Joystick Controller Two Player Game INSTRUCTIONS BEACH-HEAD II The Dictator Strikes Back! Please read thoroughly before playing July, 1947 BEACH-HEAD II is a true "Head-to-Head," two player multisequence game that allows you to play against another person or the computer. You can choose to play either of the following characters: Player 1: The Allied Commander (J. P. Stryker) Profile: Youngest man ever to reach rank of Chief Commander. Fought couragously during World War II and was awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism. Quickly rose through the ranks during the war and gained respect and admiration from his colleagues for his integrity and leadership abilities. Player 2: The Dictator (known as "The Dragon") Profile: Evil, bloodthirsty, power-crazed maniac. Fought savagely against the Allies during World War II in the Pacific, disappeared and formed his own renegade army after the war. "The Dragon" demands (and gets) blind obedience from his followers who worship him as a demigod. He is a brilliant military tactician who has been trapped and outnumbered in battle many times, but has managed to turn the tables on his opponents through cunning and ruthlessness. His current objective is to obliterate the forces that gave his army a stinging defeat and destroyed his fortress. Loading the Game: Once you are ready to begin play, do the following: Insert disk, turn computer on (with XL series hold the option key down while starting.) Beach-Head II will load and run automatically. PLAYING THE GAME Select Level: When the title screen is displayed, select one of the following keys to start the game. For one player press 1, 2 or 3 to selected levels one, two or three. For two players, press 4, 5 or 6. Select Play Mode (Normal or Practice): Normal: Sets up the game, zeros current scores and only allows the player to play screens in the pre-set order. A player may choose to play either side of almost any screen by picking up the appropriate joystick as a new screen starts. In Single Player Mode, the "ESCAPE" screen can only be played on the Allied side. Practice: Practice allows a player to go to any screen, in any order to improve his play. He may play all screens and the computer will keep track of his score. A single player can play either side (the Allies or Dictator) by simply moving the appropriate joystick when the screen appears. The computer will automatically take the opposite side. In Single Player Mode, the "ESCAPE" screen can only be played on the Allied side. Select Joystick: The joystick in Port 1 controls the Allies. The joystick in Port 2 controls the Dictator. If you are playing against the computer, wait until the screen appears; then move the stick with which you wish to play. (This does not apply to the "ESCAPE" screen where the computer must play the Dictator.) OPTIONS There are numerous options featured in Beach-Head II to make your playing time more enjoyable: Pause Feature To stop all action and "Freeze" the game, simply press the "Space" bar. To continue, press any key. Demo You can initiate the demo sequence while in the title screen by pressing (D). During demo you can play against the computer (on level 3) by taking control of one of the sticks at any time. Abort Feature If you wish to cancel the game, you may return to the "Title Screen" screen by pressing "CTRL-R". SEQUENCE 1 -- "ATTACK" Overview: Allied forces have moved inland by helicopter and are ready to begin their assault against "The Dragon's" sanctuary to rescue hostage captured during previous battles. The full weight of the Dictator's arsenal will come to bear on Allied troops in a war of attrition. Allied Control In Sequence I: The Allies control the helicopter in the background as the scene starts. The controls for the helicopter are as follows: Pushing the Stick Left or Right will move the helicopter in the desired side-to-side direction. Pushing Forward on the stick will elevate the helicopter. Pulling Back on the stick will lower the helicopter. The helicopter cannot move toward you and neither the helicopter nor the men in the air can be hit by the machine gun. Pushing the Button will release the paratroopers to begin their assault. If the chopper is too low to the ground, the chutes will not have enough time to open and you will lose soldiers. After the soldiers have touched down, they will advance to the first wall. Make sure when dropping paratroopers that you distribute them as evenly as possible (eight behind each section of wall #1). Placing more than eight behind any wall will overcrowd that area causing the extra men to desert, leaving you short-handed. After your men have reached the first wall, they must then advance to the second wall. The control sequence is as follows. a) Press the button to stage your men. b) Move the stick left or right to advance them. The flashing indicator light determines which gap the soldier will run through and which wall they will be taken from. (Refer to Figure 1). The men that reach the second wall will try to scramble to safety, out of reach of the machine gun. If a single man gets past the gun, he will be able to blow the door and thus proceed to the next scene. All your men, however, will have to challenge the gun. The control sequence for this segment is as follows. (refer to Figure 1.) a) Select a Wall by pressing the fire button when the indicator light is on for that wall. Move stick left or right to turn off the light and activate a man behind the wall. If the light does not stop