Football (Intellivision game)
Encyclopedia
Football is a multiplayer sports video game produced by Mattel
and released for its Intellivision
video game system in 1979. The players each control a football
team competing in a standard four-quarter game. Like Mattel's other sports video games, NFL Football did not use any official National Football League
team names or player names, even though Mattel obtained a license from the NFL and used the league's logo in its box art.
Player 1 always starts the game on offense and receives the opening kick-off from Player 2; at the start of the second half, Player 2 will receive the kick-off from Player 1. NFL Football is played in the same basic manner as a regulation game of football, with the offense being given four downs to advance the ball a minimum of ten yards before losing possession of the football to the opposing team. At the start of each down, the players use their controller's keypad to input a formation and a play for that down; descriptions and diagrams of the plays were printed in the game's instruction manual and not visible on-screen. When both players have entered their formations, play resumes.
The player on offense generally controls the team's quarterback
unless the ball is handed off to a running back
or passed to an eligible receiver
. In the former case, control immediately switches to the running back. In the latter case, control switches to the intended receiver, who must maneuver to catch the ball before it goes out of bounds or is intercepted by the defense. On defense, the player controls the "captain," roughly in the position of a safety. All defensive team members are capable of tackling the ball carrier, but only the player-controlled team member may attempt to intercept a pass.
Games whose scores are tied at the end of the fourth quarter of play end as ties, with no overtime period.
and make a change if the ball has not been snapped.
Touchdowns are worth seven points, with the extra point considered automatic, and no option to attempt a two-point conversion
; at the time the game was released, the lack of a two-point conversion was not considered a concession, as the NFL didn't incorporate the rule until 1994. Field goals are possible, but with no goal posts at the end zones, the kicked ball must simply cross the back of the end zone in order to be considered good. Safeties are possible and are handled in the same manner as regulation football, with the defensive team receiving two points and possession of the ball, although in lieu of a kick-off, the team scoring the safety takes possession on its own 20-yard line.
in 1982, again without the NFL references. Similarly, the game appears in the Intellivision Lives compilation game and on Microsoft's
Game Room
service simply as Football.
Mattel
Mattel, Inc. is the world's largest toy company based on revenue. The products it produces include Fisher Price, Barbie dolls, Hot Wheels and Matchbox toys, Masters of the Universe, American Girl dolls, board games, and, in the early 1980s, video game consoles. The company's name is derived from...
and released for its Intellivision
Intellivision
The Intellivision is a video game console released by Mattel in 1979. Development of the console began in 1978, less than a year after the introduction of its main competitor, the Atari 2600. The word intellivision is a portmanteau of "intelligent television"...
video game system in 1979. The players each control a football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team competing in a standard four-quarter game. Like Mattel's other sports video games, NFL Football did not use any official National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
team names or player names, even though Mattel obtained a license from the NFL and used the league's logo in its box art.
Gameplay
The player controls a five-man football team, actively controlling one team member at a time, with the computer controlling the rest. As in traditional American football, the player's team must score more points than the opponent's team within the time limit of the game. The game consists of four quarters, each a simulated 15 minutes in length, and takes place on a horizontally-scrolling 100-yard simulated football field.Player 1 always starts the game on offense and receives the opening kick-off from Player 2; at the start of the second half, Player 2 will receive the kick-off from Player 1. NFL Football is played in the same basic manner as a regulation game of football, with the offense being given four downs to advance the ball a minimum of ten yards before losing possession of the football to the opposing team. At the start of each down, the players use their controller's keypad to input a formation and a play for that down; descriptions and diagrams of the plays were printed in the game's instruction manual and not visible on-screen. When both players have entered their formations, play resumes.
The player on offense generally controls the team's quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
unless the ball is handed off to a running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
or passed to an eligible receiver
Eligible receiver
In American football and Canadian football, not all players on offense are entitled to receive a forward pass. Only an eligible pass receiver may legally catch a forward pass, and only an eligible receiver may advance beyond the neutral zone if a forward pass which crosses the neutral zone is thrown...
. In the former case, control immediately switches to the running back. In the latter case, control switches to the intended receiver, who must maneuver to catch the ball before it goes out of bounds or is intercepted by the defense. On defense, the player controls the "captain," roughly in the position of a safety. All defensive team members are capable of tackling the ball carrier, but only the player-controlled team member may attempt to intercept a pass.
Games whose scores are tied at the end of the fourth quarter of play end as ties, with no overtime period.
Variations from standard football
NFL Football made numerous concessions to how a standard game of football is played. Unlike modern football video games, which use statistics to determine a team's relative strengths and weaknesses, the two teams in the game are of equal strength, with the only significant variable being the player's own abilities. There is also no play clock governing the pace of the game; players may take all the time needed to select plays, although in situations where the game clock would be running (such as after a completed play that did not result in a first down), the game clock will continue to run until another game action stops it. Each player does have three time-outs per half, but time-outs will last until the player who called the time-out completes play selection. Players, in the truest sense, are not able to audible, although they may call a time-out at the line of scrimmageLine of scrimmage
In American and Canadian football a line of scrimmage is an imaginary transverse line beyond which a team cannot cross until the next play has begun...
and make a change if the ball has not been snapped.
Touchdowns are worth seven points, with the extra point considered automatic, and no option to attempt a two-point conversion
Two-point conversion
In American and Canadian football, a two-point conversion is a play a team attempts instead of kicking a one-point convert immediately after it scores a touchdown...
; at the time the game was released, the lack of a two-point conversion was not considered a concession, as the NFL didn't incorporate the rule until 1994. Field goals are possible, but with no goal posts at the end zones, the kicked ball must simply cross the back of the end zone in order to be considered good. Safeties are possible and are handled in the same manner as regulation football, with the defensive team receiving two points and possession of the ball, although in lieu of a kick-off, the team scoring the safety takes possession on its own 20-yard line.
Ports
NFL Football was sold by Sears for the "Super Video Arcade," its private-label version of the Intellivision console, without the NFL name or logo. "M-Network," Mattel's third-party brand, released a port of NFL Football called Super Challenge Football for the Atari 2600Atari 2600
The Atari 2600 is a video game console released in October 1977 by Atari, Inc. It is credited with popularizing the use of microprocessor-based hardware and cartridges containing game code, instead of having non-microprocessor dedicated hardware with all games built in...
in 1982, again without the NFL references. Similarly, the game appears in the Intellivision Lives compilation game and on Microsoft's
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
Game Room
Game Room
Game Room is a gaming service for the Xbox 360 video game system, Microsoft Windows PCs, and Windows Phone 7. Launched on March 24, 2010, Game Room lets players download classic video games and compete against each other for high scores...
service simply as Football.