7 HISTORY Not more than 500 years ago, man first began his serious space settlements. Oh, the first ones were nothing to brag of, but they were space settlements nonetheless. Colonies of twenty or so people would live in atmospheric tanks, large enough to just barely be called comfortable. The first settlement was Sig Des I, a community of fourteen distinguished physicists and biologists sent to test the effects of lower gravitational forces on various common lifeforms. Although the project was an immediate success, the inhabitants were still dependent on outside sources for their survival. In fact, the idea of a self-sufficient community outside of Earth was almost laughable at the time. Fortunately, technology was quick to take the cue. Strong efforts were made to find cheaper ways of building atmospheric tanks and equally strong efforts were made to find more efficient ways of producing food in limited amounts in space. Settlements were expanded to incorporate more living quarters, and even fairly large expanses of land with earth-imported soils. Though many of the initial communities ended up in shambles, hope was never lost. Due to the persistence of several key individuals and the support they received, several self-dependent communities were launched. Two were located on the moon, and one, later, on Mars. Though these projects seemed able to support themselves quite aptly, none lasted more than four years. By this time, however, several more communities had been started, and the fall of the first three daunted no one. In fact, the later ones seemed to be thriving so well that average community members were sent up, as opposed to just scientists. This final step made it possible to create the first actual domestic environments outside of Earth. And this was more than lucky. Earth had been experiencing population problems for 400 years, and in the last hundred, it seemed as though the problem grew more and more unsolvable as the number of people increased exponentially. Space communities seemed the only plausible path for mankind to take, as chaos became prevalent and the resources waned on Earth. With the many hunger crises occuring, the demand for land became the dominant problem for every country. Two hundred years later the number of people living in space far outnumbered the amount on Earth. Transportational advances allowed fairly frequent and low-cost travel between communities, and thus, trading lines and waystations emerged. Because of the high amount of interaction that took place, these settlements ran fairly smoothly. However, making larger communities was a hard task indeed. The materials used to make atmospheric protective bubbles, though much cheaper than previously, were very expensive. Furthermore, the amount of material needed to make a larger settlement far outweighed the amount of land gained in the process. Though space settlements could thrive, expansion seemed infeasible. Thus, for the next hundred years, no real advancements were made in this area. However, these were insignificant when compared to their discovery of the Herzgod I system. This solar system had seven planets orbiting around a sun much like Earth's. The amazing thing, though, was that on two of the planets, lifeforms were found thriving and multiplying. The word was spread immediately, and everyone's interest flared. Not only was this the first time life was found outside of Earth, but it seemed as though humans might be able to inhabit these planets. Of course, the study of these new lifeforms led to many breakthroughs in medicine and other related fields. In fact, new discoveries became almost commonplace. Biological research became the most respected field, though physicists and engineers were very instrumental in the process. Without the development of light speed thrusters, and plutonium energy packs as standard forms of energy, for example, these biologists would have never reached Herzgod I. Back on Earth, resources waned. The people still living there were few and scattered, as all the usable soil had been transported out or ruined by our own misuse through the centuries. Our original planet became little more than a tourist attraction and a symbol of romantic fantasies. Man had truly progressed past the Industrial Age into the Space Age. Life was no longer equated to and dependent on Earth, and the population problem was solved. This is not to say, of course, that there were no problems. Just as on Earth, some of the colonies seemed to flourish and others starved. Once personal space cruisers became a part of everyday life, pirate ships began terrorizing cargo transport units left and right. People were needed to help the downtrodden communities and uphold justice at the same time. Fortunately, many people were willing to lend a helping hand. The first Intergalactic Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to one Victor Samuelle, who set up the Intergalactic Peace Corps, dedicated to helping those who are starving or in need. They began extensive projects trying to make various communities more self-sufficient and economically stable. Another Intergalactic Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Steven O'Conner who formed the Zom Unit. This unit started as a band of volunteers dedicated to halting the threat of pirate ships. It soon gained official recognition and quadrupled in size. These two forces kept doing their respective jobs with a vigor that seemed almost inhuman. And the results were obvious. Many communities owed their entire existence