Action Arcade 1997/Action Arcade 1997.iso/games/hero/hero.doc

Text File | 1997-01-01 | 52KB | 938 lines

                   Hero's Heart rev 1.1   November, 1992



                         Copyright 1992  Everett Kaser

                              All Rights Reserved

                From the author of SOLITILE, SNARF, and SHERLOCK
                    comes a new game to challenge your mind!

  Hero's Heart is a puzzle game requiring careful, logical thinking.

  High resolution color graphics provide a friendly user interface and
  a large playfield upon which many different types of objects are
  carefully arranged.  You control the movement of the Hero.  Each time
  you move the Hero, all of the other "objects" on the playfield get a
  chance to move; some will, some won't.  Your goal is to pick up all of
  the Hearts and then reach the Exit.  Each level is a stand-alone
  puzzle.  There are 25 different levels in the Shareware game, and an
  editor is built into the program for you to create new puzzles with
  which to challenge family and friends.  Quick reflexes are not needed
  (nor will they do you any good).  A sharp mind, however, and the
  ability to see relationships and causes & effects WILL help.

  REQUIREMENTS:
        IBM PC compatible computer
        minimum of 360K available RAM
        EGA or VGA display adapter
        Mouse is optional
        DOS 3.0 or greater

  HERO is being distributed as Shareware.  If you use the game
  for more than one week or play more than half of the puzzles, you
  are expected to pay for its use.   To register the game, send the
  registration fee of $15.00 + $2.00 shipping & handling (U.S. funds)
  to the author.  Or if you want a more extensive challenge, purchase
  HERO GOLD for $20 + $2 shipping & handling (see the order form for a
  description of HERO GOLD.  For your convenience, the file REGISTER.DOC
  may be printed to obtain a registration form, or a form may be printed
  at entry to or exit from Hero's Heart.  The author may be contacted at:

        Everett Kaser           phone:  [phone]
        Hero                    Weekdays: 6:00pm - 9:00pm Pacific Time
        35405 Spruce St         Weekends: 8:30am - 9:00pm
        Albany, OR  97321       VISA and MASTERCARD accepted

        Compuserve:     70673,1547

          internet:     [e-mail]

  In the United Kingdom, you may register by sending £25.90 to:

        The Thompson Partnership     Phone: [phone]
        Church Croft                   Fax: [phone]
        Bramshall, UTTOXETTER
        Staffordshire   ST14 5DE
        England

  In Germany, you may register by sending 49 deutschmarks to:

        CDV Software            Phone: [phone]
        Postfach 2749                  0721-22294
        W-7500 Karlsruhe 1        Fax: [phone]
        Germany                   BTX  *CDV#

  The game package, which MUST include the files listed below, may be
  freely copied and distributed by individuals not charging any fee for
  the copying or distributing.  All other distribution is governed by the
  License in Section II.

  Included files:

        HERO.EXE
        HERO.DOC
        ORDRFORM.DOC
        VENDOR.DOC

HERO --- Table of Contents

  Section

      I.  ASP Ombudsman and Definition of Shareware
     II.  Disclaimer, License Agreement, and Support
    III.  Installing and Starting the Program
     IV.  Introduction to Hero's Heart
      V.  Playing the Game
     VI.  Game Menu Items
    VII.  Moves and Replays
   VIII.  The SETUP Menu
     IX.  The LEVEL EDITOR
      X.  Hints On Play
     XI.  Bugs and Versions
    XII.  Products Available From Everett Kaser Software

I. ASP OMBUDSMAN AND DEFINITION OF SHAREWARE

  This program is produced by a member of the Association of Shareware
  Professionals (ASP).  ASP wants to make sure that the shareware
  principle works for you. If you are unable to resolve a
  shareware-related problem with an ASP member by contacting the member
  directly, ASP may be able to help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you
  resolve a dispute or problem with an ASP member, but does not provide
  technical support for members' products.  Please write to the ASP
  Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon, MI 49442 or send a CompuServe
  message via CompuServe Mail to ASP Ombudsman 70007,3536.

  Shareware distribution gives users a chance to try software before
  buying it. If you try a Shareware program and continue using it, you
  are expected to register. Individual programs differ on details -- some
  request registration while others require it, some specify a maximum
  trial period. With registration, you get anything from the simple right
  to continue using the software to receiving an updated program with
  a printed manual.

  Copyright laws apply to both Shareware and commercial software, and the
  copyright holder retains all rights, with a few specific exceptions as
  stated below. Shareware authors are accomplished programmers, just like
  commercial authors, and the programs are of comparable quality. (In
  both cases, there are good programs and bad ones!) The main difference
  is in the method of distribution. The author specifically grants the
  right to copy and distribute the software, either to all and sundry or
  to a specific group. For example, some authors require written permiss-
  ion before a commercial disk vendor may copy their Shareware.

  Shareware is a distribution method, not a type of software. You should
  find software that suits your needs and pocketbook, whether it's com-
  mercial or Shareware. The Shareware system makes fitting your needs
  easier, because you can try before you buy.  And because the overhead
  is low, prices are low also. Shareware has the ultimate money-back
  guarantee -- if you don't use the product, you don't pay for it.

II. DISCLAIMER, LICENSE AGREEMENT, AND SUPPORT

 --- DISCLAIMER ---

  Users of Hero's Heart must accept this disclaimer of warranty:

  "HERO'S HEART is supplied as is.  The author disclaims all warranties,
  expressed or implied, including, without limitation, the warranties of
  merchantability and of fitness for any purpose. The author assumes no
  liability for damages, direct or consequential, which may result from
  the use of HERO'S HEART."

