			       USER'S MANUAL
			       -------------

0. Contents
-----------
  1. The history
  2. System requirements
     2.1 Note for Windows 95 users
  3. Installing
  4. Configuring
     4.1 Notes
  5. The game
     5.1 Game objective
     5.2 Menues
     5.3 Game modes
     5.4 The shop
     5.5 Loading user levels
  6. Usual problems
  7. Hints and tips
  8. Who are Virtual Fantasies?


1. The history
--------------

  You are in  2034.  The  Earth  is  suffering  a  lot  of  natural 
disasters. Scientists all over the world  can't  find  the  reason; 
they only know that our planet is leaving its orbit, but they don't 
know why.

  8:00 a.m. As everyday you wake up, ready for your daily trip. You
are the pilot of a  transport  flight.   But  suddenly  some  black 
dressed men come and... when you wake up again you're in a  strange
hall, with people you don't know. What is happening?

  You have been selected by the secret services for a mission.  But
why you? You're told an incredible story about  some  old  egiptian 
and roman manuscripts that give some information about a misterious
place called Cydonia, that has been located in Mars by a  group  of
scientists, and that a lost civilization left an android there.

  And?, you ask.

  They go on talking. It seems that the android has been there  for
thousands of years, but  now  it  has  started  sending  ultra  low 
frequence signals to the Earth, and those signals are  causing  the
Earth to leave its orbit.

  So, you're going to take an  experimental  prototipe  and  go  to 
Mars. There you'll destroy the  android,  so  the  natural  balance 
comes back to the Earth.

  But it's not so easy. The android is protected by  some  magnetic
fields you'll have to destroy before facing it...


2. System requirements
----------------------

  The minimum configuration needed to play CYDONIA is:
   
	- PC with a 386 DX-33 or better processor.
	- 4 MB of RAM, with 2.5 MB of free extended memory.
	- VGA card.
	- Sound Blaster or 100% compatible sound card (optional).
	- MS-DOS 5.0 or better.
	- Joystick supported.
  
  The recommended configuration to enjoy the game is:
  
	- PC 486 DX2-66 or better.
	- 8 MB of RAM.
	- Sound Blaster Pro o 16 sound card.


  If you're running this  game  under  MS-DOS  (your  best  choice),  we
recommend you not to use any expanded memory manager, such as EMM386  or
QEMM. CYDONIA doesn't need them, and they can slow down  some  parts  of
the game. If it's possible, make a clean boot.


2.1 Note for Windows 95 users:
------------------------------

  The game has been designed to run under MS-DOS, and it's  been  tested 
under that operating system. As we have coded this game using DJGPP,  it
should be compatible with any O.S. that includes a DPMI server (such  as
Windows 3.1 or Windows 95). We have  run the game under these  operating
systems, and it seems to run properly, if you follow some restrictions:

	- Under Windows  95,  you  should  play  in  full  screen  mode. 
	  Otherwise the game could be slooooooow.

	- Under Windows 3.x, run the program from the  Program  Manager,
	  not from a MS-DOS session.

  Anyway, if there is any problem while running the game  under  Windows
3.x or 95, you can always boot your computer in MS-DOS mode. That should
solve any problem.

  Although we haven't tested it, the game shouldn't be  compatible  with
OS/2 nor Linux (using DosEmu). If anyone tries it and it  works,  please
tell us.


3. Installing
-------------

  The game has to be installed on hard disk. To install it, go to the drive
where the installation disk is placed and run INSTALL. You need at least  4
MB of free space for the installation.
 
  Once you have run INSTALL, follow the on-screen instructions.
  

4. Configuring
--------------

  If you have a Sound Blaster or 100% compatible card you'll  be  able  to 
enjoy the digital music and sound effects. To configure  your  sound  card 
run CONFIG. If the BLASTER environment  variable  is  correctly  set,  the 
program will autodetect your sound card. Otherwise, you'll have  to  enter
the parameters by hand.


  In order to match the  sound  quality  to  your  processor,  follow  the
instructions of the program. If you select a too high  quality,  the  game 
may not run properly.


4.1 Notes:
----------

  The sound system has been coded  using  original  Sound  Blaster  cards. 
There are many of  "Sound  Blaster  compatible"  cards  that  aren't  100%
compatible. In these cases, it's possible that you  get  imperfections  on
the sound. The only workaround is to configure the card as "SB 1.5".  This
should be the most compatible option.
  
  The sound system can't use IRQ 10. If your sound  card  uses  that  IRQ, 
your only chance is to change it (or get no sound).

