Pin 'em to the base line, attack the net and volley the winner! You can play on grass as well as on clay and also in indoor courts, find the selection doesn't end there - play singles or doubles, select to play in all the major tournaments such as Wimbledon, Davis Cup, French Open and many more. You can then make a racquet selection and that could win you the match! All the shots in the book, breathtaking animation, amazingly realistic speech and sound effects in T.V. style presentation all add up to make Tie-Break the out and out winner!

Tie-break brings you all the tension of the game and brings the thrill, techniques and all the other features of a real game right into your home. Control is precise and, just like the real game of tennis, demands time ond practice. Tie-break has a training mode where you can choose the court, your racquet and opponent, thus providing you with an opportunity to practice.

The tennis court is in the form of a rectangle which is split in the middle by a net. The lines which limit the court on the narrow sides are called the base lines. On both sides, parallel to the net are the service lines (or T lines). These, together with the side lines, form the service areas. The outer side lines are used when playing doubles. The service area is divided vertically through the middle by another line, thus forming the service areas for the two sides.

Today, the racquet is made from a light material. The game depends on the nature of the raquet, i.e. upon its weight, the strings and on the strength of the strings. The tension of the strings is measured in kg and falls between 25 kg and 35 kg.

In tennis there is always one server and one receiver.

The server always starts serving on the right hand side as he is looking at the court. To serve, he stands in the prescribed service area. The receiver stands in a sensible place for returning the ball. The ball is served from the base line. To do so, the server throws the ball into the air using his free hand and must hit the ball with the raquet before it falls to the ground.

The service counts from the instant the raquet touches the ball. The ball must then travel over the net and fall in the diagonally opposite service area. The lines are included in the service area.

The service is repeated if:

1. The ball touches the net but falls in the correct service area
2. The ball is out
3. If the ball touches any object before landing.
4. The service is not carried out in accordance with the rules
5. The service is made before the receiver is ready

If the second service is mis-hit, a point is given to the receiver.

In each game, the server starts to the right of the middle of his half of the court. The side is change for every service. Therefore he serves alternately from the right and the left to the diagonally opposite service area.

After every game of the match, the service changes, i.e the server becomes the receiver and the receiver becomes the server.

The players swap ends of the court after every odd game within each set.

To all extents and purposes, the game starts with the first return after the service. The ball may only bounce once, but it can also be hit whilst it is in the air. It may touch the net and also counts if it touches the opponents body or if the player manages to hit the ball whilst it is in the air, even if it has gone out of the court (but has not touched the ground). The ball also counts if it touches the line, i.e. it is not out until it bounces outside tne court, behind the line.

During the game, the points are counted as follows:

1. after the 1st point: 15
2. after the 2nd point: 30
3. after the 3rd point: 40
4. after the 4th point: game

The word "DEUCE" means that both players have the same points within a game (e.g. 40:40).

The word "LOVE" means that one of the players has still not made a point. If both players have 3 points (i.e. deuce), the next point is called "ADVANTAGE". The game must now be played until one of the players scores two points in succession from "DEUCE". He then wins the game.

The first player to win 6 games wins the set. The first player to reach the agreed number of sets wins the match.

The tie-break is used when the score in a set reaches 6:6.

The server now serves from the right. The service then changes over and the opponent makes the next service from the left, then from the right and then service changes back.

The players change ends after every six points. The first player to reach seven points wins the game.

The outer lines of the court are used when playing doubles. Otherwise the game is the same. Both players in each team take turns in serving.

The information screen appears and by pressing the button on the left joystick you can call up the menu. In the menu you can choose between:

1. World tournament
2. Tournament
3. Training

The selection symbol which appears in each menu is a tennis ball. This can be moved using the joystick and it is fixed by pressing the right hand button.

This part enables you to organise a tournament amongst your friends. Here you play amongst each other and create your own seedings. All scores and tournaments can be stored so that you can take breaks during a tournament.

1.1 Choose The Surface
Each surface has special characteristics in relation to the speed and bounce of the ball. These are, of course, very apparent during the game.

1.2 Choose Singles or doubles
1.3 Choose the relevant part (for more than 2 players)
1.4 The computer will then indicate who is playing whom

1.5 Each player can now choose a racquet
1.6 The "Match" part starts
Games which are played as part of a tournament do not affect the seedings.

Here you can practice using all combinations of racquet, surface and partner.

2.1 Choose singles or doubles
2.2 Choose whether the participants are to be controlled by people (human) or by the computer.
You can choose to train with any of the other 6 players in the seeding list. You can choose from:

2.3 Choose your joystick port
2.4 Choose your racquet
2.5 The menu is repeated for the other players
2.6 Now you can choose the length of the game. This determines the number of sets you have to win. You can choose between:

1. "Best of three" (you have to win 2 sets)
2. "Best of five" (you have to win 3 sets)

2.7 Choose your playing surface
2.8 Start the "Match" part

3.1 Controlling the players
Now we come to the most important and the hardest part of the game. First of all, you do not need to move the player since he moves to the ball of his own accord. In this game, the joystick is used to incorporate extremely realistic shots such as top spin, slice, smash, volley, stop and lob. Each shot is calculated extremely accurately and realistically.

