Flying Saucer Read Me (Demo Version v1.01) 20.08.97
PostLinear Entertainment
CONTENTS
1 - Important note for Hardware Acceleration Card users
2 - Important note for those employing Lo-Res Mode
3 - What's in this version and what's not
4 - System Requirements
5 - Joystick Configuration
6 - Known Bugs/ Troubleshooting
7 - Contact Information
8 - Flying Saucer Controls
9 - Credits
1 - IMPORTANT NOTE FOR HARDWARE ACCELERATION CARD USERS
***3DFX USERS******
IF YOU HAVE A 3DFX VOODOO COMPATIBLE ACCELERATOR CARD
(3DFX,DIAMOND MONSTER 3D, MATROX MYSTIQUE OR ORCHID RIGHTEOUS 3D)
YOU MUST TURN THE "HARDWARE ACCELERATION" SWITCH ON THE GAME SETTINGS SCREEN TO THE "ON" POSITION.
IF YOU TRY TO RUN "FLYING SAUCER" WITHOUT CHANGING YOUR GRAPHICS ACCELERATION SETTING- WITHOUT A VOODOO GRAPHICS 3FX ACCELERATOR-, THE GAME WILL LIKELY RUN AT 1 TO 2 FRAMES PER SECOND (EXTREMELY SLOW). YOU MUST TURN OFF HARDWARE ACCELERATION IN WINDOWS 95 IN ORDER TO RUN THIS PRESS PREVIEW VERSION OF "FLYING SAUCER". COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING STEPS TO TURN OFF HARDWARE ACCELERATION:
Close all open applications in Windows 95.
Go to the "Start" button
Go to "Settings"
Click on "Control Panel"
Double-click on "System"
Click once on "Performance" tab
Click once on "Graphics..." button at bottom of screen
Adjust slider for "Hardware Acceleration" to "NONE"
Click "O.K." and then Click "Close" again.
You will be asked to restart your computer. Click "Yes" that you would like to re-start your computer.
You are now ready to play "Flying Saucer"
2 - IMPORTANT NOTE FOR THOSE EMPLOYING LO-RES MODE
Currently, if Low Res Mode is selected from the game options, the video mode gets set to 320X480 instead of 320X240 as it should> To correct this problem, perform the following steps:
1. Go to the Control Panel (Win95)
2. Select DirectX
3. Select Direct Draw
4. Turn off "Use Hardware Acceleration"
3 - WHAT'S IN THIS VERSION AND WHAT ISN'T
THIS IS AN ALPHA PRESS PREVIEW VERSION OF FLYING SAUCER, NOT A FULL RUNNING VERSION OF THE GAME. INCLUDED IN THIS DISK ARE THE FOLLOWING COMPONENTS:
1 - One complete Flying Saucer Mission (Wright Patterson Air Force Base) [21 in final release]
2 - One Training Mission (Area 51) [Three in final release]
3 - One Data Browse [11 in final release]
4 - One Brain Browse [Four in final release]
*****IN-GAME*****
WEAPONS/MODULES: The Preview disk includes three saucer plasma weapons. Weapon names have not yet been set.
MAP: First pass on goal status tracking on the pop-up map. This will be revised and refined. Saucer position will also be added to the map.
HUD:
- Targeting Reticle/Cross-Hair: First pass. Not final.
- The Geodesic Spheres are not final.
SPECIAL EFFECTS: Most of the special effects, including weapons and damage effects are first pass, and will refined further.
RENDERER: You'll see a single repeating tile at the edge of the world. The repeating of the edge tiles has not yet been implemented in this version.
EXTERNAL CAMERA: The saucer's external camera mode is not final; improvements will be made.
DATA BROWSER: The intro screen for this area of the game is not final. Several of the Data Browser pages are also being revised. Not all of the links have been activated yet, so clicking on highlighted text doesn't mean the link is active yet.
BRAIN BROWSER: The Flying Saucer demo contains one brain browse. In the game, the player must abduct the the Grey Ambassador before the information will be available.
