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D~O~W~N F~A~L~L (¿)
HOW TO PLAY (The quick guide)
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The idea of the game is to make the snow pile up to the top of the
other players side of the screen.
Player one uses joystick one to control their cursor. They are
allocated the left hand side of the screen. Player two uses the other
joystick and the other side of the screen.
To select an icon, just move the cursor underneath it and press
FIRE. The bar shows the currently selected mode. Only highlighted icons
can be selected.
When snow falls into the hole at the bottom of your side of the
screen, the bottom of the other players side moves up by a small amount.
This obviously helps you to win the game...
When snow fills up either of the two chutes at the side of your
playing area, two more icons will become available. These create extra
effects (explained later). Selecting an icon will decrease the number of
highlighted icons by the power of that effect.
The two icons that are permanently highlighted are build and remove
barriers. When these are selected, pressing FIRE with the cursor in
either of the playing areas causes barriers to be placed or destroyed.
This uses up energy (which is displayed as a bar in the middle of the
screen). Building/Creating on your opponents side takes more energy.
Energy is slowly replaced for both players all of the time.
Now the special effects icons
(From least to most powerful) =>
1) Control Reversal - Reverses the other players controls
for a length of time
2) Snow Fall - Makes all of the snow fall on the
other players side
3) Extra Energy - Makes your energy bar replace
faster. Has a cumulative effect.
4) Black Holes - Transports snow to an identical
position on the other players side
5) Snow Melt - Makes all falling snow melt blocked
snow that is around it
6) Stop Bar - Stops the bar at the bottom of your
side from moving up when the other
player fills his bottom chute.
You can now play the game if you want to get into it quickly. If
you want some more explanation, there now follows a set of more detailed
instructions.
How To Play (Mk II)
-----------
What about the snow? OK, this falls at equal rates on either side
of the screen. Each players cursor can be moved anywhere on the screen,
but only icons from your own side can be used. The cursors cannot be
moved beneath the lower line on either side.
Right, I had better explain the icons in depth now =>
Each player has an identical set above his side. They go from the
outside of the screen inwards. NB at the beginning of the game, all but
2 of the icons are shaded. This means that you CANNOT select them (hang
on, I'll get to that in a minute)
For now, the first two icons.... The one on the extreme outer edge
of the screen is the one that is selected at the start. This icon
depicts a pixel with four arrows pointing away from it. You use this
icon to erase barriers from your side of the screen and your opponents
side. Just move the cursor over the barrier to be erased and press fire.
You will notice that as you do this, a bar in the middle of the screen
goes down momentarily. These are the energy bars of you and your
opponent and fill up slowly over time. When you erase or place barriers,
your bar diminishes. You obviously cannot erase or create when the bar
is empty. To place barriers, you must select the next icon in the row.
This depicts a pixel with four arrows pointing inwards. Again, move to
the place you want to put down the barrier and press fire. To create a
line you can hold down fire and move at the same time. The maximum
height for both of these operations is about 15 pixels below the top of
either of the playing areas. Both of these icons can be selected at any
time.
You should also notice a gap at the bottom of your screen. When
snow falls in this gap, two bars underneath your playing area move
towards each other. When these meet in the centre, the bottom of the
other players side moves up one pixel. Therefore, it is advantageous to
funnel snow into this gap as it increases your chances of winning (you
do want to win don't you?)
On either side of each playing area there are also two bars that
start empty. You must funnel snow into these bars (by building barriers
at a roughly 45 degree angle) so that they fill up with snow. When the
snow reaches the top, you will see that two of the icons at the top of
the screen change to being unshaded. This means that you can select them
to create special effects on your opponents side.
Now to explain the other icons. These all increase in power as they
go towards the centre of the screen, so you must save up to get the
higher effects. If we take the left hand player as an example, taking
the effects from left to right (IE from least to most powerful), the
various options are:
1) Shows four arrows pointing inwards. This icon reverses the other
players controls for a period of time. Can be very annoying but does no
lasting damage.
2) Shows a snow storm. This makes all of the snow fall on the other
players side for a length of time. Therefore, your side does not fill up
and your opponent gets blocked up more quickly. NB This icon must be
used with care (see later tactical suggestions section)
3) Shows an energy bar with an upward pointing arrow. This icon has a
permanent effect for the rest of the game. It makes the rate at which
your energy is replaced increase. Therefore it will gain you an
advantage over your opponent because you will be able to build and
destroy more barriers. The effect of this icon is cumulative, so if you
select it again, your energy will go up even faster.