 --- LICENSE ---

  --- USE AND DISTRIBUTION BY INDIVIDUALS:

  HERO'S HEART is a "shareware program" and is provided at no charge to
  the user for evaluation.  Feel free to share it with your friends, but
  please do not give it away altered or as part of another system.  The
  essence of "user-supported" software is to provide personal computer
  users with quality software without high prices, and yet to provide
  incentive for programmers to continue to develop new products.  If you
  find this program useful and find that you are using HERO'S HEART and
  continue to use HERO'S HEART after a reasonable trial period, you must
  make a registration payment as described on the first page of this
  document. The applicable registration fee will license one copy for use
  on any one computer at any one time.  You must treat this software just
  like a book.  An example is that this software may be used by any
  number of people and may be freely moved from one computer location to
  another, so long as there is no possibility of it being used at one
  location while it's being used at another.  Just as a book cannot be
  read by two different persons at the same time.

  You are encouraged to pass a copy of HERO'S HEART along to your friends
  for evaluation.  Please encourage them to register their copy if they
  find that they use it.  All registered users will receive a copy of
  the latest version of the HERO'S HEART.

  Site-Licenses and quantity discounts may be arranged by contacting
  Everett Kaser Software.

  --- DISTRIBUTION BY BBS'S AND DISK VENDORS:

  Anyone distributing HERO'S HEART for any kind of remuneration must
  first contact Everett Kaser at the address above for authorization.
  This authorization will be automatically granted to BBS's and
  "traditional mail-order shareware distributors" recognized by the ASP
  as adhering to its guidelines for shareware distributors, and such
  distributors may begin offering Hero's Heart immediately. However,
  Everett Kaser must still be advised so that the distributor can be kept
  up-to-date with the latest version of HERO'S HEART).  "Traditional
  mail-order shareware distributors" are those offering disks of share-
  ware programs for little more than the normal cost of running such a
  business (usually no more than $5 per disk), usually from a printed
  or on-disk catalog.  It does NOT include any sales through retail
  locations.

  --- DISTRIBUTION BY ALL OTHER MEANS:

  All other forms of distribution require the express written permission
  of the copyright holder before distribution may begin.  These include,
  but are not limited to, CD-ROMs, racks, bins, and any other forms of
  "retail sales".  If you're interested in distributing HERO'S HEART
  by one of these (or other) means please contact Everett Kaser Software.
  We'll be glad to discuss your distribution idea with you.  This
  restriction is to ensure that our software is distributed in fashions
  which we find acceptable to us and our customers.

 --- SUPPORT ---

  Support for products from Everett Kaser Software is available via
  phone, mail, and Compuserve email for a period not less than one year
  or the duration of my life, which ever is shorter, and not to exceed
  your life-time or mine, which ever is shorter.  See the first page of
  this document for phone number, mail address, and Compuserve email
  address.  Updates are available at any time to registered users for a
  $5 fee to cover costs of labor, materials, shipping, and handling (and
  to keep me from feeling badly).  Bug fixes for major bugs (if any ever
  occur) will be shipped free to registered users for a period of three
  months after the date of registration.

III. INSTALLING AND STARTING THE PROGRAM

  It is recommended that you install HERO in its own sub-directory
  on your hard disk (or on its own floppy disk if you have no hard disk).
  Do NOT run the program directly from the distribution disk, as disks
  sometimes fail.  Always make a copy and run the program from it!

  To create a sub-directory for HERO, you might type one of the
  following commands:

          MKDIR \HERO
      or  MKDIR \GAMES\HERO
      or  MKDIR \BIN\GAMES\HERO

  These are only examples, and you'll have to decide upon a sub-directory
  path that makes sense given the structure of YOUR hard disk.  Once the
  sub-directory has been created, you're ready to install Hero into
  that sub-directory.  If you received the files on a floppy disk, as
  separate files, you would do something like:

        COPY A:\*.* C:\HERO
    or  COPY A:\*.* D:\GAMES\HERO
    or  COPY B:\*.* C:\BIN\GAMES\HERO

  If the program came as an archive file of some sort (.ZIP, .ARC, .LZH,
  etc), you will need to copy the archive file into the sub-directory
  that you created (using the COPY command), then type something like:

        PKUNZIP HERO.ZIP
    or  LHARC x HERO.LZH

  Once the program is installed, you can change to that sub-directory at
  any time and run the program, or you can specify the path to the
  HERO sub-directory in your PATH environment variable (set in your
  AUTOEXEC.BAT file), and then HERO can be run from anywhere on your
  hard disk without first changing to the HERO sub-directory.  (If
  you do add HERO to your PATH statement, remember that you will have
  to reboot your computer before the PATH actually gets modified.)

  The program has no optional arguments and is started by typing

        HERO

  The first time the program is run, the user will be prompted for a
  player name.  This name must be from 1 to 8 characters long, and it
  may only contain valid DOS file name characters as it will be used
  to create a sub-directory of the HERO directory in which that players
  configuration/game information will be stored.

  Also, the first time the program is run, the HELP screens will be
  displayed.  This will ONLY happen the first time the program is run.
  Thereafter, the HELP may be accessed via the HELP menu.

