AntiTron v 0.94b September 26 1999
==================================


What is AntiTron?
=================

AntiTron is a freeware space arcade game for the MS-DOS platform, but it's
also suitable for Windows. It's written in plain C using the DJGPP compiler
v2.02 and the Allegro library v3.12.

AntiTron was created in the summer of 1999 by Binary Spells.


Background Story
================

Time: Year 8137 A.D.
Location: A solar system called "Solaris".

After the human race discovered intergalactic travel people started to leave
the overcrowded planet Earth to find their luck on another solar system not
too far away in the Milky Way galaxy. This new solar system which was named
Solaris had four inhabitable planets and the people who started to settle down
there called themselves Solarians.

But after a few hundred years of peace and prosperity, the Solarians were
forced to escape their four new home worlds as a robotic alien civilisation
from a nearby star cluster has started to invade the Solaris solar system.
As a last attempt to save the Solarian race, the exciled Solaris Interplanetary
Congress decided to design an intelligent and sophisticated fighter robot which
would be sent back to the Solaris solar system with a very simple mission:

                To exterminate the invading aliens.

That's the story behind AntiTron, and this is also where you take over.
Satellite photos have shown that the alien robots have installed 22 nuclear
devices called "AntiTrons" all over the four planets, and these AntiTrons are
essential life sources for the the alien robots, who are able to replicate
themselves genetically so that they can survive even without their bodies and
machines. So in order to exterminate the alien robots, all the nuclear devices
must be neutralised or disabled.

Your mission is thus to exterminate the alien robots by locating and
neutralising all 22 nuclear devices which are located on the four planets.


Hardware and software requirements
==================================

These are the minimum requirements to play AntiTron. It might work on a
slower or older PC than this, but to be on the safe side, please use at
least:

Pentium 166Mhz
32MB RAM
SVGA compatible graphics card
Sound Blaster compatible sound card

Windows 3.1/95/98/NT or MS-DOS 6.0
To unpack the game you will need WinZip or similar tool (www.winzip.com)

If you would experience any difficulties, then please let us know all the
details about your computer setup (if you know them) and we will do our best
to help you get the game running!


Installing
==========

-Go to www.binaryspells.com and download the ZIP file which is about 1.7MB.
-Use WinZip or similar to unpack the contents of the ZIP file into a new folder.
-Run the setup program "setup.exe". In the setup, you can either select
 "Autodetect" or do the configuration yourself if you know what you're doing.
 If you want to use a joystick, you can calibrate it in the setup program.
 Save the setup changes by clicking "Save changes and exit".
-Start "antitron.exe".
-That's it! The game now starts and the main menu will appear.

If you fail to hear any sound when the game starts, it is probably because you
didn't run the setup program setup.exe, or you forgot to save the changes. Make
sure there is a file "allegro.cfg" after you have run the setup program.

If anything goes wrong (e.g. ZIP file is corrupt or game crashes as you try
to start it), then please report this to us and we promise we will do our best
to help you get started! But please please please try to tell us as much as you
can about your computer setup, e.g. what CPU, graphics and sound card, how much
RAM, etc. and also if you can tell us exactly what you did to install the game
that would be great.


Playing AntiTron
================

AntiTron is a weird game. It has three parts, where each part is like a separate
game but all three parts still fit together. The first part we call the "outer
space" part and that's where you must navigate your spaceship in the Solaris
solar system and locate and land on each of the four planets. When you're above
a planet you can land on it, which is where the second part of the game is taking
over.

Things to keep in mind in the outer space part:
-You cannot leave the solar system. If you try, you'll reach the "end of the universe".
-You cannot shoot the asteroids but only avoid them.
-To land on a planet, you must press "ENTER" key but it only works if your ship is
located above the planet and the speed is slow enough.

The second part we call the "lander" part as it reminds us of the classic arcade
"Lunar Lander" (but it isn't the same game, just looks a bit like it). Here you
must take your spaceship down on the planet you've decided to land on, and the
tricky bit is (1) to find a station, and (2) to land safely on the station without
hitting the rocks or getting killed by the aliens. But once you've managed to land
on a station you can then enter it and this is we enter the third part of the game.

