Spel 4/Spel4.iso/os2/actie/bemdemo/bemnet.inf

OS/2 Help File | 1996-05-27 | 64.2 KB | 615 lines

ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 1. Welcome to the World of BEM ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

2153.  Mankind basks in the glory of The Golden Age of Technology.  Warfare and
poverty have been overcome, leaving the people of Earth to pursue art, science,
and the elevation of culture.  Atomic power has eliminated pollution and
provides unlimited energy for the entire planet, as well as plenty of vitamin
enriched orange soda which is manufactured from atomic waste.

But before Stanley Grizbork perfected atomic waste to orange soda
transmutation, back in the dark days of the Cold War, certain factions of the
Evil Empire found themselves a handy dumping ground for unwanted atomic waste.
Namely, a remote savanna in Africa.  Mistaking the glowing atomic pile for an
unseemly forest fire, a crash of rhinoceroses attempted (as they are wont to
do) to stamp it out.  They failed, and were instead mutated into Homo
Rhinocersauri, or as they were known when they left the savanna in 2084,
Rhinosaurs.

Rhinosaurs and humans have coexisted peacefully.  The Rhinosaurs' rugged nature
make them a sure bet for space exploration, even though their mass necessitated
more powerful rocket designs.

More power required more control.  As the Terrans ventured farther into space
they developed Navigational Computators to guide them across the stars.  The
essential components of these super computators were their synthetic Zirkonian
neurons, which could only be manufactured in the zero gravity of space.

The new rockets reduced space travel time and propelled mankind and Rhinosaurs
across the galaxy....

The first menace to the sparefarers was encountered in our very own solar
system on Earth's sister planet Venus.  In time it was discovered that the
Venflora were not native to Venus, and their actual origin remains unknown.
Meteorites from the outer reaches carry their seeds through deep space.  They
have become the scourge of space stations, inhabited planets, and intergalactic
travellers.  The Venflora are widely regarded as the stupidest sentient
carbon-based lifeform in the galaxy.

Having shed the confines of their home system, the Terran expeditions soon
encountered another race that had done the same.  The world conquering,
attractive civilian stealing, forest burning, communist, apple pie hating evil
bug eyed monsters were dubbed BEM by the first expedition to behold their
atrocity.  No peace was to be had.  That first ill-fated expedition lives on
only in the recording of their last etherwave transmission.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 2. It Crawled from the Net ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

BEM: It Crawled from the Net chronicles the battle between the Terran
Federation and the Bug Eyed Monsters from Outer Space.  The Terrans and Aliens
fight for control of Space Station Zulu, which hovers at the center of the
Great Gecko Nebula.  Each force has a droppoint to bring in new troops and
supplies.

This is a demo version of BEM: It Crawled from the Net.  It is freeware, so you
may distribute it unchanged as much as you like.  The full version offers
additional weapons, many more worlds to explore, improved graphics, and
additional alien creatures to make you thankful for the extra weapons.  The
full version is available from Rhintek at [phone] for $19.95.

The end of Summer 1996 will see the release of the next installment in the BEM
saga, BEM: Bug Eyed Monsters from Outer Space, which further expands the BEM
universe and provides more sophisticated gameplay, an enhanced single-player
mode, human troops (featuring genetic AI routines), more aliens (with a variety
of deadly AI), a strategic warfare interface, and many more worlds.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3. Configuring BEM ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

The configuration program prepares BEM for play on your machine.  The only
required action is to test your system's graphics capabilities.  We recommend
you select the Test All button to allow config to detect the best graphics
configuration for BEM to run on your computer.  We apologize for the
inconvience but this process ensures the best performance and compatibility.

With all its options turned on BEM can be very demanding on your computer's
processor.  However, we've designed it to work on a wide range of machines.  A
frame rate of ten to twenty frames per second is desirable.  Higher frame rates
will result in smoother game play.  You can adjust Atmosphere and Graphics Mode
settings to achieve acceptable performance.  After you "Test All" to find the
best Graphics Mode setting, you can use the individual test buttons to see what
happens when you change Atmosphere options.