IV. INTRODUCTION TO HERO'S HEART

  The game consists of a playfield divided up into squares (29 left to
  right and 21 top to bottom), and a set of objects which can be placed
  on any of the squares using the puzzle editor.  The set of objects
  consist of:

  The Hero      Only one of these allowed per puzzle
  Rocks         They fall down the screen
  Red Heart     Picked up by walking over them
  Blue Heart    Must be turned red by a Creeper walking over them
  Red Exit      Will turn green when all Hearts have been collected
  Green Exit    You exit the level by walking the Hero out the exit
  Brick Wall    An immovable, impassable barrier
  Gravel        An immovable, impassable barrier
  Stone         An immovable, impassable barrier
  Pyramid       An immovable, impassable barrier (get the idea, yet?)
  Dirt          "Cleaned up" by Hero, blocks all but Creeper
  Bones         Beware the Bones
  Arrows        "Fly" in the direction they're pointing
  Slopes        Slanted right or left, cause some objects to "slide"
  Balloon       Rises up the screen
  Creeper       Walks along objects to its left
  Worm          Walks directly towards the Hero
  Bridge        Extension bridge (what do think a bridge is used for?)
  Water         The Hero doesn't know how to swim
  Raft          (What would YOU use a raft for?)
  Ice           Slippery stuff
  Dirt Block    Pushable dirt, blocks all but Creeper
  Fire          The Hero is NOT made of fire-proof materials
  Fire Extinguisher     Uh....
  Ball          Likes to get pushed around

  Each level of the game has been "carefully" constructed to make it
  difficult (more or less) to immediately exit the level.  You must first
  accomplish some tasks.  These tasks range from simply getting to the
  exit (if the level has no Hearts and starts out with a Green Exit), to
  picking up all the Red Hearts first, to "encouraging" the Creepers to
  walk over the Blue Hearts (turning them red).  Now, if this all sounds
  easy, it is a straight-forward goal.  The problem is that obstacles
  have generally been put in your way, and you must figure out a method
  of accomplishing your goal.  The obstacles consist of Rocks falling on
  the Hero's head, Rocks burying Hearts or the Exit, the Hero getting
  shot by arrows, and miscellaneous other minor impediments to progress.


V. PLAYING THE GAME

  Playing the game is quite simple.  Being successful at it is a little
  more difficult.  The first seven or eight levels are reasonably easy,
  designed to teach you the fundamentals of how the various objects
  behave and interract, as well as some of the basic "traps".  The next
  ten or so levels are of "medium" difficulty, although some of them
  can be QUITE challenging.  The last seven or eight are VERY difficult,
  and they should only be attempted after having solved most of the
  earlier ones.  Part of the fun of the game is figuring out exactly
  which objects do what and how they interact, so not EVERYTHING will
  be explained in the documentation.

  The game may be played either from the keyboard or with a mouse.  It
  seems that the keyboard is generally best for actually playing the
  game, while the mouse is best for editing or creating new levels.
  The Hero can move one square in any of eight directions horizontally,
  vertically, or diagonally, as long as it's not blocked by some
  immovable object.  Some objects can be pushed horizontally or
  vertically, but only if there's not another object directly behind
  them.  The Hero can move diagonally ONLY if one of the two horizontally
  and vertically adjacent squares is empty.  For example, in the diagram
  below, if the Hero is trying to move diagonally to the square marked
  with a '7', then EITHER the '4' or the '8' square must be empty.

                +---+---+---+
                | 7 | 8 | 9 |
                +---+---+---+
                | 4 | H | 6 |
                +---+---+---+
                | 1 | 2 | 3 |
                +---+---+---+

  As you move, your motions will affect other objects on the playfield.
  For example, EACH time you move, any Creepers on the level will also
  move once, as will any Worms.  If you (or anything else) moves within a
  certain "private" space of a rock, balloon, or arrow the rock will
  attempt to fall, the balloon will attempt to rise, and the arrow will
  attempt to fly.  The actions of these objects can then set of actions
  of other objects.  One move by The Hero can cause a massive amount of
  movement by other objects on the playfield, or no movement at all.
  (Some objects, like Fire and Bones, are "animated"; they "move" all of
  the time while staying in the same square.  This "motion" should not be
  confused with a Move from one location to another.)

  --- KEYBOARD ---

  You control the movement of the Hero with the cursor pad (all eight
  directions).  The SPACE bar is a "wait", not moving the Hero but giving
  everything else a chance to move (useful for waiting for a Creeper or
  Worm to get to JUST the right spot before you make a particularly
  strategic move).  All of the menu items that have an underlined letter
  may be activated by pressing the key corresponding to the underlined
  letter.  Additionally, the ENTER key is an alternative way of RESTART-
  ING the game.  F1, F2, and F3 are for "replaying" some previous moves.
  (See Section VII on REPLAYS.)

  --- MOUSE ---

  With the mouse, you must be much more aware of what's in between the
  Hero and where you want it to go, as the Hero can get "hung up" on
  immovable objects, or fall into the water, etc.  To move the Hero you
  simply point at the desired destination and click the left mouse
  button.  The Hero will attempt to move diagonally until it's on the
  same row or column as the destination, and then it will move vertically
  or horizontally.  It's generally best not to try to move TOO far at
  once with the mouse.  The "mouse move" get's translated into a series
  of pseudo-keyboard moves.  A single click of the mouse can generate
  20 to 30 moves on the moves list.

