*1>About the GameILaser Light is a game that challenges and teases your mind. Bending lightLbeams to hit the target may sound easier said than done. You must plant yourMtools in the correct locations to score the highest points. But watch out forKthe obstacles! Some may have catastrophic results. Don't forget to keep anKeye on the time counter, you're only given a specific amount of time before the laser automatically fires.*2>The InterfaceIThe interface of Laser Light is very easy to use. The buttons on the MainMenu are self-explanatory.EInstructions: Press this button if you need help regarding this game.&Play: This button will start the game.LLevel: Pressing this button will allow you to change between the five levelsIof the game. You can skip to different levels by pressing one of the fiveElevel buttons. The higher the level, the more challenging it will be.*3JLevel (cont.): The grid displays the number of rounds for each level. OnceIyou finish a round, a colored block will appear to indicate that you haveGcompleted that round. For example, two red blocks on the first row willHindicate that you finished the first two rounds of the Novice Level. TheIcolor of the blocks correspond to the color of each level. If you run theJmouse over any colored blocks in the grid, your score will appear for thatround.JAt any time, you can revisit a previously completed Level and Round to tryand get a higher score.*4'New: This button will start a new game.=Save: Your current game can be saved by pressing this button.JLoad: You can load older games that were previously saved by pressing thisbutton.LHigh Score: You can view the top ten highest scores by pressing this button.KSet Up: This button will take you to a screen that will allow you to change#some of the parameters of the game.KQuit: Pressing this button will exit the game and return to the DOS prompt.*5KOnce you have chosen the level you wish to play, press the Play Button. TheIfirst screen you will see after the animation is the Preview Screen. ThisHscreen displays a preview of the current round and the tools you will begiven for that round.JIf you have already finished a few rounds of a level, you can flip throughHthem by pressing the Left and Right Arrow Buttons. You will also see the*highest score you received for each round.8If you want to play a round, just press the Play Button.*6>Playing the GameJThe object of this game is to use your tools to bend and split light beamsMto hit the target or targets. Sometimes there will be more than one laser gunKon the screen. For every gun there will be a minimum of one target for thatGgun. You will always score the highest amount of points by successfullyJcompleting a round in the first attempt. If a fruit appears on the screen,?try to hit that as well. This will give you extra bonus points.*7HThe Play screen is divided into three sections, the gray bar on top, theKbuttons on the bottom, and the play area in between. The play area is whereyou will plant your tools.LThe number on the upper left hand corner indicates the total possible pointsKyou can gain by completing the current round. The number on the upper rightJhand corner indicates the total cumulative points you have for the currentgame.*8JThe first eight buttons on the bottom of the screen are your tools and theKquantity of each tool. The Freeze Button allows you to pause the clock. TheFFire Button allows you to fire the laser gun. If you do not press thisMbutton, when the time on the clock runs out, the gun will fire automatically.MThe Quit Button allows you to exit the current round. This will take you backto the Preview screen.JThe lower right corner of the Play screen displays the clock. The time youJhave to play the round will vary. Once the time runs out on the clock, the gun will fire automatically.*9HTo place one of the tools on the play area, just press the button of theJtool you wish to use. Then move the mouse into the play area and press theLleft button to activate the tool. You can drag the tool to any location withJthe button pressed. Releasing the button will make your positioning final,Land plant the tool. If you wish to plant the same tool again, just press theFleft button and repeat the above procedure. In general, whichever ToolHButton is selected, that is the current tool the mouse will plant on thescreen.*10KIf you wish to change the location of a tool that has already been planted,Gmove the mouse over the piece. When the mouse is changing colors, it isJtelling you that you can pick that piece up. Press the left button and theIarrow will change to a hand indicating that you have picked up the piece.MMove the mouse to the desired location, and release the button to replant it.MBe careful, if the mouse pointer is not flashing, you are telling the program9to plant a new piece rather than to pick up an old piece.*11LIf you want to remove a piece from the screen, move the mouse over the tool.IPress the left button when the mouse pointer is changing colors. With theKbutton depressed, move the mouse outside of the play area. You can move theJmouse to the top gray bar or down to the bottom tool area, and release theNbutton. The piece will automatically be added back to the correct Tool Button.