THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED AS IS WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR
IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
PURPOSE WHICH ARE HEREBY DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT WILL ELECTRONIC ARTS BE LIABLE
FOR ANY SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES RESULTING FROM POSSESSION,
USE, OR MALFUNCTION OF THIS ELECTRONIC ARTS SOFTWARE PRODUCT.
Some states do not allow limitations as to how long an implied warranty lasts and/or exclusions or limitations of incidental or consequential damages so the above limitations and/or exclusions of liability may not apply to you. This warranty gives you specific rights, and you may also have other rights which vary from state to state.
ELECTRONIC ARTS RESERVES THE RIGHT TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS IN THIS FILE AND TO THE
SOFTWARE AT ANY TIME AND WITHOUT NOTICE.
THIS FILE AND THE SOFTWARE HEREWITH IS COPYRIGHTED. ALL RIGHTS ARE RESERVED.
NO PART OF THIS FILE OR THE SOFTWARE MAY BE COPIED, REPRODUCED, TRANSLATED, OR
REDUCED TO ANY ELECTRONIC MEDIUM OR MACHINE-READABLE FORM WITHOUT THE PRIOR
WRITTEN CONSENT OF ELECTRONIC ARTS, PO BOX 9025, REDWOOD CITY, CALIFORNIA
94063-9025, ATTN: CUSTOMER SUPPORT.
(C) 2000 Electronic Arts Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Installation
====================
To install the Alice Demo, simply double-click on the AliceDemo.exe
The Alice Demo will install to:
C:\Program Files\EA Games\American McGee's Alice Demo
Running the demo
====================
Create a shortcut to the Alice Demo from this folder by selecting alice.exe
in the demo directory, and right-dragging it to the desktop. When you
release the mouse button, a menu will pop up. Select "Create Shortcut Here".
Double-click the shortcut to run the demo.
You can also run the demo by double-clicking the Alice.exe icon
straight from the folder.
Uninstallation
====================
To uninstall the Alice Demo demo, simply delete the American McGee's
Alice Demo folder from your drive.
Gameplay Instructions
====================
M A I N M E N U
After installation, you will be presented with the Main Menu.
To begin playing, use the left mouse button to click New Game.
The next screen prompts you to select a skill level: Easy, Medium,
Hard and Nightmare.
Once in the game, you can Save at any point. Press the ESC key to
bring up the Main Menu. Left-click Load/Save then click on a window
for a slot in which to save your game. Then, click the button marked S.
ItÆs that simple.
To load a saved game, click the particular saved game window you wish to
load, and then click L. This loads your saved game from your hard drive.
Click the D to delete the selected saved game.
S E T T I N G S
When you install American McGeeÆs Alice Demo, the game sets defaults
for your system configuration and for the control keys youÆll use to
navigate through Wonderland. Left-click Settings from the Main Menu
to access these default settings.
Left-click any of the four numbered areas to expose further options for
fine-tuning your system and your game play.
1. Video: From here you can adjust the way your computer displays the game.
Your system has detected Screen Resolution and Color Depth. You may change
those settings if you wish. You can also use the available sliders to control
the following:
Brightness changes how light or dark your video appears, similar to brightness
on your monitor.
Texture Detail is used to control the size of the textures being displayed
in the game, smaller textures look less detailed because they have to be
stretched to cover the space they fill, but the game operates faster with
less detail.
The Alice Demo defaults to the second highest detail setting. Attempting to
change the detail setting higher will NOT affect the texture quality in the
Alice Demo.
These adjustments might make Alice run more efficiently on your system.
2. Audio: From here you can select a sound driver, adjust music and sound
effects volume, and choose your speaker type and sound quality.
The Alice Demo ONLY uses 8 Bit sound, changing the settings for the
Alice Demo will NOT affect your sound quality.
3. Controls: Use this menu to fine-tune your control of the Alice character
and the Game environment. The Control options are detailed under
PLAYING THE GAME, below.
To change an option, left-click on it to select it, and then left-click the
column to the right of that option. YouÆll be prompted to Press Any Key.
Press the key that you wish to designate as the control key for this
game-play function.
If you have changed any control options on this menu, click the Apply button
to accept and save the changes or click the Cancel button to return to the
Setting Menu.
4. Game Options: Customize these options to reflect your own taste and play style.
Invert Mouse reverses the direction the camera looks when you move the mouse
forward and backward.
Mouse Sensitivity adjusts the speed of your mouse movement.
Camera Distance controls the distance, in 3rd Person view, that the camera
follows behind Alice.
Camera Height adjusts the height of the camera view on the screen.
Always Run lets you Run at ALL times. The default setting is run.
Subtitles toggles the text box accompanying character speech off and on.
Jump Reticle helps you judge distance, and gauge your potential to make a jump
successfully. See PLAYING THE GAME, below for more about Jumping.
Target Reticle helps you home in on your enemies.
Console can be evoked allowing the player to enter advanced commands
and settings into the game, and should not be used unless necessary.
P L A Y I N G T H E G A M E
AliceÆs movements are controlled with a keyboard and the mouse. To see the control
keys, choose 3 from the Settings Menu. On the Controls Menu move the slider and
expose all the keys. The movements and their corresponding [default controls] are:
Primary Attack: Left-click [Mouse 1] to execute a weaponÆs primary attack.
Alternate Attack: Right-click [Mouse 2] to execute a weaponÆs alternate attack.
Move Forward: [W] moves Alice forward or advances her.
Move Backward: [S] moves her backward or retreats.
Strafe Left (step-left): [A] key to move left while facing forward.
Strafe Right (step-right): [D] key to move right while facing forward.