4) Shows snow falling into a 'Black Hole' This icon can be very
useful if used with care (again see tactics section) It allows you to
create 10 pixels of special blocks on any side of the display. To place
the blocks, simply select the icon and it will become highlighted. Then
move the cursor to where you want the blocks to be placed and press
fire. They do not all need to be placed together. When all have been
placed, the icon will become de-selected and you will revert to your
last mode of action. You can also select another icon when you have not
placed all of the blocks, but you will LOSE all of the remaining blocks
to be placed. When any snow hits one of these blocks, it gets
transported to the corresponding place on the other side of the screen.
Note that there are certain restrictions on where you can place the
black holes. They must be below the level of the lowest side chutes on
either side. They can also not be placed if they are lower than the
bottom of the other players side. Also, if any of the sides moves above
the level of the black holes, they will automatically disappear. If it
would be impossible to place any black holes for any reason (IE either
side has moved up too far) then you will not be able to select the icon.
5) Shows large red droplets falling instead of snow. This useful
effect makes all the snow falling on your side become 'hot' and melt any
snow that it touches. Thus, large blockages of snow can be quickly
cleared. After a certain amount of snow has been melted, the icon will
become de-selected and the snow will revert to normal. While this effect
is taking place, it is also possible to carry on with other functions as
normal.
6) Shows one players side with an arrow pointing downwards. This icon
stops the bottom of your bin moving upwards when the other player fills
his bottom chute with snow. For eight consecutive fill ups, nothing will
happen and the other players snow will be wasted. After this time the
icon will automatically revert to normal. Again, you can continue
building etc. while this icon is selected.
When an icon is selected, you will lose as many available icons as
the relevant number in the above list. For instance if 4 icons are
highlighted and a control reversal is selected, only the highest icon
will become unavailable. Note that the control reversal will also become
shaded to remind you that it cannot be selected until that effect runs
out.
Notes On Tactics (To be read by BOTH players!)
----------------
When selecting special icon 2 (all snow falls on opponents side),
make sure that you are ready to erase, not build. This is because this
effect can benefit the other player by making more snow fall in his side
chutes. If you dig away any funnels that he has built, this will not
happen. (obviously they will be trying to build platforms here at the
same time to gain the advantage) You must also note that any snow that
falls off the bottom of that players side will not count towards his
total. (the bars under their side will not move up) Therefore, it would
be advantageous for them to build a bridge stopping the snow from
falling through, and then releasing it after the effect has finished.
Again, you must be ready to dig any barriers away so they benefit the
least from the extra snow.
When selecting special icon 4 (black holes) think where you are
going to put the pixels down. It is usually best to put them on your
opponents side in the middle of their playing area, so any snow falling
into the black hole actually benefits you. But, they can also be placed
on your side if the snow is building up too fast. Also, think how long
they will last in the position that you place them. Do not put them
directly above the other players bottom line as they will be destroyed
when the line moves up. It is best to put them a short distance above so
that they will last for longer, but also catch more of the snow. To
deal with black holes on your side, it is possible to place barriers
above them to stop the snow falling into them. Remember that the other
player will try to move across and erase the barriers. The best thing to
do is try to direct the snow around the black holes. (of course if you
place the black holes, you will try to direct the other players snow
INTO them, to stop it from moving your bottom line up)
WINNING
-------
When one players side is filled right to the top, you will be
informed of who has won (player one is using joystick one etc.)
You have to win enough consecutive sets to gain a two game lead
over your opponent. When this happens, the scores are reset and play can
be restarted.
If you do not want to play again, press SPACE when the scores are
being displayed.
DON'T PANIC !! The game is actually far easier than you might
think when you get playing. Just remember, direct the snow into your
two side chutes, direct it into the hole at the bottom of your bin and
also stop the other player doing exactly this!
************ ************ ************
* * * * * *
* SHAREWARE! * * SHAREWARE! * * SHAREWARE! *
* * * * * *
************ ************ ************
Oh no! Not another shareware game ! WAIT !!! If you decide
that you like playing this game please support this concept and send a
small donation (anything from œ2.00 upwards would be very appreciated)
to the address below.
If you would like a copy of the source code for GENST II, please
send œ5.00 and your address and I will post you a disk containing it.
Andrew Sage,
Triplands,
Luppitt,
Honiton,
Devon.
EX14 0UF.
- The End -
½ 1992 |\ <
|ÿ\ ndrew >age
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