PC Gamer 6/1995-05_Disc_6.iso/baldies/readme.txt

Text File | 1995-03-10 | 15KB | 266 lines

GameTek  Presents...  BALDIES!

Now tell me if I'm wrong, but you've never been solely responsible for an
entire race, have you?  You've never had to guide a people through the icy
wastes of the Arctic, through the desolation of a vast desert or even the
ultimate nightmare...
Hell itself!

You've never had to rescue individuals from pits and bear traps, all
strategically placed to hamper the evolutionary success of a species.
You've never had to perform critical research to a Do-Or-Die deadline, or
had to create an ocean, guide an armed helicopter to it's target, or drop an
exploding cow down an enemy's chimney.  If you've never done any of
these things then you haven't lived.
It's about time you started!

In the FINAL version of BALDIES all of these features will be available.

Play Baldies!
And build a cow!
Baldies features:
Intuitive Control System
Multiplayer Link-Up Option
Enemy Artificial Intelligence
Realtime Zoom Function
Superb Graphics and Sound Effects
Full Musical Score
Interactive Landscape
5 Worlds to Explore
100+ Levels
In-game Landscape Editing
Indigenous Life Forms
Realistic Weather Effects
Incredible Inventions and Tactics

Baldies Demo - Instructions.

To get past the intro screen click the MOUSE button

NOTE: THE BALDIES DEMO HAS NO SOUND!
(We will have super extra zany mega sound in final product. Please hum
to yourself
until then. )

Loading Instructions.

    Enter the 'GAMETEK/BALD2' directory and type 'BALDIES' to
run the demo.

Starting the demo.

    The two buttons on the title screen are activated by moving the
mouse over them         and pressing the Left mouse button.
    'GO' starts the demo, 'QUIT' returns to DOS.

Once the demo has started you will notice three areas on the screen.  The
first area on the left hand side of the screen is the main panel, the area
along the bottom of the screen is the invention panel, the rest of the
screen is the game area.

Using the Main Panel.

The main panel consists of five baldy type icons, two utility icons, four
energy bars and one panel move icon.

The first four baldy type icons are colour coded: Workers are red,
Builders are blue, Soldiers are green and Scientists are White.  Clicking
on one of these icons and then clicking on a baldy in the game area
causes the baldy to change to the selected type.

The two utility icons are the Map Edit icon and the grab hand icon.
Clicking on the map edit icon allows the landscape to be changed (when
the map editor is active, the cursor changes to a spade with an additional
square cursor showing which block on the landscape will be changed).
The left mouse button places water whilst the right mouse button places
land.  However, using the map editor depletes energy from the main
energy bar.  The grab hand allows Baldies to be picked up: clicking on
the grab hand changes the cursor to a hand, positioning this hand over a
baldy (the cursor will change to a cross-hair when it is over a baldy) and
the holding down the left mouse button allows a baldy to be picked up
and moved.  Releasing the left mouse button releases the baldy.

The four energy bars are: the main power bar (the tall thin bar down the
right hand side of the main panel), the build power bar (fills up with
blue), the soldier power bar (fills up with green) and the science power
bar (fills up with yellow).

The panel move icon consists of four arrow-heads and one centre circle.
Clicking on one of the four arrow-heads moves the main panel to the
corresponding side of the screen.  Clicking on the centre circle makes the
panel 'float'.  Whilst the panel is floating it can be moved by holding the
left mouse button down over the panel's move bar (this is situated along
the top of the floating panel).  Releasing the left mouse button leaves the
floating panel at the current position.  If however, the floating panel is
left at the side of the screen, the panel will re-attach itself to that side.


Playing the demo.

Moving about the landscape is done by trying to push the mouse beyond
the edge of the screen.  If there is more land beyond what is shown in the
game area, the land will scroll to show this.  Whilst moving about the
landscape you may notice another tribe of people (hairy and slightly ape-
like).  These are the current inhabitants of this land and must be killed by
your Baldies to complete this level.

Several of the initial Baldies are builders and after a short time a house
will have been built.  Clicking on one of your houses brings up the 'house
panel', if you can not find any of your houses, try turning some of your
Baldies into builders.

House Panel.

The house panel allows inventions to be invented and other house types
to be built.  It also allows the Baldies to be moved between different
types.  When the house panel is first opened there will probably only be
one builder baldy in the house.  The builder will be shown working.  In
order to do any inventing some scientists are needed BUT the builder is
also needed to stop the house falling into disrepair.  We therefore need to
get some more Baldies into the house.

Firstly, close the house panel by clicking on the main door (at the bottom
centre position of the panel).  Then, using the grab hand pick some
Baldies up (do not worry about which type they are) and release them on
top of the house.  When a few Baldies have been dropped in the house,
bring up the house panel again.  If a house is full, a baldy dropped into it
will immediately leave the house.

The house panel always shows how many of each type are currently in the
house, if there is at least one baldy of a certain type in the house then
they will be shown inside their particular room.  To move Baldies about
(i.e. to change their types) click on one of the room doors.  This will
move a baldy from the room into the hall.  Clicking on a baldy inside a
room will move Baldies from the hall into the room.  If there is currently
no baldy in a room, clicking where they will appear causes Baldies to
move into that room (e.g. clicking on the empty chair for the worker, or
the work bench for the builder).

Inventing.

