Formula Next Manager - Player Manual
====================================

Formula Next Manager is a strategic Formula 1 management game for the
ZX Spectrum Next.

You are the team director of a Formula 1 team during the 1990 season.
Your job is to manage drivers, prepare the cars, choose tyres, handle
pit stops, control costs and try to win races, the Drivers' Championship
and the Constructors' Championship.

The game is about making the right decisions over a full season. A fast
car helps, but reliability, tyre choice, repairs and money management
are just as important.


Starting a New Game
-------------------

When starting a new career, you first choose a difficulty level. A higher
difficulty means stronger opponents and a tougher challenge.

After that, you choose your team. Each team has different levels for:

- Engine
- Chassis
- Tyres
- Pit crew

These levels affect how competitive and reliable your cars are during
the season.

You will then choose your drivers. Drivers have different abilities and
costs, so you need to balance performance against your available budget.


Main Menu
---------

The main menu is your base between races.

1 - Calendar
Shows the season calendar, race order, race type and winners of completed
races.

2 - Teams & Drivers
Shows all teams and drivers, including team levels and car condition.

3 - Championship
Shows the current Drivers' and Constructors' Championship standings.

4 - Configure Cars
Repair your cars before the next race. Damaged cars are more likely to
lose performance or suffer problems.

5 - Start Next Race
Begins the next race weekend.

9 - Save Game
Saves your current career progress.


Tyre Selection
--------------

Before qualifying and before the race, you choose tyres for each of your
cars. Choosing the right tyre is one of the most important parts of the
game.

Available tyre types:

Soft
Fast tyre for dry conditions. Good performance, but may wear faster.

Medium
Balanced dry tyre. A safer all-round choice when conditions are stable.

Hard
Durable dry tyre. Useful for longer races or when you want to reduce
tyre risk.

Intermediate
Best for mixed or changing conditions, especially when the track is damp
but not fully wet.

Rain
Best for heavy rain or very wet track conditions.

Before selecting tyres, look at:

- Current weather
- Forecast
- Track condition

A dry track usually favours Soft, Medium or Hard tyres. A wet track
favours Rain tyres. Changeable weather may make Intermediate tyres useful.

Bad tyre choices can cost time and may increase the chance that a car
needs to pit.


Qualifying
----------

Qualifying decides the starting grid for the race. Your tyre choice, car
level, driver ability and car condition all affect performance.

After qualifying, you see the full qualifying result before moving on to
the race.


Race Screen
-----------

During the race, the left side of the screen shows the running order.
Your own drivers are highlighted.

The right panel shows useful race information such as:

- Weather
- Forecast
- Your team
- Car condition
- Current tyres

The race runs automatically, but you still control important decisions
such as pit stops.


Pit Stops
---------

You can call your cars into the pits during the race.

Press:

1 - Call car 1 into the pits
2 - Call car 2 into the pits

When a car is called in, it will pit on the next lap. In the pit stop
screen you can choose new tyres and decide whether to repair damage.

You can repair:

- Engine
- Chassis

Repairs cost time, but they may help the car survive the rest of the race.


Automatic Pit Stops
-------------------

Cars can also come into the pits automatically if they suffer a problem
during the race. For example, a car may need attention because of damage,
tyre problems or changing conditions.

When this happens, the game will bring up the pit stop screen so you can
decide how to handle the situation.

You may be able to:

- Change tyres
- Repair damage
- Send the car back out

Sometimes staying out is possible, but it can be risky if the car has a
serious problem.


Car Condition
-------------

Each car has condition values for:

- Engine
- Chassis
- Tyres

These values can drop during races. A car in poor condition is more
likely to lose performance or suffer problems.

Between races, use Configure Cars to repair damage. Repairs cost money,
so you need to decide what is worth fixing before the next Grand Prix.


Financial Management
--------------------

After every race, you receive a financial report.

Income can include:

- Prize money
- Sponsor bonus
- Championship prize money

Costs can include:

- Driver salaries
- Race costs
- Pit stop costs
- Repairs

Managing money is important. Spending too much on repairs or upgrades can
leave you short later in the season, but ignoring car condition can hurt
race results.


Championship Points
-------------------

After each race, points are added to the Drivers' and Constructors'
Championships.

Drivers score points based on their finishing position. Your team also
scores constructor points from your drivers' results.

You can follow the standings from the Championship screen in the main
menu.


End of Season
-------------

After the final race, the game shows a full season summary:

- Drivers' Championship standings
- Constructors' Championship standings
- Winners of each Grand Prix
- Your team's results across the season

You then move to the next season setup screen.


Next Season Setup
-----------------

Before starting the next season, you can choose to increase the difficulty
level and upgrade your team.

Possible upgrades include:

- Engine level
- Chassis level
- Tyres level
- Pit crew level

Upgrades cost money, so you can only buy what your team can afford.

After confirming or skipping upgrades, the next season begins.


Save and Load
-------------

The game uses one save file:

SAVE.SAV

You can save from the main menu using 9 - Save Game.

When starting the game, you can choose to load an existing save. If the
load is successful, you continue directly from your saved career.

Save regularly if you want to continue your season later.


Credits
-------

Formula Next Manager is inspired by Formula One, published in 1985 by
CRL Group PLC and developed by G.B. Munday and B.P. Wheelhouse for the
ZX Spectrum.

Formula Next Manager by G.Strand.
