In this section we’ll explore how Nifty Football works on the inside, how your choice of formation, each attribute of each player and their morale and fitness all go into the mix on match day and how you can use this information to get good value from your XP on the training pitch. What’s more, this section will be gold dust for the Nifty Football die-hards who are ready to put some real brainwork into their tactics and match day strategy.
In real-world football, the toss of a coin decides which team begins the match and the referee’s whistle signals the start of open play. The team that won the toss kicks off with a simple pass and will look to keep possession by passing the ball among themselves while also looking to progress into the opposition’s half. The opposition will attempt to win the ball from the team in possession.
Three eventualities can bring this period of play to an end:
Inside the Nifty Football game engine, this sequence of play is called a Story. A Story begins when play starts and it ends with one of the above three eventualities. Within a Story is a series of events that we call Beats.
Tactical changes may only take place between Stories. That’s why when you make changes as a manager, it may take several game minutes before those changes are implemented. Any given Beat takes between one and 20 game seconds to complete, but there is no real limit to the number of Beats that can take place in a Story.
Each Beat also takes a small toll of fitness from each player involved, so naturally, the players that are busiest will become more tired more quickly.