Once you have some scientists you can start inventing.  Click on the
yellow question mark above the scientist (this shows that no inventions
are currently being worked on).  A list of possible inventions appears,
these are (from right to left, bottom to top): land mine, trap, firebomb,
skunk, pit and flamehead.  Choose one of these by clicking on it and then
clicking on the green tick.  Turn off the house panel by clicking on the
main door, any Baldies left in the hall will leave the house.  Selecting an
invention in one house causes all houses to work on this invention, if
another house is clicked on then the invention already selected will be
shown.  The current invention can only be changed by a house with
scientists.

The invention that was selected will appear on the left hand side of the
invention panel.  When the invention is being invented the bar to the
right of it will fill up with red colour, once it has been finished the colour
will turn to green.  Now go back into the house and choose another,
repeat this until you have invented at least the skunk and the land mine.

Building a new House.

Above the builder there is a space for the house that the builder will try
and build next.  This house may not be built for several reasons, there are
not enough builders to maintain the current house and build the next
house, the current house has been built too close to an object which
interferes with the building of the next house (e.g. a tree).

Find a house which is not next to other objects, if it is quite close to the
water, use the map editor to fill in some land.  Ensure there are at least
two builder Baldies in the house.  The builders will automatically choose
to build another type of house, this house can not be built if there are not
enough builders.  Clicking on the house icon above the builder animation
will list the houses which can be built next.  One of these houses will
already be highlighted but you can click on another.  Click on the green
tick to close the list of houses.  Each house type offers a different list of
other houses which can be built, some houses, however, do not allow any
other type of house to be built (this is shown by a red X).  Different
house types also increase the range of inventions that can be invented.

Invention Panel

Select an invention from the invention panel by clicking on it.  A red
border will appear around this invention, this denotes that this invention
is active.  The invention that the houses are working on is shown by an
orange highlight around the inventions' status tube.  The invention panel
holds up to six inventions, to make room for another invention one of the
inventions on the panel must be removed.  This is done by clicking on the
'Grim Reaper' icon and then clicking on an invention (the grim reaper is
active when its eyes are lit up).  To change the invention that the houses
are currently working on without going into a house, the white scientist
'work-on' icon can be used.  Click on the scientist (the light bulb will
brighten) and click on an invention.  The orange 'working' bar will go
around this inventions' status bar.

The other two icons on the invention panel are the open map icon and the
zoom out icon.  Clicking on the open map icon brings up the mini-map
(the icon will change to the close map icon).  This shows the current level
and where everyone is.  Your Baldies are shown in red, the enemy people
are shown in yellow.  Clicking the mouse over the mini-map moves the
game area to the equivalent position.  This allows the game area to be
moved quickly to a certain area of the map.  To turn off the mini-map,
click on the close map icon (again the icon changes, this time to the open
map icon).

The zoom out icon causes a much larger area of the map to be displayed
in the game area.  Like the open map icon, clicking on the zoom out icon
causes the icon to change to the zoom in icon.  Clicking on the zoom in
icon causes the game area to show the normal size of map area.

Running Inventions

Once an invention has been selected it can be used.  Choose the land
mine invention and place one outside the door of an enemy house, this is
done by clicking the mouse cursor underneath the enemy houses' door.  A
land mine should be drawn on the game area at this position.  Then
choose the skunk invention and click on the enemy house.  The skunk
chases people out of a house.  With any luck the enemy will have run into
the land mine and been blown up.  Instead it is possible that the enemy
avoided the land mine by running to the side.  Choose another house and
place three adjacent land mine outside the door before using the skunk.
Remember, running inventions uses up their power.  Use the 'work-on'
invention to keep your inventions topped up.  If an invention is
completely used up and is not being worked on, it will be removed from
the invention panel.  If the invention was being worked on, it will have to
be re-invented.
Try playing with some of the other inventions to see what they do as well.

Defeating the Enemy.

Inventions are not the only way to kill the enemy, soldiers can be used as
well.  Turn some of your Baldies into soldiers and, using the grab hand,
move them near the enemy.  They will probably not be able to fire as they
do not have any bullets.  To make bullets, ensure that there are some
soldiers in one of your houses.  Note that the bullets your soldiers fire
can kill your own Baldies as well.

You may have already noticed that when a house has been emptied with
the skunk, it soon falls into disrepair.  You can take over a house be
dropping one of your Baldies into it.  The house will only be fixed again
if you put a builder into it (or turn one of the other types in the house
into a builder).

Your Baldies can also be dropped in trees, clicking on a tree brings up
the tree panel which shows how many of each type are currently in the
tree.  A tree does not allow Baldies to have their types changed (unlike
the house).  Clicking on one of the 'swinging' Baldies causes it to jump
out of the tree.  Like the house, putting too many Baldies into a tree will
make the last one put in jump out.

Helicopter.

You may have noticed a red helicopter flying about, this can be
controlled by clicking on it with the left mouse button.  Once under
control the game area centres around the helicopter and tries to follow the
mouse.  The further away the mouse is from the helicopter, the faster it
goes.  Clicking on the right mouse button releases the helicopter from
your control.

Exiting the Game.

In order to exit the BALDIES demo, press both mouse buttons at the same time.

Join the Bald and the Beautiful!  For more information about BALDIES
contact GameTek at 1-800-927-4263 or [phone].