Jason Aller Floppy Collection/164.img/EDGE-DOX.ZIP/CIRCUIT.DOC

Text File | 1990-05-05 | 26KB | 605 lines

Ok   folks...This   game  is  based  on  the  books  by  George  Alec  Effinger.
It is a lot like Neuromancer...but MUCH easier to play and more enjoyable.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

INTRODUCTION
------------

In CIRCUIT'S EDGE, you assume the role of Marid Audran, a  private  investigator
living  in  a  future ghetto called the Budayeen.  You will be called upon to us
your deductive powers - and your moddies and daddies  -  to  solve  the  various
mysteries in the game.


USING THE MENUS
---------------

To  use  any  of the menus along the top of the screen, type the first letter of
the menu entry.  To select an option from a menu, type the  appropriate  number.
You  can  also call up menus and move through them using the numeric keypad or a
mouse.  Press ENTER or the mouse button to select an option.


EXPLORING THE BUDAYEEN
----------------------

Once you're in Marid's apartment, you'll soon receive a phone call.  Type  T  to
listen  to  the  phone  call.   When the word MORE appears at the bottom of the
text screen, press any key to continue the conversation.

Now type E to exit the apartment.  In the lower right corner of the screen is  a
small  overhead  view  of  the  Budayeen,  with  an  arrow  showing your current
location.  Use the arrow keys or the 2, 4, 6, and 8 keys on the  numeric  keypad
to move around.

Explore  the  Budayeen  until you know your way around and feel comfortable with
the menus.  Then restart the game and start your investigations.


SCREENS AND MAPS
----------------

There are two main screen layouts in CIRCUIT'S EDGE.  The  first  is  used  when
you're  inside  establishments  and  when you're moving around the Budayeen, and
the second  is  used  during  fights.   The  fight  screen  is  explained  under
"Fighting."

1.   MENU  BAR:   You  can  make  a  menu  appear by typing its first letter, by
     highlighting your choice with the arrow keys or numeric key  pad  keys  or
     by  clicking  on  it with the mouse.  Options under each menu are chosen by
     typing the number and/or letter, by highlighting it and pressing ENTER,  or
     by clicking on it with the mouse.

2.   CHIP  SOCKETS:   They's  one  moddy  (personality module) socket, which is
     larger than three daddy (add-on chip) sockets.  You can have a maximum  of
     one moddy and three daddies plugged in at one time.

3.   TIME:   If  the  "Chronos  2000"  daddy is chipped in, the current time is
     displayed.

4.   BIO-SCANNER MONITOR:   If  the  "Bio-Scanner"  daddy  is  chipped  in,  the
     function monitors indicate Marid's general state of health.

5.   CHARACTER  WINDOW:   Marid's  face normally appears in this window, unless
     he's interacting with another character, whose face then appears.

6.   LOCATION WINDOW:  Inside an establishment, the window  shows  the  interior
     and  the  name of the place.  The scene may be scanned by using LOOK or the
     arrow keys (or numeric keypad).  Outside,  in  the  Budayeen,  the  window
     shows a three-dimensional view of the area ahead of you.

7.   TEXT  WINDOW:  Conversations, descriptions of people and places, and other
     information  appear in this window.  If the word MORE appears  at  the word
     MORE appears at the bottom of the window,  it  means  there  is  additional
     text  to  come;  press  any  key  to  continue  the text.  Note that you'll
     sometimes have to make a "yes/no" decision based on your actions.

8.   MAP WINDOW:  When you're on the streets  of  the  Budayeen,  you'll  see  a
     small  overhead  map  of  the  area  around  you.  The arrow indicates your
     position and the direction in which  you're  heading.   You  can  access  a
     full-screen display of the Budayeen map by selecting the Map menu.


MENUS
-----

You  perform  most  actions during the game by using the menu bars along the top
of the screen.  To open a menu, type the first letter of the menu or select  the
menu with the numeric keypad or the mouse.

Most  menus  have  sub-menus,  which have numbered options.  To choose an option
from a sub-menu, either type the number, or select it with  the  mouse  or  with
the  arrow  keys, then press ENTER or the spacebar.  Occasionally, there will be
a third sub-menu that offers additional choices.

