WILLYS WEIRDY NIGHTMARE ======================= Introduction ------------ Welcome to Willys Weirdy Nightmare. As you may have noticed if you have already played the game, it is based on an old Spectrum platform game called 'Jet Set Willy'. This version, however, is greatly enhanced. Some of the features you can expect are :- * 64 colour graphics * Over 150 levels (registered version) * Approximately 500k worth of graphics * Loads of puzzles, hidden rooms etc. * Save and load feature * Good, solid gameplay (unlike some games nowadays !) I hope you enjoy playing it and please don't forget to register (details later on in these docs). System Requirements ------------------- This game has been tested successfully on an A1200 and A3000. I have also tried the old A500 but the game does not work. Unfortunately, I do not have access to a 500+ or 600 so I'm afraid I don't know about these machines. Loading ------- If you are loading from floppy, please ensure that the disk is NOT write protected as the save games are kept on the game disk. If you are worried about corrupting the game or worried about viruses, ensure your computer is switched off for at least 30 seconds before loading (which is a good idea anyway) and always use a backup version of the game. The game can be loaded from boot up or can be executed from workbench by just clicking on its icon. Instructions For Hard Disk Users -------------------------------- To install on your hard disk, simply... 1) Drag the WWN drawer from the floppy to where you want it on your hard disk. 2) Ensure that you have the 'medplayer.library' file in your Libs directory in workbench. If you don't have it then copy it from the floppys Libs directory. Getting Started --------------- When the game loads, the title screen will appear. There are two options displayed at the bottom of the screen, these are 'start game' and 'load game'. These are fairly self explanitory, 'start game' will start a fresh game and 'load game' will restore a previously saved game. Move the cursor between these two options by pressing left or right on the joystick. To select an option, press the fire button. If you select 'load game', the screen will display a list of saved games. Move the cursor to the save game you wish to load by pressing up or down on the joystick. Finally, press the fire button to select the game to be loaded. The Story --------- Oh dear ! Willy has fallen into a deep nightmare in which his mansion has been taken over by a hoard of WEIRDYS. To escape from the nightmare, Willy must go around his mansion and collect all the magical items and then return to bed so that he can wake up ! He must avoid contact with any of the WEIRDYS to survive. One touch means Willy must lose a life and if Willy runs out of lives then he is trapped in his nightmare, forever ! Willy can distinguish most magical items by the fact that they are flashing. However, a number of magical items are hidden behind false walls, in water and so on. You can tell if Willy has collected an object as it will disappear, the screen will flash very briefly and your score increases. The Game -------- The controls for the game are incredibly simple. Move Willy left and right by pressing the appropriate left or right on the joystick. Willy will jump if you press the fire button. Combinations of the above will result in Willy jumping left or right. There are several types of platform on which Willy can stand (or not as the case may be). These are listed as follows :- Solid Platforms - Can be walked on but cannot be walked or jumped through. Normal Platforms - Can be walked and jumped on and through. Conveyor Belts - Act like normal platforms but move Willy along the direction it is going if stood on. Super Belts - Just like conveyor belts except twice as fast. Stairs - Act like normal platforms except Willy can walk up and down them diagonally. Deaths - Instant death if touched ! Come in the form of spikes, skulls, barbed wire etc Falses - They can look like certain solid platforms but do not affect Willy in any way. These can disguise entrances to other rooms as a solid wall or hide magic items. Other types of falses are used for pure decoration. Also there are various switches around Willys mansion. When switched they can put in platforms, remove impassable doors, remove deaths, place stairs and so on. Saving A Game ------------- To save your position, as a safeguard or to play later, simply press 'S'. A screen will appear with a list of save game slots. Move the cursor to the save slot you require and press fire. Here you can change the name of the saved game. When you have done this, press RETURN and the game is saved. There are a few restrictions on the use of this. Firstly, you cannot be in mid-jump or standing on a stair, it won't let you save. Secondly, it is a VERY good idea not to save a game when Willy is in the path of a WEIRDY as when the game is loaded back in, the position of the WEIRDYS cannot be predicted and therefore may be slap bang on Willy and cause an infinite death type scenario. Hints On Play ------------- A screen is divided up into a 40x20 grid of blocks. Each block may or may not contain a platform. With this in mind, the following is a list of hints that will help you get started. Willy can jump across a gap of 5 blocks (just) but he must be on the very edge of the platform to do this. You can tell Willy is on the very edge of a platform as his legs will be spread at their widest point. Willy is able withstand a fall of up to and including 4 blocks. If he falls any further, he will lose a life. Willys jump can clear 2 blocks and therefore is able to jump onto platforms at this height. When Willy walks onto a stair (from the bottom) he will automatically go up it. If you want to go through a stair (as apposed to up it), you will have to jump through it. The best place to jump is as close to the base of the stair as possible but not actually on it. Willy can stop moving on a conveyor belt by going in the opposite direction the conveyor belt is travelling (partially achieved on super belts). Sometimes, when Willy is on the edge of a platform, you need to make sure he jumps correctly. When jumping from a stationary position, it is hard to synchronise the fire button with the left or right movement of the joystick. This means that sometimes Willy will walk slightly before jumping and if this is on the edge of a platform, this may mean Willy falling to his doom. The best way to get round this is to do a vertical jump first, then while Willy is in the air press left or right (but remember to keep the fire button pressed). Willy will then, when he lands, jump left or right without first walking. Some rooms (!) are very tough. One technique I found useful is to try and get there without losing a life, save the game, then use all the lives up sussing the room. If it is not sussed first time round, load the save position and you can try again with all those lives. ENJOY THE GAME ! Credits And Registration Details -------------------------------- This game was created by Richard Williams (myself) and Steven Tate. I wrote the code using Amos Professional and also designed all the rooms. Steven designed all the graphics and also composed all the music. The following people helped me play test the game and also provided useful advice on aspects of gameplay :- Gary Waterhouse David Stephenson Stuart Moore Kelvin Hunter Mark Craig Keith Rogers Thanks to them. To register and recieve the enhanced version of the game please send five pounds sterling (£5) to the following address :- R. Williams 42 Hainault Avenue Giffard Park Milton Keynes MK14 5PA Please make things (i.e. cheques, postal orders etc.) payable to 'R. Williams'. Registrations from outside the United Kingdom can use International Money Orders for payment. You can send cash if you like, BUT, it is YOUR risk. If it gets lost/stolen in the post we both lose out (boo!), I don't get paid and you dont get your disk. I strongly recommend you don't send cash as I can't be made responsible for it. :-( DISCLAIMER ========== IF YOU OR YOUR COMPUTER SUFFER FROM ANY MENTAL OR PHYSICAL DAMAGE CAUSED BY THIS SOFTWARE ITS NOT MY FAULT ! I ACCEPT NO LIABILITY FOR ANYTHING THAT HAPPENS TO YOU OR YOUR HARDWARE. SO THERE. ALL CHARACTERS PORTRAYED ARE ENTIRELY FICTICIOUS AND ANY RESEMBLANCE TO OTHER PEOPLE OR OLD COMPUTER CHARACTERS, LIVING OR DEAD, IS ENTIRELY COINCIDENTAL. Please feel free however to contact me with your comments and/or bug reports at the above address. I can also be contacted via a friend on the Internet on :- k.hunter@open.ac.uk Note: The copyright is held by the respective authors of the code, graphics and music.