PC Gamer 4.1 - Disc 2/1998-07_-_Disc_4.1_No._2_Imperfect.iso/mechcmdr/readme.txt

Text File | 1998-04-15 | 12KB | 263 lines

Welcome to the MechCommander(tm) Demo
=====================================

MechCommander is a real-time game of tactical combat and persistent
resource management set in the BattleTech(r) Universe. Players
assume the role of a MechCommander in charge of a unit of
MechWarriors(r). The goal is to clear the way for an invasion
that will retake the planet Port Arthur from the technologically
superior Smoke Jaguar Clan. The player commands up to 12
MechWarriors and fights against dozens of enemy 'Mechs(r),
Elementals, armored vehicles and fortified emplacements.
The condition of both 'Mechs and MechWarriors carries forward
from mission to mission. Players can buy new 'Mechs, components
and pilots or use salvage from the battlefield to gain superior
enemy 'Mechs and weapons. The game will be fully multiplayer
network capable.

****IMPORTANT INSTALLATION INFORMATION ABOUT DIRECTX****

Previous installations of DirectX 5.0 may not be compatible with
MechCommander. To insure that you have the latest version for your
system, install DirectX from the MechCommander CD-ROM or download
the latest version of DirectX from Microsoft's Web site at http://www.microsoft.com/msdownload/directx/dxf/enduser5.0/default.htm.
If you have any problems running MechCommander, rerun SETUP.EXE and be
sure to click on "Yes" when prompted to install DirectX 5.0. If you
already have the latest version, running SETUP.EXE will make no
changes to your system. If you encounter problems running any other
applications after installing DirectX, you can restore your previous
drivers and settings by running DirectX setup and clicking on
"Restore... Drivers."

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
IBM PC 133MHz Pentium compatible or better
Windows 95 or Windows 98
DirectX version 5.0
16MB RAM
4x-speed CD-ROM drive
Hard drive (110MB free)
Super VGA graphics for 640 x 480 x 256 colors
Mouse
Keyboard

RECOMMENDED SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
IBM PC 166MHz Pentium compatible or faster
Windows 95 or Windows 98
DirectX version 5.0
32MB RAM
8x-speed CD-ROM drive
Hard drive (110MB free)
Super VGA graphics for 640 x 480 x 256 colors
Mouse
Keyboard

You must have 48MB of free space on your hard drive for the swap
file to play the MechCommander demo. This swap space must be
available on the hard drive where your operating system is
installed, which is usually drive C.

UNINSTALLING THE DEMO
It is unclear why you would ever want to do this, but to uninstall
the MechCommander demo, just delete the directory that you installed
the program to. If C: is the letter of the hard drive you installed
to, the default directory is C:\Program Files\FasaInteractive\MechCmdrDemo.
Simply delete the FasaInteractive directory or folder by right-clicking
on it with your mouse and selecting Delete. When prompted with "Do you
wish to delete..." click on the "Yes to all" button.

PREPARING FOR A MISSION
After launching the game and selecting "Play Demo," review the
Mission Briefing on the Briefing/Deployment Screen. Check out each
`Mech in your roster by clicking on it in the Ready Area in the bottom
left of the screen. Then, go to Purchasing by clicking the "Purchasing"
button in the upper left-hand corner of the screen.

In both Purchasing and the MechBay, the equipment you own is located
on the left side of the screen in your Current Inventory. Equipment
available from Battalion Inventory is located on the right side of the
screen. Click the appropriate tab (located next to your Current
Inventory) to view your supplies. Note that these tabs change the
display in both the Current Inventory and Battalion Inventory areas
to show either BattleMechs, MechWarriors, Components or Vehicles.

To make a purchase, drag the BattleMechs/MechWarriors/Components/Vehicles
you choose from Battalion Inventory on the right side of the screen into
your Current Inventory on the left side of the screen. Once you have
completed your purchases, go to the MechBay by clicking the MechBay
button in the upper left-hand corner of the screen.

In the Mech Bay, you can repair your `Mechs' damaged armor, internal
structure and engine by clicking on the "Repair All" button. You can
also replace all of its damaged weapon and sensor gear by clicking on
"Refit All." Additionally, you can selectively replace components by
dragging them from the component list on the `Mech and dropping them
into your inventory to remove, or dragging from your inventory and
dropping in the component slot of the `Mech in question. You can also
swap around MechWarriors in the same manner. Player-controlled vehicles
do not appear in this demo.

When you are ready to deploy into a mission, return to the
Briefing/Deployment screen by clicking the Briefing/Deployment button
in the upper left-hand corner of the screen. Drag your units into the
force group drop zones and click the Start Mission button. Note that
'Mechs without MechWarriors do not appear in the Ready Area of the
Briefing/Deployment screen.

COMMAND AND CONTROL
Select a unit                left-mouse click or drag box
Select a group of units            drag box or select appropriate function key
Select all units on screen        [e]
Deselect a unit                [Shift] + left-mouse click
Deselect all units            right-mouse click

Move                        left-mouse click on the destination
Run                        [Spacebar] + left-mouse click
Jump                        [j] + left-mouse click
                        (jump-capable Mechs only; limited distance)
Stop/Hold Fire/Cancel Artillery     [Backspace]

Attack, from current location        [c] + left-mouse click
Attack, long-range            [l] + left-mouse click
Attack, medium-range            [m] + left-mouse click
Attack, short-range            [s] + left-mouse click

Attack head                    [8] + left-mouse click
Attack left torso                [7] + left-mouse click
Attack right torso            [9] + left-mouse click
Attack left arm                [4] + left-mouse click
Attack center torso            [5] + left-mouse click
Attack right arm                [6] + left-mouse click
Attack legs                    [1,3] + left-mouse click