Player Name Your name or handle.  Other players can see this name as a halo
above your head during multi-player games.

Atmosphere

     Object Animation
        Objects throughout BEM have lighting effects, rotate, or otherwise
        move.  This is the most processor intensive of the Atmosphere options.
        If object animation is turned off, game play will not be affected but
        room objects remain static.

     Show Background
        This toggles the backdrop behind the room.

     Use Sound Effects
        Turns on waveform audio: gunblasts, explosion sounds, teleporter
        sounds, etc.  Turn this off if you do not have a sound card.

 Gameplay Options

     Halfboard Hotkeys
        The Play Guide details the two hotkey layouts. If this is not selected
        the more intuitive "full keyboard" layout will be used. Select this
        option for a one-hand (usable by either the left or right hand) hotkey
        layout.

 Graphics Mode

     Test All
        Use this to test the frame rate of all the graphics modes using the
        current config settings.  The fastest mode will be automatically
        selected.  The game looks the same in all modes.

     Test Direct, Test PSpace, Test DIVE
        Test the frame rate of a particular graphics mode using the current
        config settings. Note this does not change the selection.  You should
        always use the fastest mode.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4. Starting a Friendly Game of BEM ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Single-Player

To play BEM by yourself, simply double click the "Single-Player" object located
in the Client folder.  The BEM Game Selection dialog will appear.  You may
change game options or simply press Start to jump into Space Station Zulu.

Two programs will start: a BEM OverSeer and a BEM Player Display (PLD) module.
The BEM PLD is where you view the BEM universe and control your alter ego.  The
BEM OverSeer lets you start a contest to retrieve Zirkons in a station overrun
with Venflora, an alien race of sentient plants.

Hosting a Multi-Player Game

Note:  All players in a multi-player game must have the same BEM version as the
OverSeer.  The version number can be seen on the PLD intro screen.

For technical information on connecting YAKs and playing BEM multi-player, see
the README.SVR file in your Server folder.

First start (double click) the OverSeer object.  It is in the Server folder.
This makes your machine the one that controls the gaming session.  BEM can host
players simultaneously via network/Internet, modem, and direct connect.

     If you have a TCP/IP network or an Internet connection established, any
      number of players can connect to your machine and play BEM.  To allow
      players to connect, start the MultiSession object in the Server folder.
      Enter the port you wish to use; we suggest the default of 5000.  Now
      players can logon using your IP address or host name and port number.
     If you have a modem, start the COM object to let a player connect via
      modem.  You will be asked for the comport of your modem, and the modem
      will switch to answer mode and wait for a call.
     To direct connect with a null-modem cable, start the Direct-Connect
      object. You will be asked for a comport to use.

 Each YAK is now "talking" to the OverSeer.  Each player that connects will be
 playing in the same gaming session controlled by the one OverSeer module.

 Joining a Multi-Player Game

 For technical information on connecting to a multi-player game, see the
 README.CLT file in your Client folder.

     If you are the Host and want to join the game:

        -  Start the "Local Player" object in the Server folder.  You are now
           playing BEM!

     To connect from another machine:

        -  Open the Client folder.  It contains three objects for different
           kinds of connections.  Start either Direct-Connect (for connecting
           with a null-modem cable), COM (for connecting with a modem), or
           Internet/TCPIP.  After answering a couple of queries, the PLD will
           start and you will be playing BEM!


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5. How BEM Works (Advanced Topic) ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

BEM is comprised of three applications: BEM Player Display Module (pld.exe) and
BEM OverSeer (oseer.exe) by Grinning Lizard, and YAK (rhino.exe) by Rhintek,
Inc.

The player display module (PLD) is a graphical window to the world.  Every
player must have a PLD.  The PLD is told what to display by the OverSeer.

When the PLD and OverSeer are on the same machine they automatically connect
together.  This occurs in the single-player mode and when a host uses a Local
Player.

When the PLD and OverSeer are on different machines, they communicate using
YAK.  A YAK is required on each machine, although a  Internet/TCPIP YAK can
talk to many machines at the same time.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 6. Basic Play ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Playing BEM is simple.  At its most basic the control scheme consists of moving
and firing:

Left click and your alter ego will find his way to where you clicked.