You can close a menu by typing 0 or selecting CANCEL, by  pressing  ESC,  or  by
opening another menu from the main menu bar.

GAME  This menu contains play controls and game options (see "Game Options").

TALK   The  names  of  characters you can talk  to,  inside  establishments  and
       out,  appear  when  you  open  this  menu.   You  engage in a
       converstion with a character by selecting his or her name.

INVENTORY  Objects you carry can be manipulated with this menu.

ACTION  Lets you  perform  such  actions  as  fighting,  sleeping,  and  getting
        objects with the menu.

MAP  Shows a full-screen display of the Budayeen map.

EXIT  You leave an establishment by selecting this.


MOVEMENT
--------

You  move  around  the streets of the Budayeen using the arrow keys (or keypad).
You have your choice of using relative  or  absolute  arrows  when  moving  (see
"Game  Options"  for  more  details).   You can also move around with a mouse by
clicking on either the Location or Map Window.

When you move into a space adjacent to the entrance of an establishment  and are
facing  the  entrance, the location's name will appear in the text window.  When
you move one more space in the same direction, you'll be prompted to  enter  the
establishment.   To  exit  an  establishment,  type  E (exit) or select the Exit
menu.  Not that the Map Window is blank when you're inside an establishment.

You can exit the Budayeen by moving through the East Gates, where Bill the  taxi
driver  will  be  waiting to take you to your destination.  Use the Talk menu to
tell Bill where you want to go.  Exiting  the  Budayeen  through  the East Gates
takes you into the cemetery.

NOTE:   Menus change to reflect your situation-be sure to check them when you're
        unsure what to do.


ACTIONS
-------

LOOKING AROUND

When you enter an establishment or talk with a  character,  you'll  be  given  a
description  of  that  place or character.  You can set these descriptions up to
be brief or more detailed-see "Game Options" for more details.

Inside an establishment, you can select the Look  menu  to  examine  a  location
more  thoroughly.   You'll  discover  important  clues  and  objects  by looking
around.  Note:  You may want to look around a place more than once to make  sure
you didn't miss something important.

You  can  look  at  objects  in  you  inventory  by  opening the Inventory menu,
selecting an object, and then choosing LOOK AT IT.


TALKING WITH CHARACTERS

You can engage in conversation with characters both  in  establishments  and  on
the  street.  When  you  select  the  Talk  menu, a list of available characters
appears.  When you select a character to talk to, his or  her  description  will
appear.  Then you're given options of things to say to the character.

You  can  also  ask  characters  about  specific  things using the TALK ABOUT...
option.  A message will appear in the text window,  requesting  that  you  enter
what  you  want  to  ask  about.   Type  in  the name of whatever it is you want
information on.  If you make a mistake, use the backspace key (<-)  to  back  up
and erase it.

When you  wish  to  end a conversation, select the END THIS CONVERSATION option.
You can then start a conversation with another person.


INTERACTING WITH CHARACTERS
---------------------------

Some characters will have  objects  you  can  buy.   If  the  I'D  LIKE  TO  BUY
SOMETHING  option  appears  on  the  Talk  menu, that character has something to
sell.  Selecting this option shows a list of goods and their casts in kiam  (the
monetary  unit  of the Budayeen).  Select the object you want to buy; the cot is
automatically subtracted from the cash you carry.  You can  also  buy  something
using the BUY ITEM option on the Action menu.

You  can  also  give objects to characters.  From the inventory menu, select the
object you want to give.  A sub-menu will appear.  Select GIVE  IT  to  transfer
the  object  to  the  character.  You'll be asked if you really want to give the
object away.  Note that you can use this option to  give  money  to  characters;
select  KIAM and then type in the amount when prompted.  When using this option,
be very careful not give a character the wrong object.

Some characters will be willing to buy objects  from  you.   Select  the  object
form  the  Inventory  menu  and  then  SELL IT from the sub-menu, if this option
appears.  If the character is willing to buy  the  object,  it  disappears  from
your inventory and your kiam are increased.

NOTE:  You can sell an item only when conversing with a character.


