB 632 C2D 25C 36F 156 041 32 5A0 B23 5BA 095 C24 117 75E 129 9E8 94B 33 A42 5FD 2EC 7BF 266 311 B30 073 3CA C65 34 6B4 767 26E 5F9 978 09B 252 3CD 77C 00F 35 776 9E1 4C0 9C3 5DA C35 544 1B7 17E EC9 36 D08 BEB E62 59D 00C C5F 086 4B1 250 713 37 BEA 005 7D4 007 48E B99 498 B3B E72 B6D 38 C9C CAF D96 381 3E0 863 5FA 7D5 E64 257 39 B9E C69 028 E8B 282 53D D2C 0FF EA6 651 40 970 DB3 40A 3A5 8F4 8A7 6AE 139 FB8 5D8 41 A92 30D 1BC 94F 3B6 D21 300 703 61A 375 42 784 2F7 5BE A09 348 12B 6A2 4DD A4C 59F -42- GRIDIRON! VALIDATION CODE LIST A B C D E F G H I J 0 CC6 7F1 090 453 CCA 745 A14 147 3CE 6D9 1 AD8 078 6B2 AAD 6DC 5EF 9D6 6C1 220 5A3 2 63A F15 0A4 397 FDE 7A9 668 3CB AC2 47D 3 76C A3F AE6 991 7B0 AF3 44A AE5 834 9E7 4 AEE C79 5F8 B1B 2D2 24D BFC 28F FF6 061 5 140 443 65A AB5 9C4 437 9FE 549 988 66B 6 EE2 41D 48C EDF 906 B31 ED0 193 C6A E85 7 C54 287 D0E 219 118 5BB EF2 9ED D1C F2F 8 616 A01 060 2E3 67A 655 2E4 4D7 41E 2E9 9 CA8 90B 302 3BD 1AC 37F 726 CD1 5F0 833 10 48A 225 D74 B27 F2E 7B9 C38 05B B12 18D 11 63C BCF C36 3A1 F80 183 69A 1F5 C04 577 12 E3E 089 FC8 BAB 722 35D ECC 81F 546 E71 13 D10 ED3 CAA 5C5 E94 3C7 14E D59 758 AFB 14 732 92D B5C 86F 256 D41 EA0 023 6BA D95 15 524 617 85E E29 2E8 E4B B42 2FD BEC CBF 16 366 011 430 573 4CA 965 FB4 C67 36E 2F9 17 278 59B 352 0CD 07C 50F 876 6E1 DC0 EC3 18 6DA 935 E44 6B7 27E BC9 608 0EB F62 09D 19 90C 15F 186 181 B50 C13 CEA D05 0D4 507 20 58E 899 D98 03B F72 86D 59C 1AF E98 081 21 CE0 D63 6FA 4D5 764 757 C9E 969 928 36B 22 382 23D 62C 5FF FA6 351 270 2B3 50A 0A5 23 1F4 DA7 7AE E39 8B8 ADB B92 00D ABC E4F 24 4B6 A21 C00 C03 71A 075 084 7F7 68E 709 25 C48 62B 7A2 1DD 34C A9F DC6 4F1 990 953 26 D2A 445 314 647 9CE 3D9 3D8 57B 7B2 7AD 27 FDC AEF AD6 3C1 B20 AA3 73A C15 9A4 897 28 0DE 4A9 F68 8C8 BC2 17D 06C F3F BE6 891 29 0B0 FF3 54A 7E5 434 EE7 BEE 979 EF8 01B 30 3D2 F4D 4FC 78F 0F6 D61 A40 943 75A 7B5 31 2C4 937 AFE 249 288 B6B FE2 11D D8C 3DF 32 A06 831 7D0 693 D6A B85 554 787 E0E F19 33 A18 ABB FF2 6ED A1C 42F 716 701 960 7E3 34 77A 355 BE4 9D7 51E FE9 5A8 E0B 402 0BD 35 AAC 87F 826 9D1 EF0 D33 58A F25 674 027 36 02E 4B9 538 55B C12 E8D F3C 0CF D38 0A1 37 880 683 79A EF5 504 A77 F3E D89 8C8 0AB 38 822 05D 7CC D1F 646 B71 610 3D3 DAA 2C5 39 794 8C7 24E A59 058 FFB 832 62D 45C D6F 40 356 A41 7A0 523 7BA A95 E24 B17 95E B29 41 BE8 34B C42 FFD 4EC 1BF 466 D11 D30 A73 42 5CA 665 8B4 167 46E FF9 B78 A9B 452 DCD -43- GRIDIRON! VALIDATION CODE LIST A B C D E F G H I J 0 97C A0F 976 3E1 6C0 3C3 7DA 635 744 BB7 1 37E 8C9 F08 5EB 062 F9D 20C 65F 286 EB1 2 450 11E DEA A05 9D4 A07 68E 599 698 53B 3 072 56D E9C 6AF F96 D81 5E0 263 7FA 1D5 4 064 C57 D9E 669 228 88B 482 F3D F2C AFF 5 0A6 051 B70 7B3 60A DA5 AF4 2A7 8AE B39 6 1B8 FDB C02 D0D 3BC 34F 5B6 721 500 103 7 81A D75 984 CF7 7BE 409 548 B2B 8A2 EDD 8 C4C F9F EC5 1F1 290 E53 E2A 145 C14 B47 9 ACE 0D9 CD8 A7B 8B2 4AD 8DC FEF BD6 0C1 10 420 FA3 83A 915 2A4 D97 1DE 1A9 868 DCB 11 CC2 E7D 96C 43F CE6 391 9B0 4F3 64A 4E5 12 D34 3E7 CEE 679 7F8 51B 4D2 C4D DFC C8F 13 1F6 A61 340 E43 85A 4B5 BC4 E37 BFE F49 14 B88 06B 0E2 E1D 68C 8DF B06 531 0D0 B93 15 E6A 885 E54 C87 F0E C19 318 FBB 0F2 3ED 16 31C 92F 816 401 260 CE3 87A 055 4E4 ED7 17 61E CE9 EA8 30B 502 DBD 3AC D7F 926 6D1 18 7F0 233 68A C25 F74 527 12E 1B9 E38 A5B 19 D12 BBD 83C 5CF E36 DA1 180 B83 89A BF5 20 E04 F77 03E A89 1CB 5AB 922 D5D 0CC 21F 21 746 871 F10 BD3 EAA FC5 094 DC7 34E 759 22 958 4FB 932 32D D5C 26F 456 741 0A0 A23 23 8BA 795 724 017 85E 829 4E8 848 D42 CFD 24 DEC 6BF 566 A11 630 F73 6CA 365 1B4 667 25 56E CF9 478 F9B 552 ACD 27C F0F A76 0E1 26 FC0 8C3 8DA 335 044 0B7 47E 5C9 608 AEB 27 162 C9D B0C B5F 386 BB1 D50 613 EEA 705 28 2D4 F07 78E 299 F98 A3B 172 26D 79C 8AF 29 096 A81 EE0 763 8FA ED5 964 157 E9E 369 30 B28 D8B 582 C3D 82C FFF 1A6 D51 470 CB3 31 70A AA5 3F4 7A7 9AE 8E9 AB8 4DB D92 A0D 32 CBC 84F 6B6 421 E00 603 91A A75 284 1F7 33 8BE 109 E48 02B 9A2 8DD 54C 49F FC6 EF1 34 B90 353 F2A E45 514 047 BCE DD9 5D8 F78 35 9B2 1AD 1DC 4EF CD6 DC1 D20 4A3 93A 615 36 BA4 297 2DE EA9 168 2CB DC2 B7D 26C 93F 37 DE6 091 2B0 9F3 74A 1E5 634 8E7 DEE 379 38 0F8 A1B 5D2 94D 6FC 18F 2F6 761 C40 343 39 95A 1B5 4C4 337 CFE C49 488 56B 1E2 B1D 40 F8C DDF C06 231 9D0 093 F6A 585 754 187 41 00E 919 C18 4BB 1F2 0ED C1C E2F 916 101 42 B60 1E3 97A D55 DE4 3D7 71E 9E9 7A8 80B -44- GRIDIRON! VALIDATION CODE LIST A B C D E F G H I J 0 602 ABD CAC 27F A26 3D1 0F0 733 78A 925 1 874 A27 22E EB9 738 F5B E12 88D 13C ACF 2 F36 AA1 AB0 083 99A 8F5 704 477 13E 789 3 AC8 AAB A22 A5D 9CC 71F 846 571 810 DD3 4 FAA CC5 994 2C7 44E 459 258 9FB A32 02D 5 65C 76F 556 441 9A0 F23 9BA 495 024 517 6 B5E 529 DE8 D4B E42 9FD 6EC BBF 666 711 7 F30 473 7CA 065 AB4 B67 86E 9F9 D78 49B 8 652 7CD B7C 40F B76 DE1 8C0 DC3 9DA 035 9 944 5B7 57E 2C9 108 FEB 262 99D 40C 05F 10 486 8B1 650 B13 FEA 405 BD4 407 86E F99 11 898 F3B 272 F6D 09C 0AF 196 781 7E0 C63 12 9FA BD5 264 657 F9E 069 428 28B 682 93D 13 12C 4FF 2A6 A51 D70 1B3 80A 7A5 CF4 CA7 14 AAE 539 3B8 9DB E92 70D 5BC D4F 7B6 121 15 700 B03 A1A 775 B84 6F7 9BE E09 74B 52B 16 AA2 8DD E4C 99F 0C6 BF1 490 853 02A B45 17 E14 547 CCE AD9 ED8 47B AB2 EAD ADC 9EF 18 DD6 AC1 620 9A3 A3A 315 4A4 797 3DE BA9 19 A68 7CB EC2 87D B6C E3F EE6 D91 BB0 EF3 20 84A EE5 F34 DE7 EEE 079 9F8 F1B 6D2 64D 21 FFC 68F 3F6 461 540 843 A5A EB5 DC4 837 22 DFE 949 D88 A6B 2E2 81D 88C 3DF D06 F31 23 2D0 593 06A 285 054 687 10E 619 518 9BB 24 2F2 DED 51C 32F A16 E01 460 6E3 A7A A55 25 6E4 8D7 81E 6E9 0A8 D0B 702 7BD 5AC 77F 26 B26 0D1 9F0 C33 8BA 625 174 F27 32E BB9 27 0E8 45B F12 58D A3C FCF 036 7A1 380 583 28 A9A 5F5 004 977 23E 489 3C8 FAB B22 75D 29 2CC C1F 946 271 110 2D3 0AA 9C5 294 7C7 30 54E 159 B58 EFB B32 D2D F5C C6F 656 141 31 2A0 423 ABA 195 924 A17 C5E 229 6E8 24B 32 F42 6FD FEC 0BF 766 411 830 973 8CA D65 33 3B4 067 76E 6F9 678 99B 752 4CD 47C 90F 34 C76 AE1 1C0 2C3 ADA D35 244 AB7 67E FC9 35 A08 4EB 362 69D D0C 55F 586 5B1 F50 013 36 0EA 105 4D4 907 98E C99 196 438 372 C6D 37 99C 5AF 296 481 0E0 163 AFA 8D5 B64 B57 38 09E D69 D28 78B 782 63D A2C 9FF 3A6 751 39 670 6B3 90A 4A5 5F4 1A7 BAE 239 CB8 EDB 40 F92 40D EBC 24F 8B6 E21 000 003 B1A 475 41 484 BF7 ABE B09 048 A2B BA2 5DD 74C E9F 42 1C6 8F1 D90 D53 12A 845 714 A47 DCE 7D9 -45- GRIDIRON! VALIDATION CODE LIST A B C D E F G H I J 0 7D8 97B BB2 BAD 3DC EEF ED6 7C1 F20 EA3 1 B3A 014 DA4 C97 4DE 8A9 368 CCB FC2 57D 2 46C 33F FE6 A91 4B0 3F3 94A BE5 834 2E7 3 FEE D79 2F8 418 7D2 34D 8FC B8F 4F6 161 4 E40 D43 B5A BB5 6C4 D37 EFE 649 688 F6B 5 3E2 51D 18C 7DF E06 C31 BD0 A93 16A F85 6 954 B87 20E 319 E18 EBB 3F2 8ED E1C 82F 7 B16 B01 D60 BE3 B7A 755 FE4 DD7 91E 3E9 8 9A8 20B 802 4BD EAC C7F C26 DD1 2F0 133 9 98A 325 A74 427 42E 8B9 938 958 012 28D 10 33C 4CF 136 4A1 C80 A83 B9A 2F5 904 E77 11 33E 189 CC8 4AB C22 45D BCC 11F A46 F71 12 A10 7D3 1AA 6C5 B94 CC7 64E E59 458 3F8 13 C32 A2D 85C 16F 756 E41 BA0 923 BBA E95 14 224 F17 D5E F29 FE8 74B 042 3FD 8EC 5BF 15 868 111 130 E73 9CA A65 CB4 567 86E 3F9 16 F78 E98 852 1CD D7C E0F D76 7E1 AC0 7C3 17 BDA A35 B44 FB7 77E CC9 308 9EB 462 39D 18 60C A5F 686 2B1 850 513 1EA E05 DD4 E07 19 A8E 999 A98 93B 472 96D 29C AAF 396 181 20 9E0 663 BFA 5D5 484 057 19E A69 628 C8B 21 882 33D 32C EFF 4A6 451 F70 BB3 A0A 1A5 22 EF4 6A7 CAE F39 5B8 3DB 092 10D 7BC 74F 23 9B6 B21 900 503 C1A 175 D84 0F7 BBE 809 24 948 F2B CA2 