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____________
_____ __/ DROMEDARY: \__
__/* __\--| THE PREQUEL \_)
(_____/ o/--| _____ _____ |
L______/---L (ooooo) (ooooo) |
\_\ooo/____\ooo/__/
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(O) (O)
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/___\ /___\
p COPYRIGHT INFORMATION q
This program and related material are:
Copyright 1991 Network 23 Software
This program may be distributed free of charge so long as
both text files are distributed with it and none of the files
are altered in any way! No money may be charged for this
program. Skivits may be placed of BBSes and online services
provided that Skivits is downloadable without charge beyond
normal connect charges.
p HISTORY:------------------------------------------------------- q
Zephr Industries was founded in the year 6291, dedicated
to the production of Tranships, industrial spacecraft used
to transport supplies to Moon and Mars colonies. For many
years, Zephr struggled against older, more profitable
transportation services until 6548 and the development of
the Vortex Emanator/Disintegrator (V E/D) which, for the
first time, allowed for travel outside our rapidly shrink-
ing solar system. Zephr Industries took the lead in V E/D
development and was soon the most massive, profitable
corporation on the Three Worlds. But bureaucracy took
its toll and Zephr began looking for new ways to regain
its dominance.
Zephr's re-turning point came in 7401, when the first,
true artificial intelligence (AI) software was developed by
Network 23 Software, a division of Zephr Labs. Seeing the
tremendous potential of AI software integrated in Zephr's
newly-designed Colonization Assist Unit, later to be re-
named Dromedary, Zephr rushed in and gave the Dromes AI.
The Dromedary is a multi-use mechanical construct used
in various ways throughout the Three Worlds. It walks on
four legs and is supplied with AI. Its most useful purpose
is transportation of heavy equipment from site to site and
regulation of equipment deemed dangerous or time-consuming
for human involvement. Colonists immediately fell in love
with this new all-purpose machine, and millions were sold.
Disaster was soon to strike.
By 7403, the Three Worlds had expanded to over 45,000 as
colonists by the millions set out with Dromes and supplies
to conquer the galaxy. Alien races had been discovered and
trading/contact with them now constant. Why this incredi-
ble migration?
Krys.
First discovered on Agima in 7389, Krys soon became the
rarest of all minerals, fetching as much as $17,000/ounce.
Soon after, Krys was discovered on other planets, and even-
tually, on every planet colonized thus far. The curious
fact still remains that Krys has not been found on any
planet in our Sol system. What makes Krys so rare is that,
while it exists on seemingly every planet, quantities on
each planet are very small. The work required to extract
Krys is incredibly time and labor intensive, but Krys fever
had struck and everyone wanted in on the action.
Disaster struck in 7431. Because of the quick implemen-
tation of AI into the Dromedary, they were unstable, too
intelligent, and didn't like what was happening to them.
The Agima Drome Massacre of 7431 caused such an uproar
that Zephr almost went under then and there. Zephr's
savior was the legal department Zephr Industries had built
up over the past 75 years. Before the Drome Trials could
see their day in court, Zephr Industries lawyers, using
half-truths, inaccuracies, and research loosely based on
fact, introduced the Artificial Intelligence Responsibility
Act of 7431, which states that any act performed by a mech-
anism equipped with AI is not the responsibility of the
creators of that mechanism. Zephr exerted its political
influence and got the Act passed. Zephr survived and pro-
mised improved Dromes and rebates on Agima colony Dromes.
Today, Zephr is the top leader in colonization,
expanding its influence across the Milky Way.
END HISTORY:---------------------------------------------------
PRE-FLIGHT PRINTOUT FOR: _ZEPHR_COLONIZATION_CRAFT_______
DATE: _01/01/7438_____________________
DESTINATION: _TSIRATA________________________
SYSTEM: _LEIMART-MAS____________________
COLONIZATION RATING: _GOOD_(1)_______________________
EXPLANATION (1): _TSIRATA_is_a_good_prospect,____
_but_an_indigenous_lifeform_____
_on_the_surface_makes_present___
_colonization_impossible._______
___Earlier_colonization_attempts
_have_been_thwarted_by_the______
_skivit,_a_largish_rodent-like__
_creature_which_seems_to_thrive_
_on_hydraulic_cables_and_fluid._
___Scientists_at_Zephr_believe__
_that_a_reduction_of_the_skivit_
_population_will_make_TSIRATA_a_
_good_prospect_(see_above)_for__
_colonization.__________________
________________________________
PURPOSE OF TRIP: _Reduction_of_skivit_population.
END PRINTOUT---------------------------------------------------
_________________________________
p DROMEDARY: THE PREVIEW: SKIVITS q
The Preview is a game for 1-4 players. One player can play
against themselves to better a previous score. The goal is
to catch the skivits as they open their mountainside doors
by running over them. Each skivit is worth $100.
_______________________
p REQUIREMENTS FOR PLAY q
SKIVITS runs on all ST's and STe's with TOS 1.62 or earlier.
This program will not run on Mega STe's. Testing has not been
done on the TT's. If anyone finds out if Skivits runs on a TT,
please let me know. One joystick is required.
The Preview can be run from a hard drive, just make sure all
related files are in the same folder.
_________
p TO PLAY q
Double-click on the SKIVITS.PRG icon and the game will load.
When the title screen appears, press the spacebar after a
joystick is plugged in the mouse port.
_____________________
p CHARACTER SELECTION q
This is the first screen. All possible character selections
are in the upper left section of the screen. The upper right
section holds background information on each character, inclu-
ding the money each character starts off with. The green box
surrounding the center character is controlled by the joystick.
