Inputed by Lee Kime email:vanilla1@worldnet.att.net 720* NES-72-USA The arcade's ultimate aerial experience comes home! THE GAME As the jammin' skateboarder you know you are, you've got to test your skills in the toughest course any skateboarder has ever seen. You start off with a hundred bucks in your pocket, your trusty skateboard, and the awesome moves you've learned along the way. Find your way around the park while dodging kamikaze cars, looney thugs and killer bees. You've only got a short amount of time to work your way through each one of the four levels, or classes, of difficulty. Show off your hot moves, and rack up points to earn tickets to the parks. If you’re lucky, you might find some loose bills lying around. Scoop ‘em up. You know you'd like to get the dough to buy those cool duds and some of that hot equipment. GETTING STARTED Once the game has loaded, press any button to get to the title screen. You are given the option to START a new game or CONTINUE in the current class. Press the Select Button to move the cursor between these two options, then press the Start Button to begin the game. If you do not start the game, a self-running Demo will begin automatically after about 15 seconds; press any button to return to the option screen from the Demo. You start off the game in the Main Park. You have three lives, and your goal is to make it through all four of the special events (located in different corners of the Main Park) with enough points to "graduate" to the next class. You begin the game with three event tickets; rack up points to earn the fourth ticket for the last event. If you do well in the events you'll earn cash and bonus points, as well as the chance at a bronze, silver or gold medal. Use your cash to buy better equipment in the shops, located in the Main Park. Once you get to the next class, you’ll have to earn more points to get more event tickets and even better equipment. As you progress throught the classes, the events will become more and more difficult. CONTROLLING YOUR SKATEBOARD Press UP, DOWN, LEFT and RIGHT on the Control Pad to skate in that direction. To jump as you skate, press the A Button. To skate diagonally, press the Control Pad in that direction (for instance, press UP/RIGHT to skate up and to the right). To pause the game, press the Start Button; press Start again to resume play. THE MAIN PARK As you skate around the Main Park, watch out for cars tearing through the streets, tough-looking thugs, motorcycle maniacs, and frisbee-throwing freaks. You may also run across dollar bills lying in the street; pick them up by skating over them (finders keepers!). Score points by jumping over water and off of ramps, and by performing mid-air spins. In addition to the four event parks, there are four shops in the Main Park where you can buy helmets, shoes, pads and skateboards. Any money you find on the street or earn in the events can be used to buy new equipment. If you get lost, skate around until you find one of the Map Stations marked by the word "MAP" on the sidewalk. When you skate over the Map Station a map of the Main Park will appear on the screen, showing your location and the location of the shops and events. The game timer pauses while the map is displayed. Press any button to return to the game. THE STATUS PANEL A Status Panel in the upper left corner of the screen shows the time bar, points earned, cash, event tickets, and equipment. TIME BAR The time bar decreases gradually as you skate; when the time bar disappears completely, the message "Skate or Die" will appear at the top of the screen. After this, you'll only have a few seconds to get to an event before a swarm of bees makes a "beeline" for you...and stops you in your tracks. POINTS Earn bonus points in the four special events, and by performing jumps and spins in the Main Park. You'll need all the points you can get to earn the fourth event ticket, and to qualify for the next class. CASH You begin the game with $100; earn more cash in the events. You can also find dollar bills on the streets in the Main Park. Use your money to buy better equipment in shops located around the Main Park. EVENT TICKETS You have three event tickets at the beginning of the game; earn extra event tickets by scoring points (the number of points needed to earn the next ticket will be displayed at the bottom of the event screen). EQUIPMENT You may purchase four types of equipment in shops around the Main Park: boards, helmets, shoes, and pads. A picture of each item (shown from left to right in the above order) is displayed on the screen. Each time you buy an item, a quarter of a pie will appear above the picture of that item. Although you can only purchase one of each item per class, you can upgrade your equipment when you move up to the next class. SPINS Wanna know how to do those rad jumps and spins, including the awesome 720? Just hold down the A Button and press UP, DOWN, RIGHT, or LEFT on the Control Pad. It doesn't matter which direction you press, as long as it's different from the direction you're heading. When you're about to land, make sure that you're heading in the same direction as when you started your jump. The more you spin, the more points you earn: 1 Spin: 100 Points 2 Spins: 200 Points 3 Spins: 300 Points 4 Spins: 400 Points Spin points are increased by 100 in each class. Gain the height you need to perform difficult maneuvers by spinning as you jump from ramps or curbs. Earn extra points by jumping and spinning over water hazards, grass patches, and ramps. THE SHOPS There are four shops located in the Main Park: the Skateboard Shop, the Helmet Shop, the Shoe Shop, and the Pad Shop. Once you earn enough money in the events, you can use it to buy hot new equipment that'll let you jump higher, go faster, and recover from falls more quickly. If you have enough money for a piece of equipment, you'll be outfitted with that item automatically when you skate up to a shop. When you buy a piece of equipment, a quarter of a pie will appear above the picture of that item and the price of the item will be deducted from your cash. You can only purchase one of each item per class, but when you move up to the next class you can upgrade your equipment again. SKATEBOARD SHOP Buy a hot skateboard that lets you jump higher and score more points. HELMET SHOP With a new helmet, you'll be well protected when you fall and it won't take you so long to recover from bumps and bruises. SHOE SHOP Really burn rubber in a pair of ultimate high-tops. With shoes like these, nothing will stand in your way. PAD SHOP