  All of the above is valid for Gravis Ultrasound users. As we  don't  own
a Gravis, we haven't been able to code its driver (we're very  sorry,  but
unless someone gives one to us... ;-)). The only workaround is to use SBOS
or MegaEm and try to configure the card as "SB 1.5" or "SB 2.0".


5. The game
-----------

5.1 Game objective
------------------

  Your objective is to pass every barrier,  until  you  find  the  android. 
These barriers are composed of blocks. To pass  the  barrier,  you'll  have
different blocks. You'll have to get horizontal lines with the blocks,  and
then that line will disappear, giving   you  more  space.  You'll  pass the 
barrier after you've formed a certain number of lines. There is  a  limited
time to pass the barrier, so hurry up!

  At the end of each phase, you'll get points for the remaining  time.  You 
may change your points for certain items in the shop. That time  will  also 
be added to the time of the following phase.

5.2 Menues
----------

  You may move through the menues using the arrow keys and  ENTER.  If  you 
press ESC you'll go back to the previous menu.


   - PLAY.  As you can guess, this menu takes you to the game. You may
	    select the number of players, the game mode and, if  there
	    is only one player, the zone of the screen.

   - OPTIONS. This menu will give you the chance of  configuring  some
	      elements of the game. Its options are:

	       - CONTROLS. To select the controls for each player.

	       - JOYSTICK. If you have a joystick, this option  allows
			   you to calibrate it. The game controls  for
			   the joystick are:

			    Left:              joystick left
			    Right:             joystick right
			    Drop piece/down:   joystick down
			    Up:                joystick up
			    Shoot/turn:        button 1
			    Special effect:    button 2


	       - LANGUAGE. This option allows you to select  the  game    
			   language (try  Spanish,  it's  a  beautiful
			   language! :-))

	       - KEYB ONE. With this option you may redefine the  keys
			   for keyboard 1. The default keys are:
			   
			    Left:              a
			    Right:             d
			    Drop piece/down:   x
			    Up/Special effect: w 
			    Shoot/turn:        s

	       - KEYB TWO. Idem, for keyboard 2. The default keys are:
			   
			    Left:              left arrow
			    Right:             right arrow
			    Drop piece/down:   down arrow
			    Up/Special effect: up arrow
			    Shoot/turn:        5 (numeric keypad)

	       - JUKEBOX. If you have the registered version, you'll be  
			  able to listen all the themes included in the  
			  game soundtrack.

	       - RETURN. Guess... :-)

   - CREDITS. To see the credits.

   - QUIT. You'd better not do it.
	       

  During the game, you may press ESC to get  another  menu.  This  menu 
allows you to change the music and sound effects volume, and finish the
current game.

5.3 Game modes
--------------

  There are 4 different ways of playing CYDONIA:

  - 1 PLAYER.  You're the only one who has been selected to go to Mars.
	       Good luck! You'll need it.

  - 2 PLAYERS, NORMAL MODE. Two people have been  selected.  Each  hero   
	       will follow his own way to save the Earth.
	       
  - 2  PLAYERS,  COOPERATIVE  MODE  (FRIENDS).  Two  people  have  been 
	       selected, but they'll have to  cooperate.  Both  players
	       share the screen. Each player will see the other's piece
	       on a different way. 

  - 2 PLAYERS, DEATHMACH MODE (ENEMIES). You're passing some  tests  to 
	       decide who will go to Mars. The final test is a  virtual
	       simulator of what you'll find there. You must show  that
	       you're the best ones. Every time you get 2 or more lines
	       at a time you'll make the other's  blocks  move  up  one 
	       line. You'll also be able to use special tricks to  make
	       your enemy's task more difficult...
  
 
5.4 The shop
------------

  When a player passes a level, he'll get points for the remaining time.
After that, he will be able to  buy  one  of  the  items  brought  by  a 
transport ship. The item can only be used at the following level, so the
player will have to select a good estrategy. 

  When you're playing in cooperative mode, the player 1 is the only  one  
who can buy and use the items.