As the joystick is moved to other characters, an animated
version appears in the center box and their info is displayed.
You will see the Humanoid character is for beginners and
starts off with an extra $200. The Slimoid character is for
expert characters and starts off with $200 less.
To choose your character, hold the joystick so the box sur-
rounds your choice and press the joystick button. The box
will move down to the next window and surround the red color.
__________________
p CHOOSING A COLOR q
Move the joystick left and right to select a color, pressing
the joystick button as before. The color you choose will
disappear and a colored box will surround the animated charac-
ter. The box now moves to the Controller Selection window.
_______________________
p CHOOSING A CONTROLLER q
Two joysticks are now supported. Move joystick 1 left and
right to select your controls. In Skivits, the only use of the
keyboard controls is during the Summary Screen, when everyone
is asked to press their buttons to proceed. Keyboard and Keypad
players can press either 'A' or 'Z' or '8' or '2' respectively.
Use joystick 1 to select your control. The control will then
disappear, preventing subsequent users from selecting it. The
box now moves to the Options window.
During play, keyboard and keypad players must share joysticks
with the joystick players. The Keyboard Player (A/Z) shares
joystick 1 and the Keypad Player (8/2) shares joystick 2.
________________
p WHAT TO DO NOW q
The box now surrounds the word NEXT. If you have chosen the
player and color to your satisfaction and more than one person
is playing, choosing NEXT will move the box back to the
Character Selection window and the next player can now choose
their player and color. If only one person is playing or all
players have made their choices, select LOGGED. This will end
player selection and the game will continue.
If a mistake in selection has been made at any time, select
ERROR and the selection screen will reset. Return the joy-
stick to the first player and have everyone make their select-
tions again.
________________
p SUMMARY SCREEN q
After player selections have been made, a summary screen
will appear. Characters will be ranked in order of net worth
from top to bottom, surrounded by their color. In case of
ties, the player who made their player selection first will
be placed higher up, but this will not determine the winner.
If this is the first summary screen, the information box in
the upper right will tell you to choose a game length from
the window below. Use the joystick to select a game length.
Above the information box is the current turn, indicated by
the month. It will read "0" the first time because play
hasn't started yet.
When everyone has seen their net worth statements, press the
joystick button once for each player to continue.
_________
p THE MAP q
The largest part of the screen is the map. The settlement is
in the center of the map. A river flows north and south.
Mountains dot the landscape. When a skivit appears, a yellow
light will shine from the mountain. Your goal is to run over
the skivit to collect $100 for each one caught. The river and
mountains slow you down, avoid them if you can.
The top right edge of the screen holds status information: the
current turn, the number of skivits caught, the number of times
the skivit has appeared, the ratio of shows to catches, and how
many catches are needed to be in first place.
Below the status information is the O2 Supply bar. The sur-
face of Tsirata does not have enough oxygen to support any
known race, so O2 suits must be worn. When play begins, a bar
in your player color will appear and will shrink as you hunt
the skivit. When O2 runs out, the turn is over.
The bottom of the screen holds the message bar. At the be-
ginning of each turn, one of two things will appear here.
There is a chance of a random event happening that will affect
the player's monetary status. If a player event does not
occur, a message will tell you to press the joystick button to
begin. The color of the messages will be that of the player
who's turn it is.
__________________
p PLAYING THE GAME q
When the button is pressed, the player will appear in the
center of the map. Because of the map scale, each character
will be represented by a small humanoid figure wearing an O2
suit in the color of your choice. Search the mountains for
an open door with a yellow light. Each time the skivit opens
his door, the light will appear and a tiny sound will go off.
Use this sound and light to help you locate the skivit. There
is no way to tell how long the door will remain open.
When your oxygen runs out, you are instantly teleported back
to the settlement and the next player will have a shot at skivit
hunting. Computer players will not hunt skivits. They don't
have the AI extensions necessary.
_______________________
p SUMMARY SCREEN, AGAIN q
When all players have had their chance hunting skivits, the
summary screen appears again, showing the current status based
on caught skivits. The turn that just finished is shown at
the top right of the screen. Press the joystick button once for
each player to continue to the next month.
____________________________
p THAT'S IT MAN! GAME OVER! q
After the last turn, the end summary screen will be displayed,
proclaiming the Grand Poohbah of the settlement! If there was a
tie, no player will become Grand Poohbah.
At this point, pressing the joystick 1 button will return you
to the desktop. If you must quit the game earlier, pressing
CONTROL-C will return you to the desktop, but you will need to
reboot to gain control of the mouse again.
____________________
p THE WAITING BEGINS... q
Admittedly, this game is not much to play. You won't be coming
back to it again and again, and that's understandable. This is
only meant to be a taste of things to come. I thank you for
looking at this program, and I would REALLY appreciate your
comments. Hopefully, the near future will bring a full-fledged
version of Dromedary to your hot little hands with all the perks
and enhancements you desire!
I am not expecting any money for this small venture, although
countless hours have been put into it already. But, if you are
so inclined, a $5 donation will be gladly accepted, and will make
you eligible for a discount on Dromedary when it is offically
released.
Please send all comments, ideas, and critisizms (remember the
shareware clause for this program (README.1ST file) to me on
GEnie (R.MARTIN22 is the address) or write a letter to:
Network 23 Software
7 Sarah Avenue
Springfield, IL 62703
Again, thank you for your time. I look forward to hearing from
you!!! Additional thanks to my wife Cynthia, who helped with
testing and debugging, and Jon (FictionMan) Budil for various
input of a helpful nature.
Live And Direct,
Rod Martin, Network 23 Software
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