D E A D L A N D
Problems for a small planet (tm)
DEADLAND IS NOT IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN
Deadland requires at least 1Mb of RAM
in your ST. It should run on a Falcon.
WHO?
****
All code, art, sound, music and
text copyright Justin Ward 1995.
All rights reserved.
Hello Mum!
Acknowledgements:
Preshift and music (but not
mouse) routines after James
Boulton. Hi Jim!
Glenn Corpes might just
recognise bits of his sprite routines.
Megatizer by THK/Sector One,
courtesy Fortress BBS.
'The Greenland Whale Fishery'
(Trad.) Arr. J Ward
Lyrics at end for those who want
to sing along...
WHERE?
*****
51 Vicarage Rd
Sutton, Surrey SM1 1QN
All letters answered up to
March 3rd, 2056!
WHAT?
*****
D E A D L A N D
In space, there is no emergency
service (tm)
*PLAY INSTRUCTIONS*
If you've played Cannon Fodder
it's similar; though not exactly.
*START*
IF YOU READ NOTHING ELSE,
READ THE NEXT BIT...
LEFT click for life-support game (hard), RIGHT
click for trainer mode (not so hard).
...OK!
The object of the game is to evacuate
as many crewpersons as you can from
the planet URSULA MINOR 8/64.7, or as
most starfleet staff call it:
D E A D L A N D
Planet of Mud (tm)
To do this, you have to build a
new ship. Your old one made a
forced landing (scattering a few
useful items around). And you've
only got 31 Ursulan days to do it.
*VIEWSCREEN*
Crew with an icon DOWN are awaiting
orders ('activated'), and will go to
where you left-click the mouse on the
viewscreen.
If the icon is UP, the crewperson/thing
is on standby and will NOT go to the
mouse-click.
ALL crew in range will fire when you
RIGHT-click on the view screen. If you
LEFT-click while firing, active crew
will go to the mouse-click one at a
time. Crew will fire at will at Ursulan
soldiers.
Scroll the viewscreen by left or right
clicking on its borders. LEFT will cause
activated vehicles with crew to follow the
scroll, RIGHT will not.
You can make vehicles fire while you are
scrolling, by holding the left button and
pressing the right as normal.
You can activate crew or vehicles by left-
clicking on the actual sprite. If a vehicle
or building has space for crew, active crew
will make their way there and get into the
unit. If you right-click on a crewed unit,
all crew will evacuate it.
*FACESCREENS*
To put crew on standby, RIGHT click on
their button. (Right click again and
the screen will go off. If you have more
crew than screens, the next crewman will
then come on screen - see DROIDS below).
If crew/vehicles are moving, they will
reactivate when they reach their target
point (can be used with radar screen -
see DISH below).
Clicking left OR right on their button
has a similar effect - it puts the crew
person on screen on standby, and if more
crew are available, the next will come on
screen. (It's easier done than said). This
is a quick way to stop crew in their tracks.
Also, the face button activates a unit
build screen.
To activate a crew person, LEFT click on
their face button. If you hold the
button down, the viewscreen will scroll
until the crewperson is located. You'll
see them trying to get your attention.
A unit build screeen will also be
activated.
N.B. If the crewperson is INSIDE a vehicle
or building, they will EXIT the unit at
this point and the vehicle will go on
standby - if you just click once on crew
in a standby vehicle, that vehicle will
be re-activated, without the crewperson
leaving it. Vehicles can thus (thus?!) be
reactivated when not on screen.
*BUILDSCREENS*
These should be obvious by now.
LEFT on to activate, and start build;
RIGHT on the to deactivate, and stop build.
LEFT/RIGHT on the to browse. If you build
dozens of units, don't be surprised if your
screen starts updating at 1Hz. (An added bonus!
A Windows 9 to 5 emulator on the ST!)
N.B. A screen will not be activated from
these buttons unless an activated crewperson
is available and NOT MOVING. Use the face
button to stop crew and activate build screens.
*UNITS*
SLAB - Protects against mud-holes. Limited
life-span.
