Computer & Games 12

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Text File | 1996-08-14 | 17.6 KB | 337 lines

Z DEMO Key Guide LEFT MOUSE Main control button RIGHT MOUSE Direct mouse scroll MIDDLE MOUSE Toggle selected unit SPACEBAR Toggle selected unit If you are in the process of placing a gun the SPACEBAR will scroll to the factory which manufactured the it. F1 Cycle through your available robot units F2 Cycle through your available vehicles F3 Cycle through your available buildings F4 Cycle through your available guns F5 Cycle through your units which are under attack RETURN Scroll to your fort DELETE Dissolve currently selected multi group SHIFT Add or remove the unit which you click from a multi group. (Note : you cannot scroll the screen whilst holding down the Shift key.) A Select all the units on screen to form a multi group. M Bring up the game menu L Bring up the load menu S Bring up the save menu P Pause / Unpause the game CTRL R Restart level CTRL Q Quit game ALT X Quit from the main menu to DO Z Demo Instructions Your objective in Z is to defeat your opponent by destroying all his forces or by entering or destroying his fort, while simultaneously defending your forces and fort from attack. Your forces consist of robots. These robots are capable of occupying guns and vehicles. Your robot army is divided into units. You give orders to units by selecting them (click on any member of the unit), then moving the cursor over the location or object you want the order to apply to. The intelligent cursor system will automatically change the cursor to show the type of order that will be applied. The most common order types are æGo ToÆ (cross) and æAttackÆ (crosshair). Clicking again will confirm the order. The battlefield in Z is divided into several territories. At the start of a battle the red and blue armies each own a single territory (which also contains that armyÆs fort), and a few units of robots and vehicles. The rest of the territories will be neutral. Either side can capture them by simply having a friendly unit touch the flag that marks that territory. The flag will then turn the corresponding colour to show that the territory has been captured. Beware though, that the other side can take territories just as easily so you must defend the ones you capture. It is important to capture and hold as many territories as you can. Some territories contain buildings: factories and radar stations. Whichever side holds the territory they are located in can use these. Factories create new robots or vehicles to replace or reinforce those you start with. Radar stations show you the location of enemy units. As you conquer more territories your factories will build units faster and your radar stations will increase in range. If you lose territories, the efficiency of these buildings decreases. You can change which unit is being built by one of your factories (including your fort) by clicking on it and selecting a new item to manufacture from the control box. (1) The Main Menu NEW GAME Select this to start a new game. QUIT TO DOS Select this to quit the game to the operating system. The CONTROL window on the right hand side of the screen contains the following functions: SVGA: This changes the display resolution of the game between super VGA high resolution and normal VGA. Scenes: This controls whether the cut scenes will be shown between levels. Gamma : This adjusts the brightness of the screen. Move the marker to the left to darken the screen or to the right to brighten it. (2) The Play Screen (A) Status Panel: (1) Attack Button: This flashes whenever a unit is under attack. Clicking on it will cycle through the units currently under attack. This function is duplicated by the F5 key. (2) Time Elapsed: The clock shows the time elapsed since the start of the battle. This is important because the longer you take to complete the battle, the lower your rank will be. (3) Reporting Unit: This shows the name and portrait of the unit that you have selected or is reporting back. If the unit is reporting back, but is not currently selected, you can select it by simply clicking the left mouse button on the portrait. (4) Weapons/Vehicle: This shows either the weapon type that the unit is carrying or the vehicle or gun that it is occupying. (5) Grenades: If the unit is capable of using grenades, the number of grenades it has remaining is also shown. (6) Energy Bar: This shows how much energy the unit has remaining. (B) Mini Map: The mini map always shows your own units and a rectangle marking the position of the battlefield view. It will also show the scanning range of any radar stations you have captured and the position of any enemy units within the radar scan. The scanning range will increase as you capture territories and decrease as you lose them. You can move the battlefield view directly to any spot on the mini map by clicking with the left mouse button. Holding down the left mouse button as you move the pointer over the mini map will also move the battlefield view to track the pointer. (1) Overlay Buttons: Clicking the left mouse button on these buttons toggles the mini map overlays on and off. The overlays are: T: Terrain Overlay. This shows roads, rock formations, water and other terrain features. D: Description