Pause                        [Esc]
Guard                        [g] + left-mouse click
Lay mines                    [f] + left-mouse click (minelayer only;
                             not available in this demo)
Power down                    [Page Down]
Power up                    [Page Up]
Eject                        [Home]

Capture                    Context-sensitive cursor
Repair                    Context-sensitive cursor (not available in this demo)

Scroll battlefield view down        Mouse-down or [Down Arrow]
Scroll battlefield view left        Mouse-left or [Left Arrow]
Scroll battlefield view right        Mouse-right or [Right Arrow]
Scroll battlefield view up        Mouse-up or [Up Arrow]
Zoom battlefield view in        [ + ]
Zoom battlefield view out        [ - ]

Multifunctional Display
Open/Close with previous display active    [Alt]
Open/Close with Briefing active        [Alt] + [b]
Open/Close with Data active            [Alt] + [d]
Open/Close with Map active            [Alt] + [m]
Open/Close with Salvage active        [Alt] + [s]

Scroll tactical map down            [Ctrl] + [Down Arrow]
Scroll tactical map left            [Ctrl] + [Left Arrow]
Scroll tactical map right            [Ctrl] + [Right Arrow]
Scroll tactical map up                [Ctrl] +- [Up Arrow]
Zoom tactical map in                [Ctrl] + [ + ]
Zoom tactical map out                  [Ctrl] + [ - ]

FIRE SUPPORT
Fire Support is located on the Multifunctional Display (MFD),
located in the upper-left hand corner of the Battlefield Display.
To call in an artillery strike, click on the Small or Large
Artillery Icon at the top of the MFD. The cursor will change to
a Fire Support cursor. Click the Fire Support cursor on the
desired impact point in the Battlefield View. Artillery strikes
can only be called into revealed terrain, either on the Tactical
Map or the Battlefield View. A sensor probe or camera drone can
be dropped into unrevealed terrain.

A small artillery strike arrives quickly, in about seven seconds,
and delivers a reasonable amount of damage to a limited area. It
is an ideal support weapon for area control since its short in-flight
time makes it easier to time a hit against a moving target.

A large artillery strike takes about twice as long to arrive as
a small strike and delivers significant damage to a larger area.
It is difficult to time a hit against a moving target, but it is
ideal for destroying weapon emplacements, buildings, and other
structures.

GROUP ORDERS
Selecting a Group, either by clicking on the Unit Tab at the bottom
of the screen or by hitting the associated function key, issues any
subsequent orders to the entire group. The unit then responds as a
group, taking its cues from the Pointman of the group, who is the
leftmost of the Unit Icons for that group. When moving, the group
roughly forms up behind him and follows him into battle.

Note that if a Full Power Movement Order is given to the group,
the members of the group will get to the destination at the best
speed possible, which could mean they arrive at the destination
before the Pointman does. If a Half Power Movement Order is given,
any units ahead of the Pointman will wait for the point to take
the lead.

UNIT ORGANIZATION AND REORGANIZATION
The Tactical Combat Interface supports up to three Force Groups,
each containing up to four combat units up to a total of 12 units.

To change which unit is the current Pointman of that group first
select the group. Then, hold down the [Ctrl] key while pressing the
Function Key for that Group. The "Point" Cursor appears. Click the
"Point" Cursor on the unit that is to be the new Pointman. The
Group display then reorganizes to place the new Pointman in the
leftmost position.

To change which units are in a group or to create an entirely new
group, first select all the units that are to be in the Group. Then,
hold down the [Ctrl] key while pressing the function key (F1-F4) for
that Group. The "Point" Cursor appears. Click the "Point" Cursor on
the unit that is to be the new Pointman. The Group display then
reorganizes to include the selected units with the designated
Pointman in the left most position.

In addition to the three Force Groups, the interface supports up to
12 independent units that are not assigned to any Force Group and
cannot receive a Group Order. To make a unit that is part of a Group
independent, first select the unit. Then, hold down the [Ctrl] key
while pressing the [F5] key. That unit is now independent. The Unit
Icon display reorganizes to move that unit to the right of any Force
Groups. An independent unit is not part of a Group and cannot be
selected using a function key.

KNOWN PROBLEMS
Running any other applications concurrently with MechCommander may
cause MechCommander to quit when minimized and switching between
applications. For performance issues, we recommend that you quit all
other applications before launching MechCommander.

Ejecting pilots lose one health unit. A pilot that ejects with only
one health unit will appear in the MechWarrior bay with an empty
status bar. Pilots with an empty status bar are dead. Beginning a
mission with a dead pilot in a Mech will crash the game.

Pressing Scroll Lock will bring up a dialog box showing your system
configuration and pause the game in a windowed mode. Press Continue
to resume and Alt+Enter to return to full screen mode. If you are
reporting a bug to the e-mail address below, save and attach your
system configuration to the e-mail.

If you receive an "Reentrant Assert" error box, you do not have the
latest version of DirectX 5.0 installed or there is a problem with
your video driver. Press Ctrl+Alt+Delete and click on "End Task" to
remove the error. Reinstall DirectX from the MechCommander directory
or download it from Microsoft at the URL listed under IMPORTANT
INFORMATION ABOUT DIRECTX at the beginning of this document.

FINALLY
Thank you for your interest in the MechCommander demo. The full
version of MechCommander will be in stores this summer. We
appreciate your support and welcome your feedback. If you have
any comments, write to us at [e-mail].

For technical support, e-mail FASA Interactive at [e-mail]
or MicroProse at [e-mail].

MechCommander is published by MicroProse, 2490 Mariner Square Loop,
Alameda, CA 94501 [phone].