Buck Rogers: Planet of Zoom(TM) Cartridge Instructions TI-99/4A ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Buck Rogers(TM) - Planet of Zoom Book developed and written by: Staff members of Texas Instruments Instructional Communications. Copyright © 1983 by Texas Instruments Incorporated. Solid State Cartridge program and data base contents copyright © 1983 Sega Enterprises, Inc. See important warranty information at back of book. Buck Rogers is a trademark of The Dille Family Trust. INTRODUCING BUCK ROGERS You are Buck Rogers fighting a desperate battle on Planet Zoom in the twenty-fifth century. To escape the planet, you must carefully pilot your ship through dangerous Electron Posts and dodge menacing Space Hoppers that can crush your ship. Once you escape from the planet surface, you face a swarm of Alien Saucers that protect the Mother Ship. Destroy the Alien Saucers, and then aim a direct hit at the Mother Ship. You must complete your mission before you run out of fuel, or your ship explodes! As Buck Rogers, you can: *Battle aliens on Planet Zoom and in outer space *Enjoy colorful, 3-D graphics *Progress through increasing levels of difficulty *Control the speed of your ship and the intensity of the battle *Hear exciting sound effects *Use the keyboard or the Joystick Controllers *Have more fun with synthesized speech that simulates the action of Buck Rogers' adventure Note: The optional Solid State Speech (TM) Synthesizer (sold separately) must be attached to the computer to activate speech capabilities. BEGINNING YOUR MISSION When the Buck Rogers title screen appears, press any key or the FIRE button on the Joystick Controllers to begin the game. You, Buck Rogers, are in command of your spaceship soaring over Planet Zoom. You begin your mission with three ships in reserve. Pilot your ship through Electron Posts. Then, outmaneuver and destroy the Space Hoppers. After defeating them, you automatically blast off into space, where you destroy Alien Saucers. Conserve your fuel to battle the dreaded Mother Ship! If you are victorious, you advance to the next level of play and return to Planet Zoom. Monitoring Your Controls The top of the screen shows vital data. Monitor this data carefully to insure a successful mission. You see: *Your score *The fuel gauge *Your reserve ships *The number of Electron Posts you must fly through or number of enemies you must destroy to continue your mission. Monitoring Your Levels When you destroy a Mother Ship, you advance to a more difficult level. When you advance to a new level: *Planet Zoom changes color *The Electron Posts are spaced closer together *You must fly through more Electron Posts and destroy more enemies to reach the Mother Ship *The speed of the game increases Soaring through Electron Posts Maneuver your ship carefully through the Electron Posts to gain points. If you collide with an Electron Post, you lose a ship. Shooting Space Hoppers Space Hoppers attack from all directions. Move quickly to aim and fire at them. If you collide with a Space Hopper, you lose a ship. Fighting Alien Saucers Alien Saucers attack rapidly and without warning. Position your ship carefully and fire at them. If you collide with an Alien Saucer, you lose a ship. Destroying the Mother Ship Only a direct hit can destroy the Mother Ship. Move your ship left or right to find the best position for firing. COMMANDING YOUR SHIP Use the keyboard or the Joystick Controllers to maneuver your ship and fire at the aliens. Raising or lowering your ship changes the speed of the game. Raise your ship to increase its speed, the rate of fire, and the speed of the aliens' attack. Lower your ship to decrease its speed, the rate of fire, and the speed of the aliens' attack. To pause during a game, press the P key. Press any key to resume play. Controlling Your Ship with the Keyboard: Use these keys to maneuver your ship and fire at the enemy. ---------------------------------------- Press Action ---------------------------------------- (LEFT ARROW) S Moves ship left ---------------------------------------- (RIGHT ARROW) D Moves ship right ---------------------------------------- (UP ARROW) E Raises ship and increases speed of play ---------------------------------------- (DOWN ARROW) X Lowers ship and decreases speed of play ---------------------------------------- Q,Y Fires at enemy ---------------------------------------- Controlling Your Ship with the Joysticks: Use the joysticks to maneuver your ship and fire at the enemy. ----------------------------------------- Press Action ----------------------------------------- Lever left Moves ship left ----------------------------------------- Lever right Moves ship right ----------------------------------------- Lever forward Raises ship and (toward FIRE button) increases speed of play ----------------------------------------- Lever backward Lowers ship and (away from FIRE button) decreases speed of play ----------------------------------------- Note: The ALPHA LOCK must be in the OFF(up) position when using the Joystick Controllers. CONTINUING YOUR MISSION In Buck Rogers, you automatically earn points as you fly your ship on its hazardous journey. You also earn points for flying through Electron Posts and for destroying Space Hoppers and Alien Saucers. Earn an extra spaceship and a full load of fuel by destroying a Mother Ship. As your skills improve, use different strategies to defeat the enemies and complete your mission. The game ends when your last ship is destroyed. Scoring Score points as you fly through Electron Posts and destroy enemies. ----------------------------------------- Action Reward ----------------------------------------- | | Flying between 500 points Electron Posts ----------------------------------------- ^ Destroying a 200 points Space Hopper ----------------------------------------- O Eliminating an 300 points Alien Saucer ----------------------------------------- |-0-| Destroying the Receive an Mother Ship extra ship, a full load of fuel, and 10,000 points ----------------------------------------- Developing Strategy The faster you fly, the less fuel you burn. As your speed increases, the intensity of the aliens' attack increases If you do not move and fire quickly, you may run out of fuel before you encounter the Mother Ship. Ending the Game Your mission ends automatically when your last ship is destroyed. You may end the game at any time by pressing QUIT to return to the master title screen. Playing the Game Again You may play the game again by pressing *BACK to return to the Buck Rogers-Planet of Zoom title screen *REDO to return to the first level of play