Overlay. This shows brief descriptions of units and buildings as you move the pointer over them on the mini map. Z: Zone Overlay. This shows a grid marking the territories owned by either of the armies. (2) Screen Position: This indicates the section of the battlefield shown in the battlefield view. (C) Command Bar: (1) Cycle Unit Buttons: Clicking the left mouse button on the R, V, B or G buttons will cycle through the available Robots, Vehicles, Buildings and Guns respectively, starting with the unit that is closest to the one currently selected. This function is also duplicated on the first four function keys (F1: Robots, F2: Vehicles; F3: Buildings; F4:Guns). (2) Army Strength: The bar graphs show the number of units each side has. (3) Menu: Clicking the left mouse button on this button will pause the game and bring up the game menu (see below). (D) Battlefield: The main section of the screen shows a bird's-eye view of a portion of the battlefield. This is where you view and control your units. (3) Viewing the Battlefield There are three different ways to move the battlefield: (i) Moving the pointer to the edge of the screen will cause the display to scroll slowly in that direction. The longer you keep the pointer there, the faster the screen will scroll. (ii) Holding down the right mouse button while moving the mouse will cause the display to scroll quickly in the direction the mouse is moving. (iii) Clicking with the left mouse button directly on the mini map will cause the battlefield view to be centred immediately on that point. (4) Selecting Units There are two different ways of selecting units. (i) Click with the left mouse button directly on any member of the unit in the battlefield view. (ii) Cycle through the available units with the relevant button on the command bar, or the relevant function key. When selected, a box will be drawn around the unit and its portrait will appear in the status panel. While the unit is selected its route will be marked as a dotted line. At its destination an animated icon will show the order it is intending to carry out when it gets there. You can see the route that your unit will take to its target location on the mini map, this will be updated as you move the cursor around the battlefield. A dotted circle shows the range of vision of the selected unit. Units will only attack, return fire or capture hardware and flags which come within this circle. The SPACEBAR toggles between the last selected unit and no selected unit. If you have a three button mouse installed the middle mouse button will perform the same action as the SPACEBAR. (5) Building Units into Groups You can build multiple units into groups. Only units that are on screen at the same time can be grouped. To group units drag a box around the ones you want to include. You can also press the A key to form a group out of all of the units on the screen. You can also build groups by holding down either SHIFT key and clicking on each unit you wish to be part of the group. You cannot scroll the screen whilst you have a SHIFT key held down. You can remove units from groups, or split groups up, by selecting them in the same way with the dotted box. A new group will be formed from the unit(s) included in the box. You can also split a single unit from a group by holding down either SHIFT key and clicking on the unit. If you wish to completely disband a group, select any unit in it and press the DELETE key. (6) Giving Orders to Units To give an order to a unit, first select it as detailed above. Simply move the cursor over the object or location that you want the order to apply to and the cursor will change to show what type of order the computer will give the unit. Confirm the order by simply clicking the left mouse button. (i) Cross: The unit will attempt to take the shortest route to the selected destination. If the unit is capable of doing so it may destroy objects like rocks and vehicle wreckage that are in its way. (ii) Crosshair: The unit will attack and attempt to destroy the selected target. You can target units anywhere in the battlefield. Your unit will find its way to the enemy and attack it when it comes into range. If the unit you attack moves location your unit will automatically track it. (iii) Grasping Hand: Capture a flag or some grenades. (iv) Up Arrow: This cursor is shown when an occupied gun is selected and the cursor is then moved over the selected unit. Clicking to confirm will cause the robot(s) occupying the unit to get out. (v) Down Arrow: Vehicles and guns can be seized by robot units. (vi) Wagging Finger: No order possible. (7) Units reporting Whenever a unit has completed an order or is under attack they will report it to you. Click on the portrait of the robot on the status panel to move to it. The unit will be selected automatically. (8) Attacking Buildings and Bridges Buildings can be damaged and destroyed. To target a building simply select the unit you want to conduct the attack and then move the cursor over any part of the building other than the entrance. If the unit is capable of attacking the building, the cursor will change to a crosshair. Now click the left mouse button to send your units to attack. To attack bridges you must use the same procedure but move the cursor over the edge of the