VI. GAME MENU ITEMS

  As a general rule in Hero, any pop-up menu may be escaped from
  by pressing the ESC key or by clicking the RIGHT BUTTON.
  Menu options available (and keystroke to activate them if you don't
  have a mouse) while playing the game are:

        (N) Next        Next and Prev provide the means for you to select
        (P) Prev        which Level in the current Puzzle Set you wish to
                        work on.
        (L) Level       You specify the specific level number that you wish
                        to "jump" to rather than paging through them one at
                        a time with Next or Prev.  Also acts as a status box
                        to tell you which Level you're currently on and how
                        many total Levels there are in this puzzle set.
            Moves       Is a status box, not a menu item.  It tells you how
                        many moves are currently in the moves list.
        (H) Help        Online Help screens.
        (R) Restart     When (if?) you realize that you've messed up and can
        (ENTER)         no longer solve the level, this re-starts the level
                        from the beginning, so you can try it again.  See
                        Section VII about REPLAYS.
        (S) Setup       Enters the player setup menu for selecting the active
                        player, the puzzle set, the background playfield image
                        and enable or disable sound and music.  See Section
                        VIII SETUP MENU.
        (E) Edit        Enters the Level Editor.  The built-in puzzle set (EKS)
                        cannot be edited.  Before editing any levels, you must
                        create or select an alternate puzzle set by entering
                        the Setup menu and specifying the puzzle set.  See
                        Section IX The Level Editor.
        (C) C:> PROMPT  This will attempt to "spawn" a copy of COMMAND.COM,
                        without exiting the game.  This allows you to get to
                        the DOS COMMAND prompt without terminating your game.
                        Possible reasons that it might not work is if you have
                        insufficient memory to load the COMMAND interpreter on
                        top of Hero, or if the file COMMAND.COM can't be
                        found by Hero on your path.  Once you've gone to
                        the DOS prompt this way, you must issue the EXIT
                        command to return to your Hero game.
        (Q) Quit        Quits (exits) the game.
        [1] F1          Clicking on the '1' Box or pressing F1 replays the next
                        move.  See Section VII REPLAYS.
        [10] F2         Clicking on the '10' Box or pressing F2 replays the
                        next 10 moves.  See Section VII REPLAYS.
        [100] F3        Clicking on the '100' Box or pressing F3 replays the
                        next 100 moves.  See Section VII REPLAYS.
            SPEED       Is a status box showing the current speed at which
                        moves will be made.  The Speed ranges from 1 to 10,
                        with 10 being the fastest.  Sometimes on a fast
                        computer, objects move on the playfield too fast to
                        see and it can be difficult to figure out exactly what
                        happened.  By slowing the speed (to 5 or 6 on a 33Mhz
                        486) things move slow enough to see.  The proper speed
                        for YOUR use must be determined by trial and error.
        (D) DECREASE    Decreases the SPEED by 1.
        (I) INCREASE    Increases the SPEED by 1.

VII. MOVES and REPLAYS

  As you play, the game records each of your moves, showing them in
  a scrolling window in the center of the Menu area.  These moves are
  also stored for you in your player directory in a special file.
  (The filename for the moves for any particular level are made up of
  the components "H1MOV" and the puzzle set name (ie, "EKS"), with an
  extension which is the level number (filled with leading zeroes).
  For example, if player Kristine were working on level three of puzzle
  set "ABC", then her moves would be stored in the sub-directory
  "KRISTINE.DIR" as file "H1MOVABC.003".

  The "moves list" box in the menu area will have either a red outline
  within it if you haven't yet solved that level, or a green outline if
  you have solved that level.  If it's green (meaning that you HAVE solved
  the level), and you then start to replay the level, it will turn red again.

  It will often require more than one attempt to solve a particular
  puzzle, sometimes requiring MANY attempts.  You may have figured out
  most of the puzzle and are just stuck towards the end, or you may
  make an accidental move which messes things up.  You can recover
  from these.

  When you restart a level you can have the game replay some of your
  moves by using softkeys F1, F2, and F3, or by clicking on the "1",
  "10", and "100" boxes beneath the "move list" box.  F1 (or "1") will
  cause the game to remake the single NEXT move (the one highlighted
  by the cursor).  F2 (or "10") will cause the game to remake the next
  TEN moves.  F3 (or "100") will re-execute the next 100 moves.  The
  "Moves:" box above the move list box tells you how many total moves
  have been recorded for this level.

  Sometimes, when replaying a level, you realize that you previously
  made a move that you shouldn't have been made.  When replaying a level,
  you can DELETE moves from the list by pressing the DEL key.  You will
  be prompted to verify that you really want to delete a move.  (Success-
  ive presses of the DEL key will NOT verify.)

  Sometimes, you'll realize that you really need to make a couple of
  extra moves in between some previous moves.  This can be accomplished
  by replaying up through the last move before you wish to insert one or
  more moves.  Then press the INS key.  Again, you will be prompted to
  verify that you really want to insert moves.  If you respond YES, the
  game will enter an "insert" mode, where all further moves will be
  INSERTED into the move list (as opposed to over-writing) until the
  INS key is pressed again.  For the duration of the time that the
  INSERT mode is active, the border line around the playfield will
  blink or flicker.


VIII. THE SETUP MENU

  Each player may configure the game to his or her own preferred setup. This
  setup is then stored in the player's .DIR directory in a .CFG file.  The
  current player's name is stored in the file Hero.CFG.  That name is then
  used to access the .DIR directory and .CFG file for that player.

