Xenophobe -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ATARI 7800(TM) Game Manual XENOPHOBE(TM) 41% ALIEN INFESTED Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the product documentation in this manual. However, because Atari Corporation is constantly improving and updating its computer hardware and software, it is unable to guarantee the accuracy of printed material after the date of publication and disclaims liability for changes, errors, or omissions. Reproduction of this document or of any portion of its contents is not allowed without the specific written consent of Atari Corporation. Xenophobe(TM) is a trademark of Bally Midway Mfg. Co. Copyright(C) 1987, Bally Midway Mfg. Co. Atari(R), the Atari logo, and 7800(TM) are trademarks or registered trademarks of Atari Corporation. ATARI(R) Copyright (C) 1989, Atari Corporation Sunnyvale, CA 94086 All rights reserved. TABLE OF CONTENTS ALIEN ATTACK!............1 Getting Started........1 Split-Screen Play....2 PLAYING THE GAME.........3 Finishing a Mission....4 Destroying the Aliens..5 Collecting Hardware....5 Weapons................5 Danger to the Player...6 STRATEGY.................7 SCORING..................8 ALIEN ATTACK! Hostile aliens - Xenophobes - are infesting space stations vital to your planet's security. These aliens threaten to overrun the stations, rendering the space stations useless. You are part of an elite team who is ready to speed to these endangered space stations. Your mission is clear: destroy the aliens, regain control of the space stations, and pick up any valuable hardware you might discover as you sweep the stations for aliens. The aliens are a swarming band of uglies, straight out of your worst nightmare. You'll need to use your talent just to stay alive as you rid each space station of these pests. You don't want to let them catch you. It's them or you. The message has come. It's up to you and your teammates to cleanse each space station of aliens. Your Mother Ship brings you to the vicinity of each overrun space station. You then enter the space station via a transfer disk. Team up with another member of your elite squad, or work on your own to clear the aliens from an infested space station. Just be careful as you enter a space station. The aliens are everywhere! Getting Started 1. With your television turned on, insert the Xenophobe cartridge into your Atari 7800 as explained in you Owner's Manual. 2. Plug a controller into the lef port for a one-player game. Plug a second controller into the right port for a two-player game. Note: A second player may join the game at any time. Just press the fire button of the other controller. In a multi-player game, players may join forces against the aliens. Since each player is independent, the death of one player does not affect game play for the other player. 3. Press the console's [Power] switch to turn on the machine. The Xenophobe title screen appears. 4. Press [Select] or move the controller left or right to select the desired skill level -- Novice, Standard, Advanced, or Expert. 5. Press the fire button or [Reset] to begin the game. 6. Press [Pause] to pause the game. Press [Pause] again to resume play. 7. Press [Reset] at any time to start a new game with the same game options. Press [Select] to return to the title screen. Note: An awards ceremony occurs after a game ends. During this ceremony the aliens you destroyed and valuable hardware you retrieved are shown along with their point values. Split-Screen Play Xenophobe's split-screen lets two players move independently. You view each player's game action in a separate half of the screen. The left controller corresponds to the top screen view while the right controller corresponds to the bottom. Note: The size of a player's viewing screen is the same whether you are playing a one-player or two-player game. Controlling Movement Player Movements [Graphic shows Joystick, I explain in text below] Up: Jump if Walking, Creeping, or Standing. Stand up if Crawling or Crouching Down: Crouch; Pick Up Objects; Break Free or Fling Critters Left: Move Left Right: Move Right Left Fire Button: Shoot Right Fire Button: Toss Grenades When Crouched Elevator [Graphic shows Joystic, I explain the tough concepts below] Up: Up Down: Down PLAYING THE GAME The game begins with you leaving the Mother Ship for one of the nine alien-infested space stations. Each base has a different number of levels as follows: Space Station Number of Levels 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 3 6 2 7 3 8 5 9 1 Each space station has eight rooms on each level. You must open doors as you move from room to room. Just step up to the door to open it. To reach a different level, you must use the elevator found on each level. While standing directly in front of the elevator buttons, push up on the controller. The elevator door opens and you can enter. There are no stairs between levels. Finishing a Mission There are three ways in which you can finish a mission to a space station. Each of the three mission endings offers an increasing number of points. If you take too long in clearing a space station, the aliens overrun the station. The amount of time you have to clear a space station depends on the difficulty level and other factors. If you wait too long, the screen flashes red and you are automatically transported