Right click to open fire.  Dragging lets you strafe the enemy!

Teleporters take you to different rooms, where you may (or may not) find things
to shoot at.

For a more detailed description of what all the other crazy pictures do, see
the "Play Guide".


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7. Play Guide ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This is a comprehensive reference to the utilitarian aspects of all the crazy
pictures.

The Guide covers controls at the bottom of the screen, as well as objects and
structures on (in?) the playing screen itself.

BASIC CONTROL

Left click where you want to go, and your alter-ego will find its way there, if
it can.  Right-click, or right-drag to fire or strafe.  All weapons in BEM are
fully automatic, so knock yourself out.

Controls are left-clicked to use/activate.  See the individual control
descriptions for more info.

If you die, press space bar to restart.

HOT KEYS

There are two layouts for the hotkeys.  The "full keyboard" layout mimics the
placement of the controls on the screen, making it easy to remember where the
hotkeys are.  The "half keyboard" layout is not as intuitive, but is easier to
quickly use with one hand.

Full Keyboard

     A  Pick Up
     Z  Drop

            Bottom Row of Keyboard

     X  Communication
     C  Force Shield
     V  Med Kit
     N  Bullet
     M  Atomic Blaster
     ,  Ricochet Bullets
     .  Rocket Launcher
     /  Lobber

 Half Keyboard

    Top Row of Keyboard

     Q or Y  Pick Up
     A or H  Drop

            Middle Row of Keyboard

     S or J  Communication
     D or K  Force Shield
     F or L  Med Kit

            Bottom Row of Keyboard

     Z or N  Bullet
     X or M  Atomic Blaster
     C or ,  Ricochet Bullets
     V or .  Rocket Launcher
     B or /  Lobber


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7.1. Firepower ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Weapons in BEM are a versatile machines.  Once the Terran-Alien war started,
both sides modified their weapons to use all types of ammo.  So don't hesitate
to grab all the ammo from your enemy's smoking remains.

Ammo icons are in the lower right part of the screen.  There are five ammo
icons, which are either enabled (green) or disabled (blue).

BRIGHT GREEN  You have that type of ammo and can use it.  The green bar on the
left of the control indicates rounds remaining.

DARK BLUE  You are out of that kind of ammo.  Find some more.  Run.

RED BACKGROUND  The ammo currently in use.  Left click an ammo icon to select
it. As an ammo type is consumed, the next ammo to the right will automatically
be selected.

Bullets

The basic all-purpose rapid fire ammo.  Does moderate damage, has miserable
accuracy, but an incredible rate of fire.

Atomic Blaster

Alien technology.  Moderate rate of fire, but does more damage than bullets and
is fairly accurate.

Ricochet Bullets

Rapid fire ammo.  Somewhat more accurate than bullets, but does much less
damage.  Has the unique property that it will bounce off most surfaces.  Be
careful not to shoot yourself.

Rockets

Low rate of fire.  Moderate accuracy.  Delivers a large amount of damage over a
moderate area. Heh heh.  Cool.

Lobber

The unholy hand grenade of the Terran-Alien war.  Mortar shell meets tactical
nuke. Lobbers have about a two second travel time.  You don't want your alter
ego anywhere near ground zero when they hit.  Be warned:  It is very easy to
accidently fire a lobber into a nearby pillar, wall, or whatever.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7.2. Map ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

The map is located in the lower right part of the screen.  Rooms are
represented by small squares which are color-coded as follows:

     Blue - A room exists at this map location.  None of your teammates are
      present.  Enemy presence unknown.

     Gray - A SafeZone exists at this map location.  None of your teammates
      are present.  Enemy presence unknown.

     Green - Teammate at this location.  No enemy or horde presence.

     Dark Red - Teammate at this location.  Horde units also present (HUVER
      and plants).

     Red - Teammate at this location.  Enemy units also present.

     White border - Your location.

