************************** * Welcome to Gem Hunt! * ************************** INTRODUCTION: Gem Hunt is basically a game of strategic "hide and seek", adapted from the classic "Black Box" game. It's not the sort of game you can just jump into and start playing--you'll actually need to read these instructions! Don't worry, though, the rules are simple and won't take but a few minutes to learn. There are three, four, or five "gems" hidden on an eight-by-eight grid. Your job is to determine their exact locations in the fewest turns possible, despite the fact that you can't see into the grid. The good news is that the grid is surrounded by special "laser guns" that will help you figure out where the gems are hiding. A tap on one of the lasers sends a beam into the grid. If there were no gems inside, the beam would come right out the other side. Fortunately, the gems have a strong influence on the beam, and can change a beam's path. Remember that you can't see inside the grid. That means you won't get to see the path the beam takes--you'll only know where it goes in, and where it comes out (if it comes out at all). With a bit of strategy and logic, however, that should be enough to find all the gems. BEAM MOVEMENT 101: If, at any time, the beam hits a gem directly, it will be absorbed by the gem and never exit the grid. This is called a "stop", and is indicated on the screen by a little stop sign. If the beam nears the edge of a gem, it will ricochet away from the gem before it reaches the gem's actual location. In other words, a beam will never pass a gem that lies directly next to the beam's potential path. The best way to explain this stuff is with an ASCII diagram, so make sure you're viewing this in a monospaced font, such as Courier. Even though you won't see the beams during the actual game, we'll use a "see-through" grid for now. The * represents a gem, and the lines are the laser beams. The "S" means that the beam was stopped. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The beam coming from the left hits S ----->* . . . . the gem directly and doesn't leave . . . . + - - -> 2 the grid. . . . . | . . . . . . . | . . . The beam coming from the bottom . . . . | . . . changes direction at the + and . . . . | . . . winds up coming out the right side. 2 Notice that the second beam changes direction just before it gets next to the gem. Also notice how the entry and exit points are marked with the same number to help you keep track of everything (in this case it's the number two, since it was the second shot fired). MORE BEAM MOVEMENT: In the actual game, you'll have three or more gems hidden in the grid. The laser beams can be affected by all of them, which makes for some pretty interesting results: . . . . . * . . . . . . . . + -> 2 The beam coming from the left . . . * . . | . ricochets first, then hits a S ----+ . + - + . gem. That's still a "stop". . . | . | . . * . . | . | . . . The beam coming from the bottom . . * . | . . . changes direction three times . . . . | . . . before finally leaving the grid. 2 The second beam passed right by the bottom-most gem, since that gem is not directly next to the beam's path. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . * . . What would happen if you fired ? --------->. . . a beam from the point marked "?" . . . . . * . . S --------->* . . . . . . . * . . . . . . . . . . The beam ricochets off of both gems, which causes it to turn around and head back the way it came! When this happens, the beam exits from the same spot it entered. That's called a "reflection" and it's indicated on the screen by a little gem shape. The beam on the bottom is still stopped even though there are gems to either side of its path. The stop effect takes precedence over any ricochet or reflection effects. There's one more way you can get a reflection. Remember that rule about how a beam cannot pass a gem that's next to its path? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A shot fired from the spot R . . . . . . . . marked "R" is a reflection, too! * . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . That's because there's a gem right next to the edge of the grid. Since the beam cannot pass that gem, it immediately comes right back out. To summarize, a beam is stopped if it hits a gem directly. It will change directions if a gem lies next to its path, and it will be reflected (come out the same way it went in) if two gems cause it to change direction all the way around, or if a gem is right up against the edge of the grid. PLAYING GEM HUNT: When you launch Gem Hunt for the first time, you'll be looking for three gems, as indicated by the number in the upper-right corner of the screen. You can change the number of gems by selecting "Preferences" from the menu (you can also turn the sound on and off while you're there), but you'll probably want to stick with three until you get the hang of things. Tap on a laser gun to fire a beam into the grid. The number of shots you've fired is displayed at the top of the screen. When you think you know where a gem is, you can mark its location by tapping on the grid. Tap again to unmark a location. You can change your mind as much as you like, and, in fact, it's good practice to try different combinations. If you're sure you have all the spots marked correctly, tap the "guess" button. If you're right, you win the game! If you're wrong, you're penalized two shots for every gem in the wrong place, and the game resumes. THE TOP TEN If you've done a particularly good job, you may be invited to join the ranks of the Top Ten Gem Hunters. You can see the list at any time by selecting "Top Ten" from the menu. The shots fired, along with the gems you were looking for, are used to determine your position on the list. For every extra gem hidden, you're allowed three extra shots to find it. REGISTERING Gem Hunt is shareware, which means you can distribute unregistered, unmodified copies to your friends and enemies as much as you like, as long as you don't charge them anything for it. If you decide to keep Gem Hunt, you are obligated to register your copy by sending $7.00 (US) to: Jeff Jetton 442 Tanglewood Ct. Nashville, TN 37211 Be sure to mention "Gem Hunt", so I'll know which program you're registering, and be extra-sure to include your snail-mail and/or e-mail address, so I can send you your registration code. Once you enter your name and registration code into Gem Hunt, you won't have to look at that nagging "about" screen everytime you start the application. And when you do call up that screen via the menu, it will display your name, letting the world know that you are a sophisticated, responsible Pilot owner with excellent shareware karma. Of course, you'll also be entitled to updated versions of this game. Have fun, - Jeff