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1995-11-27
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VGA Kix 1.5
By
Edward Mueller
11/28/95
Introduction:
Kix is an arcade style video game for the PC similar to the old Taito
arcade game Qix. Using your stylus, you attempt to draw areas on the
game board without getting caught by the Kix or other opponents. You
complete a level after you have claimed a certain percentage of the
total board. Higher levels have wilder Kix; eventually you must deal
with two Kix! Requires a fast 286 PC or better with VGA.
Features:
- One or two players each having the ability to tailor the game to suit
their preferences.
- Runs in VGA Mode-X (320x240 256 colors).
- Supports music and digitized sound effects on Sound Blaster and Gravis
Ultrasound sound boards.
- Supports keyboard and joystick controls.
Distribution:
This program is FREEWARE and is released into the public domain. It may
be freely distributed so long as the original archive file nor any of its
contents are modified in any way.
Installation:
Create a directory for the program files, e.g.: mkdir c:\games\kix. Using
PKZIP 2.04g, unzip the program files into the directory just created.
Then, type kix to begin. YOUR CURRENT DIRECTORY MUST BE WHERE THE
PROGRAM FILES HAVE BEEN INSTALLED. If all goes well, the main menu will
be displayed which contains information on configuring the program and
setting options.
Configuration:
The game supports one or two players. Each player has a configuration file:
PLAYER1.CFG and PLAYER2.CFG. These files contain options which allow each
player to tailor the game to their particular tastes. The format of the
configuration file is contained in the on-line help accessible from the
main menu. Options can be changed once you select the number of players.
Kix uses the Digital Sound Interface Kit (DSIK) developed by Carlos Hasan.
DSIK supports the Sound Blaster series of sound boards along with 100%
compatibles and the Gravis Ultrasound in native mode. You must run the
SETUP program to specify your sound card type and parameters.
Sound effect files are stored in WAV format. Music files use the DSIK
proprietary format. Use the program CONV to convert music files from
other formats to the DSM format used by DSIK. Place these DSM files in the
Kix directory and the program will randomly select among them.
Play:
Type "kix" from the DOS prompt to get to the main menu where options may
be selected by pressing the corresponding keys. Press the space bar or
Enter key to begin. Specify whether it will be a one or two player game.
Each player's options will be displayed which may be changed if needed.
Press the space bar to continue. You will see the "PLAYER 1 READY!" message
appear and the game begins after a brief pause.
You may press the Escape or F1 key at any time during play to pause the game
and bring up a help window. Press the space bar or Enter key to return to
the game.
Controls:
You can use the keyboard or a two button joystick to control the stylus.
Using the keyboard, press the arrow keys to move the stylus around the
border. To draw a fast line, hold down the Alt key and move the stylus
using the arrow keys. To draw a slow line, hold down the Ctrl key
instead of the Alt key.
If you're using a joystick or Gravis Gamepad, it will calibrate auto-
matically. One button controls fast draw while the other controls slow draw.
Background Files:
One of the nice features of the program is to display background images
when you uncover pieces of the board. These images are available in
another archive called KIXBACK.ZIP which should be available wherever you
obtained the main program files.
The program GIF2BCK can convert most 256 color GIF images into a background
file that can be used by Kix. Run GIF2BCK with no parameters to get help
on using GIF2BCK.
Technical Stuff:
If you run the program under OS/2 or other multitasking operating system,
here is some information which may help.
1. The program intercepts hardward keyboard interrupt 9. Key presses the
program cares about are handled, others discarded and the old INT9 is
NOT called (I'd like to, but haven't been able to get it to work). I
don't know if this will cause any problems running under OS/2 or not.
2. The program uses hardware timer 0, but increases the tics/sec. to
handle the tailorable frame rate.
3. Music and digitized sound effects work in real mode only.
The program has been tested and runs well under Windows 95 with no special
setup needed. If you have difficulty running under Windows, try increasing
the amount of free conventional memory available.
Problems:
Most problems running the program are caused by not enough free conventional
memory. Kix does not use any type of extended or expanded memory. The game
will run in as little as 500 KB free, but only if music is disabled and sound
effects are played through the PC speaker. In order to use all features
you'll need around 560 KB free.
Information on contacting the author is included with the on-line help.
Revision History:
Version 1.0 (first release)
Version 1.2 (unreleased):
* Faster area filling when not using pictures.
* Better keyboard support.
* Allows higher scores.
* Enhanced Kix movement algorithm.
* Miscellaneous bug fixes.
Version 1.4: (unreleased):
* Sound Blaster support for digitized sounds.
* Integrated player options with main menu. No need to edit .CFG
files again.
* Improved error handling and recovery.
Version 1.5:
* Added context sensitive help on player options.
* Background pictures now recycle.
* Added background music.
* Now uses WAV sound effect files.
* Improved all menus.
* Misc. bug fixes.