JOYSTICK SETUP: When Over the Net is played with 1 player against the computer, the joystick must be connected to port 2. If 2 players wish to play at the same time, the mouse must be disconnected, with the power off, and the second joystick hooked up to port 1. In both cases, the player with the joystick connected to port 2 is considered to be player 1 and will make all of the selections in the Main Menu. MAIN MENU: After the introduction and credits, the Main Menu will appear. You can select from the following items by positioning the arrow over the appropriate icon and pressing the (FIRE) button: SEA CUP Start the Sea Cup competition SINGLE GAME Play a single game DEMO Continuous demo of the game POINT ON CHANGE If YES is selected, a point is awarded on change of service NUMBER OF SETS Number of sets in a match 4 PLAYER INTERFACE <NOT AVAILABLE> Once you have selected either The Sea Cup or Single Game, you will be prompted to enter your name(s) and configure the two "visiting" teams. Choice of Teams: Choose any of the 12 available teams by positioning the arrow over the team you wish to select and pressing the (FIRE) button. To change the players names, select the name you wish to change and enter the new name from the keyboard. Finally, you must decide which players are to be controlled by the computer and which will be controlled by a human. The "human" players are selected when a joystick appears, the computer is selected when the letters CPU appear. Thus each of the two teams can be controlled by: a) Two joysticks (2 human players) b) Two CPU's (2 computer players) c) One joystick and one CPU (1 human and 1 computer player) Sea Cup: If you select Sea Cup, the matches will take place in a series of seaside resort locations. A classification is gradually formed at each match between the various teams, and at the end of the tournament, the two teams with the lowest standing are eliminated for each location. The tournament proceeds in this manner at increasingly difficult levels up to the conquest of the much aspired Sea Cup. PLAYING THE GAME: The rules of Over the Net are identical to those of volleyball (3 contacts for each team, the ball must not be touched twice in succession by the same player, etc.) with the addition of an option which also awards a point for service out. This option was added to limit the duration of a set. The game consists of 1, 3, or 5 sets, and the game is terminated when one of the teams has mathematically won, even if all the remaining sets have not been played. Each set consists of 15 points, except when there is a point difference of less than 2. The scoreboard located next to the playing court indicates the score, the winning sets, the team colors, and who is serving. Each human player is assigned one man and, depending upon how you set up the teams, the remainder are controlled by the computer. The two players on each team take turns serving the ball. The server is automatically positioned for a serve and waits, with ball in hand, for (FIRE) to be pressed. There are two possible shots: with or without a jump. For a shot without a jump, press (FIRE). For a shot with a jump, Move the joystick forward and then press (FIRE). The power of the shot depends upon the timing and precision of the movement. During a volley, a shadow appears on the beach to indicate where the ball is. You can thereby estimate where the ball will fall, and the nearest player must go to that point to receive the volley. If the computer controlled player does not move, this means that the human controlled player is the nearest player and must move to the area where the ball will land. Remember, care must be given in order to anticipate your move to the area where the ball will land. Once the player is in position, press (FIRE). Depending upon the proximity of the ball to this player, the most appropriate type of movement will be carried out automatically, including: a bagger pass, a toss, or, in extreme cases, a dive. The direction of the ball while doing a dive is calculated by the computer. For the other shots, the velocity, direction and arc of the ball depend entirely upon the force of your blow, the direction of the joystick, and the area of the ball that you hit. To block a volley at the net, move the player up to the net and press (FIRE) with the joystick in the up position. The ball will be blocked only if it has not crossed the net. The smash is achieved using the same technique as a jump serve. Notes: In all cases, the timing of the shot is critical. Also, every ball is considered to be playable, so if you see a ball that appears to be landing out-of-bounds and do not return it, a point will be awarded to the other team as if it were a missed play. During game play, pressing the ESC key will abort the current game and return you to the Main Menu. The score at the time you aborted will be taken as the final score. To pause the game, press the P key. Press the (FIRE) button to resume play.