alternating then there are no more men behind that wall. b) Control your man. He is just behind the wall that you have selected. His controls are as follows. PUSH BUTTON to Throw Grenade He cannot retreat at a diagonal but may charge at a diagonal. c) Send a man over the wall (optional). You may send a man over the wall to act as a diversion and draw enemy fire. This man is completely computer-guided and counts the same as your controlled man. (If he makes it, of course) To start a man over the wall you must position your controlled man behind the wall and press the fire button. If nothing happens then there is no one behind the wall but your controlled man. d) Throw a grenade. Destroying some of the machine guns will significantly enhance your score. Your controlled man can throw at anytime, but his feet must be within the "grenade window" to score a hit. (See figure 1.) When all men have faced the gun, the scene will end. If at least one man made it past the gun, the game will continue. DICTATOR CONTROLS IN SEQUENCE #1 The Dictator controls the machine gun in the foreground. The joystick controls left , right , up and down movements. When you are ready to fire, push the button. When shots are fired, you will see the tracer effect of each shell leaving the barrel. There is no limit to your supply of ammunition. Firing your weapon slows movement in all directions. Because of this, it is better to stop firing when you need to quickly move the machine gun to another target. Point total is based upon the number of soldiers stopped. The machine gun cannot hit the helicopter or the men parachuting out of the helicopter until they hit the ground. Obviously, the closer in the Allied forces are the easier they are to hit. Also, the Allied men can move out of the range of the machine gun by moving past the front wall to the extreme right or left. If they reach these points, you will not be able to stop them unless they come back into range. If no Allied men make it to safety, the game will end. NOTE: IF ANY ALLIED SOLDIERS reach the Second wall, they will be joined by reinforcements which will double the number of men remaining. SEQUENCE II "RESCUE" Overview: Allied forces are inside the sanctuary and attempting to rescue the hostages. "The Dragon's" men are low on ammunition but are still determined to prevent the rescue of the hostages. The prisoners face the formidable task of having to cross the open courtyard with "The Dragon's" men throwing anything they can find at them. Allied Forces: The Allies have captured the Dictator's machine gun to protect the prisoners as they come out. The prisoners will appear on the far left of the screen and attempt to cross the courtyard to a point where helicopters are waiting to take them out. Your mission is to protect the ten hostages from "The Dragon's" men. He has four weapons which can stop the prisoners: one soldier dropping stones along the top of the wall, one man who can place mines through trap doors along the hostage pathway, a tank that has no shells but will come straight at the prisoner to run him down and a truck with a small rocket launcher to stop the hostages. The tank and the truck can be hit anywhere to destroy them. You can speed up the hostages by shooting any of the three doors that appear along the corridor wall. Your machine gun fire can accidently hit the prisoners, but it will not harm them. They will, however, stop for a moment and then resume at a slower speed. Remember, the gun moves more quickly when the button is NOT pressed. DICTATOR -- The Dictator controls the following four weapons: Man on Top of the Wall: To use this soldier, push the joystick straight forward. With the stick in the forward position, move it right or left. This controls his movement along the wall. This soldier is now under your control. When he is in proper position over the prisoner, the soldier can drop object to stop the prisoner. When he is positioned correctly, push up and press the button to lift the object. Once his arms are extended, push up and press the button again to release the object. If the soldier is shot, he will be replaced after a short delay. Tank: To deploy the tank, push the stick directly to the right and press the button. Once the tank has started moving, it is computer controlled. Every time a tank is destroyed, a new tank can be sent by following the same procedure. The only time a tank cannot be sent is if the prisoner has passed the door farthest to the right. Truck: The truck can be started by moving the joystick directly to the left and pressing the fire button. Once the truck has started, it is computer controlled. When a truck is destroyed, another can be sent immediately. The prisoner must pass the first door along the wall before the truck can be activated. Trap Door: To use this man, pull back on the stick. With stick in the back position, move it right or left to move the trap door along the ground. When you are ready to set the mine, pull back on the stick and push the button. A man will then appear and set a land mine in the prisoner's path. If the trap door man is hit, he will be replaced after a short delay. NOTE: The best strategy for the Dictator is to keep as many items on the screen as possible. This keeps the Allied gunner occupied. For example, once a tank or truck has been destroyed you should immediately send another. Coordinate your use of the trap door and the man on the wall. The key to success is keeping the machine gun moving around and busy. If