Things to keep in mind in the lander part:
-When you first enter from the outer space part, you will land on the main platform
with is NOT a station. The stations are located elsewhere.
-You cannot leave the planet by going straight up away from the ground. Instead you
must land on the main platform and press "ENTER" key.
-Keep an eye on fuel and velocity! You can't land too fast.
-Somewhere on each planet there's at least one, sometimes more, petrol stations.

In the third and last part of the game, the "stations" part, you have left the 
spaceship and you're inside a tank-line vehicle which can move around inside the
stations. Here you must find your way around pathways and corridors, and locate
keys to unlock doors etc. The main goal is of course to locate and neutralise the
AntiTron. There's one AntiTron somewhere on each of the 22 stations.

Things to keep in mind in the stations part:
-You must enter and leave the station through the exit point.
-Sometimes the keys get stolen by nasty aliens who then hide from you.
-Neutralise the AntiTron by simply touching it.
-Don't take too long time - keep an eye on the remaining time.


Controls
========

The tricky part is probably to get used to controlling the spacecraft and the
robot, but be patient - you'll learn how to do it!

UP ARROW		- Move forward or up
DOWN ARROW		- Move backward or down
LEFT ARROW		- Rotate counter clockwise or move right
RIGHT ARROW 	- Rotate clockwise or move left

SPACE or
LEFT CONTROL	- Fire

ENTER			- Enter/leave planet or station

SHIFT			- Move faster (only outer space and station parts)

The above controls can all be done using the joystick. If the joystick feels
weird, try calibrating the joystick using the setup program "setup.exe".

TAB			- Map/NavaTron (Use this!!!)
ESC			- Quit game and go back to main menu 


Status screen
=============

At the bottom of the screen you see a status screen which tells you
everything you need to know. Notice that not all parts of the status screen
are interesting at all times! From left you find the following:

-Power: this tells you how much power (health) your spaceship and robot have.
100% is maximum. Notice that these two are totally independent, but if any one
goes below 0%, you will die! 

-Speed: this shows you how fast you are currently going. This information is
most interesting in the lander and outer space parts where you must keep below
a certain speed limit in order to land.

-Time Left: This is only for the stations, where you have a certain amount of
time to finish each station. It will count down until it reaches 0 mins 0 secs,
then your robot dies. Countdown stops once you've got the AntiTron.

-Infotron: tells you in plain text some useful bits of info that you might
want to know, e.g. if you're craft is going too fast to be able to land, or if
a door requires a key. Keep an eye on this one!!

-Keys: Only used in the stations part, where you need keys to open doors.
This section shows you which keys you have, and which you don't have. The color
of the key must match the color of the door you're trying to open.

-Stations: This is the rightmost part of the status screen, where you can see
which stations you have neutralised, and on which station you are currently
located. It might look confusing when you first see it, but we think (and
hope!) it will be useful for you! Each line represents a planet, and the
planet's name is in the same color (roughly) as the planet itself. Following
the planet's name is the symbol for each of it's stations. All 22 stations have
their own names and symbols associated with them.


Version history
===============

For details on the different versions and the bug fixes, see separate file
"history.txt" included with the game.


Credits
=======

DJ Delorie - For the DJGPP port of gcc
Shawn Hargreaves - For the Allegro library
André LaMothe - For cool books, advice and attitude
Brian Kernighan & Dennis Ritchie - For C
Jane X - For being the cheerleader
Trent Reznor - For nine inch nails

Special thanks to Brian Kissinger for the main menu background artwork.
(Copyright Brian Kissinger) Check out his work at www.visualparadox.com!

Special thanks also goe to all the people who has helped us with the
testing! Thanks a lot :-) :-) :-) Please keep on sending us bug reports!


Contact details
===============

Email:
Binary.Spells@Pmail.Net

Web:
www.binaryspells.com

Forum:
There's a forum on our website where you can leave us comments and read
other peoples comments and ideas. Check it out!!!

Newsletter:
Join our newsletter if you want the latest news and updates emailed to you.
More information is available on our website.