  The menu items and keys for the SETUP menu are:

        (H) HERO        allows you to select or add a player.  See THE HERO
                        SELECTION MENU below.
        (B) BACKGROUND  Selects one of 16 background patterns for the playfield
        (P) PUZZLE SET  Selects (or creates a new) puzzle set.  The name for
                        a puzzle set is limited to three characters.  These
                        three characters are added to the ends of H1LEV and
                        H1MOV along with a three digit file extension to
                        generate the filename for each level and the MOVES file
                        for that level for each player.  The H1LEV (level)
                        files are stored in the same sub-directory as the HERO
                        program.  The H1MOV (moves) files are stored in the
                        sub-directory for the current player.
        (T) THEME MUSIC toggles the Theme music on and off and enables the
                        selection of the THEME music file.
        (S) SOUND EFFECTS  toggles the sound effects on and off.
        (E) EXIT LEVEL MUSIC  toggles the EXIT LEVEL music on and off and
                        enables the selection of the EXIT LEVEL music file.
        (E) EXIT        exits the Player Setup Menu and returns you to the
                        main Menu and game.
        (D) DECREASE    DECREASE and INCREASE control the setting of the
        (I) INCREASE        default SPEED for the current player.

  These are stored in a players .CFG file in that players .DIR directory.

  --- THE HERO SELECTION MENU ---

  The HERO SELECTION Menu is used to select the player from a list of
  players that have already been set up.  If trying to add a new player,
  select HERO, then answer 'N' to the question "Select an already exist-
  ing player?".  The HERO SELECTION Menu provides a list of all players.

  From the keyboard, the Hero may be chosen by using the cursor and
  PgUp/PgDn keys to highlight the desired item, then pressing the Enter
  (Return) key.  The current PATH is always displayed immediately above
  the "files" window.  With a mouse, player may be selected by pointing
  at it with the mouse cursor and double-clicking the LEFT BUTTON.  (If
  your double click is not quite quick enough, all that will happen is
  that the item you pointed to will become highlighted.)  With the mouse
  you can also scroll the window and highlighted item up/down by clicking
  with the LEFT BUTTON upon the:
        DOUBLE UP ARROWS  --- page up
        SINGLE UP ARROW   --- move highlight bar up/scroll up
        SINGLE DOWN ARROW --- move highlight bar down/scroll down
        DOUBLE DOWN ARROW --- page down
  Other items that are available on the HERO SELECTION Menu are:
        (L) LOAD -----  Loads the currently highlighted item.
        (E) EXIT        Exits the PLAYER SELECTION Menu
        (R) RENAME      Lets you Rename the currently highlight item.
        (D) DELETE      Lets you Delete the currently highlighted file.

IX. THE LEVEL EDITOR

  The EDIT menu item causes the program to enter the Level Editor.
  This is where you can create new puzzles to challenge family, friends,
  strangers, and enemies.
        NOTE!!! =================================================== NOTE!!!!
    N                                   !
    N    The EKS puzzle set levels are stored inside the program    !
    N    for simplicity of distribution, and as a result cannot be  !
    N    edited.  In order to create your own levels, you must       !
    N    first enter SETUP, select PUZZLE SET, and enter the name   !
    N    for a new puzzle set (from 1 to 3 characters).  This will  !
    N    start a new puzzle set, with a "fake" level 1.  You should !
    N    then enter the Level Editor and select CLEAR to clear the  !
    N    fake level, and prepare it for editing.               !
    N                                   !
        NOTE!!! =================================================== NOTE!!!!
  If you create any levels that you're particularly proud of, please send
  me a copy of your puzzle set (either via US mail or Compuserve email).
  If I receive enough, I'll compile a disk of contributed puzzles.
        NOTE!!! =================================================== NOTE!!!!
        N                                                                  !
        N       Hero GOLD contains ten additional objects that are not     !
        N       available in Hero's Heart.  Levels created in Hero GOLD    !
        N       that use these additional objects will be rejected by      !
        N       Hero's Heart.  These ten additional objects are yellow     !
        N       and blue keys, yellow and blue locks, four different       !
        N       directional rollers, teleports, and a white heart.  Any    !
        N       levels created in Hero GOLD that do NOT use these          !
        N       additional objects WILL be playable by Hero's Heart.       !
        N                                                                  !
        NOTE!!! =================================================== NOTE!!!!
  The menu items and keys for the EDIT menu are:

  (N) Next      Next and Prev provide the means for you to select
  (P) Prev      which Level in the current Puzzle Set you wish to edit.
  (L) Level     You specify the specific level number that you wish
                to "jump" to rather than paging through them one at
                a time with Next or Prev.  Also acts as a status box
                to tell you which Level you're currently on and how
                many total Levels there are in this puzzle set.
  (A) Author/Title  The level creator can enter a string of up to
                23 characters.  Usually this is used to either give
                the level a title or to give credit to the creator.
  (W) neW               Clears the Edit Playfield and sets the level number
                to one higher than the currently highest level number.
                (Does NOT delete or alter the level being displayed
                when NEW is activated.)  WARNING!!! If you've edited
                a level and want to keep those changes, you must
                exit the Editor and save the changes, then re-enter
                the editor and then do a NEW.
  (C) Clear     Clears the Edit Playfield.  Does NOT change the
                current level number.
  (X) eXit      Exits the Level Editor.  If changes have been made to
                the level, you will be prompted whether to save the
                changes.  Type 'Y' or 'N' or click on the appropriate
                box with the mouse.
        WARNING!!!! ============================================= WARNING!!!
        W                                                                  !
        W       Neither NEW nor CLEAR prompt you to verify whether         !
        W       or not your really, Really, REALLY want to to that.        !
        W       It assumes that you're careful, meticulous, thoughtful,    !
        W       kind, generous, obedient... er ... wrong speech.  Anyway,  !
        W       the assumption is that you know what you're doing and      !
        W       don't want to be bothered with a bunch of confirmation     !
        W       prompts.  This may not be true, in which case you'd        !
        W       best save your work periodically by exiting and            !
        W       re-entering the editor.                                    !
        W                                                                  !
        WARNING!!!! ============================================= WARNING!!!