2DD 04C 39F 2C6 5F1 690 253 25 22A 545 014 F47 ECE 4D9 0D8 E7B CB2 BAD 26 CDC 3EF FD6 4C1 820 3A3 C3A D15 6A4 197 27 5DE 5A9 C68 1CB 0C2 27D D6C 83F 0E6 791 28 DB0 8F3 A4A 8E5 134 7E7 0EE A79 BF8 91B 29 8D2 04D 1FC 08F 5F6 E61 740 243 C5A 8B5 30 FC4 237 FFE 349 F88 46B 4E2 21D A8C CDF 31 F06 931 4D0 F93 26A C85 254 087 30E 019 32 718 3BB 4F2 7ED 71C D2F C16 801 660 0E3 33 C7A 455 8E4 2D7 A1E 0E9 2A8 70B 902 1BD 34 7AC 17F D26 AD1 BF0 633 A8A 025 374 927 35 52E 5B9 238 E5B 112 F8D C3C 9CF 236 1A1 36 580 F83 C9A FF5 204 377 43E E89 5C8 9AB 37 D22 15D 4CC 61F B46 C71 310 CD3 2AA 3C5 38 494 1C7 74E B59 D58 8FB D32 72D 15C 66F 39 856 B41 4A0 E23 CBA B95 B24 417 E5E C29 40 8E8 C4B 142 0FD 1EC ABF 966 E11 A30 373 41 ACA 765 5B4 A67 96E 0F9 878 39B 952 ECD 42 67C 30F E76 4E1 3C0 CC3 CDA 735 444 4B7 -46- GRIDIRON! VALIDATION CODE LIST A B C D E F G H I J 0 87E 9C9 C08 EEB 562 09D F0C F5F 786 FB1 1 150 A13 2EA B05 6D4 307 B8E 699 398 E3B 2 572 66D B9C FAF 496 EB1 2E0 B63 CFA 2D5 3 D64 557 29E 769 F28 18B 982 03D C2C 3FF 4 5A6 151 870 0B3 B0A E85 7F4 BA7 DAE C39 5 EB8 8DB 192 E0D 0BC C4F AB6 821 200 A03 6 D1A E75 684 5F7 CBE 509 248 42B DA2 FDD 7 94C 89F 3C6 2F1 F90 753 32A 245 914 447 8 FCE 1D9 9D8 37B DB2 5AD 5DC 8EF 0D6 1C1 9 120 8A3 D3A A15 FA4 697 6DE 2A9 568 6CB 10 1C2 F7D 66C D3F 1E6 491 6B0 DF3 B4A 5E5 11 A34 CE7 1EE 779 4F8 E1B 9D2 D4D AFC 58F 12 6F6 B61 040 743 D5A 5B5 8C4 737 0FE 049 13 888 96B 5E2 F1D 38C 1DF 006 631 DD0 493 14 36A 985 B54 587 40E D19 018 8BB 5F2 4ED 15 01C 22F D16 501 F60 5E3 D7A 155 1E4 7D7 16 B1E DE9 BA8 C0B A02 EBD 0AC 67F E26 7D1 17 4F0 B33 B8A D25 C74 E27 62E 2B9 B38 35B 18 212 C8D 53C ECF 336 EA1 E80 483 D9A CF5 19 B04 877 53E B89 EC8 EAB E22 E5D DCC B1F 20 C46 971 C10 1D3 3AA 0C5 D94 6C7 84E 859 21 658 DFB E32 42D A5C B6F 956 841 DA0 323 22 DBA 895 424 917 F5E 929 1E8 14B 242 DFD 23 AEC FBF A66 B11 330 873 BCA 465 EB4 F67 24 A6E DF9 178 89B A52 BCD F7C 80F F76 1E1 25 CC0 1C3 DDA 435 D44 9B7 97E 6C9 508 3EB 26 662 D9D 80C 45F 886 CB1 850 F13 3EA 805 27 FD4 807 CBE 399 C98 33B 672 36D 49C 4AF 28 596 B81 BE0 063 DFA FD5 664 A57 39E 469 29 828 68B A82 D3D 52C 8FF 6A6 E51 170 5B3 30 C0A BA5 0F4 0A7 EAE 939 7B8 DDB 292 B0D 31 9BC 14F BB6 521 B00 F03 E1A B75 F84 AF7 32 DBE 209 B4B 92B EA2 CDD 24C D9F 4C6 FF1 33 890 C53 42A F45 214 947 0CE ED9 2D8 87B 34 EB2 2AD EDC DEF 1D6 EC1 A20 DA3 E3A 715 35 8A4 B97 7DE FA9 E68 BCB 2C2 C7D F6C 23F 36 2E6 191 FB0 2F3 C4A 2E5 334 1E7 2EE 279 37 DF8 31B AD2 A4D 3FC A8F 7F6 861 940 C43 38 E5A 2B5 1C4 C37 1FE D49 188 E6B 6E2 C1D 39 C8C 6DF 106 331 6D0 993 46A 685 454 A87 40 50E A19 918 DBB 6F2 1ED 91C 72F E16 201 41 860 AE3 E7A E55 AE4 CD7 C1E AE9 4A8 10B 42 B02 BBD 9AC B7F F26 4D1 DF0 033 C8A A25 -47- I can't believe I typed the whole thing.. I think I will pass out now. This list is guaranteed 95% accurate. Have Fun! GILROY! ======================================================================== GRIDIRON! The Football Simulator We have created this manual with the knowledge that many of you will want to play first and read later. While we can understand your desire to "dive right in", this manual is an integral part of your GRIDIRON! simulator and we urge you to give it a thorough reading. This is the only way that you will be able to capture the full excitement and potential of GRIDIRON!. For those of you diehards who never read instructions, however, skim through sections I and II before starting a game and save the rest for when you want to get into the more complex aspects of GRIDIRON!. Overview: GRIDIRON! is the most comprehensive football game available for a personal computer. We think the more you understand GRIDIRON!, the better you will enjoy it. Yet for all its power, GRIDIRON! was designed to be as simple as possible to use. The keyboard is required only to enter names (for teams, playbooks, and plays) and complete the Validation Sequence. All other interaction is effected by means of the mouse. In GRIDIRON!, the mouse controls a cross hatch pointer ["+"] that is used in selecting options and players. All Screen Menus have selection boxes. Simply point and click inside the appropriate box to invoke the desired option. GRIDIRON! has been made as realistic as possible to give you the feeling that you are playing an actual football game: o Each of the 22 players moves independently. o Each play is executed in real-time with the program residing entirely in RAM. At the advanced and Pro levels, the action will tax even the most proficient of players. o You can set individual Player characteristics [Speed, Strength] for each of the Players on both teams; offense and defense. You control the action as it is taking place. o On offense you control the ball carrier; on defense you control any Player you choose. With a DataDisc of NFL teams, you can even run game simulations of various teams against on another! o Player movements emulate the realities of the playing field. Players muse accelerate to achieve full speed. A Player cannot change direction instantly since he has momentum. When Players collide, they react according to their angle(s) of collision. GRIDIRON! is a game of TACKLE football. If the ball carrier is stronger than the defender who is tackling him, he is not necessarily going to go down. The runner's strength will be reduced, and his momentum and direction affected by the collision, but he will keep running. A runner may be able to break a tackle that is just a glancing blow, while a solid hit will usually bring him down. The ball carrier may even pick up an extra yard as he falls. You can fake a defender to make him miss a tackle, or try to run him down to pick up the extra yard. The decision is yours. Background Notes: We have tried to make GRIDIRON! as realistic as possible by recreating the actual "feel" of playing a football game. We have achieved this by invoking a small number of purposeful conventions. In order to best view all the action taking place, the perspective is directly above the playing field. After careful study, we decided not to "scroll" the screen when the action moves out of the immediate (screen) area. Instead, the action "freezes" for a period of one second while a new playfield is drawn. In this way, you are given the time to adjust to your previous position on the playing field and continue the play, yet you are provided with a more complete picture of the overall playing area. Although this make take some getting used to, we believe you will find it much less obtrusive than continually scrolling a small section of the screen into view. We have kept the graphics simple for the same reason. Playability is paramount. I. HOW TO GET STARTED After you have entered the validation code, your validation screen will be replaced by the Setup Menu. A single red cross hatch pointer will appear on the screen. If you choose a one player game, the pointer will stay red. If you select a two users game, the pointer colors will be red and blue (one pointer color for each player). Remember your pointer color! Only your pointer color will control your team. Pointers are used to select options on the screen as well as direct game play. In all menus, there will be boxes already "filled". These are the default values. If you are satisfied with the default