to the Intergalactic Peace Corps, and the Zom Unit. The success of these two forces was obvious. In any area where they were at work, one could expect a happy and safe set of communities. However, as the realms of mankind expanded, they found themselves too few and too spread out. They could not even hope to help everyone in the states they were in. Thus, many attempts were made in each to expand their numbers and expand their efforts. Both units grew, but not at a rate thst was even slightly comparable to how fast mankind's population was growing. It became apparent that the key to any success that they might have in the future was an organizational change. Heads of both groups met and agreed to join forces and become an intergalactic force dedicated to upholding peace and justice. With a new name, the Galactic Guardians renewed their efforts with more energy than ever. Their president, whom they called the Galactic Guardian, was revered throughout all communities as a saint and a bringer of goodwill. As all this was going on, Herzgod I became a center of space settlements. However, two neighboring solar systems, Herzgod II and III seemed even more promising. More life was found in Herzgod II than anywhere else known to man, and in a matter of thirty years, it became the capital of mankind, as Earth had once been long ago. In Herzgod II was also where the first real space stations grew. Though space communities flourished, it didn't take long for us to want and need more. Space stations provided their own systems of gravity, and could be built incredibly large. Thus, it seemed apparent that they would become the wave of the future. Space stations soon became commonplace in Herzgod II. Each would have several floors, and some even had up to fourty or fifty. Living quarters, eating quarters, recreational facilities, and much more made these space stations luxurious havens for those who lived in them. However, space exploration had not been discontinued. In fact, another solar system was soon discovered that seemed to be imbued with even more life-giving resources than Herzgod II. Quickly named Herzgod IV, this solar system seemed almost too good to be true. Five of the nine planets supported their own lifeforms, and many of these were even tamed. Some of the first alien lifeforms that could be compared to ancient pets or work-animals were brought into settlements from Herzgod IV. Natural plutonium sources were abundant too, and to all concerned, Herzgod IV seemed a veritable Garden of Eden. The exploration of Herzgod IV started only four months ago, and already plans are being made for habitation. Near and far, a universival excitement has arisen, and hopes are high that the developments there could lead to many new advancements. In fact, the new Zekford Space Sattion is already in the works. This highly ambitious project consists of a relatively small space station inhabited by a collection of the leading biologists and physicists known to mankind. The future that Herzgod IV seems to foreshadow looks promising indeed.... PERSONAL BACKGROUND Twenty-seven years ago in the small community of Utopos, a small boy named Timothy Hunter was born. Alert and energetic would most aptly describe him. It seemed that nothing could keep him still, and he was always finding new interests. Even when he was only eight years old, he would never be caught at home. Always exploring, always outside, always finding new and different sources of entertainment, he could mosy often be found where he shouldn't be. Though his parents often found him impossible to control, they let many of his eccentricities slide. He easily received excellent marks from the Educational Bureau, and was accepted to the finest Academy of Higher Learning in all of Herzgod III. As a freshman, he joined the orchestra where he met another individual much like himself, Aaron Avery. They soon became best friends, though Aaron was actually two years older. They shared new ideas and new interests with a passion, and it didn't take long till they were inseparable comrades. However, the time finally came when Aaron graduated, and the two had to split up, though they kept in touch as often as possible. As this boy, now a young man, continued to surprise his professors, Aaron Avery went on to become an extremely renowned biologist and engineer. A year later Aaron married Judy Selmite, another leading biologist and continued on with his career. Now a senior, the first man, Timothy Hunter, was already gaining some fame of his own. His future looked extremely bright to all who knew him, and his quick mind was able to grasp even the hardest concepts easily. As soon as he graduated, he joined his old friend Aaron on a project that he was working on: Project Transit. Though he started during the middle, he was a vital part of it's completion. This project was revolutionary indeed. Together, they developed the first useable teleportation device. Though it was only useable for short distances, and still had several dangerous quirks, Aaron Avery won an Intergalactic Nobel Physics Prize for his efforts. During his acceptance speech he distinctly accredited much of the project's success to his oldtime friend and associate. You are his oldtime friend, Timothy Hunter, a now distinguished and recognized biologist and physicist. After Project transit, you both opted to split apart once more and take a small respite from your work. However, with the discovery of Herzgod IV, all sorts of opportunities and interests have been sparked. Both you