~Kick Off 2 A collection of playing tips.... ~Chipping The Ball (Defensively) Chipping the ball can help immensly when defending or attacking. Run with the ball up or down the pitch now push the joystick in the opposite direction & press fire. The ball should fly into the other half. Example, you are attacking up field & your opponent has the ball in your half (down pitch). As soon as you gain possesion run up pitch & hit fire & down, the ball will now be chipped far into your opponents half. You can chip the ball in any direction just remember to push the joystick in the opposite direction that you face & press fire. ~Dribbling You must first learn to dribble, how do you expect to score when you can`t get possesion of the ball? There is no simple way to learn how to dribble, you have to practice. Try running with the ball then turning in the opposite direction, take the ball to the left or right wing and run diagonally with the ball, try running in circles with the ball, run left or right then immediatly run up or down etc, etc. Basically be inventive. ~Passing Chipping is a good way to pass as the ball is so high in the air, you have time to run towards it before it lands. Blasting the ball upfield is only recommended if you can time your runs to perfection. Pass in the box & try to make the keeper come off his line then shoot. To pass hold down fire just before you make contact with the ball, your player will hold the ball then move him towards the direction of the player you want to pass to & let go. Try holding the ball just before you reach the box, if you get fouled then you are given a free kick! Try holding the ball inside the box & if you get fouled then you get a penalty! Hold the ball in the box, when the keeper comes out, let go of fire! Holding the ball for penalties & free kicks is recommende if you are playing someone that is crap & likely to foul alot. ~Defending Never try to slide tackle in the box unless your timing is brilliant. The best way to defend is to try & dribble the ball away from your opponent then chip it away from your goal or if you`re feeling confident make a run into your opponents half. Dribbling tha ball away from opponents is better than using a sliding tackle, if you use a slide tackle then you are on the floor, whereas when you are good at dribbling, you can take the ball off your opponent and leave him standing or chewing grass! ~After Touch After touch is probaly what makes Kick Off 2 so good. By using after touch you can chip & bend the ball. Position the ball to the extreme of either side of your foot. Run straight at goal & when you are in the box just before you reach the dot hit fire & either left or right. For example, put the ball towards the far right of your foot. Run at goal & hit fire & right, the ball will swerve far right, if you hit fire & left, the ball will swerve far left. Decide where to place the ball depending upon where the keeper is standing. Another way to score goals by using after touch is to swerve the ball while you run from left to right or vica versa. Run towards the edge of your opponents goal line, make sure you don`t take the ball out of play, position the ball at the extreme of your left or right foot then press diagonally towards the direction of goal & hit fire. Example. Run up pitch towards your opponents goal, You are on the left wing. Before the goal line, run towards the goal (right) & position the ball to the far left of your foot. Hit fire & right diagonally up about an inch away from goal. The ball should swerve towards the goal. Probably the hardest thing to master is the diagonal curl. Run diagonally towards goal. When you are in the box hit fire & diagonally towards the goal. Example : You are attacking down pitch. Run diagonally towards goal from the left. When you are in the box, hit fire & diagonally down towards the goal, you may notice that the ball curls slightly. Always try to aim for the top corner. You will find that the ball may ricochet in off the post. ~Free Kicks You have a free kick up pitch towards your opponents goal, about 30 yds away, & dead centre on goal. Tap the button for a second, let go of fire, then push the joystick from diagonally far left to diagonally far right. Let go just after you make contact. The ball should bend viciously & dip. Pushing diagonally dips the ball. The longer you hold down fire, the more powerful your shot will be. Free kicks are probably the hardest to master so be patient. The only way to practice free kicks is to play in 2 player mode & set the 2nd players joystick on auto fire. If you haven`t got an auto fire joystick then buy one or get a mate to foul you! ~Penalties When the arrow is dead centre hit the button hard for a split second, as soon as you hit the button let go. There is no easy way to save penaltiesthat bullshit about replaying a penalty before it`s taken doesn`t work, there is no way to predict where your opponent will place the ball but it`s best to try & dive short left or right (diagonally down & left or right if your opponent is shooting down pitch), or just stay in the centre & hit fire & up or down (depends where opponent is attacking). ~Headers You can only head the ball after it has been chipped. To chip the ball a short distance run one way and push the joystick in the opposite direction very fast. Example. You are attcking upfield. Run upfield, when you are 1.5 inches away from the goal push down very quickly. Continue running upfiled. When the ball bounces over the keeper, try to head the ball into goal. It`s useful to chip the ball a short distance left or right when you are near goal as you can get a player to run onto your cross & hopefully smash the ball into the net. Run left then push right very fast, the ball will be chipped left, now try to get a plyer to head the ball. ~Chipping The Ball (Attack) Whenever you get kick off you have a golden opportunity to score. First I will describe how to chip from the half way line and score. You are scoring upfield. Run up the pitch with the ball, make sure the ball is dead centre of both of your feet. When you reach the end of the semi-circle of the half way line push the joystick down & press fire the ball should fly over towards your opponents goal. It takes a lot of practice but it`s worth it. You may get kick off & within seconds you could be 1-0 up! If your opponent scores you can equalize immediately! It is also possible to score by chipping the ball diagonally. Run close to the wing about 1/2 inch past the half way line, start running diagonally towards the goal & push in the opposite direction that you face & press fire. Example, you are attacking down pitch. Run as close to the left wing as possible, turn