values, simply select the "Continue" box to go on to the next screen. If you want to change a default setting, place your pointer over the box and click once on the mouse to select it. The chosen box will now "fill" to demonstrate that the computer has set the value as indicated. There is a special window that occasionally appears in the center of the screen called the "Message Window". This window displays pertinent information to the user during the game such as: "First Down", "Safety", "Touchback", "Touchdown", etc. Sometimes the Message Window will request you to input information as well. If the window asks for something to be "entered", the keyboard must be used. To select an option in the Message Window, use the mouse by clicking on the appropriate text. If a valid selection has been made, the Message Window will disappear. Menu selections are made by one mouse at a time. The computer will only allow one cursor on the screen while a menu is present. That cursor's mouse must be used to make the selection. [When necessary, messages on the screen will indicate which user should make the selection.] 1. SETTING THE NUMBER OF USERS/LENGTH OF GAME SINGLE USER MODE: The opening screen has a default setting for single user play. Set the time of the quarters as desired. The default value is for 15 minute quarters. You will have control over the Gold Team and your pointer will be red in color. The computer will automatically assume control of the Black Team. DUAL USER MODE: In dual user mode, select "2 Player" after the opening screen. The default value is for 15 minute quarters. When the play field comes up, each player will have either a red or blue pointer. The Gold Team is controlled by the red pointer, the Black team is controlled by the blue pointer. You will need an additional mouse or eight position joystick to play in dual user mode. A mouse is the ideal second controller since an eight position joystick does not provide you with as much control over the players. A joystick interface has been included for your convenience, but for those who use a joystick, however, there are important differences in game play: 1. Menus - Limited menu options are available to the player using a joystick. Cursor color reveals which user should select menu options. 2. Swapping Controllers - Due to the limited control offered by an eight position joystick, only the defensive teams are controlled by the joystick. Users are instructed to swap the mouse and joystick after a change of possession. NOTES ON GAME LENGTH: A game that is 5 minutes per quarter can usually be played in less than 45 minutes. A game this short, however, will not allow as many possessions per team. This creates a somewhat unrealistic game as scoring on each possession becomes much more important that with longer quarters. Games of 10 or 15 minutes per quarter are more realistic in terms of long term strategy. Even playing with 15 minute quarters, the longest games rarely last more than 2 hours. 2. SETTING THE DIFFICULTY LEVEL The main differences in levels of difficulty involve speed, strength and intelligence of play. * Practice Level The Practice level operates in single user mode only. It has been designed to allow you to practice the coordinated movements necessary to play at more advanced levels. The user is always on offense while the computer plays defense. The reason for this is that controlling the defense is much simpler than controlling the offense, and it is important that you be able to practice the Quarterback plays and handoffs without worrying about your QB being sacked. The defense will not move until the ball has passed, or the ball carrier has crossed the line of scrimmage. This will give you the time to learn how to handoff, lateral, and pass, as well as to discover the variety of plays in the playbook, without the distraction of worrying about the position of the defenders. The Practice Level runs at the slowest playing speed. * Beginner Unlike the built in "protection" of the Practice level, at the Beginner level the opposing team begins to move as soon as the ball is snapped. Your Quarterback will have to execute his play before getting sacked by the opposition. The beginner level can be played with one or two users and follows the normal structure of a football game. On single user mode, the computer chooses from a few easy defenses in order to allow you to develop the necessary proficiency to move up to higher levels of game play. Beginner level runs at the slowest playing speed. * Intermediate In single user mode, at the Intermediate Level, the computer Quarterback begins to make intelligent choices of defenses to use against you. You will face a stronger opposing team as well. The Intermediate Level runs at medium speed. * Advanced At the Advanced level, you face the semi-pro team. These Players are tougher and faster than those you have faced before. At the speed of the Advanced level, you need to have nerves of steel. You will be forced to make split second decisions to stay one step ahead of the lightning fast opposition. * Pro If you decide to play at this level, we suggest you have a number of games under your belt at the lower levels or else you are going to get "creamed". If you decide you want to try anyway, go ahead but don't say you weren't warned... In single user mode, the Pro Level delivers the greatest challenge of any level. Players move at the high speed of the Advanced Level, but the computer's players have the advantage in strength and speed. Only superior strategy and extraordinary skill will lend your team to victory. In dual user mode, the defenders on both teams are enhanced, making scoring at the Pro level more difficult than the lower levels. 3. SELECTING PLAYBOOKS & TEAMS The default playbooks and teams are loaded with the program and data during the initial disk bootup. To play the game with the standard playbook and standard team, select the "Continue" box. Before loading a custom playbook or team, insert a disk containing the playbook/team into the internal drive. Note: If you attempt to load a Playbook from a disk that does not contain a playbook, you will be returned to the "Playbook and Team Selection" screen. * Loading a Custom Playbook If the "Load Custom Playbook" option is selected with a valid data disk in the internal drive, a two column menu will appear on the screen listing the names of all the Playbooks on that disk. You can store up to a maximum of 28 Playbooks per disk. Selecting a Playbook will cause it to load automatically. In order to return to the main menu sequence, a Playbook must be selected. * Draft New Team - See GRIDIRON! Player Draft, Chapter IV * Loading a Custom Team Same procedure as above in "Loading a Custom Playbook". 