GLUE SCREENS:
- Earth and Simulator Maps: These are placeholder maps.
*****OPTIONS MENU*****
The following is a list of featues that are currently disabled on the Options Menu:
- Vehicle Textures on/off
- Automatic Restore on/off
- Automatic Backup on/off
4 - SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
For this demo, it is highly recommended that you play the game according to the following Minimum System Requirement:
Windows 95 Operating System
Pentium 166 or Higher
32 MB RAM
2 MB VRAM
4X CD -ROM Drive
Windows 95 Compatible Soundcard
5 - JOYSTICK CONFIGURATION
Currently, Joystick Configuration cannot be completed inside of the game. To configure your joystick, select Joystick from the Control Panel and configure your joystick from there. *****NOTE: While Windows 95 should auto detect your joystick when the game is started, sometimes this will not happen. If your joystick is not working in the game, you'll need to exit the game and reconfigure for it to work properly.
We'll be adding support for a number of "non-standard" joystick, but for now, you're best bet is to run Saucer with your average everyday flightstick.
We have experienced problems with drivers for CH's F-16 Combat Stick and Flightstick Pro. We recommend reconfiguring your joystick in the Control Panel as a 2-axis, four-button stick/w. hat.
6 - MAJOR BUGS/TROUBLESHOOTING
**** MAJOR BUGS
HARDWARE ACCELERATION / PALETTES IN 16 BIT
Currently, GUI displays rendered in 16-bit color may appear unpalettized when view through a hardware acceleration card. This may affect subsequent palettes in other parts of the game. This will be corrected shortly.
SOUND LOOP [748]
When the Saucer gets too close to a truck, tank or Humvee, a sound loop will begin to play. That sound loop may not stop, even after the saucer has flown away from the object. This is a bug. To disengage, the look, simply hit the Escape key, which brings up a dialogue box. Then, hit the Escape key again, which will return you to the game. This Sound Loop will be gone.
TRACKING [546]
If the player enters tracking mode (by hitting the X key) and destroys an object before the Saucer has finished the track and locked its position behind the object, the speed allocation (the blue circle and bar at the top left) for the Saucer will be maximized. This will put the saucer into a super speed mode, and make the saucer go faster than it should.
FOG EFFECTS W. ACCELERATOR CARDS
Partial clipping may occur when card-based fog effects are enabled.
POWERVR CARDS
When running with the PowerVR accelerator card, some objects will appear to have black "halos" around them when drawn over the sky. This will be fixed in the final release.
***TROUBLESHOOTING
JOYSTICK DOESN'T WORK
To fix the Joystick, go to the Control Panels and select the Joystick function. Re-calibrate the joystick and try again. If that doesn't work, try using the generic joystick calibration that applies to your stick (e.g. - four button/two axis, etc.)
GAMEPADS DON'T WORK YET
We haven't optimized for Gamepads yet. Better to just avoid them for now.
FS RUNS AT 1 OR 2 FPS
Hardware acceleration has not been turned on yet(except for 3dfx). As a result, if you try to run Saucer with Graphics Acceleration turned on- without a 3dfx card- , it will most likely run at 1 to 2 FPS. To turn off Hardware Acceleration in Windows 95, select System from the Control Panel. Then select Performance. From the Advanced Settings Area of the Screen, select the Graphics button. Set the hardware acceleration to the lowest setting (the second lowest setting may also work), and then click O.K. You'll need to restart before the changes will take effect.
I HEARD MISSION COMPLETE, BUT I'M STILL IN THE WORLD
That's because when a mission is complete, you can hang around in the world. Once you get the mission successful voice over and the object on the screen, you can exit the mission simply by pressing the ESC key.
7 - CONTACT INFORMATION
Product Related Issues:
Damon Dean - Project Producer
PostLinear Entertainment Inc.
