This game should run on any Mac or compatible with a 12" or bigger monitor, 256 (or more) colors/greys, Color QuickDraw and two (or more) sound channels. If you’ve got anything newer than an SE/30, you should be fine.
Color and Memory
This game uses 256 colors with a custom palette. Some graphics may look nicer (but animations will run a little slower) at “millions” of colors, while staying at 256 will save you a lot of memory. Your call. I don’t recommend setting your monitor to “thousands of colors,” or color values will be a bit off. If you have a newer Mac it’s perfectly safe to leave your monitor at its best setting.
“Water Art” and “Water Sounds” files
The game has been split into three files: Muddy Water itself, a Sounds file and an Art file. The Art and Sounds files have to be kept in the same folder as Muddy Water, 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.
PARENTAL GUIDANCE
If you don’t care for the longshoremen, or you have parents/children who might disapprove, ask about the “Muddy Water/G” patch. Better yet, register the game and you won’t have to listen to them at all.
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.
Giving objects: This works the same as DROP, except that you can’t “give all.” In most situations, GIVE is the same as SHOW; the game will know which action is appropriate.
Closer looks: Click on the part of the scene you’re interested in, or type an appropriate command such as READ BOOK 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 this game, unlike most, you’ll never be able to move diagonally (NORTHWEST, SOUTHEAST and so on).
• 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.”
•• A couple of objects in the game are wearable. When you pick them up you’ll automatically put them on; don’t try to use any separate commands.
• 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,” “Treasures” and “Edibles” 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. The “Edibles” menu lists things that can be ingested (but note that eating it yourself may not be the best thing to do!). Other than that, the three 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 (or give away) the object, and “Give” is greyed-out when there’s nobody in the room with you.
GENERAL TIPS
• As in all my games: TALK or at least LISTEN to anyone you meet… and pay attention to what they say! If you’re not sure whether a character is hostile or not, click on them (double-click, if that’s your preference). The game will take the appropriate action, either FIGHT or TALK.
• 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. If you can’t keep track of where you are, register the game and I’ll send you a full set of floor plans.
•• Mapping tip: The rooms of each level fit within a 5x5 grid, with the stone tower in the northeast corner. No level takes up all 25 possible spaces.
• Words of wisdom (passed on to you by Jake, who doesn’t appear in this game):
Believe Everything, Trust Nobody...
...except old friends, should you happen to meet any.
• All city guards are corrupt.
• Everything you pick up is worth something to somebody.
• Try the beer at least once— even if in real life you’re under 21 and/or a teetotaler.
• You may have to choose between drinking the canal water and dying of thirst— or between diving into it and meeting some quicker form of death.
• The canal district is infested with gods. Unlike the deities of the Tower (and the genies of the Palace), most of them don’t insist on a formal introduction before coming to your aid, and can be summoned as often as you like. (Repeat players take note!) Simply say the god’s name. On the other hand, it is also possible for atheists to get through the game.
• As in all my games, it is possible to find the sceptre, identify the thief and get to the happy ending without killing anybody, though you may have to deal with the occasional rat. But if you’re bloodthirsty by nature, feel free to pick a fight.
• Sometimes you will be told that you can’t do something. At other times you will be warned that you’d better not do something. Use your judgement.
• 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 reach the happy ending, or something like it, without registering, but I’m not going to tell you how, so don’t ask.
Life, the Universe and Everything
The canal district has no hospital. To maximize the odds of coming out alive:
• don’t drink the water unless you’re desperate
• don’t offend the gods by offering something grossly inappropriate
• do refill your canteen and lunchbag whenever you get the chance, and make sure you’ve got enough food and water before venturing into any place you wouldn’t want to be found unconscious (such as private property and the canal waters)
• don’t assume the whole world goes into limbo when you fall asleep (no matter how often you’ve gotten away with it in other games, including mine)
...in other words, take the same reasonable precautions you’d take in real life.
Oh yes, and...
• registering the game can’t hurt.
Luck
Luck with a capital “L” plays a big role in this game. Many things will work better if you’re lucky, and won’t work— or will bring unwanted consequences— if you’re unlucky.
• Registering the game can make good luck better, bad luck less serious, and may sometimes tip the balance in your favor— but you don’t have to register to change your luck.
• In general, luck wears off when you get a good night’s sleep.
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 food or water supply, EAT or DRINK alone means use what’s in the room; DRINK from CANTEEN or EAT LUNCH means use your own supplies.
Sleep
In version 1.3 of Muddy Water I was trying for some kind of plausibility (see under Version History), so the treatment of sleeping has been substantially changed. It all boils down to: would you feel safe sleeping here in real life? Can you risk a quick nap? What would you expect to find when you wake up?
Version History (b/w and color)
Muddy Water (color version)
— v. 1.3 released 8 February 1999. This revision attacks one central question: how do you reconcile the conventions of the adventure-game genre with the demands of everyday common sense? I tried to deal with reasonable questions like “Wouldn’t the other people in the room at least notice that someone just went up in a puff of smoke?” and “How come nobody steals your treasures when you fall asleep on the bridge?”
— v. 1.2 released 28 December 1998. Many code revisions and bug fixes, most of them invisible. Separate Water Art and Water Sounds files. Background sound loops in some scenes; different lapping-waves graphics; more ways to fight… and another way to lose the sceptre.
— v. 1.1 released 30 July 1998. Various revisions & bug fixes. Better handling of water graphics.
— v. 1.0 released 25 June 1998. First color version.
Canal District (b/w version)
— v. 2.0 released 25 September 1997. Added mouse navigation and alternative code for Macs that can’t play WB sounds. Expands dungeon scene. One new treasure. Many bug fixes & code revisions.
— v. 1.1 created March 1997. Not generally distributed.
— v. 1.0.1 released 20 October 1996. Adds color icons.
— v. 1.0 released 22 May 1996.
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 “Muddy Water” v. 1.3 (and later) 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 Muddy Water (in color), you don’t need to do anything more. If you paid for the WorldBuilder game Canal District, 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 Muddy Water (color version).
In return, I’ll send you:
• (by e-mail, if you’ve given me an address) the registration code that will smooth your path in various ways
• (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
Grey Tower (b/w The Tower)
Palace of Sand (b/w Sultan’s Palace)
Color by Number (b/w Double Trouble)
…and watch for Xanadu, coming within the millennium
* Support Shareware * Support Shareware * Support Shareware *