FIGHTING
--------

You'll  sometimes  be  forced to fight another character, whether you want to or
not.  You can also decide to attack someone by selecting the FIGHT  option  from
the  Action  menu;  choose  the  person  you  want  to  fight  when  the list of
characters appears.

The fight screen differs from the normal display screen:

1.  MENU BAR:  The menu bar is inactive until the combat is resolved.

2.  CHIP SOCKETS:  You cannot chip moddies and daddies in or out during a fight.

3.  TIME:  If the "Chronos 2000" daddy chip is in, the  current  time  continues
    to be displayed.

4.  BIO-SCANNER  MONITORS:   If  the  "Bio-Scanner"  daddy  is  chipped in, the
    function monitors will be reduced as Marid takes damage during  the  fight.
    The  screen  will  turn  red for a moment when Marid is hit by his opponent
    and damage is ten recorded on the monitors.

5.  CHARACTER WINDOW:  The character who  is  fighting  Marid  appears  in  this
    window.

6.  OPPONENT'S HEALTH BAR:  The vertical bar next to the Character Window shows
    the  opponent's  health  level.   It  will  continue  to drop as Marid does
    damage to the person.  When the  bar  reaches  the  bottom,  the  character
    falls dead and the fight is over.

7.  ATTACK  SELECTION WINDOW:  This window shows the weapon you're using in the
    fight and the attack options for the weapon.

8.  TEXT WINDOW:  The course of the fight is described here.

9.  MAP WINDOW:  This window does not change during a fight.

To make an attack on your opponent, select one of  the  options  in  the  Attack
Selection  Window.   if  you  wish to use a weapon other than your hands, select
the weapon's box or type the letter appearing under the box.   The  weapon  will
appear  in  Marid's  hand and the options for attacking with that weapon will be
shown.  If discretion seems part of valor, you can try to end the fight (if  you
started it) or run away (if you were jumped.)

A  moddy  or  daddy  may  enhance  your  combat ability, if it is chipped in and
you're holding an appropriate weapon.  Ex., and "Outlaw"  daddy  increases  your
skill with a firearm, but does nothing if you're wielding a knife.

Damage  you  take  is shown on the Bio-Scanner Monitors (see "Health,").  Damage
to an opponent is shown on the vertical health bar next to his or  her  picture.
You'll be warned if your life functions begin to fall too low.


OBJECTS
-------

The  Inventory lists the objects you're carrying.  You can carry a maximum of 10
objects plus your kiam at any time.  For safekeeping, you can drop off objects
at
your apartment.


CHIPS
-----

Selecting  CHIP RACK  from the inventory menu brings up a sub-menu of things you
can do with your chips.  Selecting one of these options  brings  up  a  list  of
your  chips.   Moddies are noted by M and daddies by D.  The list also indicates
which chips are currently plugged in.  When a chip is  in,  it  appears  in  one
of the chip  sockets.   You  can  have  one moddy (personality module) and up to
three daddies (information add-ons) chipped in at one time.

To pop a chip in or out, select CHIP RACK and then the CHIP IN/OUT  option.   If
you're  using  a  mouse,  you can click on a chip in its socket to remove it, or
you can click on an empty socket to  bring  up  your  chip  inventory  and  then
select a chip to pop in.

The  Chip  Rack  sub-menu also allows you to USE CHIP SKILL, DROP CHIP, and LOOK
AT CHIP.

Moddies change your personality,  and  daddies  give  you  temporary  knowledge.
When a chip is removed, the personality or knowledge disappears.

Chips  will  prove  extremely  useful  throughout  the  game.  Some improve your
combat ability and your health.  some give you special talents  you'll  need  in
ferreting out clues.  Others may prove useless.


GETTING OBJECTS
---------------

You  can  buy  objects  form  characters  by using the I'D LIKE TO BUY SOMETHING
option form the Talk  menu  or  the  BUY  ITEM  option  from  the  Action  menu.
Sometimes,  if  you  look  around  establishments or examine dead bodies, you'll
find other objects to take.  Use the GET ITEM option from  the  Action  menu  to
take objects you find.


