Toonzmith
By Albert Baggetta
(Version 1.0)
Atari ST Computers Low Resolution Game
"Toonzmith" is a simple but addictive game. The premise is
that a record with a cute little tune on it has fallen to the
floor and broken. You can still "play" the song, but it is now
all jumbled up. Your job as the "toonzmith" is to put the 16
notes in proper order.
This sounds simple, but it takes a good ear and attention to
musical patterns. Only the most persistent players will manage to
get the ten musical humpty dumpties together again.
STARTING THE GAME
If you are new to the Atari ST computer and its desktop
format, consult your manual before trying this or any other game.
It is helpful if you are familiar with the ST gem procedures.
Turn up the sound on your Atari monitor and click on TOON.PRG
from the pull down menu (assuming you are working off drive A).
The screen will go black and the playing screen will appear.
After the screen loads a prompt will appear, telling you that the
tune is about to play for the first time. Listen carefully, since
this is the last free time you will get to hear it.
PLAYING SCREEN
Let's look around the playing screen. At the top of the
display you will see the "Toonzmith" banner, gaily decorated. In
the center of the screen are two staves. The top one, labeled
MIXED, represents the jumbled tune. 8 notes (different colors)
each contain two beats of the song. The bottom staff, labeled
FINAL, represents the complete song in the correct order (remember
2 beats per note). You must place the notes from the jumbled
staff here, in the correct positions.
At the bottom of the screen is a row of option keys and a
score display window:
--------------------------------------------------------
| | | | |
| Play Tune | Score 10 | Restart | Quit |
| | | | |
--------------------------------------------------------
The broken record is merely a decoration on the lower left of
the display.
GAME PLAY
Upon first entering the playing screen you heard the tune in
proper order. Each note on the top staff represents a two note
combination of the tune. From left to right they are out of
order, however. Your job is to pick up the notes and transfer
them to the lower staff, placing them in the right order. Do not
go by color, because the colors on the bottom scale will not
necessarily hold the same notes as the top color.
To "pick up" a note, move the mouse cursor so that it points
to the note of your choice. Click the LEFT MOUSE BUTTON to hear
the combination in this note. If you think you know where this
combination goes, click on the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON while still
pointing to the top staff note. The mouse cursor will change to a
large crosshair.
Move the crosshair down to the note on the lower scale where
you believe it belongs. While pointing to this new note, press
the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON again. If you are correct the portion of
the tune will play and the note on the lower scale will be marked
with a circle, indicating that you have already discovered this
location. The crosshair will change back to the familiar mouse
arrow. If your choice is incorrect, nothing will sound, and the
cursor will switch back to an arrow, waiting for your next guess.
GAME SCORING
The game would not be much fun, unless there was a challenge
present. The object of this game is to guess the tune while
losing the least amount of points (or before the points run out).
Notice the SCORE window at the bottom of the screen. It is
located between the PLAY TUNE button and the RESTART button. At
the start of the game you will be given 10 points, reflected in
the SCORE window. These points will be depleted or increased
according to right or wrong answers. Here is how it works:
If you make a WRONG guess you lose ONE point.
If you make TWO RIGHT guesses you get ONE point.
Every time you play the tune you lose ONE point.
You can hear the tune any time you like by pressing on the
PLAY TUNE option key, but each time you play it one point will be
subtracted from the score, bringing you closer to your doom.
If the tune seems impossible to discover, you may start over
again with another tune, simply by pressing on the RESTART key.
The screen will be reset, the tune will play, and you may try
again.
It might be helpful to know that some tunes have similar
two note combinations on different parts of the staff. These
notes may be selected interchangeably with the actual note
combinations. A win can still be achieved in this way. Also
notice that once an note has been placed that position can not be
selected again.
Should the time run out, a grating sound will announce your
loss. If you place all of the notes correctly, you will hear the
song played in its entirety. In either case you will be set up
for a new game.
If you get tired of playing, you may end the game by simply
pressing on the QUIT key at any time, and you will return to the
desktop.