TRICKS OF THE TRADE
	Gameboy Colour Tips and Cheats

However, I can now confidently play as Leeds and solidly beat any team you care to mention (I put more than thirty goals on Lazio, and I usually score at least 20). I'd hate myself forever if I didn't pass on a few winning tips. Positions I may refer to in the text. They may not be accurate footballing terminology, but they'll do.

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Kick-offs

Hold down "down" or "up" (depending on whether your playing down or up) and when the ref blows his whistle, press A once. The ball is kicked from 09 to 11 (or 11 to 09) in the centre circle, and 11/09 starts dribbling with it. If it's you're opponent's kick off, hold down the arrow key that take 11 or 09 in the direction of the opponent receiving the ball (usually left, no matter which way you're playing). When you reach him, press A. Assuming your timing's right and he's in the right place, you should be close enough to the ball to boot it to the opposite winger (09/11 respectively), Assuming it's not hit too hard or too soft, he can then then pass it to 10, who then just dribbles down the pitch. Bringing us nicely onto...

Dribbling

Easy if you're in Auto mode. Once you've got the ball, just press the required direction on the joypad and the player'll move that way, taking the ball with them. Simple! As long as you don't compulsively press the A button (like I did when I started playing - bad mistake!), this important skill is a breeze.

Passing

The B button is used to pass, and you pass in roughly the general direction you're facing. If there's a friendly player in the direction you face, the ball's passed to them. If not, it just gets kicked forward a bit and you've got a race on your hands to regain the ball before your opponents. Passing is an essential strategy in any attack on the opponent - particularly if you've just cleared the ball from your end and want it down their end quickly.

Shooting

Football's all about scoring goals (No! Really?), so if you can't shoot properly, you ain't gonna get anywhere. Any shots from outside the penalty box are just sheer lunacy, but get too close in and before you know it the keeper's grabbed the ball from under your feet (Surely that's a professional foul?). Somewhere between the penalty area and the six-yard box is best. Aim straight down (or up if you're playing up), press A and you should blast it safely home.

Tackling

A works as your tackling button when you're off the ball. First and foremost, it's a bad idea to tackle from behind. You can easily give away penalties and free kicks, and even get yourself awarded yellow and red cards. Tackling from the front's best. Who knows, you may get close enough to the ball to actually be on it so you can boot it away to one of your players. Sometimes just going into a player from the front without pressing A can be enough to dislodge the ball from their feet, but it's a rare occurance, so don't bank on it.

Substitutes Screen

My favourite formation is the good, evenly spread 4-3-3 formation. It's a good idea to substitute yellow-carded players before they get red-carded, or mabye if pushed move them to a less crucial place on the field (i.e. if an attacker who's in the centre circle (i.e. 09 or 11) gets a yellow card, and you're pushed, stick him in position 10.

Also, if you're going for the Grand Prix, don't tire yourself out by going to ever practice. Only two are really essential - the Qualifying and the actual Grand Prix itself. I'd also advise you to attend one practice session to get a "feel" for the course in question.

Bonnie's the best driver, followed (I think) by Spider. The worst drivers are (worst to okay) Walter, Dwayne, Mike and Annie. So, in Challenge mode, it's best to start out with Bonnie as your driver and the others and Walter, Dwayne and Mike. This works quite well - I can get to something like track nine or ten, but the dreaded sandpit beats me. And here's the track types:

Speedboats - Bathtub

A really easy track type, but for two things: the plughole whirlpool (steer into the foam to try and avoid it) and the sort-of corrugated bits of piping (What are they meant to be? Brake a little to give yourself more time to get your steering right).

Sports Cars - Classroom

Easier than it looks, all you've got to do is memorise where the jumps and bridges are, and you're made.

Road Warriors - Garage Floor

Pretty easy - after all you're on the floor, so there's no drops. One big, big problem though - glue blobs. Steer round these at all costs, unless you like suddenly going from first to last place in a matter of seconds. The oils slicks are quite harmless though, and there's a good thing about these - if you've got a good memory, you can associate the oil slicks with nearby glue blobs and chicanes (they often go together). A really useful fact!

