This game should run on any Mac or compatible with a 12" or bigger monitor, 256 (or more) colors/greys and Color QuickDraw. If you’ve got anything newer than an SE/30, you should be fine.
Color and Memory
This game uses 256 colors. Graphics won’t display any differently at “thousands” or “millions.” If your system is limited, playing the game at 256 colors will reduce memory requirements by a lot. If you have a newer Mac it’s perfectly safe to leave your monitor at any setting you like.
“Tower Art” and “Tower Sounds” files
The game has been split into three files: Grey Tower itself, a Sounds file and an Art file. The Art and Sounds files have to be kept in the same folder as Grey Tower, and they can’t be renamed. Double-clicking the Art or Sounds file from the Finder is the same as double-clicking the game itself.
PREFERENCES (Edit menu):
Mouse navigation (default: off)
… lets you move around by clicking near the edge of the screen or on visible doors/stairs. When this is turned off, clicking on doors and the like just gives information, and clicks near the edge of the screen are ignored.
Double clicking (default: off)
… affects the way you interact with characters, portable objects and some non-portable objects. Double-click to pick up a portable object, to talk to or fight with a character (the game will know which is right), or to open and close boxes, doors or cupboards; single-click for information. If this option is turned off, click on an object or character to interact with it.
Saving games (default: prompt for save)
“Prompt for save”: when you quit, start a new game or open a saved game, you’ll be asked if you want to save your current game.
“Automatic save” : once you’ve named your game, either by opening a previously saved game or by saving a new game, it will automatically save for you.
“Never save” : when you quit or open a new game, any changes from your current game will be quietly thrown out. You can still tell the game to save (“Save” and “Save As…” on the File menu); it just won’t do it automatically.
COLOR PREFS (Edit menu)
“Always change to 256 colors” : The game will automatically set your monitor to 256 colors at startup, and switch back to your old setting when you quit (unless you’ve changed it yourself in the meantime).
“Show dialog” (the default) : checks your monitor’s color setting and, if it’s set to more than 256 colors, asks if you want to change.
“Leave colors alone” : means just that. If you have a new Mac with plenty of memory, use this option.
COMMANDS & INTERFACE
Options
Most common actions can be done in more than one way. For some of these you’ll need to change the default preferences.
Movement: You can always use compass commands (NORTH, SOUTH…). If you’ve chosen “mouse navigation” you can also move around by clicking.
Picking up objects: You can pick up any portable object by clicking (or double- clicking) on it. If you prefer, say GET or equivalent with some reasonable approximation of the object’s name. You can also use GET ALL (or EVERYTHING) to pick up all portable objects in the scene.
Dropping objects: You can drop any item in your inventory by using the Inventory menu and clicking “Drop.” Alternately, say DROP or equivalent with the object’s name. Say DROP ALL (or EVERYTHING) to drop everything you’re carrying.
Closer looks: Click on the part of the scene you’re interested in, or type an appropriate command such as READ or LOOK AT ARTIFACT.
Look out the window: If you’re curious about the view, type LOOK (out) WINDOW or click on any visible window.
Opening and closing: To open or close doors, boxes, cabinets and the like, type OPEN or CLOSE/SHUT with the name of the object, or click (double-click, if that’s your preference) on the object.
Common commands: A few common commands such as LOOK and SEARCH are also on the Commands menu, with cmd-key equivalents.
Exception: You’ll have to use keyboard commands for complex actions such as having a conversation, using an object from your inventory, or looking in a particular place such as under a bed or inside a box.
Keyboard Input
• Everything you type goes to the little box at the bottom of the text window until you hit Return. You’ll get used to it.
• In general, word order and spaces don’t matter, and non-essential words are ignored. The most important exception is that “NO” has to be just that, not “NO WAY” or “NOT AT ALL” or anything fancy.
• All movement commands can be abbreviated: N, S, NW, U etc. If you’ve just been asked a question, N becomes NO; otherwise it’s NORTH. Y is YES.