 Note:  You are only given color coding for rooms that your team members are
 in.  If none of your team members are in a room it is displayed in blue.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7.3. Hit Point ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Hit Point Indicators

The hit point indicators are at the bottom center of the screen.  The green
triangles will shrink towards the center, turning yellow then red.  When they
disapper, your alter-ego has died.  Press space bar to restart.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7.4. Nifty Items ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

There are nifty items in BEM to make your game just that more interesting.
Left-click on an item to use it.

Force Shield

The force shield will protect you for a short length of time from just about
anything. When you left-click the force shield, a bar will appear in the
control representing time remaining until the shield turns off.  As the shield
takes damage, it will turn yellow, then red, then be destroyed.  It really does
the trick in a tight spot.

Med Kit

The med kit restores - instantly - some lost hit points.

Zirkons

This control shows how many Zirkons you are carrying.  They cannot be used, but
they may be dropped.  Zirkons are used in contests (see Contest button on the
OverSeer). When you are carrying Zirkons a bullet appears in your halo.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7.5. Pick up and Drop ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Pick Up

When highlighted (green) click this control to pick up whatever you are
standing on.  You will pick up everything you can, up to your inventory
maximums.

Drop

This control is versatile, but a little bizarre.  So read carefully.

Left-click to drop one-half of your currently selected ammo.  This is to allow
you a quick way to drop ammo to a team mate in a fight.

Right-click and drag from any item or weapon CONTROL to the Drop control, to
drop either:

     One-half of your rounds if you are dropping ammo.
     One item if you are dropping a Med Kit, Force Shield, or Zirkon.

 A special drag and drop cursor will appear.  Takes a bit of practice, but very
 handy.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7.6. Communication ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Clicking this icon brings up the CommHQ dialog which allows you to communicate
with other players and/or setup your communication hot keys. You may store ten
hot key messages.  When the Player Display has focus, press a number key to
send the corresponding message.

     Message Log - displays all the messages that you have sent or received

     Outgoing Message to: <Target> - Type the message you would like to send
      in this field.  <Target> describes who will receive the message.

     Target Value Set - Eight colored icons used to select the message
      recipient. As you select different icons the <Target> text field above
      will change.  If you select Lifeform as the recipient, the particular
      Lifeform is selected by the drop box below.

     Hot Keys - You may store ten messages.  To store the current Outgoing
      Message and recipient, select a storage slot, then press Store. To view
      the contents of a slot, select a storage slot, then press Recall.

     Send - Sends the current outgoing message.

     Send and Close - Sends the current outgoing message and close the CommHQ
      box.

     Close - Closes the box without sending the message.

     Help - Brings up this manual.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7.7. Teleporters ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Teleporters take you from one room to another.  They're much more high-tech
than regular old doors, and have the added benefit of protecting the rest of
the space station if some idiot blows a hole in the wall and empties a room to
vacuum.

The Grizbork Teleporter Door-O-Matic is proudly manufactured by the Grizbork
corporation, using the latest in neutron teleportation technology.  It looks
like a floor tile with a big arrow on it that indicate the direction you will
be sent. The floor is flanked by two teleporter rods.  In its "normal", or
quiescent, state the rods have three purple neutron concentrators.

It is with great pride that the Grizbork coorporation can say the teleporters
will work at any time.  However, neutron effects may have strange results on
individuals in their immediate vicinity after a teleporter has been activated.

Before use, a quiescent rod appears as After a being uses the teleporters, the
neutron concentrators will turn green, While green, the neutron fields render
anyone standing in the door completely invulnerable, but likewise unable to
fire any weapons.  In time, the concentrators will experience a neutron
backlash While black, they offer no protection and will not turn green if the
door is walked through. After a short amount of time, the black concentrators
will return to their normal state.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7.8. Safe Zones ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Safe Zones are special rooms in the world where firing is not allowed.  They
are grey on the map.

Home Rooms You start the game (or come back to life) in your home room.  If
Resupply is on, this is where ammo is teleported in.  This is where you must
bring Zirkons to win a contest.  Everyone is safe in either home room, with one
important exception:  Zirkons, whether carried or on the floor, allow anybody
to fire.  This prevents stalemates or hording Zirkons with impunity.