4. Randomizing Play Numbers In Dual User Mode, after a user has selected his playbook and team, the following will appear: Setting Up Play Numbers o Use Standard Order o Random Play Order Selecting the first option keeps the playbook numbered in order from 0 to 19. The second option will bring up the following choices: o Copy Off Screen o Print New Play Numbers The first option lists the forty play names (twenty per screen) and their new numbers on the screen for the user to copy. The second option prints out a hardcopy version of the play names and their new numbers. The output is generic and will work with any kind of printer. Note: In a Playbook, offensive and defensive plays share common numbers. [Example: "Screen Left" (Offense) and "34 Defense" share the number, "12"] II. HOW TO PLAY 1. KICKOFFS When the kickoff is to take place, the teams will automatically line up in kickoff formation. The Message Window will appear with the message "Press button to kick". The user controlling the kicking team must decide whether to kickoff normally or to try an onside kick. If the kicking team's cursor is on its own side of the 50 yard line when the mouse button is pressed to kick the ball, the ensuing kick will be an onside kick. If the cursor is anywhere on the receiving team's side of the 50 yard line a normal kickoff will take place. Note: In Single User Mode, User 1 must press his mouse button to kickoff. When the computer kicks off, the cursor has no effect on what kind of kickoff will take place. 2. PLAY SELECTION BOXES: The Play Selection boxes in the upper left (and upper right) corner(s) are used to select plays. The play number is represented by the two digits in the boxes. Above and below the digits are boxes containing arrows. To increase the value of a digit, move the pointer into the box above the digit ("up" arrow), and click the mouse button. To decrease the value of the digit, click on the "down" arrow box. Each click of the mouse increase (or decreases) the digit by one. The digits "wrap around," in that increasing the value of the right digit from "9" will result in a "0". Once you have set the play numbers to the desired play, you must select the play using the Select Box (marked "SEL"). Important: The play will NOT be selected if you do not point and click inside the Select Box. OFFENSE: On offense, you must wait 10 seconds before selecting a play. [This delay allows the defense time to set up.] Until the "Thirty Second Clock" reaches 19 seconds or below, the "SELect" box will be inactive. Once the clock has reached 19 seconds, however, you can then SELect your choice of play. Once you have selected your offensive play, the scoreboard will disappear, and the offensive and defensive players will appear in proper formation. The Offensive Play Selection Boxes have a "HIKe" box on the far right. When this box is clicked, both the offensive and defensive selection boxes disappear, as does the 30-second clock. There is a 2 second delay before the ball is hiked. During this time, the pointer may be moved into position for the upcoming action. In Dual User mode only: The ball should not be hiked until at least one second after the last offensive play has been selected, otherwise an "Illegal Procedure" penalty will be called. This has been incorporated in GRIDIRON! to allow the defense time to respond to changes in offensive plays. DEFENSE: Unlike offense, a defensive play can be chose as soon as the Play Selection Boxes appear. Although your team formation may not appear for a number of seconds, your choice is nevertheless registered by the computer and will be reflected as soon as the offensive play has been selected by your opponent. Offensive and defensive plays can be changed until the ball is hiked, by using the SELect Box ("Calling an Audible"). [See Section 5, Selecting Defender Control] Notes: When using a joystick as a second controller, the defensive cursor will only appear in 7 places (boxes) on the screen: the Official Timeout Box, the Team Timeout Box, the four arrow boxes, and the SELect Box. This will allow the defender to call his plays and timeout with the joystick. Move the joystick back and forth and/or up and down to position the cursor in the desired box. When a play has been completed, the field is redrawn, the scoreboard reappears in the upper middle of the screen, and the Play Selection Boxes reappear in the upper corner(s) of the screen. In single player mode, the computer's Play Selection Boxes do not appear. In Dual User mode only: The ball should not be hiked until at least one second after the last offensive play has been selected, otherwise an "Illegal Procedure" penalty will be called. This has been incorporated in GRIDIRON! to allow the defense time to respond to changes in offensive plays. Two Minute Warnings: There are two occurrences of the Two Minute Warning; when there are two minutes remaining in the second and fourth quarters respectively. Team Timeouts: To call a Timeout, the user should place his pointer in his team's Timeout Box and click the mouse button. The Timeout Boxes are located in the Scoreboard window. Each team is allowed three Team Timeouts per half. Official Timeouts: Official Timeouts may be called by either user. They should be used as a game pause function for those times when the user needs to: answer the telephone, run to the fridge, or generally deal with reality. Official Timeouts should NOT be used as an excuse to give you more time to consider your strategy. To call and Official Timeout, either user may move his pointer into the Thirty Second Clock (located in the bottom center of the screen) and click the mouse button. Upon entering a timeout, the following screen will appear: o Play Creation Utility - User 1 o Play Creation Utility - User 2 o View Team Stats o Return to Game Note: In Single User Mode, the Play Creation Utility option for User 2 will not appear. At this point, the user who called the Timeout must choose which option to exercise: Play Creation Utility - see Chapter V View Team Stats - Choosing this option, allows a user(s) to compare current statistics for each team. These statistics also appear at the end of each quarter. Two notes on the Team Stats screen: a. The QB Stats line has three numbers (separated by hyphens) for each team's quarterback. The first number is the number of pass completions, the second number is pass attempts, and the third number is interceptions. b. The Punt line has two numbers (separated by a slash) for each team's punter. The first number is the number of times that team has punted the ball and the second number is the average yards per punt. 4. OFFENSE The mouse controls one player per team. When the ball is in play, the player being controlled chases his respective pointer, allowing the user to make the player go in any direction. On offense, the mouse controls the ball carrier. If the ball is transferred to another player by means (hand-off, pitch, or pass), the mouse will take control of that player as soon as he has possession of the ball. All eligible receivers are indicated by a "stripe" on their uniform. This feature has been provided to make receivers more visible during pass plays. As long as the ball has not crossed the line of scrimmage or been passed forward, all computer controlled players continue to execute their pre-programmed commands ["Backfield Mode"]. IMPORTANT: When in Backfield Mode, the ball carrier will stop all movement as long as the left mouse button is pushed down. This feature is important to the execution of hand-offs, passes, punts, and kicks. An additional mode of importance is: "Open Field Mode". There are times in most plays when each player's pre-programmed commands are no longer useful. Open Field Mode has been designed to handle many of these situations. In Open Field Mode, the computer commands all teammates of the ball carrier to block and all opponents to pursue the ball. Open Field Mode occurs in the following situations: 1) When a punt, kick or forward pass has been caught. 