• In some large rooms or open spaces, you can go NORTHWEST, SOUTHEAST and so on. At other times, diagonals are likely to be interpreted as NORTH or SOUTH.
• When picking up or dropping an object, you’re allowed some flexibility in naming: TREASURE and CHEST will both get you a “treasure chest”; BACKPACK or MY PACK will both get your “pack.” You can also use some common two-word phrases like “PICK UP” or “PUT DOWN.”
• If you get a response like “Try a different verb,” do not go in search of a thesaurus; you’re probably getting too elaborate already. Instead, try the commands in the Help window.
• On the other hand, the verb USE won’t get you far, except when you’re dealing with an object such as a key or crowbar that can only be used for one thing. That is, don’t say USE when you mean READ or MOVE or DRINK or…
Mouse Navigation
• When no door is visible, click near the left, right or bottom edges of the picture to move left, right or back. Note that this moves you to a new room, or another part of a large room; it doesn’t simply give you a different view of the the room you’re in.
• Clicking on the bottom of the picture doesn’t necessarily take you back to your previous room. It depends on how many exits the room has, and which direction you’re facing.
• To aid in mapping and to make it easier to go back if you didn’t mean to leave a room, you will always be told what direction you’re going.
• Mouse navigation is disabled in a few rooms. Use compass commands instead.
“Stuff” and “Treasures” Menus
I lifted this idea from two very different shareware games: Dracula’s Castle (“Inventory” menu) and System’s Twilight (“You” menu). The “Stuff” menu lists anything you’re carrying that is more useful than valuable. The “Treasures” menu lists things that are likely to be valuable. Other than that, the two behave exactly the same.
Selecting any menu item gives you a box with more information. You’ll also have the option of dropping the object or giving it to another character. The “Drop” option is greyed-out if you’re not allowed to drop the object, and “Give” is greyed-out when there’s nobody in the room with you.
• Items will be greyed-out if the object is in your pack (or the object is your pack!) and you’re not currently wearing the pack.
GENERAL TIPS
• As the name suggests, Grey Tower uses color in a distinctive way. The presence or absence of color is often significant… but not always. I didn’t want to make things too easy.
• As in all my games: TALK to anyone you meet (and pay attention to what they say!). If a conversation seems to have gotten derailed, saying TALK again should get it back on track.
• Read room descriptions carefully, and don’t forget to SEARCH.
• Commands may have different consequences the second time around, so try everything twice—within the limits of ordinary common sense.
• Make maps. If you keep running around in circles, you’ll end up collapsing from hunger, thirst or frustration before you get anywhere.
• The exterior views of the Tower are accurate, so take a good look before you go in—or you may have trouble getting out again.
• You can always look out the windows, though you may not see anything useful.
• If you read the room descriptions closely, you’ll see that the overall floor plan is perfectly straightforward; this is by no means Gormenghast.
• If your situation seems desperate and you believe you’ve exhausted all your resources, try finding a place to SIT and THINK.
• As in any adventure game: if you’re in doubt about the consequences of some action, save your game first! You can always revert… well, almost always.
• And, finally… It is possible to get to the happy ending without registering, but I’m not going to tell you how, so don’t ask.
Life, the Universe and Everything
It is virtually impossible to die in the Grey Tower—unless you engage in suicidal battles with rats, or ignore very clear warnings—but careless players may find themselves visiting the hospital a lot.
Food and Drink
You will need to eat and drink periodically. You start the game with a supply of food and water. If you run out, it’s up to you to find more.
By default, DRINK means drink from your canteen, and EAT means eat your own food. If you want to eat or drink something else, spell it out. Exception: when you’re in a room with its own water supply, DRINK alone means drink that water; DRINK from CANTEEN means drink your own water instead.
You’ll probably get through the game without needing to sleep, but if you do get sleepy, try to find a room with a bed of some kind.
