KILLER KATS It's the Alleykat Racing Season! Can you become the Alleykat Champion? Compete in eight orbiting Space Stadia scattered around the Galaxy. Choose between demolition derbires, time trials, endurance epics and other riveting battles. Spin your multi-mode Alleykat speeder over fearsome landscapes. Career past the cavorting Katerkiller. Gyrate round the gripping Gravo-craft. Can you join the best Speeder pilots in the Alleykat finale. GAME OPTIONS During the titles sequence you may select: F1 - One player, one joystick, either port. F2 - Two player, sharing one joystick, either port. F3 - Two players, two joysticks. F4 - Toggle strobos on/off. F5 - Increase music volume. F6 - Decrease music volume. F7 - Colour mode. F8 - Monochrome mode. The option display is shown for a short time. This displays a symbol for each player selected, a symbol for each joystick, a strobo-square (flashing when strobos are on), a music volume bar, and either three circles for colour or a half-filled circle for black and white. DURING PLAY RUN/STOP - pause game, press fire or run/stop to restart. After run/stop press clr/home to abandon game. GAME SEQUENCE Press fire to open the racing season. You are presented with a list of races, separated into months. Scroll the list up or down using joysztick up/down. You may only select races you can afford to enter. Your current account is shown at the top of the screen in Guineas. You begin with no money, but the first five races are free to enter. When you've scrolled the required race to the select-race line, press fire to begin. The Alleykat Speeder, supplied by the race organisers is dropped into position and launched. The tortuous landscape, the computer-controlled Gravo-craft and the dreaded Katerkiller stand between you and the finish line. When the race is over you're awarded points for Gravo-craft kills, and any bonus points earned for the particular race type. If you complete the race successfully you receive an extra bonus and the prize money. You may then select your next race. The season will continue until you race in the Alleykat finale, or you can't afford to enter any more races. THE ALLEYKAT SPEEDER Your vehicle is supplied by the racing organisation to ensure that all pilots racw with identical craft. The Speeder is steered using joystick left/right. Climb by pulling the stick back, dive by pushing it forwards. The craft's speed may be adjusted by holding down the fire button and pushing the stick forward to accelerate or back to slow down. Slowing down beyond minimum speed will cause the craft to loop-the-loop. This may be done to temporarily increase your height above other vehicles. The nose-mounted gun may be fired by pressing the fire button. In addition, the craft has two flight modes: speed and combat. In speed mode the craft is fast and highly manoeuvrable. Hold fire down and move the joystick left or right to change modes. On entering combat mode two extra wing-mounted guns unfold and are fired every time the fire button is released. In combat mode the craft is less manoeuvrable and slower. Looping also takes longer as the guns are repacked before the craft can loop. THE RACES Every race of the season is different. Because at least two races are staged every month and only one race may be selected per month it's necessary to study the race information carefully to choose the best race. Race information is viewed by moving the joystick left or right on the race selection screen. The following information is available: Stadium: One of the eight orbiting Space Wheels. Fee: The cost of entering the race in Guineas. Type: Special bonus type of race, see 'Special Bonus'. Scape: The type of terrain used. Density: The degree of packing of the landscape. The terrain may be fairly clear, or full of obstacles. Laps: The number of laps to complete to win the prize money. Prize: The prize money for successful completion. SPECIAL BONUS The race type shows the activity that will give bonus points at the end of the race, awarded whether or not the race is complete. Race types are as follows: Time-trial: Bonus increased for high-speed racing. Demolition: Bonus increased for landscape destruction. Dodg'em: Bonus reduced for landscape destruction. Endurance: Bonus awarded for time spent on track. Survival: Extra bonus awarded for gravo-craft kills. Random: Mystery bonus awarded. Slalom: Bonus awarded for flying under landscape. RACE COMPETITION When the race is over. Points are awarded for Gravo-craft kills on the following basis: Oribter: 500 points One-track: 300 points Diamond-flyer: 400 points Barrow-paddler: 200 points Duo-paddler: 250 points Fourk: 100 points Fin-puller: 100 points Nuts: 250 points Katerkiller: 2.500 points Multiple shots are required to destroy these craft, although thet may be damaged by collisions with the landscape. The Katerkiller loses one segment per hit. The special bonus points are then awarded. If the race was completed successfully then the Race Completion Bonus is awarded, followed by the prize. LANDSCAPING Eight different types of landscape are used to build the tracks around the inner surface of the space-wheels. These range from the fragile 'Shatter-rock' to the tough 'Hardweall'. Their susceptibility to fire is variable so a single shot may well not destroy a segment of the tougher landscapes. Landscape may be flown over, under or through if shots pass through the landscape then the Speeder can follow, but beware that the wing guns in combat mode make the Speeder a lot wider. SPEEDER ENERGY The Speeder can absorb a number of shots or collisions with the landscape. On low energy the Speeder flashes. Collisions with Gravo-craft take an equivalent energy from the Speeder as that of the Gravo-craft involved, and collisions with the Katerkiller are always fatal. Energy is replenished by flying low over the 'E' symbols on the ground. Maximum energy is variable and depends upon performance in the previous race Special Bonus. BONUS GUINEAS Some races have special bonus Guineas symbols, 'G'. Fly low over these to pick up extra money. TWO-PLAYER CO-OPERATION When two player are competing for the Alleykat trophy, they play as a team, with one combined money account. They must select the races together, and pay double the normal fee. Each player then races the track in turn, with each having a chance to win the prize money. If both complete the race then each wins the prize money. C128 SPECIAL OPERATION Alleykat will automatically detect a C128 and use the 2 MHz double-speed CPU to provide the extra bullers and longer Katerkillers. Unfortunately, it detects Mr. Tapeworm too, and excretes me before I can even get a square meal! Shame. TECHNICAL NOTES Virtual Sprite System (VSS). Auto height/display priority flicker-free sprite manager. 50 cycles per second full display update for ultra-smooth scrolling. (60 cycles per second on NTSC C128). Auto 2 MHZ CPU detection for enhanced game operation on C128. Rainbow Text Display System for moving rainbows, colour fades and metal bar effects. 32 race-tracks each over 20 screens long. Hardware and software sprites. Three-voice music and sound effects.