2) After an interception. 3) When the ball carrier crosses the line of scrimmage. RUNNING PLAYS Plays 0-9 in the Playbook are programmed as running plays. These plays normally involve either a handoff or a pitch to another player. Remember, however, that you control the action. If you want to avoid handing-off, pitching, or passing, just have the Quarterback run with the ball on any of the offensive plays. Hand-Offs Hand-Offs are one of the more difficult aspects of playing GRIDIRON!. The technique takes practice to master but is worth the effort. Handing-off to the running backs will improve your chances of gaining yardage as running backs are usually faster that your Quarterback and will not be tackled as easily by defenders. To execute a hand-off, the ball carrier is moved close to the player who has been designated to receive the hand-off and depress the left mouse button to transfer the ball. If the players are within range while the mouse button is pressed, the ball will be transferred; if not, the ball carrier will hang on to the ball, and remain stationary until the left mouse button is released. [See Tips, below] Remember that as soon as the ball has been handed off, the mouse button should be raised and the pointer placed so that the new ball carrier will run in the proper direction. IMPORTANT: A hand-off can only be give to the player programmed to receive it. Any attempt to hand-off to other players will be ignored by the computer. TIPS: 1) DO NOT run the quarterback into the player receiving the hand-off! Even the slightest delay cause by the collision can reduce yardage gained by the play. With practice, you will be able to determine just how close the two players must be in order to hand-off successfully. 2) Estimate the path of the running back, position the ball carrier near the path and press the mouse button. While waiting for the running back to come within range, move the pointer in the direction you want the running back to move when he assumes possession of the ball. 3) Immediately after the running back comes into hand-off range, (and the ball is transferred), lift up on the mouse button. Remember that the ball carrier will be stopped for as long as the mouse button is held! If you have positioned the pointer to where you want the running back to go, he will move in that direction without hesitation. Use Practice level to develop your hand-off technique. PASSING PLAYS Passing has always been one of the most exciting aspects of football, and GRIDIRON! allows you to experience a very realistic passing game. Successful execution of a pass requires that you observe the following steps: 1) The quarterback should drop back 5-10 yards. 2) The quarterback should set up for the pass, or roll out to avoid the rush, depending on the play and the defense. To set up for a pass, hold down on the mouse button to stop the Quarterback and allow free movement of the pointer. 3) The time that it should take your Quarterback to get into a position to pass should be enough time for you to see how the well defense is covering your receivers. Estimate how much time your quarterback has before being sacked by the rush and the scan for the most open receiver. 4) Move your pointer to a spot on the field that will allow your receiver to catch the ball without any defenders having time to get to the ball and break up the pass. Once the pointer is in position, lift up on the mouse button. The ball will immediately be thrown toward that spot. The computer calculates which receiver has the best change of catching the pass, and automatically adjust the path of that receiver to be at the correct place at the correct time. Experience and a good sense of timing will help you develop the judgement necessary to throw a successful pass. TIPS: When choosing where to throw the ball, take into account that your receivers have momentum and a maximum speed. Just as in real football, when you pass don't forget to "lead" your receiver. If a rusher is in the process of sacking the Quarterback as the ball is thrown and the quarterback is not yet down, the pass will be thrown wild in the same general direction as the pointer. Be careful! This is an open invitation for an interception! Whenever a player catches the ball (defender or receiver), mouse control is transferred immediately to that player. When the ball arrives to where it has been thrown, the computer checks to see which players are close enough to catch the pass. At this point, there are three possible outcomes: 1) A Completed Pass: Occurs when only a receiver is close enough to catch the ball. All players will enter Open Field Mode. 2) An Interception: Occurs when only a defender is close enough to catch the ball. All players will enter Open Field Mode. 3) An Incomplete Pass: Occurs when both the receiver and defender are close to the ball, or if no player is close enough to catch the ball. NOTE: If a player is in a position to catch the ball, a member of the opposite team does not always have to be close enough to catch the ball himself to stop the completion. The ball could still be knocked down if he is on the side of the receiver from where the pass was thrown and in close proximity to the ball. PUNTING: In GRIDIRON!, the technique of punting is similar to passing. When the punter receives the ball, he acts as a normal runner until the mouse button is pushed. While the mouse button is held down the user can direct the pointer to where the ball is to be kicked. When the mouse button is released, the punter will punt the ball toward that point. It should be noted that punts are far less precise than passes. When the ball has been punted the following occurs: 1) The computer determines which defender is closest to the punt's destination and will move that defender into position to catch the ball. If the chosen defender is being controlled by the mouse, the computer will override the mouse and move him into position. Once the ball is caught, mouse control is resumed. 2) The 10 defenders who are not going to return the punt will drop back to block. 