  Also in the menu area of the Level Editor is the array of objects
  that may be used in building puzzles.  In Hero's Heart there are
  30 of these objects, in Hero GOLD there are 40.  The objects are:
        FIELD:  This is not an object that you can actually place, but is
                the default object that is at every location on the playfield.
                It cannot be deleted or added, and it, therefore, can not
                be selected in the menu area.  Think of it as Background
                scenery (see BACKGROUND in The Setup Menu.)
        HERO:   This is, well, er.... The Hero.  There can only be ONE of
                these on each level, and it can't be deleted or added, only
                moved.  When HERO is selected as the current object being
                placed, the normal ADD function is really a MOVE function.
                (See below for the discussion on ADDING and DELETING objects.)
        BOULDER: A giant rock that can hang mysteriously in space, only to
                drop down the playfield when another object moves to close.
                It sinks in water, slides left/right off of slopes and other
                boulders (unless there's something beside the slope or other
                boulder that blocks it), and kills the Hero and worms when
                it falls on them. The Hero can push boulders left and right.
        RED HEART: All of these must be picked up by the Hero in order to
                complete a level.  Blocks the motion of all other objects.
        RED EXIT: Blocks the motion of all objects.  The Red Exits will turn
                into Green Exits when ALL hearts have been collected by the
                Hero.
        GREEN EXIT: Blocks the motion of all objects except for the Hero.
                The Hero must walk onto the Green Exit in order to complete
                (exit) the level.  Generally, a GOOD puzzle will either
                contain Hearts AND one or more RED exits, or NO hearts and
                one or more GREEN exits.
        BRICK WALL: Blocks the motion of all objects.
        STONEY DIRT: Blocks the motion of all objects.
        GRANITE: Blocks the motion of all objects.
        DIRT:   Blocks the motion of all objects EXCEPT for the Hero and
                Creepers.  When the Hero steps on DIRT, it disappears.  When
                Creepers step on DIRT, it remains behind.  Build connecting
                bridges for Creepers with rocks, arrows, balloons, etc, which
                are stopped by DIRT.
        BONES:  Blocks the motion of all objects EXCEPT for the Hero and
                Worms.  Bones are deadly to both of them.
        ARROWS: There are four different arrows, each pointing in a different
                direction.  Arrows (once triggered) travel as far as they
                can in the direction in which they're pointing, sliding to the
                side off of slopes, boulders, and balls.  Arrows will kill
                the Hero and Worms, but the Hero can push Arrows sidewise.
                Arrows will pop (destroy) balloons.
        SLOPES: Slopes are stationary objects off of which other objects may
                slide.  They block the motion off all other objects.  Balls
                will reflect at a right-angle off of a slope if no other
                objects are in the way.
        BALLOON: Balloons rise up the screen when triggered. They may be pushed
                left or right by the Hero, and they are popped by Arrows.
        CREEPER: Creepers walk along objects to their left, except for Dirt
                and Land Plugs, over which they pass.  When a Creeper steps on
                a Blue Heart, the Blue Heart turns Red and the Creeper
                disappears.  The player must "maneuver" a Creeper to a Blue
                Heart in order to pick up the Blue Heart.
        BLUE HEART: Blue Hearts must be turned Red by a Creeper before the
                Hero can pick them up, which the Hero must do before being able
                to complete the level.  Each Blue Heart on a level must have
                at least one Creeper that can get to it.
        WORM:   Worms try to move DIRECTLY towards the Hero.  Worms kill the
                Hero when touched.  Worms can be killed by causing boulders
                to drop on them, Arrows to shoot them, pushing Balls or
                Boulders onto them, or by their walking into Bones.
        BRIDGE: When the Hero steps onto a Bridge, if there is water on the
                opposite side of the Bridge from direction in which the Hero
                came, then the Bridge will extend itself across the water
                until it encounters another non-Water object.  A Bridge may
                be extended in more than one direction, as long as there's
                water next to it and the Hero can step onto it from the
                opposite side.
        PYRAMID: Blocks the motion of all objects.
        WATER:  The Hero doesn't swim, therefor the Hero will drown when
                attempting to walk on water.  Boulders, Balls, and Fire
                Extinguishers sink when they pass onto water.  Arrows and
                balloons pass over water unhindered.  Land Plugs can be pushed
                into water to form more land (non-water playfield).  Rafts
                can be pushed into the water and float.  See RAFTS for more
                information.  Creepers and Worms avoid water.
        RAFTS:  Rafts can be pushed around on the playfield by the Hero in
                all four primary directions, but once pushed onto Water, the
                Hero can't push the Rafts any further.  Once a Raft is on
                water, when the Hero moves onto it, the Raft will carry the
                Hero across the water until it encounters a non-Water object.
                Rafts can be made to "turn corners" if they are floated into
                an L-shaped corner of land.
        ICE:    Objects that move (including the Hero) slide across Ice until
                they encounter a non-Ice object.
        LAND PLUG: A Land Plug is dirt that can be pushed about by the Hero
                and used for various things, including building walls, blocking
                other moving objects, and pushed into water to form more land
                that the Hero can walk on.
        FIRE:   Fire kills the Hero, burns up Rafts and Balls that are pushed
                into it, and (in Hero GOLD) turns White Hearts into Red Hearts.
                Creepers and Worms avoid it.  Fire Extinguishers and Land Plugs
                that are pushed into it will put it out.
        FIRE EXTINGUISHER: This will put out a Fire, and can also be pushed
                around by the Hero and used to block the motion of other
                objects.
        BALL:   Blocks the motion of other objects, the Hero can push a Ball
                and it will keep moving in that direction until it encounters
                another object.  Balls will reflect off of slopes at right-
                angles if not blocked by other objects.