MANIPULATING OBJECTS
--------------------

To  use  an  object  in  your possession, open the Inventory menu and select the
object.  A sub-menu will appear.  Select the USE IT option to employ the object.

To examine an object, use the LOOK AT IT option  from  the  inventory  sub-menu.
You can also give an object to another character, drop it, or try to sell it.

If  you're  using  your  belt  phone,  you'll  be asked to enter the eight digit
commcode of the person or establishment you  wish  to  contact.   Commcodes  for
establishments  are  found  in  the "Business Directory or the Budayeen" in  the
back of this guide.  Other numbers will appear during your investigations.


USING AUTOMATIC BANK MACHINES
-----------------------------

To use an automatic bank machine, move to it  as  though  you  were  entering  a
building.   The  location  window  will  change into the bank machine.  You must
have your bank card with you to use the machine, an you'll be asked to  type  in
your  code:  4D424C.   You  can  withdraw  kiam,  deposit kiam, and look at your
balance.  Select END TRANSITION to continue play.


HEALTH
------

Life in the Budayeen is harsh, so you should try to stay in good health. If you
chip  in  the  Bio-Scanner daddy, you'll see six function monitors appear on the
right side of your  screen:   Life,  Strength  (STR),  Stamina  (STAM),  Agility
(AGIL),  Rest,  and Food.  You start the game with all monitors at 100%.  As you
suffer damage in fights or otherwise overexert yourself, your monitors go  below
100%   You  can  improve  your  health  by  eating  and  sleeping and by getting
treatments at the medical center.  Some moddies  and  daddies  may  improve your
health functions, while you have them chipped in.

Since  all the real excitement in the Budayeen takes place late at night, you'll
be accustomed to operating in the  wee  hours.   Still,  you  will  need  sleep.
Otherwise,  you  may  overlook some important clues.  Selecting the SLEEP option
from the Action menu allows you to get some rest-the more you sleep, the  better
you'll feel  the next time you wake.  You'll be asked how many hours you wish to
sleep.  You have to be in Marid's apartment to use this option.

You will also get hungry.  There are a number of  restaurants  in  the  Budayeen
where you can buy food.


GAMBLING
--------

There  are  two  forms  of  gambling  allowed  in  the  Budayeen:   roulette and
baccarat.  You can ask the owner to play one of these games at a gambling den.


ROULETTE

You select a 1, 5, or 10 kiam chip to place directly on the board or on  one  of
the  side  boxes.   You  can place up to five chips as one bet. Select a chip by
typing the letter under the value (W, R, or Y) or  by  clicking  on  it  with  a
mouse.   Move the chip to the board or side box, by using the numeric keypad or
dragging it with the mouse.  Select PLAY ROUND or  type  P  to  play.   You  can
cancel the  last  chip  you  played by selecting CANCEL BET or typing C; you can
cancel as many bets as you have on the board this  way.   To  leave  the  game,
select QUIT/EXIT or type Q.

When  you  play  a  round,  the  flashing box indicates where the ball is on the
"wheel."  The winning number flashes on the wheel and  is  shown  in  the  upper
right-hand box.


BACCARAT

This  game  is  similar  to  "Black  Jack"  and "Twenty-One," except that you're
trying to get as close to 9 as possible.  You make bets of  25  kiam  increments
either  to  win  or  to  tie.   Select  WIN or type W to win or TIE or T to tie.
Select CANCEL BET or type C to withdraw your last bet.

Select PLAY ROUND or type P to play.  You'll be  dealt  two  cards  (the  bottom
row);  the  top  row is the house's hand.  Ten-spots and face cards count for 0.
The values of the two cards are added together;  if the sum is 10  or  more,  10
is  subtracted  from  it; and the result is shown int he boxes next to he cards.
You can draw another card by selecting DRAW 'CARTE' or  typing  D,  or  you  can
stand  pat  by  selecting  STAND  'NON'  or  typing S.  An 8 or a 9 is a natural
winner.  If you and the house tie, neither side wins or loses money (unless  you
selected TIE, in which case you win).