  These are the items available at any game mode, except deathmatch:


	ITEM             COST           EFFECT
   -----------------------------------------------------------------------
      5 SECONDS          2000   Gives you 5 more seconds
      10 SECONDS         5000   Gives you 10 more seconds
      DESTROY 1         10000   Reduces the amount of lines needed in 1
      15 SECONDS        15000   Gives you 15 more seconds
      SLOWER            20000   Reduces the falling speed of the pieces
      DESTROY 2         25000   Reduces the amount of lines needed in 2
      DESTROY 3         30000   Reduces the amount of lines needed in 3
      BEAT IT           90000   Takes you to the next level
				This one isn't valid at the last level

  In deathmatch mode you may use all those items, with a price  that  is
10 times lower (it's a simulator, and you must  prove  your  skill using 
items). There are some more items, that are useful to make your  enemy's
task more difficult:
	
	ITEM            COST           EFFECT
   -----------------------------------------------------------------------
      BLACK FATE         350    Prevents your enemy from knowing his next 
				piece for a while         
      RAISESPEED2        500    Raises tour enemy's piece falling speed in 
				2 units
      DARK WALL         1250    Hides your enemy board for a while. He'll
				be blind!
      RAISESPEED3       1750    Raises tour enemy's piece falling speed in 
				3 units
      RAISESPEED4       2250    Raises tour enemy's piece falling speed in 
				4 units

5.5 Loading user levels
-----------------------

  If you have the registered version, you'll be able to design  and  play
your own levels. First, design a new level block using the level designer
(included with the registered version), and then run the  game  with  the 
following command line:


		cydonia <new_block.dat>


6. Usual problems
-----------------

Problem:  When I run the game,  I  see  an  enormeous  list  of  nonsense 
	  errors, and my computer hangs.

Solution: Probably you haven't configured your sound card  properly.  Run
	  CONFIG and set your sound card  parameters.  Make  sure  you've
	  loaded the sound card drivers.

Problem:  The program tells me that I don't have enough memory.  However,  
	  I press Y to go on and it works perfectly.

Solution: It's not a real problem... The amount of memory needed for  the   
	  game to run properly with all its options is  aproximately  2.5
	  MB. This means that without that amount of memory  the  program
	  may work perfectly well, or hang at any moment  with  a  memory
	  allocation error. If you don't have a sound  card  you'll  need 
	  less free memory, as no music or sound effects are loaded.

Problem:  The game is sooooo dificult!!!

Solution: We can assure that the game isn't  impossible  (you  need  some
	  practice to finish  it,  though).  Remember  that  the  way  of 
	  playing CYDONIA is different to the classic Tetris  clones.  In
	  this game you don't need to make lots of lines, you  just  have 
	  to make them quickly. You have to accelerate the piece  falling
	  speed to pass the level. Or, you can always try cheat mode...

Problem:  When I try to play with joystick, the game doesn't work.
	  
Soluci˘n: Try to recalibrate it, with the JOYSTICK option of the  options
	  menu.
	  
Problem:  I have problems running the game under Windows 95.

Solution: Refer to section 2.1


7. Hints and tips
-----------------

  You shouldn't let  the  pieces  fall  slowly.  There's  a  limited  (but 
sufficient) amount of time.

  The items you buy can only be used in the level before the which you buy
them, so you should be careful when buying one. Otherwise, you could waste
many points.


8. Who are Virtual Fantasies?
----------------------------------

  Virtual Fantasies is the name of a group dedicated to the demo and game
coding. It was born in the summer  of  1995,  founded  by  Assembler  and 
Utopian, and since then it has grown step by step, but silently  (if  you
knew who we were before this game,  please  tell  us  :-)).  The  current
memberlist is aproximately this:


ALIAS          REAL NAME          AGE        E-MAIL             OCCUPATION 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Assembler     Rodrigo Olivencia   21   x0826806@turing.ugr.es   PR/Musician
Utopian       Fco. Javier Pe¤a    21   x4352347@turing.ugr.es   Programmer
Bosko         Alberto Moro        ??   uc156@cclx1.unican.es    PR/Gfx
Emerson       Manolo Prieto       21   i32prvim@uco.es          PR/Maths
Fate Bloody   Guillermo Fdez.     ??   uc182@cclx1.unican.es    Musician
Taj           Diego                                             Musician
Bac Hylon     Josema Serrano      21   x6490278@turing.ugr.es   Gfx artist
Doctor J      Juanra S nchez      21   x5582582@turing.ugr.es   Betatester
Fernando      Fernando Tamaj˘n    24   i32talof@uco.es          Betatester
Sr. Blanco                                                      Gfx artist


  Visit our home page at:

		http://www.uco.es/~i32prvim/virfan

  If you don't have Internet access, you may try the old snail-mail method.
Our addresses are:

  Fco. Javier Pe¤a Pareja (Utopian)      Rodrigo Olivencia Polo (Assembler)
  C/ Marbella 24, 3§ dcha                Avda. Agrupaci˘n C˘rdoba 16, 6§ 5
  14013 CORDOBA  (SPAIN)                 14007 CORDOBA  (SPAIN)

  Ok, now you know who we are. If you have anything to tell us, you  want
to offer a project to us, or whatever, don't hesitate to contact us.
