THE ELECTRIC COMPANY* MATH FUN
Cartridge Instructions
(For 1 or 2 Players)
*Trademark of and licensed by Children's Television Workshop, Inc.
Imagine you're a Gorilla walking through the jungle. Behind every
tree lurks an animated animal, and behind every animal, a problem
in addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division! You can escape
the clutches of the
animal by solving the problem in math, but if you miss, you'll have
to jump in the river where you'll encounter the ferocious crocodiles!
Note to Parents: Gone are the days of laborious arithmetic drills! THE
ELECTRIC COMPANY MATH FUN by Mattel Electronics is an exciting
and enjoyable way for children of elementary school age to improve
their math skills. Developed in conjunction with the famous
Children's Television Workshop (The Electric Company), THE
ELECTRIC COMPANY MATH FUN takes the "sting" out of learning by
using the latest, most progressive techniques. For a change your child
can LOOK FORWARD to solving problems ranging from one digit
addition (9 + 3 = 12), to four digit long-division (1050 divided by 25
= 42).
The game can be played in two ways:
1. Two players can compete against each other. This is fun and
exciting. If the two players are different ages, they can each choose a
different skill level (the game offers 18 levels of difficulty). The
computer will also automatically adjust to compensate in case one
player gets too far ahead of the other.
2. One child can play alone, developing speed and accuracy at his
own pace.
As his competency increases he can move to the higher levels of
difficulty. The computer will also automatically adjust the level of
difficulty according to how the player is progressing.
3. Give children pencils and paper. For starters, try playing a game
with your child! THE ELECTRIC COMPANY MATH FUN can be
enjoyable for you, too!
OBJECT OF THE GAME: To correctly answer as many of your problems
as possible in the shortest possible time. The game can be played by
one player alone trying to improve his speed and accuracy, or two
players can compete against each other in an exciting contest! Each
player chooses the number of problems he wants to encounter, as
well as the level of difficulty of those problems. The computer will
also automatically adjust the level of difficulty according to how well
each player is progressing.
MATH FUN CONTROLS
NUMBER KEYS
Use these keys (1 thru 9 + 0) to give your answers to the problems.
You also use these keys to select the number of problems you want
to encounter, as well as their level of difficulty.
ENTER KEY
You must press ENTER at the following times:
* After choosing your Number of Problems (See HOW-TO-PLAY #3)
* After choosing your Level of Difficulty (HOW-TO-PLAY #4)
* After giving your Answer (HOW-TO-PLAY #6)
* After a wrong answer, you must press ENTER again to continue play
(HOW-TO-PLAY #6B)
ERASE KEY (CLEAR)
If you change your mind about your answer (or number of problems
and level of difficulty), press ERASE (CLEAR) before pressing ENTER.
Your first answer will disappear and you can then answer again.
Once you have pressed ENTER you cannot change your answer.
LEVEL OF DIFFICULTY
Your ELECTRIC COMPANY MATH FUN Game has 18 levels of difficulty
which are divided into Color and Skill levels as follows:
COLOR LEVELS (from easiest to hardest): 1-Black, 2-Blue, 3-Yellow, 4-
Purple, 5-Red
SKILL LEVELS WITHIN COLOR LEVELS (from easiest to hardest): 1, 2,
3, 4 (Red only has two skill levels: 1 & 2)
Color and skill levels must be combined to produce the level of
difficulty you want. Thus Black #1 would be the easiest level, and
Red #2 the most difficult.
CHECK ANSWER (DISC)
If you have answered incorrectly, the computer will automatically
replace your wrong answer with the correct one. If you want to see
your original answer, press the CHECK ANSWER disc. Your answer
will appear in white numbers.
HOW TO PLAY
1. Press RESET.
2. Now press the ENTER Key on you Hand Controller to begin play.
3. You will se "Player #1, No. of Problems," on your TV screen. Player
#1
(right Hand Controller) then presses the Number Keys to select the
total number of problems he wants to answer. The maximum
number of problems you can select is 99. It may be advisable,
however, to start with 10 or fewer. For 10 problems you would press
Key #1 followed by Key #0. The number 10 will appear on your
screen. Then press ENTER.
4. You will then see "Level" and a whit square. Player #1 will choose
his Level of Difficulty:
A. First, press the key corresponding to the Color Level you want --
1-Black, 2-Blue, 3-Yellow, 4-Purple, 5-Red (black is easiest, red is
hardest). The white square will change to the color chosen.
B. Next, choose the Skill Level by pressing the Number Key for the
level you want. There are four Skill Levels for each of the first four
Color Levels, and two Skill Levels for the Red Color Level. The
number of the Skill Level you have chosen will appear.
C. Press ENTER.
5. Player #2 can now choose his own Number of Problems and Level
of Difficulty. (If only one player wants to play, he can enter zero
number of problems on the other Hand Controller--press "0" followed
by ENTER.)
6. Two Gorillas will appear, one for each player, with a wide flowing
river in between. As each Gorilla runs along the river bank he will
encounter an obstacle in the form of a jungle animal accompanied by
a problem in math. You answer the problem by pressing the Number
Keys followed by ENTER (or ERASE [CLEAR] if you want to change
your answer).
A. If you answer correctly, the numbers in your problem will change
in color from white to either black or yellow (whichever is the color
of your Gorilla). The problem will then leave the screen entirely.
Your Gorilla will run along to the beat of a drum and the next animal
and problem will appear automatically.
B. If you answer incorrectly, the numbers in your problem will
change in color from white to blue, and the correct answer will
automatically replace your incorrect one. (Press CHECK ANSWER Disc
if you want to see your original wrong answer.) You must then press
ENTER again, at which point your Gorilla will be forced to jump into
the river where he will be confronted by a crocodile and a new
problem will appear.
You must answer the new problem correctly in order to get your
Gorilla back on dry land. If you give another wrong answer while
your Gorilla is in the river, you must press ENTER again to make the
next problem appear. Your Gorilla cannot jump out of the river until
you answer correctly. (The computer will auto-adjust the Level of
Difficulty in case your Gorilla is having trouble getting out of the
river.)
7. Continue play until you have answered all your problems. Your
score will be kept by the slashmark numbers at the top of the screen.
The first digit is the number of problems you have answered
correctly, and the second is the total number you have attempted up
to that point.
Thus 3/5 means you have answered three problems correctly out of
the five you've encountered so far. When you have answered all
your problems your total score will be shown. Also, the time it took
for you to complete your problems will appear beneath your final
score.
8. When you have answered all your problems your Gorilla will do a
victory dance and leave the screen. If one player has finished before
another, the game continues until the second player has answered all
his problems. If your Gorilla is in the river when you answer your
last problem, he will jump out and leave the screen whether you
answer correctly or not.
9. TO KEEP SCORE: both players try same number of problems. Give
yourself 100 points for each right answer.
Then figure out how long it took to answer the problems. (Multiply
each
minute by 60 and add on the extra seconds.)
Subtract the total number of seconds from the right answer score.
Example:
If you got 7 right in 2 mins. and 10 secs.:
Your points: 700
Subtract: 130 (2 x 60 + 10)
YOUR SCORE: 570
10. To start a new game, press RESET.
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(c)1982, 1998 Intellivision Productions, Inc.