GAME OPTIONS
------------

Select  GAME  or  type  G to bring up the Game menu.  The selections on the menu
have the following effects:

GAME OPTIONS  Selecting this option brings up a sub-menu.  When  you  select  an
option  from  the  sub-menu,  you'll usually be asked to confirm your selection.
The sub-menu options are:

SAME GAME  You can save your current position int  eh  game  with  this  option.
However, you  must  be in Marid's apartment to same the game.  You can have only
one game position save at a time.

PAUSE GAME  This option puts the game on hold.  To resume the  game,  press  any
key.

LOAD  GAME   Use  this  option to return to a saved game.  You must be somewhere
inside the Budayeen to restart the game.

QUIT THE GAME  Use this option to exit play.  Make sure you select SAVE GAME  if
you  want  to keep your current position before you quit (you must be in Marid's
apartment to save a game).

BRIEF MODE  This mode is set to "off" when you  begin  play,  which  means  that
whenever  you  encounter  a  character or enter an establishment, you'll get the
full description of that person or place.  Turn Brief mode "on" if you  wish  to
have the  description  appear  only  the  FIRST time you enter a place or meet a
person.

ARROWS  The game begins  with  the  arrow  keys  (on  the  numeric  keypad)  set
relative.  Make  sure  you  have  NumLock OFF.  You can change the arrow keys to
absolute by selecting this option.  The relative and absolute settings  for  the
keypad operate as follows:

NUMERIC             RELATIVE            ABSOLUTE
KEYPAD              ARROWS

6 (--»)             Turn right 90°      Face east, move east
4 («--)             Turn left 90°       Face west, move west
8 (up)              Move ahead          Face north, move north
2 (down)            Reverse direction   Face south, move south

SOUND  Use this option to toggle the sound on and off.

MUSIC   Use  this option to toggle the music on and off.  It appears only if you
have a Roland or AdLib sound card.

RECALL EVENTS  Use this option when you want to recall  important  conversations
and  observations.   You  can  continue  back  through  events  by  pressing the
spacebar.  You may recall up to 50 events.  Pressing  ENTER  or  any  other  key
after an event is fully described cancels this option.


                            A GUIDE TO THE BUDAYEEN
                            -----------------------



<<Ok...this  is  the  description of different people in the game...however,>>
<<I'm not going to type this, because it is of no value to the game, the>>
<<descriptions of the people are given to you when you meet them.>>


                   A GLOSSARY OF SLANG AND COMMON EXPRESSIONS
                   ------------------------------------------



<<Again, it would be a waste of tyme for me to type this and you to read it,>>
<<so I'm NOT going to type it.  (mmm...kinda lazy huh?heh)  All it is just>>
<<some of the Arabic phrases.>>


                       BUSINESS DIRECTORY TO THE BUDAYEEN
                       ----------------------------------

This is VERY important!  Ok...the streets  are  labeled  from  right  to  left
starting  with  the farthest right-hand street as 1st Street, then 2nd Street,
etc.  Also...the bottom is the South end, the top is the North  end.   The  main
street  (the  wide  one  in  the very middle) is called The Street.  In the very
back (either north or south end) there are small little  streets,  called  ALLEY
(these  are  along  the  wall  on  the  top  and  bottom  and run horizontally).
The streets are like this.



 ================================================================
 |   ALLEY                  ALLEY                     ALLEY     |
 |                                      etc.                    |
 |  16th N.  15th N. 14th N. 13th N. ........... 2nd N. 1st N.  |
 G                                                              G
 A      STREET           STREET                     STREET      A
 T                                                              T
 E  16th S.  15th S. 14th S. 13th S. ........... 2nd S. 1st S.  E
 |                                      etc.                    |
 |             ALLEY                                  ALLEY     |
 ================================================================



<<Here is the list of shops and their addresses.>>

AAA Secured Loans, 1011 STREET..............555GFX67
Abu Salah's Rug Shop, 715 STREET............014LBT52
Ad-Dur House, 576 S. Alley..................505QNK52

Big Al's Old Chicago, 516 STREET............653GNE65
The Blue Parrot, 214 STREET.................441GOE61
Bougainvillea Apartments, 402 S. 1st Street.441GOH63
budayeen Hotel, 963 STREET..................670TRX60

