Putt-Putt Joins the Circus (full product) - available Summer 2000
NOTE: Due to this demo being created months in advance of the full
release, the lipsyncing that is in the full product is not in this demo.
NOTE: If the lines extend past the edge of the window when
viewing this in Notepad, try selecting WORD WRAP from
the Notepad EDIT menu.
MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
Windows 95/98
Pentium 90
16MB RAM
SVGA (640x480), 256 colors graphics
Sound Card
Quad-speed (4X) CD-ROM drive
PCI video card
INSTALLING THE DEMO (Windows 95/98)
No installation necessary. Merely double-click on the Circdemo.exe file to start the interactive demo.
THE OPTIONS SCREEN
Game-specific settings may be customized through the options dialog box, which is accessible at any time by pressing the Spacebar, then clicking the Options button.
PLAYING THE GAME
It's another sunny day in Car Town and the Bigtop Circus is in town. Putt-Putt and his pet Pep are on their way there. Pep has their ticket securely held in his mouth. All they have to do is get there...... simple, right? Unfortunately, there is a stubborn little goat blocking not only the road to the circus but also the train delivering supplies to the circus.
In the full game, Putt-Putt must not only get to the game but once there help out getting the circus ready. It's all confusion there, with performers missing and things in the wrong place so he'll have his work cut out for him.
In this demo, the goal is merely to get Putt-Putt to the circus.
USING THE MOUSE
Point and click to guide Putt-Putt through this adventure! As you move the mouse around the screen, the pointer changes to reflect the type of action it will perform when clicked.
A clear (outline) arrow is the standard pointer in the game. When you see the empty outline, it means that the mouse is not pointing at an object that can be activated.
Pay attention when you see the pointer turn solid, like the one in this picture. It means that the object you are pointing at can be picked up, manipulated, or activated.
A larger arrow shows that there is more exploration to be done in the indicated direction. Just click to send Putt-Putt off in the direction of the arrow. The large pointer also shows the exit from a mini-game.
PUTT-PUTT'S DASHBOARD
Putt-Putt's interface is the dashboard on the lower right part of the game screen. Any inventory items are kept in his "glove box" on the right side of the dash.
Inventory items are things that Putt-Putt can pick up and use during his adventures. To use an item, just click on its picture in the interface and it will "stick" to the cursor. Now, click on something in the current scene with the item to try and use the two items together.
For instance, if you wanted to give a brick in your inventory to a friendly car, you'd first click on the brick to pick it up and then click on the car with the brick and Putt-Putt will offer the brick to the car.
Putt-Putt's dashboard is not only used to store the special objects that he collects throughout the game, but it also has its own special click points.
Click on Putt-Putt's Ignition to stop the game (in the full game, the ignition brings up a Save/Load/Quit menu).
Click on Putt-Putt's Horn to hear it honk.
Click on Putt-Putt's Speedometer to hear him rev his engine.
Click on Putt-Putt's Radio for humorous and interesting information.
Click Points
There are hundreds of hidden click points in the full Putt-Putt Joins the Circus. Even in the demo, you can click on almost anything on the screen and make it come alive. Click on a rock, a flower or a tree and watch as the fun and surprises begin!
You can also use the keys on the keyboard to activate click points. But it will be random so press a key and watch the antics of the seemingly inanimate objects onscreen!
Some click points will continue to respond with each successive click, and produce a different reaction each time! Be sure to click on an item more than once. Some click points even act as mini-games - a combination of click points that work together for even more fun.
KEYBOARD COMMANDS
In addition to the keyboard commands below you can now use the keyboard to activate click points. Press any key and watch onscreen as flowers start playing guitar and trees blast off! You can still use the mouse too.
See the Making Changes to the Game section for information on disabling this function.
<Spacebar> Pauses the game, and opens the pause dialog box. To continue, just click the Play button.
<Alt><F4> Quits the game. You can also stop playing by pressing the Spacebar, then clicking the Quit button or by clicking on the ignition on Putt-Putt's dashboard and then clicking on Quit.
<Esc> Fast-forward through the current cutscene.
<Period> Same as the <Esc> key, but skips only the current character's line -- not the entire scene.
<F1> Displays on-line help.
<Shift><F5> Toggles the game between running full-screen or in a window.
<Shift><F7> Increases the size of the game display if your screen resolution is 1280x1024 or higher. If the game display has already been expanded, <Shift><F7> will toggle the display size back to normal.
NOTE: This may cause slow video performance.
<Shift><F8> Increases the size of the game display if your screen resolution is 800x600 or 1024x768. If the game display has already been expanded, <Shift><F8> will toggle the display size back to normal.
NOTE: This may move the position of your desktop icons.
TROUBLESHOOTING INFORMATION
Windows 95/98
If you're having trouble with your CDROM, sound or video card make sure you've got the most updated drivers for these devices. If you're still having problems read on:
Video
When we say SVGA, we mean that we need a display capable of supporting a resolution of 640x480 at 256 colors (this wasn't a requirement of the original VGA spec, so we say SVGA). Almost every video adapter sold in the last six+ years is capable of this resolution and color depth. Even if you don't know it, you probably have an SVGA card.
NOTE: To find your system device information on Windows 95/98 or higher click on Start, Settings and Control Panel. Double click on the System icon; in the System Properties click on the Device Manager tab and then find Display Adapters and Sound, video and game controllers in the list. Click the plus sign to the left of each line and note the manufacturer name as it appears below.
