Retro Bowl Browser Controls: Throw, Hand Off, Scramble and Kick

The browser build of Retro Bowl is a phone game with the swipes mapped to a mouse, and the tutorial says so quickly enough that most people miss it. Here is the whole control scheme, then how to use it.

Passing

After the snap the quarterback drops back and the receivers run their routes. Click and hold anywhere, then drag in the opposite direction of the receiver you want — you are pulling back a slingshot, not pointing at the target. A dotted arc shows where the ball will land. Release to throw. The length of the drag is the power: a short drag lobs the ball over a linebacker, a long one fires a bullet that only a fast receiver can reach. The tutorial's own wording is "click and drag in the opposite direction of the running receiver to aim, then release to throw," and once that clicks the passing game stops feeling random.

Running

At the snap a blue circle sits on the running back. Click it and the ball is handed off. Drag the throw backwards instead and the quarterback tucks the ball and runs. Once any player carries the ball, W and S side-step up or down the field to slip a tackle, and A or D slows him up or dives. The dive reaches for the marker and, more usefully, protects the ball: a diving player does not fumble. It also ends the play, so use it for the first down, not in open field.

Kicking

Field goals, extra points and punts are two clicks. The first stops a power bar, the second stops a swinging direction arrow. The goal posts are the same width as the hash marks, and there is a faint triangle drawn on the turf that shows the line to the posts. Kick accuracy on your kicker's card is how fast that arrow swings; kick range drops during a game as his stamina goes.

Three habits

Throw to the cut. Receivers plant and change direction once per route. Release the drag as the receiver makes his cut and the ball meets him in stride while the defender is still turning. Release early and the defender recovers; late and the receiver has stopped.

Run out of bounds when it matters. The clock stops, and a runner who steps out cannot fumble. In the two-minute drill a sideline catch and a step out is worth more than five extra yards over the middle.

Throw it away. If the quarterback is being rushed, drag toward the sideline and release rather than eat the sack. The tutorial tip is literal: strong offensive linemen are the cure for a rushed quarterback, and until you can afford them, the sideline is your friend.