Frequently unasked questions regarding the most complex football game ever created.. 10 YARD FIGHT!!! Date: 1/04/01 Created by: Melzo McPhun (Note: If anyone in society actually reads this, please let me know at phunruss@hotmail.com.) Contents of this document... I. What is 10 Yard Fight? II. What's the layout of the game? III. How do I overcome the clever AI? Is it even possible? IV. What's the best offensive strategy? V. How can I play well on defense? VI. Why bother with this crap? ************************ I. What is this game, exactly? ************************ Welcome to what's most likely the only FAQ for this game. Being that it's so simple to play, I'm guessing it's a pretty comprehensive guide, as well. Woo hoo. Essentially, this is a game that humanity avoids. It's a football game, in case nothing has tipped you off yet. No, it's not really anything resembling fun, but it's a title some may remember from the early days of the Nintendo Entertainment System. Okay, I'm going to be completely honest here. There are two reasons I bought this game. First and foremost, I'm a collector and I gotta have em all. But did you know that cheap NES games make great projectiles to chuck at unsuspecting pedestrians as you pass in a car? It's true. Clean out your local Funcoland by purchasing every copy of the dollar- and-under games you can get your hands on. These carts are surprisingly durable. They still function normally after being subjected to flames, microwaves, dogs, toilets, food processors, and freezers. We even ran over a copy with a truck and it still works great. So, what happened over the years? Similar experiments with an Area 51 CD ended in disaster and a hefty tab at Blockbuster. CDs are more fragile, of course, but even Genesis games can't take a fraction of this punishment. Here's another fun activity: place an NES/SNES cart on a bare halogen lamp. Nice melting effect, eh? My copy of WWF Super Wrestlemania has an odd crumpled look, but I can still play it whenever I want to. Thank you for so many good times, Nintendo. ********************************** II. How do I play this classic masterpiece? ********************************** My advice would be: do not. If you absolutely must, however, there's a rather simple control scheme that it won't take very long to get used to. Control Pad: Up moves you up, Down moves you down. get the idea? You can also move diagonally, which is probably this game's highlight. A Button: Pass, tackle, select your position on defense. B Button: Kick ball, tackle, select position on defense. Start Button: Make selections at menus, pause the game. Select Button: Causes complete and utter destruction of the universe. Don't worry about any snazzy button combinations or controller motions; there aren't any. That's actually pretty cool if you think about it. No load time, no playbook, no stats, no trading, no coaching mode. just pop it in and play. Who said it had to be enjoyable? ******************************************** III. How can I stop the computer from kicking my ass? ******************************************** It's actually not too hard to win at 10 Yard Fight, so if you need to look here, consider yourself in big trouble. High School level: I'm pretty sure you could outrun the high school team if you weighed eight hundred pounds, smoked three packs a day, and had two broken legs. In other words, the hardest part is restraining yourself from pulling the cord from the wall out of boredom. College level: Aside from wearing loud yellow jerseys, the college team is exactly the same as the previous match. To give yourself a challenge, play upside down using only one hand. No, I've never actually done this. Professional level: Sure, there's no NFL license, but let's try to guess where we are, anyway. Well, judging by the performance of the opposing team, I'd say we were facing the Chicago Bears. Aside from a slight speed increase, you won't find that the CPU is any smarter or better in this match. Playoff level: If you started from the beginning and made it this far, you deserve recognition. I'm a seasoned Saturday detention veteran, and I had big problems. The playoffs are slightly difficult in 10 Yard Fight, but nothing a few simple offensive strategies (see below) can't overcome. Super Bowl level: Okay, I'm going to spoil the ending for you now. If you win, it tells you to keep going to the Super Bowl. There. I ruined any fun you might have had with this game. Are you pissed? Anyway, please take notice of the pretty pink jerseys on the opposing team. Don't they complement the turf nicely? ******************************** IV. What are some offensive strategies? ******************************** Okay, here are a couple of neat tricks to use when you're battling the computer for glory. Keep in mind that if you somehow manage to find a human partner to play this game with, none of this will really work on them. Well, maybe. if they're catastrophically stupid. Passing and Running: This is a bit hard to use consistently against the higher-level opponents, but in the first couple of rounds you can use it repeatedly for easy victories. When your teammate is open, snap the ball and pass it to him right away. Most of the lemming-like computer players will shamble towards the quarterback, allowing a safe throw. If you wait long enough, you'll earn a double-digit yard gain. Of course, somebody could intercept if you hesitate too long. When you're running with the ball, jamming on the directional pad will get you out of most encounters with the enemy. Zigzagging all over the field is always a surefire way to throw off any would-be heroes. Trigger your pursuer's tackle so he moves sideways, and head vertically while he's sliding. You're a sneaky one, aren't you? Eat Up the Clock: While it doesn't work here as well as it does in some other games (Nintendo's sports titles almost always have a glitch similar to this), it's sometimes possible to wait out the game on the very bottom of the field without anyone coming after you. How exactly does this work? It's incredibly simple, really. Wait until you're about ten or twenty yards from a touchdown, then instead of making the run for the points, turn around and head downfield. When the screen stops scrolling, wait around a bit. If you're lucky, nobody from the other side will follow to beat on you. They can and will, though, but it's actually not too hard to lead your opponents from one end of the field to the other. Make sure you don't score points for the other team in the process. Since it's impossible to stand still on the turf, this might be more trouble than it's worth. If you get tackled, it's a long, long trip back to the line of scrimmage. Oh yeah, you need to be leading the score for this to be advantageous. Getting the Extra Point: Kicking after the touchdown is about as easy as it gets in 10 Yard Fight. Move the arrow left just a bit so it's between the goalposts, and. wow, how the hell are you supposed to miss that? *************************** V. How can I play good defense? *************************** If you can believe it, defending is even simpler than running in this game. Always pick the lineman with the wider coverage, since that's usually where the computer heads (and you should, too). Head straight for the quarterback and knock him flat. If he passes, which is a rarity, your AI-impaired buddies are gonna have a tough time catching up. If you're really creaming the opposition and it's already fourth down, they'll usually try for a field goal. There's really nothing you can do about this, but there's no reason to bother anyway. Most of the time the punt will fall far short of the goalposts, and the ball will be yours again. On the higher levels, the CPU will be more agile and better at avoiding you, but it's still not very difficult to win. ******************************* VI. What's the point of this nonsense? ******************************* Okay, there really is none, since the few hardy souls that would actually have the patience to play through this game are those monks that have given up speech and recreation altogether. If you can somehow secure a human partner to play this game with, though, you might be surprised. I actually had some fun. Or, here's a neat idea. Offer copies of this game to random people in a crowded public place, such as an airport. While this isn't likely to rid you of the carts (people in large crowds are terribly mistrusting of strangers), it can be a fun diversion while you're waiting for a taxi or something. 10 Yard Fight is a copyrighted "product" of Irem Corp. and Nintendo of America.