4x4s - Breakfast table

Also quite simple - however, remember the table edges and, whatever you do, don't end up in that sticky maple syrup! It slows you right down. The "Chocos" cereal box is quite hard, too - make sure you get onto the ramp.

Formula Ones - Pool Tables

Not too bad, on the whole - but watch it when you're racing round the rim of the table - those corners can come very unexpected, and you'll need sharp brakes and clever steering to get round them. The speed of the cars is either a bonus or a problem depending on your skill at handling high speeds.

Tanks - Bedroom Floor

Ah! We're coming into "hard track" country. The tanks are slow and ungainly, and difficult to manouever if stuck. Worst of all are the draughtsboards - examine one closely everytime you pass through it, and work out your strategy for getting through. Also remember that your tank can fire shells - useful, but remember your opponents are also equipped with this shell-firing capacity. The only really good thing about this level is that, like the Road Warriors, it's on the floor, so there's no edges to fall off.

Helicopters - House Wall

You can't deviate from the track on these ones, but banging against the greenery slows you down no end. Also watch out for the dreaded fan heater (Fly really fast and slightly into the fan heater to avoid crashing into the plants opposite) and the leaks in the pipes (Splashdown!)

Turbo Wheels - Sandpit

Aargh! My nemesis! Not only is falling in the water bad for your car, it takes ages to sink -giving your opponents plenty of time to build a huge lead over you. Nooooo!

Ruff Trux Time Trial - Garden

Only available if you come first three times in a row on Challenge. Completing this in the time allowed earns you an extra chance - but beware, it's very hard. As in the sandpit, there's a lot of water around - and you still take a long time to sink. Bouncing off flowers, getting stuck on stones - is it worth it?

Both Challenge and Head to Head are a lot harder for two reasons - one, the computer picks your opponents rather than you and two, all the players have the same skill so there's no easy options. Oh, well - here's some hints on some of the courses.

Convertibles - Decorators

Tricky, mainly because of speed - these are probably the fastest cars in the game. A lot of bridges and jumps here - life's hard enough without that sort of thing.

Landrovers - Treehouse

Well, these are a welcome break. A nice easy track type. Okay, you're a long way up, but these 4x4s are good steerers and surprisingly speedy. Knocking out knotholes is fun, too - ride over them to shake them loose, the next person to go over them finds themselves falling...

Sports Cars - Kitchen

Not too difficult - the hardest part's knowing where the drops are. You may thing you're just gonna bounce harmlessly off a wall, then suddenly you find yourself falling... (ooh err, a cliché repeat...)

Monster Trucks - Music Room

This one's quite hard. The trucks are quite fast and it's pretty easy to end up on the floor. It's also a pity you can't here music playing when you drive over pianos or xylophones.

Hovercrafts - Garden Pond

Cool levels! No real tips here - but make sure you get onto the bridges.

Dumper Trucks - Dining Table

Mostly easy 'cos the trucks are nice and slow, but there's one really important point - the rotating corn cobs. Drive onto the cob straight, then steer slightly the opposite way to the way the cob's rotating.

Beetles - Playroom

Ah, the playroom - recalling memories of when I used to play with my Matchbox plastic road set. Okay-ish, but those beetles can be deceptively fast (Fast beetles? No, don't mock, it's true!). Stay alert, and don't fall.

Rally Cars - Workshop

Hard. The cars are fast, and there's a lot of sharp corners and bridges, not to mention numerous hazards (Drills, vices, chainsaws - take your pick!). Good luck!

ATV Trikes - Garden

Simplicity itself once you've learnt the rough course layout. What's difficult is (you guessed it) learning the course layouts! Try to remember the order in which the various terrain types come at you (Three types - Grass, Soil and Water/Ice) and what sort of turns are involved there.

Beach Buggies - Beach

Similar to its sandpit counterpart, quite a hard level. As before, watch out for the water!

Supercars - Pool Tables

See entry for Formula Ones on MM1.