Metal Marines for Windows
Demo Version: September 15, 1994

Welcome to the Demo version of Metal Marines!

This file is provided to help you get started playing the
game. If you have already installed the program, you may
skip past the next section.

INSTALLING THE GAME
To install the Demo Metal Marines game, insert the Metal
Marines diskette in a 3.5" disk drive. If Windows is not yet
up and running, go ahead and start it. Once Program Manager
is open, click on the File selection on the menu bar, then
select Run from the File menu. A dialog will pop up asking
which program to run; type 

A:\SETUP

(or B:\SETUP depending on your system arrangement) and press ENTER.

You will be given an opportunity to specify where the game
will be installed, or you can simply use the default (which
is C:\METAL). The setup program will verify that enough
space is available on your drive (currently about 8
megabytes is required for the install), and then the program
will be copied onto your hard disk.

RUNNING THE GAME

The install program will create a new group for your Program
Manager called Metal Marines, and will create a new program
item inside it. Double click on the Metal Marines icon to
start the game.

You will see a brief introduction which you can either watch
and enjoy or interrupt by selecting the game icon on the
icon bar (the game icon looks like a small file folder). The
game menu has a selection titled Start Game (the F4 key is a
shortcut to starting a game if you do not wish to use the
game menu).

When you start a game you will be given the opportunity to
enter you name in the Player Information dialog. When you
have entered your name push enter or click on the CLOSE
button to move on to the Connections dialog. Simply press
enter on this dialog (or click on Continue). This is where
you will be able to set up serial and modem connections to
play head-to-head against a friend in the up and coming 
release of Metal Marines!

Next comes the Alliances dialog. This is where you can set 
up alliances or enemies with the players who are available, 
but for now since there is only the computer opponent, press 
Enter (or click Continue) to move on to the game!

At this point the game will actually start. A window will
open for your island (territory), and another for your 
opponent's. You can use the mouse to move the view of either
island with the scroll bars or by clicking inside the island 
view, holding down the left mouse button, and dragging the 
island view around. Experiment with moving around your 
island and your opponent's for a few minutes to familiarize 
yourself with how this works.

You will notice a small window with three Headquarters units 
inside. You will need to build these three bases before you 
can attack your opponent, so find some good, flat spots on 
your island to build them before he is able to do the same! 
To build a base, click on it and hold the left button down, 
then drag the base over to where you want to build it, then 
release the mouse button. If you have selected a legal 
location, the base will construct for you.

Once you have built your bases, the window will fill with 
the units you can build during game play. There is an Anti-
Aircraft missile, which looks like a gold tube; a missile 
launcher; a Metal Marine hanger (which you can build in the 
demo but not yet use); an armored gun pod bunker; a mine 
field, which looks like a grassy area with mines on it; an
antimatter ICBM; an energy plant, which looks like a nuclear 
reactor; a factory, which looks like a military warehouse; a 
headquarters, which is a hexagon shaped building; and a 
radar installation. Two additional units appear, one of 
which looks like a small farm and one which looks like a 
base, but these are not yet implemented. They are camouflage 
units to help you fool your enemy!

Energy Plants: Build these to accumulate energy faster. It 
takes a certain amount of energy to launch those missiles! 
Watch you Energy meter on the Tactical View where your 
sergeants will talk to you.

Headquarters: Build these to accumulate money faster. Each 
unit has a cost to construct, from missiles which cost $10M 
to build to ICBMs which cost $255M to build.

Factories: These units cause construction to occur faster. 
Useful when you really need to build things quickly!

When you are ready to attack, find a missile unit with a 
missile on it, then position your enemy's view so you can 
see what you want to target. Attacks are done in the same 
drag-and-drop style as building; simply click on the missile 
and hold the left mouse button down, drag over to your 
target, and release. Your missile's flight will send back
reconnaissance which will allow you to see parts of your 
enemy's island that you don't know about yet. Watch out! His 
AA might knock your missile down!

Your ultimate goal is to destroy your enemy's bases while 
fending off his attacks on yours. There are three levels of 
varying difficulty in the demo, so have fun!


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Demo System Requirements

386 Processor, 33 MHz or better
8 MB of RAM or more highly recommended
Hard Disk with 8 MB of free space
SVGA 256-color graphics (640x480 or better)
Windows-compatible mouse

Supports:
Windows MIDI music system
Windows compatible digital audio system