3) The offensive players will begin to run downfield to pursue the ball. Additional Points: If the ball lands on the ground, all 22 players will run toward it. If a player from the punting team recovers it, the ball is downed there. If a player from the receiving time recovers the ball, all players enter Open Field Mode. 5. DEFENSE Playing defense is much easier than playing offense. The only thing that defensive user has to do is move his mouse-controlled player to those areas on the field that will best strengthen his defense. In other words, you are the back-up man who is in a position to act quickly upon any potential weakness in your defense or your opponent's offense. Selecting Defender Control After the offensive play has been selected, the offensive and defensive formations appear on the screen. At this time the defensive user should decide which player he wishes to control, and place his pointer over that player. During the two seconds before the ball is snapped, (during the time the quarterback can be heard calling the count), the defensive user can select who he wants control by pressing the mouse button while his pointer is over the chosen player. A white diamond will appear on that player as soon as the button is pressed indicating that control has been transferred to that player. If no player is chosen within this time period, the computer will choose one for you. Note: When using a joystick as a second controller, the defender must use the joystick button to select which player he will control. Each time the joystick button is pressed during the allotted two second time period, the white diamond will appear on a new player. When play execution starts, the player with the white diamond on him will be controlled by the joystick. III. STRATEGY 1. OFFENSE The strategy of GRIDIRON! is very much like real football. When calling offensive plays, try to call plays that suit the situation (i.e. don't call a Quarterback Sneak on 2nd and 10 to go). At the same time, try not to be too predictable. Look for defensive patterns and try to find weaknesses. The passing game can seem more exciting than the running game and, if successful, can gain large chunks of yardage in a very short time. The team that will succeed against difficult opponents, however, is the team that balances running with passing. By selecting a mix of running and passing plays, you will have a better chance of fooling the defense and gaining more yardage. Practice and experience make the difference on offense. Perfecting handoffs and pitches will add an enormous punch to your running game. Use the Practice level to practice execution of all the plays. Notes on each of the offensive plays in the Standard Playbook follow: * Quarterback Sneak - This play will gain you very little ground, but can be effective in short yardage situations. * Fullback Blast - This probably won't get more than a couple of yards, but is effective because the fullback reaches the line of scrimmage so quickly. * 42 Run - The time it takes the halfback to get the ball usually allows the user to spot a hole. This play is not effective against a 6 man defensive line. If the halfback can get through the defensive lineman, this play can be a big gainer. * Fullback Trap - This is a tricky play. The trap blocking usually opens a hole for the fullback, but the delay in the development of the action can be disastrous if the defense is blitzing. * Sweep Left - This is an easy play to run. The fullback is normally not very fast, so this play is more effective if the fullback does not swing out too wide before heading upfield. * Sweep Right - If the halfback has good speed and gets some running room, this play can gain you good yardage. * Pitch Left - Without a doubt, this is the most dangerous running play of all. If the defense isn't ready for it, this play will make big yardage, but if the defense is ready for it, this play can result in a fumbled lateral. * Pitch Right - Again, there is the danger of a fumbled lateral, but the fullback is hard to bring down if he gets outside. * Reverse - This is a very tricky play to execute well. Do not try this one too often; wait until the defense can be fooled. This play can result in large gains, or large losses. * Fullback Draw - This is another tricky play. Generally, a Fullback Draw will only work against pass defenses. * 31 Pass - This play can take a long time to develop, but be patient. If the Fullback makes it through the defensive line, he should be wide open over the middle. * Halfback Option - This is a useful play which requires very quick decision-making. Look for the Quarterback to be wide open or lots of running room on the outside. * Screen Left - Don't wait too long to throw the pass or your blockers will cross the line of scrimmage. This play may not gain a lot of yardage but is usually good for at least a few yards. * Screen Right - Similar to Screen Left. * Flood Pass - You have five receivers going out on this one but you also have less blockers. There should be someone open, so pass quickly or you're going to get sacked. * Halfback Fly - The success of this pass will vary greatly depending upon your defensive coverage. If your halfback is open, however, you can make very big yardage on this play. * Cutback Pass - This play is not designed to gain more than five or six yards but has a better chance of completion. Throwing to a receiver after he has cut back toward the Quarterback makes a successful pass easier to throw. * Hail Mary - This is a desperation pass when you need long yardage in a hurry. Chances of a completion are slim but cross your fingers, throw the ball and maybe you'll get lucky... * Punt - Careful placement can sometimes place your opponent in bad situations. Kick it out of bounds or try to get the opposition to catch the ball deep in their own territory! * Field Goals - If the ball is outside your opponent's 35, kicking a field goal is difficult. This depends, of course, upon your team's kick rating. 2. DEFENSE Defensive Plays 0-9 are primarily run defenses, 13-18 are pass defenses, and 10-12 are a balance of the two. In general, it is far safer to rely upon pass defenses as you are going to give up far less yardage to a run on a pass defense than you would to a pass on a run defense. Just one good pass by your opponent can lose you the game. Nevertheless, throwing a few odd defenses to keep your opponent guessing wouldn't hurt. In situations where you are not sure what the offense will do, it's good to control one of the safety men to limit his yardage. If you think you know what play he is going to call, however, control the defensive position you think will cause the most damage to his play. * Goal Line Defense - Very good in short yardage situations but if the opposition gets much past the line of scrimmage, you will have a tough time stopping them from going all the way. * 61 Defense - This play is also good in short yardage situations, but is less likely to allow big gains. * Spread 61 Defense - Use this defense in situations when you think the offense will run but you are not sure when. * 61 Stunt Defense - This defense give the impression you are going to protect against a run up the middle when you are really protecting against a run to the outside. * Shift Left - This play is very effective against runs or short passes to your left side. If the offense runs to your right, however, you could be in trouble. * Shift Right - Similar to Shift Left, opposite side. * Left LB Blitz - Blitzing the extra man can really break up an offensive play. But don't use this play too often as you can get nailed badly if he calls a good pass against you. * Right LB Blitz - Similar to a Left LB Blitz, other side. * Double LB Blitz - Twice the blitz and twice the risk. * Full Blitz - This is a very dangerous defense. Great against runs up the middle and sweeps, but can be disastrous against pitches and passes. Also a good way to shake up an inexperienced Quarterback. * 43 Defense - A non-committal, balanced defense. Use when you don't know what to expect from the offense. * Spread 