
Bats 1: Invasion of the Mutant Space Bats of Doom (tm)              
Version 2.8

Copyright (c) 1995-2001 Pop Software (tm)                              
All Rights Reserved. Please do not  duplicate.                            
                                                                  
Pop Software and Mutant Space Bats are Trademarks of Pop Software.
                                                                  
Support: http://www.spacebats.com
                                                                  
          Ŀ
Ĵ       Welcome       
          

Welcome to Invasion of the Mutant Space Bats of Doom, by Pop Software.
Thank you for purchasing this complete, commercial version. Please
do not make copies of this software.

          Ŀ
Ĵ  Starting the Game  
          

Start the game by double-clicking "Bats.exe". You will see the
Quick Start directions- press any key to proceed. Then you may
watch the slide-show- it will advance automatically in time
with the music. To speed it up, press SPACE, or it cancel it,
press ESC.

If you want to disable the slide-show from running each time you start
BATS (for example if you've already seen it), toggle the INTRO setting 
under the MORE... menu (in the game).

The game supports music and digital sound-effects on Sound Blaster 
and compatibles. No setup is necessary. 

If you run into problems, see the file HELP.DOC.

          Ŀ
Ĵ  Super Cheat Mode   
          

If you want to blast your way through the entire game with a Super ship
that can't be hit, start the game by typing

bats s

at the DOS prompt. Now your ship can't be hurt! Super Cheat Mode lasts
until you quit the program and run it the normal way (without the "s").

Scores achieved in Super Cheat Mode aren't added to the high-score list.

          Ŀ
Ĵ    Other Options    
          

You can now add a "2" and/or a "n" to the command-line.                 
                                               
bats 2      <-- Gives you twice as many bats in some rounds
bats n      <-- Puts bats in "nasty" mode- everything is faster & harder

You can also combine options, for example:                            
                                                                         
bats 2 n    <-- Double nasty bats!

          Ŀ
Ĵ   Using The Menus   
          

Move the cursor with UP-ARROW and DOWN-ARROW, and press ENTER to make
a selection. When you are in a sub-menu you can return to the main menu
by choosing MAIN MENU or by pressing Esc. Pressing Esc from the main menu
is the same as choosing QUIT. If a mouse is attached you can use the 
mouse to move the cursor, and you can click to make a selection.

You can't control the menus with the joystick... this is a safety 
feature to keep you from losing control if your joystick becomes
uncalibrated.

          Ŀ
Ĵ      Controls       
          

The default controls are:

Arrow Keys (or joystick): Move ship (up, down, left, right)
Space Bar  (or button 1): Fire guns (press repeatedly, or hold for auto-fire)
TAB:       (or button 2): Fire smart bomb
Backspace:                Pause game
ESC:                      Abort game, return to main menu

In the CONTROLS menu, you can change these keys by choosing CONFIGURE.
Or, to play using a mouse choose MOUSE, or JOYSTICK for joystick. If
either choice is gray, then the mouse driver or joystick wasn't found.

The first time you choose JOYSTICK you will go to CALIBRATE automatically.
If you change the trim settings on your joystick, or change to another
joystick, or find that the joystick is being weird, you should CALIBRATE 
again.

          Ŀ
Ĵ    Your Choices     
          

These are your choices from the main menu:

Play:          Starts a new game.
Orb Game:      Try ten different bonus levels! See if you can get the
               maximum score of 144,000 (by hitting all 144 orbs).
Players:       Let's you select 1 or 2 player game.
Demo:          Attract mode- the game runs a demo until you press ESC.
Controls:      Lets you to choose between keyboard, mouse, and joystick.
Sound:         Allows you to select sound elements and the sound device.
Hints:         Gives playing hints- including some not described here!
More:          Lets you toggle the intro, and see or reset high scores. 

          Ŀ
Ĵ       Playing       
          

You have three major goals:

1. Stay Alive! Use evasive maneuvers to avoid Space Bats and their weapons. 

2. Eliminate Space Bats! Fire your guns with careful timing to better 
   protect yourself.

3. Power Up! Many Space Bats carry power-crystals with them. When you 
   hit such a Space Bat its power crystal will pop out. Grab it before it 
   weaves by. 

If you are skilled enough, you can survive the entire onslaught of the
Mutant Space Bats of Doom and become Earth's greatest hero.

          Ŀ
Ĵ   Power Crystals    
          

The key to doing well in Space Bats is to catch power crystals. Each 
different crystal improves your ship in a different way:

Green:  Makes your shots faster.
Red:    Alternately makes your shot-spread wider or enables another gun.
Blue:   Makes everything except your ship go slower.
White:  Turns all your enabled guns into MEGA guns.
Purple: Collect six of these to gain a free ship.

When you catch a crystal, your ship will sparkle, and the window on the    
left will display the effect of the crystal.

          Ŀ
Ĵ     Smart Bombs     
          

When you're surrounded by enemies and weapons, you may want to set off
your smart bomb. This (usually) destroys everything on the screen except
for you. A red ring around your ship-icons indicates that you have a
smart bomb. After you use it, you can get another one by catching a
Purple Crystal. Each new ship also comes with its own smart bomb.

          Ŀ
Ĵ  The Bonus Rounds   
          

Pilots like you often wish to test their shooting skills in non-combat 
situations.

The bonus board contains four large bars, each highlighted with a 
different color. Shoot each target orb when it is over the bar of the     
matching color. For example, shoot the red orb when it is flying over 
the red bar. Higher bars are worth more points. If you do well you may
receive a reward. Each bonus round is different- good luck!

          Ŀ
Ĵ     Free Ships      
          

You get a free ship every time you reach the score shown in purple below 
your current score. You also get a free ship each time you collect six
purple crystals. In a two-player game, both players get a free ship when
six purple crystals are collected.

          Ŀ
Ĵ        Levels       
          

You can start the game from Level 1 (Round 1), Level 2 (Round 22), or
Level 3 (Round 43). To change the starting level, press TAB when the
cursor is next to PLAY in the main menu. This will toggle "PLAY" to
"PLAY (LEV:2)", "PLAY (LEV:3)", then back to "PLAY".

          Ŀ
Ĵ       Credits       
          

Invasion of the Mutant Space Bats of Doom was created by 
Mike Pooler (programming) and Dave Cockerill (artwork).

Thanks to Richard Carlson and Donald Carlson for beta-testing.

Thanks to Michael Wexler for help with Internet.

Thanks to Scott Wolf for his suggestions and for his discerning
taste in video-games!

And thanks to our growing group of registered users!

This software and related documentation are:
Copyright (c) 1995 by Pop Software. All rights reserved.

Space Bats, Mutant Space Bats, and Invasion of the Mutant Space Bats
of Doom are trademarks of Pop Software.

          Ŀ
Ĵ    To Reach Us      
          

For the latest contact info, please go to:
http://www.spacebats.com

          Ŀ
Ĵ       The End       
          