SOLAR TOWER - For battery power in life-
support game. Crew space 2
OXYGEN PLANT - For oxygen production in
life_support game. Crew space 2
WATER TOWER - For er, water in life-support
game. NO crew space.
MUDBAG - Provides limited protection against
Ursulan fire, etc.
DROID - Operates as crew. NO life support needed.
Does not count towards final score.
HOVVA DELUXE - Immune to mud holes when mobile.
Some resistance to mines. Crew space 4.
BRANSON TRANSIT - Crew space 12. Radio cassette.
GUN TOWER - Auto fire at all enemy. Directable
when crewed. Crew space 2.
DISH - Enables radar screen. Left click on radar
screen to relocate view screen.
Resolution COARSE, mind you. Crew space 1.
RMC (Roving Missile Carrier) - Armed with missile
launcher. Crew space 2.
HUT - Shelter up to 8 crew. For cowards.
HOSP - Restore up to 8 crew to full health and
efficiency. Slowly.
SHOP - The big one. Enable escape ship project.
At least one (living) crewperson required.
WHEN?
*****
Deadland was conceived in Feb. 1994, started
from scratch in Sep. 1994, and released at the
Atari World show in London on Dec. 10th 1995.
This version Jan 6th 1996 (most bugs gone).
HOW?
****
For trainspotters - principal software used:
Devpac 2.25
Crack Art 1.36
NeoChrome Master
OCP Art Studio
Soundlab 1.1
ST Sound Studio
Megatizer by THK/Sector One
RDE v5
WHY?
****
1 Because the best bit on Utopia was the intro
2 Because there is no Dune II on the ST
3 Because Cannon Fodder kept me up till 6AM once
4 As for Llamatron..!
WELL?
*****
Well, if you read this far you are obviously
a person of intelligence and discernment. The sort
of person who believes in fair play, justice and
standards in public life. The sort of person who
might just have the price of a stamp in their
wallet. Yes, here it comes;
Why don't you send me a fiver? (tm)
Because you can't afford it, eh?
Oh, in that case please accept 18 months of
my work absolutely gratis and for nothing!
Because it's not 1995 now, eh?
That means that DEADLAND is even better value
then, doesn't it. I mean, a fiver was WORTH
something in them days.
Because you can't be bothered?
So you'll never find out what people who
register get, will you? But you don't care
anyway.
Because you've already paid for this disk once?
Can we get this straight? A computer is only
as good as its SOFTWARE. In the music business,
there are major organisations to ensure that
the authors of music get a fair whack; not for
their tape factories, not for their CD pressing
plants, but for their authorship of the stuff
coming out of your speakers. No such
organisations exist for computer software,
let alone for the good old ST! It's DEADLAND, MY
WORK, coming out of your monitor screen, not
magnetic particles! The DISK is all you've paid for!
PHEW!
*****
Send a passport photo and your face will
digitised into one of the crew members!
If you'd like something changed to suit you,
I'll think about it!
If DEADLAND crashes on you,
don't say you weren't warned!
If you don't register, the guilt will
haunt you to your grave!
In Eighteen hundred and twenty four
On March the eighteenth day
We hoisted our colours to the top of the mast
And for Greenland sailed away, brave boys
And for Greenland sailed away
The lookout on the crosstrees he stood
A spyglass in his hand
There's a whale, there's a whale, there's a whalefish, he cried
And she blows at every span, brave boys
And she blows at every span
The Captain stood on the quarterdeck
The ice was in his eye
Overhaul, overhaul, let your jib sheets fall
And go put your boats to sea, brave boys
And go put your boats to sea
The harpoon struck, and the line paid out
With a single flourish of his tail
He capsized our boat and we lost five men
And we did not catch that whale, brave boys
And we did not catch that whale
Now the losing of those five jolly men
It grieved our captain sore
But the losing of that fine whale fish
Now that grieved him ten times more, brave boys
Now that grieved him ten times more
And Greenland is a barren land
A land that bears no green
Where there's ice and snow and the whalefishes go
And the daylight's seldom seen, brave boys
And the daylight's seldom seen