Scenario
The era and time of this story is unknown. After the mothership Arkanoid was destroyed,
a spacecraft Vaus scrambled away, only to be trapped in the void. You control
the Vaus and have to penetrate 32 levels and then confront the Dimension Changer
whom you must destroy in order to reverse time and resurrect the Arkanoid. Frantic
action and split second timing combine to produce the most addictive and compulsive
game.
Controls
The game is controlled by keyboard, joystick, Neos Mouse or Paddle as follows.
Keyboard: Player one and player two. Left
is left Shift key, right is right Shift key and fire is the space bar.
Joystick: Player one in port one, player
two in port two or port one when selected. Fire - right Neos Mouse button. Neos
mouse - as joystick ports. Paddle is port one for both players (must be using
the CBM 64 dual Paddle).
How to play
You control the Vaus craft which can be moved left or right. Using your skills,
you must deflect an energy bolt which will gradually break down the walls confronting
you. Certain coloured bricks must be hit more than once and others are completely
indestructible. Alien life forms descend at random to hinder you, but are eliminated
on contact with either the energy bolt or the Vaus craft. You are aided in your
attempts with energy Capsules which are hidden beneath certain bricks and released
upon their destruction. Each capsule has a different power and is denoted by a
letter painted on its side. These are as follows:
S - Slows down the speed of the energy bolt, making it easier to position yourself.
C - Enables you to catch the bolt, move to the desired position and then fire.
E - Expands the Vaus craft, giving you more chance to deflect the bolt.
D - Disrupts the bolt into three separate components, thereby giving you three
times the effect.
L - Arms your Vaus with a laser, allowing it to shoot bricks and aliens.
B - Breaks the section of the wall, enabling your Vaus craft an alternative escape
route to slip through to the next level.
P - Awards you an extra life.
Status and scoring
On screen scoring displays current hi-score, number of lives remaining and level
attained. Points are awarded between 50 and 120 for knocking out a brick, depending
on the colour. Collecting a capsule is 1,000 and hitting an alien scores 100 points.
Extra lives are awarded for collecting the "P" capsules.
Hints and tips
• If using the keyboard, pressing both Shifts at the same time stops the
Vaus; giving you a better reaction time.
• The disruption capsule is of great use if your bolt is caught behind or
enclosed with a wall.
• The laser is most useful to break down bricks which require a number of
hits.
• Using the very edge of your Vaus to deflect the bolt, will give you a
much sharper angle - most useful for maneouvering it into restrictive places.
Loading instructions
Position the cassette in your Commodore recorder with the printed side upwards
and make sure that it is rewound to the beginning. Ensure that all the leads are
connected. Press the Shift key and the Run/Stop key simultaneously. Follow the
screen instruction - press play on tape. This program will then load automatically.
For C128 loading, type GO 64 (Return), then follow C64 instruction. When loading
is complete, press Fire Button to start.
Product information and credits
This software product has been carefully developed and manufactured to the highest
quality standards. Please read carefully the instructions for loading. If for
any reason you have difficulty in running the program, and believe that the product
is defective, please return it direct to: Mr. Yates, Imagine Software (1984) Limited,
6 Central Street, Manchester M2 5NS. Our quality control department will test
the product and supply an immediate replacement if we find a fault. If we cannot
find a fault, the product will be returned to you at no charge. Please note that
this does not affect your statutory rights.
Its program code, graphic representation and artwork are the copyright of Imagine
Software (1984) Limited and may not be reproduced, stored, hired or broadcast
in any form whatsoever without the written permission of Imagine Software (1984)
Limited. All rights reserved worldwide. Arkanoid runs on the Commodore 64/128
micro computers.
Coding by David Collier
Graphics by Mark Jones
Music by Martin Galway
Produced by D. C. Ward