*12KTools can not be placed on top of each other or on top of any object in theJplay area. If you attempt to place a tool over an object, the tool will beJremoved from the play area and added back to the Tool Button. You can onlyGplant a tool when the hand is flashing, anything else removes the tool.*13MOnce the laser gun is firing, the clock changes to show how much time remainsKfor the firing sequence. The targets must be hit within this time. The toolKbutton area will change to show the energy output of each gun. If there areJtoo many beams from one gun, the laser will short circuit. This will causeIthe gun and its beams to be destroyed. Try not to split too many beams toavoid this catastrophy.JAfter the firing sequence, the Summary Button will appear on the bottom ofIthe screen. This is to give you an opportunity to evaluate the play area.*14,(9@0),Form:2>MirrorsBThese tools are used to reflect the beam to a different direction.GThere is only one active side (the brighter side). If the beam hits the&darker side, the light beam will stop.*15,(11@0),Form:2
>SplittersFThese tools will split the light beam. When light is in contact with aIsplitter, the light will split into two beams. One will be redirected andNthe other will pass through the splitter. If the beam hits a splitter directlyMperpendicular to it, one beams will pass through it, the other will bounce toMthe direction it came from. If a beam hits a splitter but does not hit either.of the bright surfaces, it will stop the beam.*16,(12@0),Form:2>Triangular SplittersJThese tools are tricky to use. Only one face of the triangle is active. IfIthe light hits perpendicularly to the brightest side, two beams will exitHfrom the other two sides. Since there is only one active side to the triBsplitter, all other contacts will deaden the beam. There are otherDunconventional ways to use this tool, don't be afraid to explore thepossibilities.*17,(7@0),Form:2 >Wood BlocksLPlacing this tool in the path of a beam will cause the speed of the light toHslow down while it is burning through it. This can be a very useful tool8especially when timing is a crucial factor (hint, hint). *18,(3@3),(5@4),(6@6),Form:4 >Laser GunsLAt times, your laser guns can become obstacles. Hitting a gun with any lightDbeam will destroy it. It will also stop the progression of its beam.>TargetsKBe careful! Avoid hitting different colored targets (1). Color coordinationKis the key. Targets can only be hit by the same color light beam. If a blue7beam hits a red target, that target will be killed (2).*19,(4@4),(2@7),Form:5>WallsJWalls are general obstacles that block the path of the beam. Position your4tools to bend the light beam around these obstacles.>GatesIAll gates come with Open switches. A beam must hit the switch to open theKgate. If there are multiple gates on the play screen, the same colored gate'corresponds to the same colored switch.*20,(1@0),Form:6>Gravity FieldsKThese obstacles can be used to your benefit. Based on the distance that theNlight passes from the core, the light will bend accordingly. The gravity fieldMwill pulse to and fro from the core. The closer your beam is to the core, theKstronger the field will be. This strength will directly affect how much theIbeam will be bent. If the light beam touches the gravity field when it isGfurther away from the core, the beam will only slightly bend. Likewise,=if the field is closer to the core, the light will bend more.*21,(0@0),Form:2 >Atom BombsLAvoid these at all costs! Not only will the atom bomb destroy the beam, theIexplosion will clear all the tools that you planted. Be careful, you were forewarned! *22,(10@0),(13@2),(14@4),Form:7 >Fixed ToolsLThese obstacles are identical to your tools. They have the same functions asNthe tool counterparts. But there's only one catch, they're fixed. They can notKbe moved. You can sometimes use these to your advantage. However, they are usually very dangerous to you.*23>ScoringLEach round in each level is worth 100 points. Only when you have hit all theLtargets can you progress to the next round. If you fail to hit the target orGtargets in the first try, you will loose 10 points for that attempt. IfMyou can not successfully complete a round in 10 tries, you will have to startLthat round from the beginning. This will cause all your tools to be cleared.*24,(8@0),Form:6>Bonus PointsKAs you play the game there will be a fruit that will randomly appear on theHplay screen. If you hit the fruit, you will receive bonus points for theHvalue of that fruit. Different fruits hold different bonus points. TheseLbonus points will be added to your total score. However, you must be able toLcomplete the round in the first attempt to receive these points. Fruits only3appear the first time you visit a particular round.*25 >High ScoresMIf your total score is one of the ten highest scores, you will be on the HighIScore list. Because each game is tagged with an ID, you can save and loadKyour current game. As the status of your score changes, the High Score list2will update your position on the list accordingly.*1000