Cafe de la Fee Blanche, 277 N. 9th Street...772XGW62
Cafe Solance, 202 S. 12th Street............772XGF68
Chiriga's, 821 STREET.......................745KBZ69
Cold Tea, 323 S. 11th Street................718WGG67
Crazy Abdul's, 666 S. Alley.................747SRG68

Data Security Systems, 356 N. 3rd Street....876TGF69
Double Wisdom Acupuncture, 1467 STREET......817UEX57

Electroniques, 422 S. 5th Street............981VMK60
Elegant Rooms, 224 S. Alley.................981ZTG52
The Eyes of Texas, 474 N. 1st Street........441GRR65

Five Pillars Apartments, 384 N. 12th Street.441GSB51
Franco's Tattoo Parlor, 1286 S. Alley.......476MHH50
Frenchy's Nightclub, 956 STREET.............041GVA69
Friendly's Pawn Shop, 1522 STREET...........045XGW51

The Gambling Den, 426 S. 5th Street.........441GTT68
Grey House Apartments, 462 N. 8th Street....441GTK61
Han Lon's House of Holograms, 215 N. 6th St.270GYH59
Hassan's Tourist Paradise, 725 STREET.......275LTG65
Heavenly Frangrances, 417 S. 9th Street.....217OXG51
Hologames and More, 167 S. 13th Street......218HZT61
Hotel del Palazzo 29356 Boulevard il Jameel.996HDP48
Houri's, 325 N. 16th Street.................217KBL52
House of Snakes, 929 STREET.................217LXG62

Iku Iku Bath House, 230 S. 14th Street......377GVD62

Jewels of Morocco, 368 N. 1st Street........419XEL51
Jo-Mama's, 521 N. 3rd Street................415ZTF69

Kiyoshi's, 111 S. 14th Street...............551HLA69

Laila's Mod Shop, 424 S. 3rd Street.........675ETN62
Leather Goddesses, 208 S. 1st Street........617MAX52

Madame Mimi's Tarot Den, 1156 STREET........474HMG51
Maq-allah's Newstand, 818 STREET............773NTE57
Martyrs of Democracy, 282 N. 13th Street....774MRK62
Medical Clinic, 271 STREET..................710BVT52
The Medinah Apartments, 176 S. 16th Street..441GZX55
Meloul's, 127 STREET........................718HNE65
Morgue, 57 STREET...........................715ZNX52
Muhammad's Glass, 529 N. 12th Street........774TFF60
Mustafa's Pawn Shop, 258 S. 1st Street......775MTY69

Neural Warez, 1421 Street...................817KTE57
New Orleans soul and Fast Food Franchise,
532 STREET..................................869UFU56

Police Station, 7799 Walid al-Akbar Street..911COP58

The Red Light Lounge, 422 N. 7th Street.....441GEX52

The Sahara Apartments, 577 S. 7th Street....441GFT57
Sahtayn's, 369 S. 3rd Street................374MTR55
Salah ad-Din Apartments, 400 S. 13th Street.378TAG60
The Scarlet Orchid, 461 N. 10th Street......441GFV64
The Sea-Ray Hotel, 124 STREET...............441GFX65
Sensory Deprivation, 234 N. 4th Street......310LHK62
Shimaal Mosque, 21006 Boulevard il Jameel...243DGE47
Shoukri's Adult Video Holos, 34 S. 12th St..507EMG55
The Silver Palm, 509 STREET.................441GFB58
The Smoke Shop, 516 N. 11th Street..........441GFF67

Tab, Caps & Pills, 1221 STREET..............478LSG67
Transpex Games, 333 S. 4th STREET...........447GLI60

Vast Food, 277 N. 2nd Street................675MGS61

----------------------------------------------------

<<These are little notes you'll need>>

Seipolt             110NPR56 X
Hassan The Shiite   483FJL62
Mahmoud             017JBL60
Black Widows        292KVM48 XXX
Lt. Okking          396ACE58
Abdulaye            742DST67 X

*** New Bank #          4D424C *** (your money card #)


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ok...that does it for the docs to CIRCUIT'S EDGE.




     Toxic shadoW