and Aaron have been selected as part of the elite group of researchers who will inhabit the new Zekford Laboratory, which is presently being completed. Extremely excited, you have both kept in close contact, and though you are still on Utopos, Aaron has already moved to the new laboratory, despite the fact that it is still unfinished. The future is looking bright indeed. In a matter of a few short weeks, you will most likely be beginning a project that could launch your career to its utmost limits. And you are ready... INTRODUCTION While enjoying your vacation on the moonlit shores of Utopos, you receive a telegram from your old friend and associate, Aaron Avery. GALACTIC UNION TELEGRAM Space Log 2506 21:00 From: Aaron Avery To: Timothy Hunter Biologist Ho! Hey Tim, I hope you're enjoying your vacation... All five levels of the new Zekford Space Station are complete now. It's more wonderful than we could have ever hoped for! There's an extensive laboratory, recreational courts, luxurious living quarters and of course a stunning lobby and control deck. Seeing it finally complete almost brings tears to my eyes. However, this is not why I am sending you this telegram. There's even better news. During a routine inspection of the ancient, lifeless planet Tauri, two unhatched alien eggs were found preserved in glaciers. Apparently, they have been there for more than 3000 years-, and Tauri, according to all our calculations, was never able to support life. Amazing enough, there are already theories suggesting that the DNA in these eggs may program code for a protein that could solve the monumental hunger problems for the yeast-infected islands of Rappaport. What's more, the Institute of Biological Engineering has chosen our research team to study these eggs. Project Discovery is now officially ours, and I've heard that one of the eggs may even be hatching.... This is great news indeed. - Aaron Upon reading his telegram, you feel a rush of energy almost overwhelm you. You immediately begin packing and set off for the new Zekford Station. A new project awaits you, but even more important, a new life. The Zekford Station will surely submit some of the greatest contributions ever to science and to mankind in general. And to think... you'll soon be part of it. Bursting with energy, you rush to the new Zekford laboratory, dreaming of the glory and excitement that your new life will bring you. Upon entry into the station, you immediately notice that something is wrong. Fear shoots through your spine as you notice the receptionist lying dead next to her desk. You turn instinctively, only to find that the door has closed behind you and a digital display reads "No Entry. No Escape." Apparently, one of the two alien eggs has hatched, and a super-intelligent alien has wreaked havoc on the new Zekford Laboratory. After reprogramming all robots and mind-controlling all lesser alien lifeforms, it set about extinguishing all intelligent life within the area. Bent on destruction, it achieved it's goal, killing all humans in the entire station. All except one... You suddenly receive a call over your telecommunicator. It's Aaron and he's OK. Together, you must communicate and find a way to destroy the alien before it leaves the station and causes even more mayhem. However, the task will not be easy. You will have to penetrate deep into a Space Station where the very walls have turned against you. Beserk robots, maniac defense systems and vicious alien lifeforms will attempt to stop you at every turn. But don't give up hope! If you are careful and courageous, you will be able to solve the many tasks and get past the perils that await you. You must run from terminal to terminal, gathering valuable information from Aaron Avery. At each one you will have to put together clues to figure out the appropriate passwords and eventually produce a super weapon to neutralize the alien and save the space station. Your intelligence is being tested. Your stamina is being tested. Your ability is being tested. Your very inner-strength is being tested. Will your mind be able to stand up against the Alien Mind. Only time will tell... READ ALL DOCUMENTATION CAREFULLY AS IMPORTANT CLUES ARE INTERSPERSED THROUGHOUT THE TEXT STARTING GAME You will leave your personal space cruiser and enter the lobby of the Zekford Space Station to begin your quest. GAMEPLAY Alien Mind is a fast-action, highly responsive adventure. In order to effectively play the game, it is important to understand the controls completely. MOVING AND FIRING You, Timothy Hunter, are represented by the man in the center of the screen. You may control your man with either the mouse, joystick, or keyboard. The device you wish to play with may be selected from the Option Screen or during the game itself with the appropriate commands. As you are playing Alien Mind you will find that you can interact with the environment quite well. Certain weak footings will cause your man to trip and lose valuable time or energy. By jumping, you can keep this problem from occuring. Furthermore, although your man cannot walk through tables, chairs, or other low objects placed within the Space Station, he can shoot over them if they are low enough. By jumping towards certain chairs, your man will actually jump into the chair and assume a seated position. This is often necessary if you wish to log onto terminals in front of seats. To leave your seated position, merely press the fire button once. A mode of transportation that you will undoubtedly find useful is the energy