Bars, Cantinas, and Mess Halls No firing is allowed in these common areas.  You
may not take flags into any of these areas.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7.9. BEM Bestiary ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

HUVER (Horde)

The HUVER (Hovering Utility Vehicle for Extraneous Removal) is an invulnerable
robot that floats around the world picking up extra ammo and objects that
litter the world.

Venflora (Horde)

A menace to both the Terrans and Aliens.  Venflora start out as harmless pods,
but soon after transform into dangerous killers.  They are, however, barely
sentient and are easily outwitted.  Beware the greenhouse, the breeding ground
of the Venflora.

Rhinosaur (Terran)

A Terran special forces unit.  Player character only.

Warrior BEM (Alien)

BEM squad leader and elite alien troop.  Player character only.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 8. Game Setup ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This section describes setting up and selecting a game, as well as starting a
contest for a game in progress.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 8.1. BEM Game Selection ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

The Game Selection dialog appears when you run the OverSeer or start a
single-player game.

Scenario and Description The list box shows the available scenarios; each
scenario is a different world, conflict, or situation.  Text describing the
scenario appears in the Description box below.

Options

     Player Chooses Team
        Check this box to let each player choose which team (Terran or Alien)
        to fight for.  If not checked, the OverSeer will assign teams evenly.

     HUVER
        Check this box to activate the HUVER, an indestructible robot which
        will vacuum excess ammo.  Without the HUVER, long running games
        sometimes begin to look like a junkyard of ammo.

     Resupply
        If ammo is running low in the world and this box is checked, ammunition
        and supplies will be teleported into the teams' starting rooms.
        Without this option, the game can run completely out of ammo.

     Max Plants
        This controls the Venflora population.  Every scenario has a default
        number, which is set with two players in mind.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 8.2. Contest ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

The Contest button on the OverSeer window starts a "search and retrieval" game,
which is a capture the flag competition.  The specified number of Zirkons must
be gathered and returned to your team's home room.  The game runs until a team
wins.  Victory will be displayed on everyone's Player Display.

When you click the Contest button a dialog appears, allowing you to specify
total Zirkons in the world and how many a team must collect to win.  Every
scenario has evenly distributed default Zirkon locations.  For a change of
pace, you can select Randomize instead of the default.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 8.3. Repair ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

When the game world resembles a charred and smoking ruin, this button instantly
restores the world to its original pristine state.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 9. Credits ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Overall Game Design and Technical Direction - Lee Thomason

Game Design - Lee Thomason, Bill Herrington

Programming - Lee Thomason, Bill Herrington

Additional Programming - David Mearns, Chris Fury, Donald Sharp, Steve Dunn,
Kristin McCown

Rendering and Animation - Lee Thomason

Room Graphics - Lee Thomason

Concept Sketches - Mike Fisher, Lee Thomason, Bill Herrington

Install Program and Workplace Shell Objects - Kristin McCown

Sound - Lee Thomason

Font - Bill Herrington

Desktop Graphics - Kristin McCown, Tim VanVranken, Lee Thomason, Bill
Herrington

Manual - Lee Thomason, Bill Herrington

Testers - Thanks to everybody at Rhintek, Inc.; our beta testers; and the CBUG
OS/2 SIG.

World Design:

     Space Station Zulu
        Lee Thomason, Bill Herrington, Kristin McCown


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 10. Copyright ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

BEM: It Crawled from the Net is copyright 1994-1996 Grinning Lizard Software,
Blacksburg, VA.  All rights reserved.

          Grinning Lizard Software
          PO Box 118
          Blacksburg, VA  24063-0118
          [e-mail]
          http://www.nrvcom.com/business/grinliz

     YAK is copyright 1994-1996 Rhintek Incorporated, Columbia, MD.  All rights
     reserved.

          Rhintek Incorporated
          8835 Columbia 100 Parkway
          Columbia, MD 21045
          Phone [phone]
          FAX  [phone]