diagonally just past the half way line push diagonally to the opposite direction you face (top left) and hit fire, the ball will be chipped diagonally towards the goal. After you have mastered both these methods of chipping the ball, try to chip the ball from a shorter distance, chip the ball in the same way but don`t push the joystick & hit fire with as much force. To do a curled chip, place the ball on the extreme left or right of your foot then push diagonally left or right in the opposite direction & hit fire. Example, you want to do a curled chip when the ball is on the far left of your foot. You are running down field. Push down diagonally towards the left & hit fire. The ball will fly high in the air, curling right. ~Taking On The Keeper When you are brilliant at dribbling, run diagonally towards your opponents goal & when the keeper comes off his line shoot diagonally or curl diagonally. Another way to do this is to let the ball run, when the keeper runs out off his line run & blast the ball towards goal. This method of attack requires timing more than anything else. ~Tactics Select 4-2-4. If this isn`t working out after 2 minutes (you aren`t having much attacking play) then switch to 4-4-2. 4-3-3 isn`t very usefull & I only advise 5-3-2 is you are getting hammered (not that it will help much!). If your opponent scores or you get kick off, switch to 4-2-4 & try to chip from the half way line. ~Conclusion Kick Off 2 is difficult to master, I have made this player`s guide after nearly 18 months of experience! Always develop skills in practice mode with after touch on at international level. Practice for 10 mins then play in a match. Remember to be inventive. ~MORE TIPS......... ~STRUT YOUR LOB (OOH!) The Long Ball is the best method of defeating the computer oppenent. Run straight up the pitch after you've kicked off until your centre-forward is on the rim of the circle. Then pull back on the joystick and press fire to perform a hard lob (yum yum). Eight times out of ten you'll score a goal!! If the computer or another human opponent tries the same trick, then you must foul his striker before he makes it to the perfect goal-scoring position. the computer always plays a superb passing game, os never try to beat it using any roundabout methods unless, of course, you're trying to run rings around the goalie. ~APPLY THE AFTERTOUCH This isn't an option, it's essential. Aftertouch is the icing on the cake as far as Kick Off 2 is concerned. Apply aftertouch as soon as you've kicked the ball. That way, you'll get more effect. Running in at a diagonal path then applying aftertouch inside the near-post is lethal. Experts may like to apply aftertouch to long passes. ~FREE KICK ADVICE Few Kick Off 2 players seem able to handle Free Kicks, but they're very simple to master: Step 1. Hold the firebutton down for about one second. Step 2. On releasing the firebutton, hold the joystick to the left or right. Step 3. Once the ball has been kicked, push the joystick back the opposite way. You can also try this just before you kick the ball. If you can manage it, give the ball some dip. ~MAKING THE SAVE When the opposition is lining up their penalty shot, move your joystick left and right to follow the arrow. Hopefully your goalie will go in the right direction when the shot is finally made. ~GENERAL TIPS If you're in an impossible shooting position it's best to pass, rather than try to be a hero. For a REALLY tough game, play against the computer on International Level whilst on a soggy pitch and without aftertouch. Difficult huh? Use all available tactics. Players who don't bother with tactics are missing out on a big part of the game. Practice makes perfect! ~YET MORE TIPS...... If you've never played KICK OFF, the 25% and 50% play modes in KICK OFF 2 are invaluable training aids. At quarter speed you get all the time in the world to concentrate on taking free kicks and work out the finer point of Aftertouch. At half speed, you can play a little bit more and so practise evading defenders and so on. The more you practise, the better you will be. Newcomers are best advised to play a "long ball game". Welly it up the field at full power as much as you can - the computer works out the fine angle of the shot for you, allowing you to move the ball about the pitch easily. There's more to be had from running with the ball and making intricate passes, but that's a much more advanced skill. SET-PIECE free kicks are worthless unless you know what you are doing. An inexperienced player is likely to end up fumbling for the ball, and the result is often a disaster. Try this simple technique for sending the ball round the defensive wall and into the net. Before the shot, give a quick tap of the fire button, then hold the joystick to the left or right (depending on which way round the wall the ball has to go). Then at the exact moment that you make contact with the ball, yank the joystick over to the other side. It won't go in the net every time, but it will give the 'keeper something to worry about. IN A CORNER situation, try to keep the ball away from the goal-line. Unless you play with strong winds, the keeper plucks it out of the air on many occasions. Some tactics place a man on the penalty spot, and if you can get the ball to him, an Aftertouch shot from there is almost unbeatable. The low grass-cutter shots are the fastest, and if well placed can be dangerous, but there's a greater risk of it being intercepted by a vigilant defender. THE NORMAL pitch is best for most players, but circumstances often demand that you play on a less agreeable surface. The worst of the lot is the soggy pitch. It stops the ball bouncing, which means you have to kick-and-run a lot more - and that makes tired players. At the other end of the scale, the Plastic pitch is a real nightmare to defend on as the ball often bounces uncontrollably. Have a few practise sessions on them all so you are familiar with the ups and downs of each. GOAL-SCORINGis a fine art, although you only need a couple of decent techniques to hammer them home on a regular basis. The most popular technique is simply run straight up the middle of the pitch and shoot with strong Aftertouch as you come into the penalty area. Providing you time it right, this technique has a fairly decent success rate. A slightly more complicated version, which has you running into the goal diagonally and shooting (with Aftertouch) from just outside the six yard box is even more deadly. The use of Aftertouch is vital, and you need to get it exactly right - the faster you apply the touch after shooting, the more the ball bends. If you are really accurate, you can bend the ball in from halfway down the pitch!