Version History (b/w and color)
Grey Tower (color version)
— v. 1.4 released 16 January 1999. Fixes all the little bugs & oversights that showed up after the major revisions of v. 1.3.
— v. 1.3 released 27 December 1998. Better handling of some graphics, including matchlight and almost anything that moves. Many code revisions and bug fixes, most of them invisible. Separate Tower Art and Tower Sounds files.
— v. 1.2 released 30 July 1998. Various code revisions and bug fixes; in particular, Bubba should work properly now. New graphics routine for better drawing to most Macs.
— v. 1.1 released 28 May 1998. Changes handling of registration-restricted areas. New sound-playing routine to reduce memory leaks. Many other code revisions and bug fixes.
— v. 1.0.2 released 3 April 1998. Fixed one tiny, easily avoided but potentially deadly bug.
— v. 1.0.1 released 2 April 1998. First FutureBasic version of the game, with color/greyscale graphics throughout.
The Tower (b/w version)
— v. 3.0 released 28 August 1997. A new treasure, and expanded treatment of Nagina.
— v. 2.1.1 created 8 February 1997.
— v. 2.1 released 20 October 1996.
— v. 2.0 released 24 May 1996. One new treasure.
— v. 1.1 released 29 February 1996.
— v. 1.0 released 2 January 1996 (NOT 1995—oops!)
Thanks
• Thanks to my testers, and to everyone who registered the game in its varied versions. The Easter-egg page is updated with every release.
• Thanks to Staz Software for distributing and supporting FutureBasic, and to the FutureBasic newsgroup.
QUESTIONS
…can be posted to the “Tower” folder under “Adventure” in the MacGames forum on AOL. This is the fastest way to get help, as most players get stuck in the same places and you’ll probably find that your question has already been answered. You can also download “Lucy’s FAQ,” available on my www page and on AOL in the Mac Games / Hints & Helps library. Or, best of all, you can register the game and get pages and pages of maps and hints… and unlimited technical support.
* * * Sorry, folks * * *
If you’re not planning to register this game, you’ve already gotten a lot of my time for free. Please don’t ask me to give you even more. But do send me bug reports if you find any problems.
DISTRIBUTION
Feel free to distribute unregistered copies of this game on BBS’s, shareware compilations, online services or whatever, SO LONG AS YOU
#1 include this ReadMe file
#2 check with me first to make sure you're releasing the latest version of the game
#3 don’t charge anything over & above ordinary expenses associated with the medium (cost of a CD, mailing or whatever)
#4 make it very clear that this game is SHAREWARE.
Translation
One of the invisible changes in “Grey Tower” v. 1.3 is that the game can now be translated into other languages if you have access to a resource editor. So if you’re looking for a good independent-study project, or you have friends in other countries, get in touch with me for details!
REGISTRATION
If you’ve registered any version of Grey Tower (in color), you don’t need to do anything more. If you paid for the WorldBuilder game The Tower, e-mail or drop me a postcard for an updated registration code.
Otherwise, send $10 to:
Louise Hope
780 L St.
Arcata CA 95521
Be sure to specify that you’re registering Grey Tower, so I’ll know what password to send.
In return, I’ll send you:
• (by e-mail, if you’ve given me an address) the registration code that lets you reach the happy ending in safety
• (by snail mail) a complete set of floor plans, along with some hints and helps
Lucy24@aol.com
http://members.aol.com/Lucy24
http://members.aol.com/Lucy24/LucysWorlds
http://members.aol.com/Lucy24/ColorGames
http://members.aol.com/Lucy24/LucysDownloads
Plug
Check out my other games:
(Color) Pavilion
Palace of Sand (b/w Sultan’s Palace)
Muddy Water (b/w Canal District)
Color by Number (b/w Double Trouble)
…and watch for Xanadu, coming before the millennium
* Support Shareware * Support Shareware * Support Shareware *
