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Final Approach - Apollo - Atari 2600    Manual Scan icon HTML Manual   

Final Approach
Final Approach:  Instructions  (for 2600, by Apollo)
----------------------------------------------------

THE SITUATION

You are an Air Traffic Controller at a busy international airport.
Literally thousands of lives are in your hands every day as you guide
giant airliners and small private aircraft taking off and landing.
You try to stay relaxed under the intense pressure of your job,
but you must always be ready for emergencies.

THE SET-UP

FINAL APPROACH(tm) is played by one or two players using the joystick
controllers.  Be sure the power is off when you insert or remove the
FINAL APPROACH cartridge from your video game system.

THE DIFFICULTY SWITCH

Placing this switch in the 'B' position will provide the easiest play.
It controls the speed of the aircraft on your radar screen as the
game begins; slower in the 'B' mode, faster in the 'A' mode.

THE GAME SELECT SWITCH

Each time you depress this switch, you will select a new game variation.
The numbers of the different variations shown on the game menu in this
manual will appear on your video screen at top center, with the number
of players on the right.  (See VARIATIONS.)

THE RESET SWITCH

When this switch is depressed, the game will begin.  The variation and
player number will change into a scoreboard, which will reflect the points
you have received landing aircraft.

SCREENS

The first screen you'll use in controlling air traffic is the Approach
Control Radar Screen (ACR), which will appear when you turn on the power.
The ACR screen shows you all the air traffic in the vicinity of your airport.
Use this screen to control your aircraft for landing.  When an aircraft
is aligned with the runway strobes and is on final approach, you must then
switch to the Ground Control Approach (GCA) screen.  Use the GCA screen to
bring your aircraft in for a safe landing, monitoring altitude and heading.

THE JOYSTICK CONTROLLER

Hold your joystick controller so that the red 'FIRE' button is in the upper
left corner.  On the ACR screen, moving the joystick will move a small
black square known as the cursor around the screen.  To control the movements
of an aircraft, position the cursor directly on the airplane and press the
red 'FIRE button.  You will remain in control of the aircraft until you
again press the red 'FIRE' button, releasing the cursor from the aircraft.
On the GCA screen, use the joystick to control the altitude and heading of
your aircraft on final approach.  Control the altitude of your aircraft by 
pulling it towards you to reduce altitude, and pressing it forward to
increase altitude.  Heading is controlled by moving the joystick left or
right to keep your aircraft centered on the runway.

GENERAL PLAY

Aircraft will enter your radar screen randomly.  There may be up to four
aircraft on the screen at one time.  When these aircraft appear on the
screen, they will not be heading in any fixed direction, so you must take
control to steer them in the desired direction.  Each aircraft will remain
on the last given heading, so you must constantly monitor this heading and
change it so that the aircraft are spaced out in a matter in which they
can achieve a safe and expeditious landing.  The aircraft under your control
must remain within the boundaries of your radar screen.  If you allow an
aircraft to go out of the boundaries, it may reappear at any point on the
screen, and you will lose points.  You must also insure your passengers'
safety by keeping your aircraft spaced adequately.  Allowing two or more
aircraft to touch will be considered a near-miss, and you will be penalized
for a control error (that is, one life).

Your objective in controlling the aircraft on your runway screen is to steer 
it so that it arrives at the end of the runway strobes heading toward the
runway.  From this position, the aircraft can make a landing on the runway
if it is steered properly.  If you do not position the aircraft over the end
of the strobes, the aircraft cannot land.  Once the aircraft has been
positioned to start its approach, you must select the GCA screen to steer the
aircraft down the glide slope (which shows the aircraft's altitude) and 
the localizer (which shows the aircraft's heading).

TO SWITCH from the ACR screen to the GCA screen, you simply move the cursor
down to the lower center knob on your console, and press the red 'FIRE'
button.  A successful landing is accomplished if your aircraft's nose
is centered on the glide slope and localizer when arriving at the end of
the runway.  As soon as the aircraft has touched down on the runway,
switch back to the ACR screen simply by pressing the red 'FIRE' button.
If the airplane was landed successfully, the aircraft will have
already disappeared from the ACR screen, and an additional aircraft will
soon appear at an edge of the screen.  If a successful landing is not made,
the aircraft you attempted to land will continue to be displayed on the 
ACR screen.

Aircraft under your control may suddenly start flashing, and emitting a
warning tone.  This indicates they have an emergency and must be brought
in for an immediate landing.  Other aircraft must be cleared out of the
path of the aircraft with an emergency, and it must be given priority
for landing.  It will continue to flash until it has landed.

[SCREEN SHOT:  GCA SCREEN.  A white diagonal line with a red plane on it
slopes from the upper left to the screen's center, where it meets a black
horizontal line.  This is the glide path.  Beneath it, a white horizontal
line with a red plane on it stretches toward a runway; this is your 
localizer.]

[SCREEN SHOT:  ACR SCREEN.  Dots at the top of the screen indicate control
errors.  The middle dot of the three greyish dots at the bottom of the
screen is your Center Knob.  The cursor is a black square, the strobes 
are little white lines next to the black runway, and the aircraft at the
top of the screen is in black.]

SCORING

You receive 25 points for each successful landing.  For every emergency
landing you receive 50 points if you are able to land the aircraft with an 
emergency before any other aircraft.  You will lose 5 points every time
you allow an aircraft to wander off the screen.  As the score increases,
the speed of the aircraft on the screen increases.  You are allowed four
control errors, such as allowing a near-miss or not immediately landing
an aircraft in distress.  You will be allowed an additional control error
every 500 points you earn.  The number of control errors (lives) remaining
is indicated by the green lights at the top of the screen.

VARIATIONS

The FINAL APPROACH game variations include one and two-player games.  In the
one-player game, the game is concluded when you have made four control errors.
In the two-player game, the game is concluded when you each player has
committed four control errors.  Turns alternate on each near-miss or 
unsuccessful landing.  You may also select whether the maximum number of
aircraft on the screen will be two, three or four.  In games 3 and 4, the
game play is made even more challenging by the addition of crosswinds 
affecting your aircraft on landing.  Games 7 and 8 are particularly easy,
designed for small children.

GAME MENU

GAME NUMBER             1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8

NUMBER OF PLAYERS    1  X       X       X       X
                     2      X       X       X       X

MAXIMUM NUMBER       4  X   X   X   X
OF AIRCRAFT          3                  X   X
                     2                          X   X

CROSSWINDS ON      YES          X   X
LANDINGS            NO  X   X           X   X   X   X


[warranty information]

----
typed up by Jeff Coleburn, [email protected] 




This document obtained from the History of Home Video Games Homepage, �1997-1998 by Greg Chance