43 Defense - This defense is particularly effective against short passes, pitches and sweeps. This is the best defense to use against a pitch play. * 34 Defense - This is good when you think the offense is going to to run the outside or pass. * 61 Pass Defense - This defense may lead the offense to believe you are defending against a run while you are actually set up in a pass defense. This is not the most effective pass defense, however. * Short Zone - Probably the best overall pass coverage against a short to medium length pass. * 5 Man Coverage - Primarily a man-to-man coverage situation. Effective against passes to the flanker and the two ends, it still allows six men to cover against a running play. The weakness of this play is that it will not work well against receivers coming out of the backfield. * 7 Man Zone - This is a good defense against a deep pass but the formation does not give away your strategy. This play is very poor against the run. * 8 Man Zone - Use this play when you are sure the offense will attempt a deep pass. * Prevent Defense - Designed to prevent the offense from gaining large amounts of yardage in short periods of time. Because it is not difficult to get first down yardage against this defense, use it only when the offense has little more time left in the half, or they have to get fifteen yards or more in the play. * Punt Return - Do not use this play unless the offense is in punt formation. IV. GRIDIRON PLAYER DRAFT As in real football, each user may want to match the talent of his players in his game strategy. [In other words, if you prefer a passing game, you will want talented receivers, etc...] In GRIDIRON! you do this using "PAPs" [Player Ability Points]. Changing PAPs allows you to modify the characteristics of each player. Before modifying a team, opponents must agree to a total number of PAPs they are allow to use in constructing their teams. The total PAPs will correspond directly to the overall capability of their respective team. Upon selecting the "Player Draft" option, a new screen will appear listing the offensive positions and individual characteristics for each player [speed & strength]. Each player's speed and strength are rated on a scale from 0 to 20, where 20 is the best. A rating of 0 means the player has minimal ability. These characteristics reflect the team presently in memory, whether the team is the standard team, or one previously loaded off disk. Selecting the "Goto Defense" box will replace the offensive positions with the defensive positions and their characteristics. [The "Goto Defense" box then becomes the "Goto Offense" box.] Note that the Kicker Rating remains on the screen independent of whether the offense or defense is being displayed. Note: Total PAPs remain in the lower left side of the screen and automatically update as player characteristics are changed. m1. MODIFYING PLAYER CHARACTERISTICS Use the pointer to change player characteristics in the following way: To increase a PAP number, place the pointer over the top half of the number and press the mouse button. To decrease a PAP number, place the pointer over the bottom half of the number and press the mouse button. While keeping track of Total PAPs, the computer adds up all the points on both screens for speed and strength. Because key offensive players have more impact on the game, their speed and strength are multiplied by the following factors before being added to the total: -Left End X 3 -Right End X 3 -Quarterback X 4 -Fullback X 4 -Halfback X 4 -Flanker X 3 -Kick Rating X 5 [includes punter and place kicker] 2. EFFECTS OF SPEED AND STRENGTH When adjusting the characteristics of one's players, it is important to know how those changes may affect game play. SPEED: Although actual speed is dependent upon play level, relative speed is dependent upon Player Ability Points [PAPs]. A player with more PAPs in the speed category will always be faster than another player with less PAPs, regardless of level. STRENGTH: Strength of a player is important in tackling and blocking: A strong ball carrier will be brought down much less quickly (if a all) by a week defender than will a weak ball carrier by a strong defender. A weak defender will be able to get past a strong blocker much less quickly than will a strong defender against a weak blocker. In collisions, both speed and strength play an important factor. The faster and stronger the player, the more dramatically he will affect the path and speed of the person with whom he collides. Note: The Gridiron Player Draft is a very good way of handicapping between users of different experience. 3. SAVING TEAM CHARACTERISTICS o Save Team on Data Disc o Initialize a Data Disc o Continue When all the modifications have been made, select the "Exit Player Draft" box. The computer will ask if the team should be saved on disk. If the team is to be saved, insert a data disk into the internal drive. The computer will ask for a team name and a suffix to be entered via the keyboard. The team name will be used on the scoreboard whenever that team is loaded from disk. The suffix is used to differentiate between different teams with the same name (i.e. 'REDSKINS.84' AND 'REDSKINS.85'). V. PLAY CREATION UTILITY (PCU) One of the most unique and powerful features of GRIDIRON! is the ability to modify plays during a game and save those modifications on disk. Although it is not very difficult to modify plays using the PCU, a good working knowledge of how the players interpret the commands is recommended highly. The difference between a successful play and a disaster can be as little as one player's programming, so be prepared to spend enough time to "fine tune" plays after making substantial modifications. 1. ENTERING THE PCU The only way to enter the PCU is by calling a timeout during the game. This allows the user to test his plays immediately and "fine tune" his programming.. If you want to create plays that are particularly effective against certain defenses, initialize the game for two users. This will allow you to test your play against whichever defense or offense you choose. [In Single User Mode, the computer decides the opposing play.] 2. PCU OPTIONS MENU o Modify Offensive Play o Modify Defensive Play o Save Playbook on Data Disc o Initialize a Data Disc o Exit PCU The PCU Options Menu is the first and last screen you will see when entering and exiting the PCU. * Modifying Plays - (Offensive/Defensive) When a user enters the PCU, he must choose which type of play to modify [offensive or defensive]. The screen will then list a menu of the 20 plays of that type. To select an individual play, click the box to the left of its name. * Save Playbook - This function allows the user to save his entire playbook to disk. * Initialize a Data Disc - In order to save your programmed plays, you must use an initialized disk. Place the intended disk in the internal drive and invoke this option to initialize a disk. * Exit PCU - Returns you to the Timeout menu. 3. PCU MAIN MENU Upon selecting a play, a graphic display of the play's formation will appear on the screen along with the PCU Main Menu. The following menu options will appear: * Change Name - The user can pick any name up to 14 characters long. * Set Formation - Select a player by using the pointer. The player will turn white. Clicking on the mouse again will place the player on the filed, whereupon his original color will return. The computer will not allow the user to place a player in a position breaking any of the following rules: 1) Players cannot touch 2) Players cannot be positioned offsides. 