  --- ADDING and DELETING objects ---

  Only one object may be positioned at any given location on the
  playfield.

  To place an object on the playfield, you must first select it in the
  Menu area.  This is done by pointing at the object in the Menu area
  with the Mouse and clicking the left mouse button, or by holding down
  the SHIFT key and using the cursor keys to move the "selection box"
  to the desired item.  The "playfield object" in the top-left corner of
  the Menu area can NOT be selected.

  Once an object type has been selected in the Menu area, it can then be
  placed onto the playfield by pointing at the playfield location with
  the mouse and clicking the left mouse button, or by using the cursor
  keys (without the SHIFT key) to position the "playfield location box"
  at the desired location and then pressing either the INS, ENTER, or
  SPACE key.

  Objects can be deleted or removed from the playfield by pointing at them
  with the mouse and then clicking the right mouse button, or by using the
  cursor keys (without the SHIFT key) to position the "playfield location box"
  at the desired location and then pressing the DEL key.

  --- HINTS ON CREATING LEVELS ---

  One good way to create challenging levels is to start with a simple
  idea or concept for a "trap" (something the player will have to
  figure out how to get into or out of or past).  Then, once you've
  gotten that simple idea created on the playfield, start adding other
  things AROUND that core idea that the player will have to accomplish
  or get past BEFORE they get to your core idea.  Once you've done this,
  then carefully add some "misleading" objects to help disguise what
  has to be done in order to solve the level.  You have to be VERY
  careful when adding these misleading objects, however, as they can
  inadvertantly provide alternate, simpler solutions to your puzzle, or
  cause other problems.  With practice, you'll learn to "think ahead",
  and actually be working on these various steps all at the same time
  (or at least keeping them in mind as you're developing the puzzle).

  If you're having problems thinking of puzzle ideas, a good way to
  get started is to purposely limit yourself.  Set yourself the challenge
  of creating the best puzzle you can using ONLY some small number of
  objects (two to four, besides the Hero and the Exit).  This will give
  you experience with the different objects and help you learn lots of
  little tricks and ways that the objects can interact.  Then you can
  use more and more objects to make more complex puzzles.

  --- DISK STORAGE OF LEVELS ---

  Levels are stored in individual files in the same directory as the Hero
  game itself.  The filename for each level is constructed as "H1LEV"
  followed by the puzzle set name (ie, "EKS"), and with an extension which
  is the level number (filled with leading zeroes).  For example, level 13
  of puzzle set "SAK" would be stored in file H1LEVSAK.013.

  The levels for puzzle set EKS are stored internally in the program
  (for simplicity of distribution), and as a result can not be edited.

X. HINTS ON PLAY

  Do you REALLY want to read these?  REALLY?  *REALLY*?
  Well, I guess it's up to you!

  A Rock's "private" space looks like this:
                +------+------+------+
                +  x   | ROCK |  x   |
                +------+------+------+
                +  x   |  x   |  x   |
                +------+------+------+
                +  x   |  x   |  x   |
                +------+------+------+
  Anytime that ANYTHING leaves one of the squares marked with an 'x'
  the ROCK will attempt to fall.  That means that you can move INTO one
  of those squares without triggering the Rock, but as soon as you move
  it will be triggered to fall.

  An Arrows private space is similar to the Rock's if you think of the
  Rock as "pointing down".  An arrow's private space is always "in the
  direction that the arrow is pointing".  Arrows are also triggered to
  move when ANYTHING moves OUT of one of its private space squares.

  Balloons private space are the same as Rocks and Arrows, except that
  it's always ABOVE the Balloon (rather than below like the Rocks).

  Use dirt as something to "hold" rocks, arrows, balloons, and balls in
  order to build a connection for a Creeper to get from one place to
  another.

  Sometimes Rocks, Arrows, and Balloons have to be pushed SIDEWISE before
  they're triggered in order to keep them from going where they're not
  supposed to (or to get them to go where they ARE supposed to).

  Use slopes to guide arrows, rocks, balloons, and balls.

  Balls will rebound off of slopes, turning 90 degrees (as long as there
  is space in front of the slope).

    NOTE: Two Creepers may step onto a Blue Heart at the same time, eliminating
          both of them but only one Blue Heart.  This can be used as part of a
      puzzle (forcing the player to find a means of stopping them from
      stepping on it at the same time), but can also cause you problems if
      that's not what you're trying to do.