Jump/Swim Up: [Spacebar] makes Alice jump or swim up.
Climb/Swim Down: [F] makes Alice climb or swim down.
Use Item: [Enter] opens doors, activates levers, climbs up vines, etc.
Jumping
There are plenty of challenging obstacles in Wonderland and jumping is a control
movement youÆll need to master. LetÆs say youÆre at an impasse or a crevasse,
and you need to jump:
Face the area where you want to land. Move the mouse slightly forward and back.
The Jump Reticle--a pair of brightly lit shoe soles (size 6)--will display to help
you with your jump. Move the mouse until you feel comfortable with the landing
area (for example dry land, as opposed to lava). Press the Spacebar. Practice
makes perfect.
Climbing
If an area looks as though she can reach it with a jump, try it. If she falls just
short, Alice will grab onto and hang from walls, ledges, bluffs and such. If an
object is blocking her ascent, press the strafe keys to move Alice to a clear spot.
Now, donÆt leave her dangling. After she grabs on, press W and Alice will pull
herself up.
To let go without climbing up, press F.
Vine / Swinging
Vines and ropes are invaluable---if you know how to use them. Face the vine and
then use the Jump key [Spacebar] to jump out toward the vine. Release the Jump
key when sheÆs close to it and Alice will grab on.
Use the Move Forward [W] and Move Backward [S] keys to swing. When you feel Alice
has sufficient momentum to complete a vine jump, press the Jump key [Spacebar]
and Alice will release the vine. Her momentum will carry her hopefully to a safe
landing.
Swimming
Swimming in Alice is easy; just dive in. Once Alice is completely submerged use
the Move Forward key [W] in combination with the Swim Up [Spacebar] or the
Swim Down [F] to navigate underwater. A note of caution: If you hear Alice
coughing while swimming, it means sheÆs running low on air. Alice is strong
and brave, but even she needs to surface periodically.
CAT SUMMONING BUTTON [HELP]
The Cheshire Cat is a friend, although his words can sometimes be enigmatic.
Press [C] when you need help. Your tattooed ally may have something useful to say.
General Problems
================
If you've made a settings change to Alice Demo, that keep you from
playing the game, you can usually fix this by deleting the "config.cfg"
file located in the DEMO subdirectory where you installed Alice Demo. The
default directory where you would find this file is:
C:\Program Files\EA GAMES\American McGeeÆs Alice Demo\DEMO
If you delete this file, you will need to reset your key bindings next
time you run the Game. Alice Demo will automatically regenerate the
config.cfg file for you.
If you've changed your video resolution to something your computer cannot
support, you can run Alice Demo from the command prompt, manually setting the
resolution. Open a command prompt window and change the directory to where
you installed Alice Demo. Then type:
Alice-Demo +set r_mode 3
And press the enter key.
This will launch the Alice Demo in 640x480 resolution mode. You can then try to
change your resolution again. Before you change the display resolution in
Alice Demo, make sure that your computer supports that size.
Some screen savers can cause problems if you leave Alice Demo running idle
long enough for your screen saver to turn on. If you have issues with this,
try disabling your screensaver.
Speed Problems
==============
If you're having framerate problems, there are a few tweaks you can do to
speed up the game on your machine. These settings will free up more memory,
thus placing less of a load on your hardware.
In Video options (Settings Menu):
- Uncheck Detail Textures.
- Set both Color Depth and Texture Bits to 16 bit.
- Run in 640x480 resolution.
There should not be a big difference in the visual quality when
using 16-bit textures, but it can help to make the game run faster.
Stability Problems
==================
If your machine locks up frequently or crashes a lot, there are a few
general tips to help stabilize it.
If you have other programs running at the same time as Alice Demo, consider
turning them off.
Make sure you have the latest drivers. Manufacturers are always improving
their drivers to fix bugs and improve performance. Check the web sites
for your Video Card, Sound Card, and Motherboard, and try out the latest
drivers.
Make sure your machine has the latest BIOS installed. Many hardware
components get improved BIOS/Firmware after they're shipped, so make sure
you're up to date. The stability of video cards and motherboards can
vastly improve with updated BIOS. Once again, check your equipment
manufacturerÆs website for newer BIOS versions.
Be sure to read and understand any instructions and warnings before you
try to update BIOS on any hardware component. It usually updates without
a problem, but you can render your machine unusable if you don't do it
right, or if something goes wrong and the proper action isn't taken to
fix it.
If you purchased a pre-assembled PC, check with your PC manufacturer for
updates.
If you've had your operating system installed and running for a long time,
it may be time to reinstall. This usually is only a problem for real
power users who change system settings and hardware often and work with
their machines a lot.
Video Problems
==============
Some video cards have problems with the fog effects that we're using
in the Alice Demo. We've noticed that some objects don't seem fogged enough.
This seems to occur most often on Voodoo 3 cards.
In some scenes, distant objects may appear to have black lines moving
across them. This seems to happen on a variety of video cards, and
is a direct result of the distance from the player to the object.
The current drivers for the Voodoo5 seem to have some trouble when
changing resolutions, switching from full-screen to windowed mode.
This usually means your computer will lock up or crash. There are
also some visual problems when you run in windowed mode. The problems
seem to be more pronounced in Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000.
We expect 3dfx to address these problems in future driver releases.
As always, make sure you have the latest video drivers for your card.
Useful Web Sites
================
http://www.glsetup.com - Updated video/OpenGL drivers in one handy
location.
http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com - Keep your Windows installation up
to date. You can find the latest DirectX software installers here.
http://www.Alice.ea.com - The official American McGee's Alice site