saucer. As the Zekford Space Station was richly endowed, it is fortunate enough to have saucer dispensers in key places for ease of movement. An energy saucer is simply a field of energy on which a person may sit and travel effortlessly. As this field hovers several feet above the ground, it is also a wonderful way of avoiding tricky footing or electrical tramlines. To exit your saucer, simply jump off of it. MOUSE CONTROL- Control A Move the mouse in the direction you want to go and press down on the mouse button. Pressing the open-apple button will cause your man to fire in the direction he is facing. Pressing the option button will cause your man to jump in the direction he is facing. JOYSTICK CONTROL- Control J Move the joystick in the direction you want to go. Pressing the 0 button will make your man fire, and pressing button 1 will make your man jump. Note: you must set the joystick positions before beginning. If they are set incorrectly, the joystick will not make the proper movements. KEYBOARD CONTROL- Control K Use your numeric keypad on the right side of your keyboard to move your man. Pressing the 5 key will stop your man. 7 8 9 4 5 6 1 2 3 Pressing the open-apple key will cause your man to fire in the direction he's facing and pressing the option key will cause your man to jump in the direction he's facing. NOTE: In all modes, your man will stop for a brief period of time when he shoots. Holding down any fire button will thus keep your man stationary, although you may still change the way he is facing. ITEMS While playing Alien Mind, you will come across a wide assortment of objects lying about the station. Each has its own attributes and benefits and can be invaluable in time of need. In order to pick up an item, you must merely move your man over the space it occupies. KEY CARDS The Zekford Laboratory has one of the most efficient security systems yet, as many of the developments that will be happening there will be extremely confidential. In addition to the security robots and electrical defense systems, the doors themselves have been built of a metallic alloy fourteen times stronger than the average form of steel. Key Cards of the proper priority number or higher will open these doors, though forcefully trying to budge them is more than futile. Keycards are red colored rectangular shaped objects. They will be placed all over the Space Station and can even be found under stationary monsters. Note: There are several doors within the Space Station that require high level security cards. Normal key cards will not open them, and higher level key cards are extremely rare. ENERGY SHIELDS When you are bombarded by the hordes of creatures who wish to destroy you, you will wish that you had some better type of protection tan the average clothing. Shielding devices will answer your wish. When you pick up an energy shield, for a limited amount of time (shown by the counter marked "Energy Shield"), your man will remain invulnerable to the many attacks he receives. Due to the nature of the protective field surrounding your man, he will appear to have a black force field around him for the duration of the shield's effect. Note: If you get onto an energy saucer, it will negate the effect of the energy shield. In order to actually start your shielding device, you will need to resume normal walking as a means of transportation. Energy Shields look like round metallic grey objects with red and white colored centers. AMMUNITION PACKAGES Each time your man shoots, he will lose one cartridge from his cartridge supply. It is thus very important to keep your supply high; running out in a tight situation could be deadly. Each ammunition package that you pick up will supply you with another 40 cartridges. Ammunition packages look like a series of three gold colored bars. FIRST AID KITS As you progress through the various floors of the Space Station, you will undoubtedly take damage. The only ways to prevent this are to dodge monster shots, but this is impossible to keep up for long amounts of time. Advice: certain events must happen in certain order. Do not skip any steps. ENEMIES The Alien that has gotten loose in the Zekford Space Station is more than just intelligent. After hatching, it took no time at all for it to reprogram all the defense systems and robotic units to destroy human lives. It wasn't much longer before it had all lesser lifeforms mind-controlled. Simple pets became walking nightmares, and work-animals became living hell. All creatures that once served man were turned into vicious killers. During your adventure, you will have to face all these creatures and more. There are over 100 completely unique creatures in Alien Mind, each having it's own distinct appearance, physical stamina, and movement patterns. The one thing that they all have in common is that they will be bent on destroying you if they notice you. Normal robots and alien lifeforms will, in fact, navigate thrugh the rooms and around abstacles to get to you. Some, who have the ability, will shoot rampantly at you from long distances while others will only try to damage you when you are at close range. As you are walking through a seemingly harmless room, you may find yourself in an extremely dangerous mine field. Setting off mines or traps can sometimes be more than just detrimental. Electrical defense systems can also impede your progress. Built very strongly, they are hard to destroy, and if you touch one without the protection of an energy shield, an electrical current will pass through your