  Bridges can extend in more than one direction, if you can arrange to step
  onto them from more than one side AND there's water on more than one side.

  A raft can be pushed all over the playfield, but once it's pushed into
  water then all you can do is step onto it and float across.

  Getting a raft into a "corner" of land can allow you to "turn the
  corner" with the raft.

  Fire can be extinguished with Dirt Blocks and Fire Extinguishers.

  Water can be "filled in" by pushing a Dirt Block into the water.

XI. BUGS AND VERSIONS

  ==== INITIAL RELEASE 1.1 ====

  No known bugs.


XII. PRODUCTS AVAILABLE FROM EVERETT KASER SOFTWARE

        Hero's Heart --- Handcrafted puzzles requiring careful thought to
                solve.  Similar to PC Wanderer and Boulderdash.
           Requires EGA or VGA and 360K of free memory.

        Hero GOLD --- A more extensive (non-shareware) version of Hero's Heart
                containing over 80 levels, along with hints and solutions to
        each level, and includes 10 additional "objects" for use on the
                playfield.
           Requires EGA or VGA and 360K of free memory.

        Kosynka --- is an implementation (by Russian programmer Sergey Ryzhkov
                of the solitaire card game from Russia.  The rules are very
                similar to standard Klondike solitaire, but this variation uses
                a double pack of 104 cards, which are played in 9 or 10
                columns (as opposed to the 7 columns in Klondike).  The reserve
                stock of cards are turned over one at a time, but you may only
                go through the stock twice.  Very enjoyable.  The face cards
                are lovely, and they have a very "russian" look to them.
                Everett Kaser Software is representing the Author in the U.S.
           Requires EGA or VGA.

        Sherlock --- The computer scrambles the locations of 36 items, then
                provides you with sufficient clues to determine their exact
                locations.  Challenging game of logic with rich graphics disp-
                lay. Image editor and four extra sets of images included.
           Requires EGA or VGA and a Microsoft compatible mouse.

        Snarf ---  Snarf is an arcade style game of mazes, treasures,
                First-Aid stations, locks and keys, teleports, and of
                course those nasty, sneaky, sniveling Snarfs. The game
                currently contains over 50 different levels, and includes
                a level editor so the user can create new levels.
           Requires EGA or VGA.

        Solitile --- A game of solitaire, played with tiles.  The object of
                the game is to remove all of the tiles from the pile, following
                a small number of rules.  Includes layout and tileset editors.
           Requires EGA or VGA and 380K free memory.

        Solitile Accessory Disks:

           Disk #1 --- Contains:
                3 tilesets: MAHJONG, BATH, and TOOLS
                5 layouts: MAYAMASK, ZIGZAG, PLANE, BIDIR, and PI
                9 music files: ENTERTAINER, AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS, HALL
                        OF THE MOUNTAIN KING, MUSIC BOX DANCER, ROSES, BLUE
                        DANUBE, LOVE STORY, GODFATHER, A VERY GOOD YEAR
                13 GIF files: space walking astronaut, Marylin Monroe, Bulldog,
                        Star Trek Enterprise, cartoon characters, etc.

           Disk #2 --- Contains:
                5 tilesets: STAMPS, BASEBALL, CANDY, WINTILE1, BODY
                5 layouts: JAILBRAK,10HIDING,FLATCAT,SPRAYER,SQUARFAC
                9 music files: SOUND OF SILENCE, THOSE WERE THE DAYS, BRIDGE
                        OVER TROUBLED WATER, CABARET, GEORGY GIRL, KING OF THE
                        ROAD, MOON RIVER, RAINDROPS KEEP FALLING ON MY HEAD,
                        WHERE HAVE ALL THE FLOWERS GONE
                21 GIF files: space shuttle take-off, King Tut, a cheetah's
                        face, cartoon characters, etc.
           Disk #3 --- Contains:
                10 tilesets: ALPHA, FLOWER, CARS1, COMICS, CARDS, CARDS2,
                        TRAFFIC, TOONS, FLAGS, and COLLAGE.
                 4 layouts: STARSKY, GRNDCNYN, ENGINE, and CHECK.
                 5 music files: I'VE GOT A NAME, TIME IN A BOTTLE, FROM A
                        DISTANCE, AMERICAN PIE, NOBODY DOES IT BETTER.
                10 .GIF files: RogRABBIT, SHUTTLE, SHIRLEY, POOHBEAR, HOVER-
                        CRAFT, CAPTAIN-OPUS, ROBOT, DONDUCK, INDIAN, PAGODA.
                MUSIC.COM, a utility that plays .MUS files outside of Solitile.
                        Makes development/testing of .MUS files easier.
                MUSIC.DOC, documents the format of .MUS files, allowing
                        you to create your new ones or modify others.
                ST2TO3.EXE, a utility for converting layouts created with
                        previous versions of Solitile, and converts WIN direct-
                        ories from previous versions of Solitile into "solved
                        boards" in your Solitile 3 .PLY file. On previous vers-
                        ions of Solitile, the layouts were stored in the
                        SOLITILE.DAT file.  With Solitile 3, they're stored in
                        their individual .LYT files.  If you've created layouts
                        with a previous version of Solitile and would like to
                        use them with Solitile 3, this utility will convert
                        them from the SOLITILE.DAT file into .LYT files.
                ST2TO3.DOC, documents the usuage of ST2TO3.
End of Hero.DOC