3) Players must be positioned within the field area provided by the PCU. * Edit Player - This function allows the user to change a player's commands. The player is selected using the pointer. * Save Play - Will enter the modifications that have been made to a play into the current playbook in memory. This function will NOT put the play onto disk. If this function is not used, any modifications made during the session will be lost. * New Play - Selecting this box will exit the user from the PCU Main Menu. At this point the user can select a new play or exit the PCU. 4. MODIFYING PLAYER COMMANDS When editing a player: 1) The player will turn white. 2) The Command Display Window will appear in the upper right corner of the screen. 3) One of the two editing menus will replace the PCU Main Menu on the left side of the screen. A. mEdit Offensive Player [EOP] Menu The EOP Menu is used whenever an offensive player's commands are edited. Save Play function has not been used, exiting the PCU Main Menu will erase all modifications to a play! In addition, you must invoke the "Save Playbook" option prior to exiting the PCU if you want to save your session to disc. * Run Block - When selected, a Message Window will appear to ask the user if the player should block left or right. * Pass Block - This command differs from Run Blocking in that the player will not move forward to block, only backwards and laterally. This guarantees that pass blockers will not cross the line of scrimmage during a pass play. * Delay - Once selected, the Message Window will appear to allow selection of the number of counts the player will delay. [One count equals approximately one second]. * Run To - When selected, the user mush place the pointer on the field area and press the mouse button. A line will be drawn to that point, marking the path that the player will attempt to follow. * Hand Off - Once selected, the Message Window will appear asking to whom the ball should be handed off. In play, the ball can only be handed to the player who has been selected. * Pass - A pass can be thrown to any eligible receiver as long as the ball carrier is: (1) behind the line of scrimmage and (2) there have been no forwarded passes made previously during that play. * Punt - The chosen player will punt the ball when commanded via the mouse. * Kick - The player will kick a place kick when commanded via the mouse. * Erase Commands - All commands for that player will be erased. * Exit Menu - Return to the PCU Main Menu. All changes will be retained. B. Edit Defensive Player [EDP] Menu The EDP Menu is used whenever a defensive player's commands are edited. * Pursue - The defender will pursue and attempt to tackle the ball carrier. * Lateral Pursuit - The defender will follow the ball back and forth across the field, but will not run up and down the field. Once the ball is away from the clutter of lineman in the center, the player will pursue the ball carrier normally. This command is effective against offensive plays to the outside. Save Play function has not been used, exiting the PCU Main Menu will erase all modifications to a play! In addition, you must invoke the "Save Playbook" option prior to exiting the PCU if you want to save your session to disc. * Delay - Same as EOP Menu. * Run To - Same as EOP Menu. * Cover Receiver - Once Selected, the Message Window will request which coverage to use. The choices are man-to-man on any receiver or zone coverage. If zone coverage is selected, the Message Window will list the five zones a defender can cover. One of the five zones must then be selected. * Erase Commands - same as EOP Menu. * Exit Menu - same as EOP Menu. 5. SELECTING COMMAND SEQUENCES There are programmable commands which the player can complete, and commands which go on indefinitely. Completable Non-Completable Commands Commands * Delay * Run Block * Run To * Pass Block * Hand Off * Pursue * Pass * Lateral Pursuit * [Punt] * Cover Receiver * Kick All non-completable commands continue until the end of the play, or until they are replaced automatically by the computer. If the computer reprograms the players, the original commands will not be used for the remainder of the play. When creating a command sequence, (there is a three command limit.), for a player to execute, it must be remembered that the player will automatically move to the next command upon the completion of the former command. For this reason, exercise care in the sequencing of commands. For example, a Pass Block followed by a Run To command does not make sense - the player would not recognize the end of his Pass Block assignment and therefore would never execute the Run To command. The reverse order would work, however. The player would Run To the programmed location and then begin his Pass Blocking assignment. Note on Punts: As the computer reprograms all players when a Punt has taken place, no user-programmed command can be executed after a punt. For this reason, the punt cannot be considered a truly completable command. Automatic Command Modes: Save Play function has not been used, exiting the PCU Main Menu will erase all modifications to a play! In addition, you must invoke the "Save Playbook" option prior to exiting the PCU if you want to save your session to disc. The commands that you program in a given play are only executed during Backfield Mode. These commands determine the initial development of the play. At key points during play execution, it is no longer beneficial for the players to continue executing their original commands. At these times, GRIDIRON! enters different modes of play that override the Backfield Mode. This occurs in the following situations. 1) Pass Mode: When a pass is thrown, defenders are programmed to break off their coverage and Run To [Ref. Chapter V, Sec. 4A] where the ball is being passed. 2) Open Field Mode: All offensive players (except the ball carrier) are programmed to block. All defenders are programmed to pursue the ball. [Ref. Chapter II, Sec. 4] 3) Punt Mode: This mode occurs while a kick-off or punt is in the air. Kicking team players run downfield and receiving team members drop back and block. [Ref. Chapter II, Sec. 4] 4) Loose Ball Mode: Whenever the ball is on the ground and no player has possession, all players who are not programmed for lateral pursuit or pass coverage will run toward the ball. *** REVIEWING A GAME USING A VCR: If you want to analyze a particular game of GRIDIRON!, you can hook up to a VCR (Videocassette Recorder) to the VIDEO output of your computer and into the VIDEO INput of the VCR. If you want audio as well, attach the AUDIO OUT channels to the AUDIO IN of your VCR. Using this method you will be able to record any portion of the game. If you have a sophisticated unit with speed control, you can even simulate a slo-mo (slow motion) effect, to carefully analyze plays. *** Typed By The Cure ***