body, causing you to loose valuable energy. Other defense systems will shoot lasers at you from their imbedments deep within the protective walls of the station. Turrets can also be in plain view, just waiting to make your acquaintance... Cautious should be a word to live by. Don't trust anything. Creatures who were once friendly will now maliciously attack you. Your very livelihood will be at stake: take no chances. TERMINALS During your journey through the Space Station, your future will never be stable. Often, things that you are counting on might not work out. Even the best of plans may go awry. You will not be alone though. Your long-time friend Aaron Avery is also somewhere within the Space Station. By using the central computer system, you two will be able to communicate and devise your final plans. Unfortunately, the Alien can also tap into the central computer system. In fact, it will try it's hardest to discover your plans and thwart them at every turn. You must try your best to keep him from overviewing your conversations if you wish to survive. By making passwords that the Alien can't figure out, you may be able to keep him off your trail. In order to access the central computer system, you must log onto a terminal. To log onto a terminal, face the respective terminal and press [RETURN]. Note: If there is a chair in front of the terminal, you must be sitting in the chair in order to gain access to that terminal. Getting onto the terminal is only half the battle, though... Once you are on, you will have to figure out how to gain access to the actual data it holds. Simply stated, you will need to know the password. Fortunately, Aaron will be lending his helpful hand. By giving you hints, he will clue you into where to go, and what the correct passwords are, without letting the Alien know what's going on. Or that's the gameplan at least... Hint: you may wish to have a pen and paper for mapping tricky areas or writing down any hints or directions that you receive. Getting lost or forgetting clues can be a deadly setback. It is also important to realize that you must follow Aaron's instructions closely. Deviating from the path can also be a fatal error. You must log onto the correct terminals in the correct order if you wish to best reach your final destination and destroy the Alien. Remember: When resuming a previous game, you will be returned to the beginning of the level. Any terminals that you have visited and benefited from must be visited again. Write down any passwords you figure out and remember the paths you took. ENDING YOUR GAME There are several ways of ending your game in Alien Mind. If you wish, you may simple go to the Control Panel, save your game and turn your machine off. This intential type of ending is, of course, far more preferable than the unintential type. Running out of Energy at any time during the game will cause your game to end also. You will see a picture of yourself lying on the floor. Pressing a key will return you to the high scores screen. If you were dauntless enough to gain a score higher than one of the previous top five scores, you will be able to type your name in. Pressing [RETURN] will save this new high score to disk. If you do not wish to save your high score, eject the disk, write protect it, and re-insert it before pressing return. CONTROL While exploring the Space Station there are many commands that will help you control what you see and hear. Below is a list of commands that you will often find useful. Control A - Mouse control Control C - Calls up the Alien Mind control panel for saving or restoring games and making character disks. Control Open-Apple-ESC - Same as Control C Control J - Joystick control Control K - Keyboard control Control P - Turns music on/off (this will seem to do nothing if sound has already been turned off) Control R - Restarts the game Control S - Turns sound completely off (not just the music) <- -> - Turns volume of sound up and down ESC - Pauses the game RETURN - Logs onto a terminal (when facing it) ALIEN MIND CONTROL PANEL By pressing either Control C or Control-Open-Apple-ESC, you will reach the Alien Mind Control Panel. Here, you will find several valuable functions, as you will not be able to complete your quest in one playing. Important: None of the Control Panel functions will work correctly if your character disk is write-protected. To choose an option in the control panel, use the arrow keys to select the appropriate option, and then press [RETURN] to choose it. MAKING CHARACTER DISKS In order to either save or restore your game, you must first make a character disk. Choose the Make Character Disk option from the control panel, and insert a blank disk in drive one. Ppress return to format this disk. SAVING GAMES Saving your game will allow you to turn the computer off or die and still resume your game where you left off. However, this function will save your stats exactly as you had them when you started the level. When you resume your game you must re-log onto all terminals in order and refind any useful items or clues that you attained on that level. In order to save your game, choose the save game option. Insert your character disk into drive one, and press the number under which you wish to save your game (1-8). RESUMING GAMES This option will allow you to resume a game that you left off at an earlier time. Choose the resume game option and insert your character disk in drive one. By pressing the appropriate number (1-8), you will be able to continue with your unfinished journey.