Retro Bowl: How to Survive Your First Season as Head Coach

Every Retro Bowl career starts the same way: a club with a bad record hires you with one week of the regular season left. Your first game will not save that season, and it is not supposed to. What matters is what you do in the next few screens. Here is a plan for the first year.

The first game: learn to throw

Use the one game you get to learn the pass. Press on the quarterback, drag back, watch the dotted line and let go. Throw a lot of short passes to receivers who have just turned towards you; they are hard to intercept and they teach you how much to lead a man. Try a run or two and practise W and S to dodge and A or D to dive. The result does not count for much. The feel for the throw does.

The draft: scout, then pick

The rookie draft has three rounds and you get one pick in each. A rookie's potential is hidden until you scout him from his profile, and you only have a few scouts per draft, so spend them on the positions you need, not on the flashiest name. Your quarterback is the most important player in the game because you throw every ball through him, so a young passer with high potential is worth a first-round pick. If nobody fits, you can sell the pick for coaching credits instead.

The salary cap and your ten stars

You can carry up to ten key players with star ratings, and all of them count against the salary cap. Everyone else is invisible: their quality is folded into your offensive and defensive coordinator ratings. That means two things. First, do not spend the cap on a fourth receiver while your offensive line is weak; the stars you pick should be the ones who touch the ball or protect the passer. Second, a good coordinator lifts the whole hidden squad, so hiring one can do more than one extra star.

Free agents and trades

Free agents turn up during the season at your training facility, and the best ones go early. Trades cost future draft picks. Before you sign anyone, check how much cap space is left; the game will stop you going over, and cutting a player to make room hurts morale unless he is a troublemaker.

Morale, fans and the press

Team morale and fan rating are both on the home screen, and both move after every game and every press conference. Low morale is expensive: players refuse to re-sign. After each game a reporter asks a question and you choose who to praise or criticise — the team, the fans, the owner or a player. Answer the press with the team in mind, win at home, and upgrade the stadium when you can so a loss does not sink the fans.

Where to spend coaching credits

1. Training facilities first: players gain experience faster, so every drafted rookie improves sooner.
2. Rehab next: injured players return quicker and keep their condition.
3. Stadium after that: fans react better to wins and forgive losses.
4. Coordinators when a good one is available, because they lift the players you cannot see.

The target for season two

A winning record and a playoff place is a good second season. The Retro Bowl itself usually takes a few years of drafting and development. Keep your quarterback, keep the locker room happy, and let the facilities do their slow work.