back to the Mother Ship as the aliens overrun the space station and the station explodes. Destroying some alines, but finding and using the self-destruct code to destroy the space station, is an acceptable ending. You earn 100 bonus points for each alien you destroy at that space station. Then it's back to the Mother Ship and on to the next infested space station. The best ending for a mission is the destruction of all aliens on a space station without destroying the space station. You receive a 300-point bonus for each alien you destroyed at the station and a 200-point health bonus. Then you return to the Mother Ship and prepare to board the next infested space station. Destroying the Aliens Your first objective is to destroy all aliens in a space station within the allowed time. Destroying an aline isn't easy. Unless you use the minimum amount of force to destroy a particular type of alien, the alien lives and continues to threaten you and your mission. The minimum amount of force needed to destroy a particular type of alien is as follows: Critter...........1 unit of force Pod...............2 units of force Tentacle..........4 units of force Rollerbaby........4 units of force Snotterpillar.....16 units of force Collecting Hardware Pick up any valuable hardware you find strewn around a station you are sweeping for aliens. You can gain extra points or restore lost health points with what you find. (See point values in SCORING below.) Weapons You begin play with a Phaser. In addition to hardware, you will also find weapons scattered throughout a space station. (See point values in SCORING below.) Pick up these weapons for extra points, then use the weapons to destroy aliens. But remember you can only have one weapon at a time. Switch weapons if the weapon you find is more powerful than the one you are carrying. When you pick up the new weapon, you drop your current weapon. But be careful, sometimes the weapon you drop will explode. Each weapon has a different power level. Plus your weapon won't run out of ammunition. The weapons you can use and their strength are as follows: Fists...........1 unit Phaser..........1 unit/shot Laser Pistol....2 units/shot Electric Rifle..3 units/shot Poofer Gun......10 units/shot Grenade.........100 units/shot Danger to the Player While you're sweeping the aliens from your planet's space stations, those same aliens are after you and can destroy you. Injuries to your player are measured in units, or units/second of contact with an alien. So watch your health gauge in the lower left corner of your screen. You begin with 1000 health units. You can lose units of health through the following injuries or attacks: Jumping into a dooor......10 units Attack by a Critter.......2 units/second Attack by Tentacles.......4 units/second Attack by a Rollerbaby....8 units/second Hit by a rolling alien....50 units Hit by spit (phlegm)......75 units Hit by a grenade..........100 units Hit by a leaping alien....150 units STRATEGY Your primary mission is to locate and eliminate the aliens as quickly as possible. Don't spend too much time searching for valuable objects. The aliens are clumsier and easier to kill at the lower levels of a space station. Save your best firepower for the scariest aliens, and remember that your biggest challenges await at the higher levels. In a two-player game, try to join forces with the other player in fighting the aliens. Split up to cover all the rooms of a space station quicker. During a two-player game, avoid fights with the other player. A fight will only distract you from your mission. Be ever alert for the aliens' varied means of attack. Shoot tentacles at the bottom of their swing. Use grenades to destroy aliens rolled into balls. Set the self-destruct on the harder space stations (numbered 4 and 8). You keep health damage (units lost) to a minimum and receive a bonus of 100 points per alien destroyed. Concentrate on the easier bases where you can earn the 200-point health bonus when leaving a cleared space station. If the name of a level within the space station is in red, that level has more aliens for you to find and destroy. If the level name is in blue, you've cleared all the aliens from that level. SCORING You receive points for destroying aliens, picking up valuable hardware during your mission in each space station, and for finding and picking up health objects, which increase your life. Killing Aliens: Tentacle.........125 points Snotterpillar....100 points Rollerbaby.......75 points Critter..........50 points Pod..............25 points Picking Up Weapons: Grenade..........500 points Poofer Gun.......400 points Lightning Gun....300 points Laser Pistol.....200 points Phaser...........10 points Picking Up Valuable Hardware: Clipboard...........1000 points Self-Destruct Code..500 points Transmitter.........500 points Skull...............500 points Can.................500 points Screwdriver.........500 points Knife...............500 points Rope................250 points Health Points: Burger...............50 points Flask................50 points ATARI(R) Copyright(C) 1989, Atari Corporation Sunnyvale, CA 94086 All rights reserved. Printed in Hong Kong. C300018-058 Rev. A B.T. 7.1989 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This document obtained from the History of Home Video Games Homepage, ©1997-1998 by Greg Chance