Merciful 3/Merciful_Release_3.bin/software/m/motorduelv1.1.dms/motorduelv1.1.adf/Motor_Duel.doc

Text File | 1996-03-02 | 12KB | 290 lines

                          ----- Motor Duel -----

            Programming by David Jameson
                    Music by Mark Gowdy

                Version 1.1

                        Copyright (c) David Jameson
                All Rights Reserved



This game may be freely distributed provided that no changes are made
to the game or the documentation.


Contents:

 1 - Introduction
 2 - Loading
 3 - Starting The Game
 4 - Driving The Car
 5 - Weapons
 6 - Null Modem Connection
 7 - Modem Connection
 8 - Hints and Tips
 9 - Credits
10 - History

Appendix I - Creating a Null Modem Cable



1.  Introduction:

Motor Duel is a 3d driving game for either one or two players, in which
the object is to completely destroy the opponent's car.  Simple but fun!
Weapons available are a machine gun (with limited ammo), radar guided
missiles, and, in the two player game, a set of ram-plates (handy for
ramming into the other person's car at 100mph!)  The two player game can
be played by using a null-modem cable.


2. Loading:

Simply type "Motor_Duel_PAL" or "Motor_Duel_NTSC" from a shell, or double
click on the icon from workbench (the PAL version for European/Australian
machines and the NTSC for the rest of the world).  The game can be
installed on a hard drive by simply dragging the Motor_Duel drawer.

If you're running on an AGA machine, ensure that mode promotion is
switched off (in prefs/IControl).


3. Starting The Game:

After loading you will be prompted for your name.  After typing in your
name you will be presented with the main menu.  From here you can change
the current track number (1 is the easiest for the one player game
and 4 is the hardest), change the two player options, or start a one or
two player game.

If you choose to start a one player game you will play against a computer
controlled car.  The computer car cannot fire at you (handy, eh?), but
there is a time limit of 3 minutes for you to destroy it, otherwise it
will automatically win the game.

In a two player game you play against another person on a different
machine by using a null-modem serial link.  There is no time limit on
the two player game -- the winner is simply the player who destroys
the other car first.  One option available in the two player game but
not in the one player game is ram-plates.  These can be switched on
from the "two player options" menu, and they have the effect of damaging
your opponent's car when you collide.


4. Driving The Car:

The game is played using the joystick -- left and right turn left and
right, forward and back accelerate and decelerate the car and *FIRE* fires
your gun.  The only other controls are SPACE to fire a missile and
ESCAPE to quit from a game.

The dashboard at the bottom of the screen displays the following
information :

* At the left hand side is your speed in mph (with a minus sign if you are
  going backwards).

* In the middle are two gauges showing how much ammo your gun has left and
  how many missiles you have.

* Your armour and your opponent's armour are displayed at the right hand
  side -- yours in red and his in blue.

The car is also equipped with a radar which tracks the enemy car and
shows its position on the screen.  If your opponent is in front of you then
a green targetting box will be displayed showing where he is, otherwise an
arrow will be displayed telling you to either go left or right.  When one
of your missiles is locked on to the enemy car, a diamond will light up
inside the green targetting box.

The maximum speed is 100mph either backwards(!) or forwards.  When you
steer, the wheels turn gradually in the direction you want to turn i.e. to
do a hard turn you need to keep pushing the joystick in one direction.
The wheels will gradually straighten when you stop pushing the joystick
sideways, so a slow turn rate can be achieved by alternately pushing the
joystick sideways and then letting go again.  Also, when you push the
joystick in the opposite direction to the direction you were steering, the
wheels will immediately straighten, allowing very fast changes in
direction.

If you try to steer too hard the car will begin to skid.  The amount of
skid depends on the speed you are going at and also how hard you are
turning, and generally tends to increase if you keep steering in the same
direction.  A small amount of skid is nothing to worry about but if you
keep skidding your speed is likely to decrease fast.

Crashing into buildings or walls doesn't do your car any damage, but
will decrease your speed.  The outcome of a collision with another car
depends on whether you are playing a one or two player game.  In a one
player game you cannot crash into the computer car but during a two player
game the outcome is the same as crashing into a wall (unless ram-plates
are on, in which case the other player will also lose armour).


5. Weapons:

Your car has two weapons: a very big, powerful gun and also 3 radar
guided missiles.  To fire the gun simply hit the fire button whenever you
have your opponent in your gunsights.  You have a limited amount of ammo,
but there should be enough to keep most people happy.

Missiles do a lot more damage than guns, but you only have 3 of them
so they need to be used wisely.  The missiles automatically lock on to the
enemy car and try to follow it around the course at a speed of 200mph, but
they do have a limited turning circle, which means that they will sometimes
just crash into a wall or building.  There is a proximity fuze built into
the missiles so that they automatically explode when they are within 10
metres of the enemy car.  Each missile has enough fuel to fly for 30
seconds which, although it might sound a bit low, is more than enough to
enable it to fly right around the arena several times, and it is very rare
for a missile to last more than about 10 seconds after being fired.