bridge so that cursor changes to a crosshair. Clicking on the centre of the bridge will merely send the unit to that location. (9) Using Buildings There are three different types of building in this demo. These are described individually below: (i) Fort This is your most important building, and must therefore be your greatest concern. Your fort is capable of building a variety of units. Your fort has four locations (one on each corner) on which gun emplacements can be built. You can scroll to your fort from anywhere on the battlefield by pressing the RETURN key. (ii) Factories There are two types of factory: those that manufacture robots, and those that manufacture vehicles. The more stars a factory has, the more unit types it can manufacture. Both types of factories are also capable of manufacturing guns. A factory will not begin to manufacture anything until the flag controlling it has been captured by one side or the other. Once a factory has been captured it will begin to manufacture its default item. Different units take different times to manufacture. The more powerful a unit is, the longer it takes to manufacture. Manufacturing times will also be influenced by the number of territories you hold. The time to manufacture the selected unit will be displayed on the front of the building and in the control box. If a factory has been damaged it will be operating at a reduced efficiency. You can check a factory's operating efficiency by calling up the control box where it is displayed as a percentage in the top right hand corner. (a) Selecting units for manufacture You may change the type of unit being manufactured: While no unit is selected, click on the factory or fort with the left mouse button. This calls up a control box showing a portrait of the unit currently being built, and, in the case of robots, the number of robots that will be in the unit. Beside the portrait is a bar graph showing how far the building operation has progressed. The time left until completion is also shown. To build a different type of unit click on the CANCEL button with the left mouse button. You will now be able to select a new unit type to build by clicking on the arrows to the side of the portrait. As you cycle through the available units the time required to build them will be shown. To proceed with construction of a new unit type click the OK button or the unitÆs portrait with the left mouse button. If you change your mind and wish to continue building the unit that was previously being constructed you may do so without losing the current amount manufactured by simply re-selecting it or clicking on CANCEL. You can exit the control box by simply clicking anywhere on the screen off the box or click the CANCEL button when no unit is selected for manufacture. If you exit with no unit selected the factory will continue to manufacture the previously selected unit. When a factory has completed construction of a unit, a message will appear for a short time at the top of the screen informing you that a new unit has been manufactured. Clicking on the message box will scroll the screen to the newly constructed unit and select it. (b) Placing Guns When a gun is manufactured, a message will appear at the top of the screen to inform you that the gun has been constructed and a G will appear in the top left hand corner of the screen. When you are ready to place a gun, click on the G or the Gun Manufactured message with the left mouse button. The screen will scroll to the relevant factory and its control box will appear. Click on PLACE and the manufactured gun will become your cursor, move it until it is over the site that you wish to place it and then click with the left mouse button. Guns must be placed within the territory in which they were manufactured and they may not be placed on roads or buildings (except for the fort). A cross will appear over the gun if you move it over a location in which it can't be placed. If you try to place the gun more than twice in an illegal position an orange crosshatch will appear around the gun to show you the areas where it can be placed. If you move the gun away from the territory that made it by mistake you can press the SPACEBAR to return to it. There is no time limit in which you must place a gun once it has been manufactured, but any guns still not placed when the territory is captured by the enemy will be lost. You can place a maximum of four guns in a territory. Once four guns have been placed, no more guns can be manufactured and a cross will appear over the portrait of the guns in the control box. (iii) Radar Stations When you capture a radar station, it will begin to scan a circular area around it. Within this area you will be able to see the exact location of enemy units on the mini map. If you move your cursor over an enemy unit that is within range of one of your radar stations, the unit will be identified. (10) Game Menu The game menu can be accessed at any time during play by clicking the MENU button at the right of the command bar with the left mouse button or by pressing the M key. This menu provides the following functions: QUIT GAME GAME CONTROL This gives control over Scroll Rate, Screen Resolution, Detail Level and Gamma Correction SOUND CONTROL This gives control over Music and Sound Effects.