2650 18th Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
415-487-1100 x244
8 - FLYING SAUCER CONTROLS
FLIGHT CONTROLS:
Key: Action:
---------------- --------------------
A Increase Throttle
Z Decrease Throttle
Q Set to Maximum Speed
W Stop
X Track Currently Targeted Object
L Follow Currently Targeted Object
Up Arrow POD View Down
Down Arrow POD View Up
Left Arrow POD View Left
Right Arrow POD View Right
Shift + Up Arrow Slide Forward
Shift + Down Arrow Slide Backward
Shift + Left Arrow Slide Left
Shift + Right Arrow Slide Right
Alt + Up Arrow Slide Up
Alt + Down Arrow Slide Down
Alt + Left Arrow Slide Left
Alt + Right Arrow Slide Right
Ctrl Match Motion to Current View Vector
Enter Match View to Current Motion Vector
WEAPONS CONTROLS:
Key: Action:
---------------- --------------------
1 Select Lasers
2 Select Plasma Missles
3 Select Guided Plasma Missiles
Tab Cycle Forward through Weapons
~ Cycle Bacward through Weapons
Space Bar Fire
ENERGY MANAGEMENT CONTROLS:
Key: Action:
---------------- --------------------
E Bias Energy to Engines
S Bias Energy to Shields
D Bias Energy to Weapons
C Balance Energy to Engines, Shields and Weapons
F Invert Shields
Shift + S Transfer Energy from Weapons to Shields
Shift + D Transfer Energy from Shields to Weapons
TARGETING / TRACKING / SENSOR CONTROLS:
Key: Action:
---------------- --------------------
Y Target Nearest Object
G Target Object in Crosshairs
T Target Next Object
R Target Previous Object
U Auto-Target Mode
I Inspect Targeted Object
O Abduct Targeted Object (Web, Abductee, or Convertible Matter)
L View Follows Targeted Object
N Cycle through Navigation Points
B Cycle through Sensors (Spectral, Electromagnetic, and Biomass)
V Toggles Sensors between Short- and Long-Range Modes
FUNCTION KEYS:
Key: Action:
---------------- --------------------
F1 Return to Saucer
F2 External Camera
F3 Zoom In External Camera
F4 Zoom Out External Camera
F5 Head-Up-Display On / Off
F6 Missle Camera
F7 Enemy Camera
F9 Joystick On / Off
F10 Music On / Off
F11 Sound Effects On / Off
F12 Voice Overs On / Off
GAME CONTROLS:
Key: Action:
---------------- --------------------
Esc End / Restart Mission
P Pause Mission
9 - CREDITS
FLYING SAUCER
Created by:
Ron Martinez
Executive Producers:
Ron Martinez
Andy Hieke
Project Leader, Executive Producer & Game Designer:
Gareth Davis
Producer & Game Designer:
Damon Dean
Lead Engineers:
Andrew Kaluzniacki
Michael Romero
Animation Art Director:
John Hayes
Game Art Direction:
Greg Dyer
Bill Pauley
Engineering:
Mary Ricci
Roger Tinkoff
Roger Hagen
Mission Builders:
Tony Laborie
Paul Pettross
Scott Pearson
Story & Script:
David Gordon
Audio Producers:
Jack Wall
Cindy Wall
Game Art:
Bill Pauley
Greg Dyer
Melissa Lubofsky
Neo McMullen
Arie Sztajnwore
Kevin Clarke
Alex Ragland
Jeff Jouppi
Andy Feder
Tiffanie Ragasa
I-Wei Huang
Terrain Art:
Chris Birnbaum
Santiago Nunez
Kurt Rauer
Animation Art Producer:
Don Howe
Animation Art Technical Director & Compositing:
Jason Porter
Animation Associate Producers:
Amy Loeffler
Leslie
Animation Lead 2D Artist:
Osamu
Animation Art:
WildBrain Crew
Animation Lead 3D Artist:
Greg Dyer
Animation 3D Art:
Luna-Cie
Imagination Plantation
Little Fluffy Clouds
Music production and composition:
Jack Wall
David Scheffler
Cut Scene Score:
Cindy Wall
Production Design Consultant:
Tippett Studios
HUD Concept:
Howard Bornstein
Vivian Barad
Dean McDonald
Alien Language:
Kathi Vian
Video & Audio Technology:
RAD Software
Voice Actors:
Jeanne Tripplehorn
Mark Worden
Neil Gaimen
John Cale
Mark Auerbach
Harv Presnell
Cindy Wall
Director of Studio Operations:
Robin Nakamura
MIS:
Marc Babin
Dan Sweeney
Jack Gibbons
QA:
Randy Lee
Administration:
Mandy Benson
Shawna Roberts
Special Thanks to:
Audrey Martinez, Will Chase, Jim Atkinson, Gwnyeth Hamel, John Evershed, Jeff Fino, Richard Thompson, Ian (Mondo), Dennis Luo, Kate Seekings, Paul Mogg, Jack Gibbons, Roland Kippenhan, Kevin Reperowitz, Grace Stanat
BY COMPANY:
PostLinear Entertainment, Inc.
