Cyberball

The History of Cyberball reports that the first recorded instance of illegal bionic surgery on a pro football player happened in 2006.

The Commissioner did his best to eliminate cyborgs — part human, part robot — and bionically-enhanced players from the sport. But by 2022, football was played exclusively by robots! Cyberball, based on Atari's arcade hit, captures all the mechanized brutality and strategic sophistication of that imaginary future variant on football.

In addition to the use of robots, the pigskin itself was replaced with a 350 pound bomb. Penalties were eliminated and an invisible force field was placed over the gridiron to protect spectators from shrapnel!

Offensive personnel consists of a Quarterback, a Running Back, Tight End, Wide Receiver and three Linemen. The QB is the most humanoid-looking robot, but he is also the most fragile. The more durable RB is mounted on a motorcycle and the WR on a single wheel, with large, basket-like claws, while the TE travels on a pair of caterpillar-style treads. The Linemen are the biggest, toughest robots on the field, mounted on two tank treads with large, shovel-like "hands" for holding off attackers. On Defense, there are a pair of Linemen; two small, speedy, unicycle-mounted Cornerbacks; a pair of Safety robots (similar to the WRs but with heavy, horseshoe-style "hands") and the tank-like Linebacker.

Cyberball offers players 103 offensive formations and 12 defensive setups. The gamer selects Running or Passing play and the best available formations are presented, depending upon the current situation. There are 28 different teams, and League play involves a Division-oriented 16 game season. Success in the League pays off handsomely — allowing a coach to buy new and better players! The gamer views the vertically-scrolling field as though they are sitting above and behind the team on offense, giving human coaches a panoramic view of the gridiron. Cyberball should have strong appeal for both football fans and all-around arcade action mavens! The football components are solid and realistic while the game's science fictional elements only enhance the play.

• TIP: Vary your play selection, especially on Offense. You may fool the computer "D" once or even twice, but after that, you're on your own!

• TIP: The single most important position is Running Back — once you've saved some money, invest in the best!

• TIP: Use formation-selection to confuse your opponent. Occasionally go against type and run out of a passing formation or pass out of a running formation.

• TIP: The computer doesn't blitz often, but when it does — oh, bro-ther!

• TIP: Experiment on Defense by controlling different positions and players. Always control the key player in any scheme.