3.2 The service
You do not have to select the direction of service, but you do have to choose the length and cut.

Joystick forward = swing time = length of shot
Joystick forward, right, left = smaller cut

Joystick forward: The player swings his arm back and remains in this position
Release joystick: The player hits the ball

3.3 Forehand, backhand,...
The computer decides whether you play forehand or backhand. You only use the joystick to direct the player or the ball. All shots are based on the following principle:

Pushing the joystick forwards = Swings the player's arm back.

The shot is not played until you hove released the joystick.

This means that you can stop the player during the swing far as long as you like. This is importont because it allows you to determine the direction of the ball. As in the real game of tennis, this depends on the angle of incidence of the ball. By slowing down the shot you can determine when the racquet hits the ball. If the racquet meets the ball in the middle position, the ball will go straight forward. If it meets the ball at the start of the shot, the ball will go to the right. If it meets the ball at the end of the shot, the ball will go to the left. (Of course, this direction depends on whether you are playing a forehand or backhand shot).

You can see that it is not so easy to release the joystick at precisely the right moment. As in the real game of tennis, you must first get the "feel" of the ball. Until now, you have only hit short balls. If you want to hit a long ball, before you move the joystick you must press the left fire button and hold it down until you have played the shot. This combination also requires some practice.

Stop ball: To play a stop shot by moving the joystick to the left (swing/release = shot)

Top spin: You use top spin by moving the joystick to the right (swing/release = shot)

Lob: You play a lob by moving the joystick backwards (swing/release = shot)

To explain this again: A simple shot is always played by moving the joystick forwards and then releasing it. The computer decides whether you play a forehand or backhand shot. For all other shots, move the joystick in the required direction, rather than forwards.

All shots can be speeded up by pressing the fire button, i.e. they can be played long.

Smash: If you want to play a lob and the player looks up, press the fire button, push the joystick forward towards the net and then release it. The player will then smash the ball.

Playing at the net: If the player does not hit the ball, he can be moved to the net by pushing the joystick forward. The next time the ball comes towards you, it may pass you because your opponent has played a long shot. You will, therefore have to run back. Since the computer controls your player, it recognises the long ball and automatically runs back. However, if you stay put, you can hit the ball in the air, i.e. play a volley. When doing this, you should not press the button or the ball will go out.

The hardest shot is the "DROP SHOT". This is done when you are standing at the net. It is possible to hit the ball just over the net and to play it extremely short. There are two possibilities:

1. The racquet hits the ball in the middle of the swing.
2. It hits the ball in the almost vertical position after a very short backswing.

All these complicated shots can only be learned correctly through practice. However, if you first master the different types of shot, the game will become addictive. Once the winner has been found, the menu is repeated (ok). If you are playing "World Tournament", your current placing in the world seeding list will be displayed.

The aim of tennis is to outplay your opponent, or to play in such a way that your opponent is forced to return the ball incorrectly. There are a few "trick" shots which you can use tor this.

1. Stop ball: You slice the ball so that it stops short when it bounces and can also bounce in a different direction.
2. Top spin: You slice the ball so that if speeds up when it bounces.
3. Lob: You can use this shot to play the ball over your opponent, i.e. you play the ball so high that he cannot reach it properly or even at all. This shot is generally used when the opponent is standing at the net or is at the front of the court in an unfavourable position.
4. Smash: A powerful shot played in the air.

Net play: You can surprise your opponent by suddenly moving forwards so that you can hit the ball whilst it is in the air. You are able to very quickly shorten the length of the ball and to play if at a tight angle towards the side lines.

Passing shot: The passing shot enables you to mislead your opponent, i.e. you catch him in the wrong position to return the shot and the ball passes him. Of course, it is always possible to make your opponent run backwards and forwards from one side to the other, or you can have a long rally and simply try to return the ball until your opponent makes a mistake.

After a few games you will certainly be able to develop your own tactics. But one thing remains the same: stamina and complete concentration are important.

Doubles is a game which clearly requires more concentration, since it is faster and it is easy to misread the situation.

O - Left, P - Right, Q - Up, A - Down, SPACE - Hit

Or Joystick (Spectrum: Kempston/Sinclair)

H/C - Pause/Continue, 0 - Quit

In pause mode, press DELETE to finish game.

LOAD"" (ENTER)

If the computer is a Spectrum 128K then follow the loading instructions on-screen or in the accompanying manual.

Spectrum +3 Disk: Set up system and switch on as described in your instruction manual. Insert disk and press ENTER to choose 'LOADER' option. This program will then lood automatically.

Programmer: A.R.Lill (ProbeSoft)
© 1989 STARBYTE SOFTWARE, all rights reserved
© 1990 OCEAN SOFTWARE LTD.