An important thing to consider when using missiles is that they take
time to "warm up"; for the first 1.5 seconds of flight, the missile
will just fly straight ahead in the direction it was fired and will not
explode even if it goes right past your opponent's car.  This means that
there is an effective minimum distance for missiles.  The diamond shaped
"lock on" indicator will only be displayed if you are outside this
minimum range (and, obviously, only if you have some missiles left to
fire!).  However this indicator is only a guide - a missile can still be
launched when there is no lock and could still hit the enemy car if the
car is travelling away from you.  Similarly, if the enemy car is coming
straight towards you then you will need to be slightly further away
than the minimum distance.  In general, the further away you are from your
enemy, the better chance you have of hitting him, but it also gives him a
chance to try to outmanoeuvre your missile.

Your car has armour on four sides - front, back, left and right.  Each
side has 48 points, one point being taken off by each hit by a gun, 10
points for a missile hit and 15 points if you are hit by the other player
when he has ram-plates.  Except for the missiles, which take armour off all
four sides of the car, armour is only taken off the side of the car which
is hit.


6. Null Modem Connection:

Connect both Amigas using a null modem cable.  For details of how to
make a cable, see Appendix I.

NOTE: make sure both machines are swithced off before connecting the
cable between the machines!

Ensure that both machines are set to the same bitrate (in the two
player options menu).  300000bps is recommended.

After physically connecting the machines, choose "Make connection" from
the two player options menu on both machines.  If all goes well, the
message "connection established" should appear on both screens.  If not,
press ESCAPE and check the cable.

Once the two computers have been successfully connected, the computer
which selected "make connection" first will be in control; any mouse
movements or menu selections made on that machine will also be carried out
on the other machine.  Any options such as track number or ram-plates
will be automatically synchronized on both computers to the settings on
the controlling computer.

Selecting "break connection" from the "two player options" menu will
break the connection between the two machines, reverting to normal control
on both machines.

To actually start a two player game, select "return to main menu" and
then "two player game".  It is possible to start a two player game simply
by choosing this option without first having selected "make connection" --
the two machines will then automatically connect before the game can start.
However, it is better to make the connection before this point so that
both players can see exactly what options are being used in the game.

Pressing ESCAPE during a two player game will quit the game for both
players meaning that nobody wins.

NOTE: If for some reason both machines hang up, it is sometimes possible to
regain control by keeping your finger on the ESCAPE key while selecting
"break connection" from the menu, or (during a game) by simply pressing
ESCAPE a few times.


7. Modem Connection:

It is not possible to play the game using a modem.  When using a modem
(even at 9600bps), the game proved to be so slow as to be unplayable,
so the modem option was removed.


8. Hints and Tips:

1 - In the one player game, try to learn the course driven by each
    computer car.
2 - If the enemy car is travelling fast, it is better to cut him off
    rather than trying to follow at a distance -- your gun is much less
    likely to hit a target which is far away.
3 - Learn to predict the effect skid has on your car so that you can turn
    very sharply at corners.
4 - Hitting walls slows you down.  This can sometimes be an advantage and
    sometimes a disadvantage.  Head on collisions cost more speed than
    glancing collisions.
5 - Use missiles wisely as you only have three of them.


9. Credits:

Design and coding: David Jameson
Music and additional design: Mark Gowdy

Email: [e-mail]
or     [e-mail] (use if the above address doesn't work)
or     [e-mail] (last resort!)

Snail mail:

David Jameson,
14 Glenview Avenue,
Belfast,
BT5 7LZ,
Northern Ireland.


10. History:

1991: Battle Cars released as Freeware.

1992:   New  tracks  &  missiles  added  &  gameplay improved.  Released as
Licenceware in the UK.  Name changed to "Motor Duel".

1996:  Motor Duel re-released as Freeware.  Objects tidied up & NTSC option
added.

What about Battle Cars 2?

Battle Cars 2 was a pre-release version of Motor Duel which was not
meant for distribution (even though it somehow ended up in some PD
libraries).


Appendix I. Making a Null Modem Cable:


If you can use a soldering iron it is possible to make up your own null
modem cable using two female 25-way D-connectors and some wire:

   7  ____________________________________________________  7

   2  _______________________  ___________________________  2
                             \/
   3  _______________________/\___________________________  3

Connect pin 7 to pin 7, pin 2 to pin 3 and pin 3 to pin 2.  Double check
the connections before plugging it in as you could seriously damage your
amiga by connecting a 12V signal directly to ground.
N.B. for an A2000 or A3000, male connectors may be necessary - check your
manual to make sure.

I take no responsibility for any blown up Amigas as a result of (not
properly) following these instructions!