Original Concept and Creative Director - Ron Martinez
President of Production - Andy Hieke
Director of Studio Operations - Robin Nakamura
Project Leader, Executive Producer, Designer - Gareth Davis
Producer, Designer - Damon Dean
Lead Engineer - Michael Romero
Engineers - Mary Ricci
- Roger Tinkoff
Art Director, Artist - Bill Pauley
Art Director, 3D Artist - Greg Dyer
Lead Mission Builder - Tony Laborie
Mission Builder, QA - Scott Pearson
QA - Randy Lee
MIS - Marc Babin
- Dan Sweeney
- Jack Gibbons
Administration - Mandy Benson
- Shawna Roberts
For PostLinear Entertainment (in alphabetic order)
Any River, Inc.
VP of Development - Andy Sells
VP of Creative - Jim Bloom
Mission Builder, QA - Eric Bergerson
QA Manager - Mike Gilmartin
QA Testers - Tim Moore
- Anthony Gomez
- Jeff Custis
- Rebecca Colburn
Curve, Inc.
Cut Scene Producer - Don Howe
DesignEQ, Inc.
HUD Design Concept - Howard Bornstein
Alien Language - Kathi Vian
FrontLine, Inc.
Terrain Producer - Kevin Reperowitz
Terrain Art - Chris Birnbaum
- Santiago Nunez
- Kurt Rauer
Imagination Plantation, Inc.
SGI Animation - Ben Fischler
Operations - Noah Hurwitz
Independent Contractors
Scriptwriter - David Gordon
Mission Builder - Paul Pettross
Artists - Melissa Lubofsky
- Neo McMullen
- Arie Sztajnwore
- Alex Ragland
- Kevin Clarke
- Tiffanie Ragasa
- I-Wei Huang
UFO Expert - Glenn Campbell
Little Fluffy Clouds, Inc.
SGI Animation - Jerry van de Beek
Operations - Betsy de Fries
Luna Cie, Inc.
SGI Animation - John Tissavary
- Sophia
Mondo Media, Inc.
Producer - Vivian Barad
HUD Art Concept - Dean McDonald
Music Technology - Miles Sound System, RAD Software
Tippett Studios, Inc.
Production Design Consultant - Phil Tippett
Character Design - Wayne Barlow
ThinkFish, Inc.
Lead Engineer - Andrew Kaluzniacki
Engineer 3D - Roger Hagen
Artist - Andy Feder
Artist - Jeff Jouppi
Video Technology - Smacker, RAD Software
Wall of Sound
Audio Production - Jack Wall
- Cindy Wall
Music Production & Composition - Jack Wall
- David Scheffler
Cut Scene Score - Cindy Wall
Wild Brain, Inc.
Cut Scene Director - John Hayes
Cut Scene Line Producer - Amy / Leslie
Cut Scene Lead Animator - Osamu
Cut Scene Animators - WildBrain Animation Crew
Cut Scene Digital Ink and Paint - Eric Schweickert
