Face Off/Walkthrough

Namco's Japan-only 1988 arcade game Face Off is divided into four rounds, each one made up of three periods. The length of each period depends on what the arcade owner has set the "Time" option in the game's dip switch menu to, and it can range from as low as 60 seconds (1 minute) to as high as 260 seconds (4 minutes 10 seconds). Therefore, if you are using MAME to play this game (which you almost certainly will be unless you are a native inhabitant of the "Land of the Rising Sun"), you may wish to set the "Time" option to "200/100 260/130 SEC" inn order to increase your chances of scoring against the opposing team. The red number in the bottom-left corner of the screen indicates your team's score, the yellow number in the left centre of the screen indicates the amount of time remaining for the current period, and the blue number in the top-left corner of the screen indicates the opposing team's score. If the opposing team manages to score more goals than your team by the end of a period, the game will be over and you will be asked if you wish to continue by inserting another coin before a timer runs out. However, if a period ends in a tie, your team will be forced to take a penalty shot at the other team's goal; if you miss the shot, it will instantly cost you the game and you will againn be asked if you wish to continue.

The game features two different modes of play: Tournament Mode, in which up to two players can compete against a CPU-controlled opposing team on each round, and Versus Mode, in which up to four players can compete against each other (two players for each team) on each round. Once you have chosen a mode and selected a team to take control of, you will be asked if you want your team to be comprised of either three (LW controlled by Player 1 and 3, RW and GK controlled by Player 2 and 4) or five (LW and LD controlled by Player 1 and 3, RW, RD and GK controlled by Player 2 and 4) members. If you have chosen to play in Tournament Mode, the four CPU-controlled opposing teams will be predetermined for each round - and if you have selected the team that you would normally be facing on a specific round, you will have to face the one that is positioned above or below it on the team selection screen instead. However, if you have chosen to play in Versus Mode, Players 3 and 4 can select a different team to that of Players 1 and 2. The losing team of each period will also be forced to insert another coin before a timer runs out if they wish to continue playing and have another chance to get back at their opponents, and the game will end after only one round to ensure that the players do not spend more than 500 yen in a single sitting.