Hey, you can never be too careful! With pads on your knees and elbows, you can skid into just about anything without getting hurt. THE EVENTS There are four events which you must complete before you can move on to the next class--the Downhill, Slalom, Jump and Ramp. Each event requires one ticket to play. You start off with only three tickets, and have to score points to earn the fourth one. The number of points needed to earn the next ticket is displayed at the bottom of the event screen. You must complete each event in a limited amount of time. In the Downhill, Slalom, and Jump events, tear through the course as fast as you can for the greatest number of points. Don't fall down, or you'll lose valuable seconds that will cost you bonus points and cash! In the Ramp event, show off as many of your moves as you can in the time allowed. Once you complete an event, your score plus any bonus points or medals will be displayed. Afterward, the Medal Table will appear showing the events you have completed and your performance in each event. Press the any button to return to the Main Park, DOWNHILL This event is filled with hairpin curves, in a course built on stilts over water. As you skate downhill you must jump from one section of the course to the next without missing a turn. Arrows at the end of each ramp section tell you which way the course is going to turn. As you sail off the end of one ramp, turn in the direction of the next ramp to land. If you think you're good enough, try a spin or two for extra points. The number of points needed for the next event ticket is show at the bottom of the screen. An indicator bar at the top of the screen shows the time remaining, and whether you're eligible for a bronze, silver, or gold medal. The time bar starts off in the "gold" range ("G"), and gradually decreases to "silver" ("S"), "bronze" ("B"), and then no medal at all. SLALOM Fly down a flag-filled course built over water, weaving your way through a series of gates. You must go through all the gates (that is, between each set of flags' to win the event. Every time you go through a gate, the flags change color and time is added to the clock. If you pass through a gate correctly, the flags will turn yellow. If you miss a gate and pass through the next one, the flags of the gate you missed will turn blue. If you go through a gate in the wrong direction (upward), those flags will turn blue. More time is added to the clock for yellow flags than for blue ones. The number of points needed for the next event ticket is shown at the bottom of the screen. An indicator bar at the top of the screen shows the time remaining, and whether you're eligible for a bronze, silver, or gold medal. JUMP You'll need quick reflexes and a great sense of timing to get through this course. As you speed down the ramps, watch out for water hazards at the bottom. When you reach the end of one ramp, press the A Button to jump to the next one. If you land successfully, you'll earn points. Get extra points by doing spins and jumps on your way down, and by landing on bonus markers that can be found near the water hazards. A countdown timer appears at the bottom of the screen, along with the number of points needed for the next event ticket. An indicator bar at the top of the screen increases as you earn points to show if you're eligible for a bronze, silver, or gold medal. RAMP Ready to tame the wild concrete tidal wave? You have only a short time to get as many points as you can by showing off your awesome moves. As you skate up the side of the ramp, prepare to soar through the air and twist around for a perfect spin or a cool handstand – this is where you show everyone what you've really got. A countdown timer appears at the bottom of the screen, along with the number of points needed for the next event ticket. An indicator bar at the top of the screen increases as you earn points to show if you're eligible for a bronze, silver, or gold medal. Jumps You begin in the center of the ramp. Press any button to skate up the right side of the ramp; when you reach the top, you'll jump automatically. To jump higher, press the Control Pad in the direction you are moving. Spins To spin during a jump, press the B Button as you are jumping. Points are awarded for the number of spins you complete. Make sure that you are facing toward the center of the ramp when you land, or you'll crash. Handstand Press any button to skate up the right side of the ramp. As you approach the top, hold down the A Button and press the Control Pad in the direction you are moving to do a handstand on the top of the ramp. (Press LEFT if you are on the left side of the ramp, and press RIGHT if you are on the right side of the ramp.) To get down from the handstand, continue holding down the A Button and press the Control Pad in the opposite direction. The longer you hold the handstand, the more points you'll earn. Don't hold it for too long, or you'll lose control and slide down to the bottom. Slide Press any button to skate up the right side of the ramp. As you approach the top, hold down the A Button and press the Control Pad toward the center of the ramp (Press LEFT if you are on the right side of the ramp, and press RIGHT if you are on the left side of the ramp.) Holding down the A Button, press UP or DOWN on the Control Pad to slide back and forth along the edge of the ramp. To get down from the slide, continue holding down the A Button and press the Control Pad away from the center of the ramp. Don't hold the slide for too long, or you'll lose control and end up at the bottom. Points are awarded for the distance covered in the slide. Skating Handstand If you're really daring, try a handstand on your skateboard. As you start down from the top of the ramp, hold down the A Button and press the Control Pad in the direction you are heading. (Press RIGHT if you are heading right, and press LEFT if you are heading left.) To get down from the handstand, continue holding down the A Button and press the Control Pad in the opposite direction. You must get down from the handstand before you start heading up the other side of the ramp if you don't want to crash. Points are awarded for successfully completing the handstand. HIGH SCORES If your score is high enough, you will be allowed to enter your name into the high score table after you lose your last life. Use the Control Pad to move the cursor, and press the A Button to select a letter. To erase a letter, select RUB. When you're finished entering your name, select OK. Your name will now appear on the top-ten high score table.