none of the hostages escape, the game will end. SEQUENCE III -- "ESCAPE" Overview: The rescue helicopters now must get the prisoners off the island by running "The Dragon's" gauntlet. In addition to an automated defense system, "The Dragon" controls the tanks on screen. There are three helicopters. Each is capable of taking all or some of the prisoners out. The Dictator, however, determines which level of difficulty each helicopter will face. There are three levels, and each level can be used only once. For example, if you try to take all hostages out on the first run and "The Dragon" programs in the higher level of difficulty, chances are slim that you will make it. Nevertheless, if you do escape, you will be awarded a considerable number of bonus points. (To be merciful, we have allowed two helicopters for each run, thus, you could actually lose up to six helicopters. If you cannot get any hostages to safety, the game will end. Dictator: The Dictator controls the difficulty of the individual escape run and the tanks located throughout enemy terrain. It is to the Dictator's advantage to prevent his opponent from seeing the level selection. The player must be ready to move his tank into position as soon as it becomes visible on the screen. The tank must be lined up directly in front of the helicopter to destroy it. When you are properly lined up, push the button to fire your shell. Tanks are located throughout the escape run. Allied Forces: You must select the number of hostages for each helicopter by pushing forward or back on the stick. Press the button when the helicopter is loaded, and the engine will start. To fire the helicopter rockets, push the joystick button. To get past walls, you must fly through the openings. You cannot fly over the walls. The difficulty is set by the Dictator so the speed will not be known until you start your run. NOTE: When playing the Escape Scene in single player mode, either stick will control the allied helicopter (you cannot control the tanks in single player mode). If you have been playing the role of the dictator in the other scenes, continue to use the dictator stick (Port 2) and your score (for flying the helicopter) will be transferred to the dictator's side. SEQUENCE IV -- "BATTLE" Overview: Before "The Dragon" invaded the island, the bastion he chose as his sanctuary was an ancient temple where islanders would worship their gods. Underneath the temple is a series of caves. These caves were used in ancient times for combat between natives in ritualistic ceremonies. Commander Stryker has finally tracked down the Dictator in his last hiding place. Far beneath the sanctuary, the stage is set for a showdown between madman and liberator -- only one will survive. Allies and Dictator Control: The only weapons remaining are heavy sharpened sticks known as poontas. The poontas were used by natives in ceremonies long ago. The natives would stand across from each other and attempt to knock the opponent off his platform by hitting him with this weapon. If the opponent was hit enough times, it often caused unconsciousness and death. "The Dragon" has challenged Stryker to a final contest of superiority. The players are isolated on platforms and face each other across an underground river. To control movement along the platform, push the joystick up or down. When you feel you are in the proper position to throw the poonta, push the button. You can control the direction of travel by doing the following: Straight Throw -- push the button. Curved Throw -- push the button. When the throwing motion has started, push up or down on the stick in the desired direction and then release. The battle will be fought in nine rounds. A round ends when a player has been hit four times. After each round the score will be displayed. To start a new round, push the button. In addition to points scored for each hit, a player can get bonus points for winning the round by a blitz (4-0 round). TROUBLE-SHOOTING If your program fails to load, remove the program disk, turn off the computer and disk drive, and try again. You may also need to remove any printer interfaces or cartridges from your computer. To check for a misaligned drive, try loading BEACH-HEAD II on another drive. If you still cannot get BEACH-HEAD II to load properly, see your local dealer or call us at (801) 973-0123. SCORING TIPS: In general, higher scores will be obtained at higher playing levels. ATTACK SCENE ALLIES: can significantly increase their point total by throwing grenades and destroying the gun. ESCAPE SCENE ALLIES: Points are awarded for objects destroyed and hostages saved. During the scene, three different difficulty levels are encountered. Points awarded at levels 2 and 3 will be two and three times higher than level 1. A player is given two chances to make the run at each level, thus six total runs are possible. A confident pilot may choose to crash intentionally at the end of the first try in order to have another run at more objects. The on-board hostages are lost only if the pilot fails at the second attempt. DICTATOR: His only opportunity for points comes by destroying the chopper and any hostages on board. The difficulty of the run has the reverse effect on the Dictator's points. Points awarded at levels 2 and 1 will be two and three times higher than level 3. CAUTION: BEACH-HEAD II IS PROTECTED AGAINST UNAUTHORIZED COPYING. ACCESS SOFTWARE 2561 SOUTH 1560 WEST, WOODS CROSS, UTAH 84087 ------- Typed up by Jeff Lodoen jlodoen@mega.megamed.com