Readme.txt
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 		       		  VIRTUAL BOMBARD  (2001)
                       		 a Binary Brotherz game
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SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:

- Windows Me/98/2000 (possibly 95, only if the OpenGL dll's listed below are
   installed) I don't think Windows NT will run this game,
   but please correct me by email if I'm wrong.

- 3D Graphics Accelerator Card with **OpenGL** support
   (sorry, NO Voodoo1 or Voodoo2) - if you try this game on a Voodoo1 or 2,
    the game will run at probably 2 or 3 frames a second, which is just not playable.
    This is because early Voodoo cards do not support Windowed acceleration, which
    is what my games use. More importantly, you will not be able to see the game's menu,
    which will severely limit your options.  With Voodoo5, 3dFx has fixed this problem, 
    and has added FULL OpenGL support.  So upgrade today!  :-)  

- Opengl32.dll and Glu32.dll inside your WINDOWS\SYSTEM folder
   (If you don't find these in that folder, you can download them off
    the internet for free at www.isdn-net.de/ado/treiber/dll/o/opengl32.zip
    (for opengl32.dll) and www.isdn-net.de/ado/treiber/dll/g/glu32.zip (for Glu32.dll).
    If this page goes out of existence, try finding it by searching www.altavista.com - 
     Type "download opengl32.dll" or "download glu32.dll" in the blank search field).

- Microsoft DirectX 7.0(or later) installed on your system
  (if you don't have DirectX, you can download the latest version off
   the internet for free at:  www.microsoft.com (go to DOWNLOADS section). 

- 233Mhz processor or above
- 32Mb RAM or more
- any type of sound card



INSTALLATION:

- Double-click the bombard.zip file to unpack(decompress) the file.
  
- Inside WinZip click on the EXTRACT button and type in a folder name and path
   of your choice in the field.  This is where all the game files will be sent and stored.

- MAKE SURE that the Virtual Bombard.exe, the .bmp files, and the .wav files are all in 
   the SAME folder that you named when you previously extracted them under
   WinZip.  DO NOT create subfolders for pictures, sounds, etc. - the game
   will not work.  Just dump everything into the same folder and everything
   should be fine.

- Double-click on blue window executable ( .exe)  and it should start the game.




KNOWN ISSUES (BUGS):

- None are reported at this time.



PERFORMANCE HINTS:

- Make sure that your desktop settings are 800x600 (for this game) or higher and your 
  color settings are in 16 BIT MODE.  This color info is important!  You will see a 
  10 fps increase on older graphics cards with less memory if you use 16 bit color instead
  of 32 bit.  I can't tell the difference in 32 bit mode anyway and it just slows down the
  game.  

- For your convenience, the frame rate will be displayed at the top of the game's window
   (i.e. "fps: 60.4" or so).  The bigger the window is, the slower your frame rate might be.
   The game always starts up in 800x600 mode, and on my 400 Mhz computer, the framerate
   hovers around 50 to 60 fps.  When the game is paused, you can change the window's
   size.  On some older cards, making the window's dimensions smaller will produce a higher
   frame rate.  So, if your FPS drops below 30 and the animation seems too 'chunky', try
   reducing the window's size in order to get liquid smooth animation. 

- For slower computers, try using the VIRTUAL GAMEBOARD style of drawing (under 
  Preferences->Terrain Drawing in the game's menu).  This will improve your frame rate
  and you will have smooth animation, even if you have a 200Mhz computer!


GAME INFO:

- The Controls are listed in the game's menu.  Go under Help in the menu and you will 
  find the keys/controls for both tanks.  But just in case, here they are again:
        BLUE TANK (left side of keyboard)                 RED TANK (right side of keyboard)           
  Move Camera left/right: J,L                    Move Camera left/right: move Mouse left/right 
  Move Camera up/down: I,K                       Move Camera up/down: move Mouse up/down
  Zoom In: Hold down SPACE bar and press I       Zoom In: Hold down Mouse button1 and move Mouse forward
  Zoom Out: Hold down SPACE bar and press K      Zoom Out: Hold down Mouse button1 and move Mouse back

  Turn BLUE Tank Left/Right: A,D                 Turn RED Tank Left/Right: NumPad4,NumPad6 
  Elevate Barrel/Lower Barrel: W,S               Elevate Barrel/Lower Barrel: NumPad8,NumPad5 
  Power up Shot: Press Enter                     Power up Shot: press NumPad Enter
  FIRE Shot: Press Enter again                   FIRE Shot: press NumPad Enter again 

- Press Esc to pause the game.  While the game is paused, your mouse pointer will return and
  you can select different options from the menu.  To get back into the game, press Esc again.

- to Exit the game, go under File->Exit, and the game will exit.  If you have an emergency
   situation (like your Boss is coming around the corner) hit F1 anytime and the program will
  perform its lightning-fast emergency exit.

- I based the gameplay of Virtual Bombard off a couple of different 2D versions from the
  1980's.  One of the first (I think THE first) games was called Artillery and was programmed
  in BASIC for the AppleII computer (remember those?).  I fondly remember playing that game
  at the end of my computer literacy class in 7th grade (ah, those were the days).  The teacher
  thought we were learning computer skills, but we knew better!  :-)  

- Learn how to use the camera fluently (both BLUE and RED tanks).  This might take just 10 
  minutes of play. If you rotate your camera alot and Zoom in and Zoom out often, you will 
  get a better view of how to play each shot.  

- Even the most difficult shots on the Mountains and Cliffs levels can be mastered.  If the 
  wind is blowing AGAINST you, use less elevation and more Force.  If you are shooting into
  a tight spot and the wind is blowing WITH you (a seemingly impossible situation) , try 
  a maximum elevation (89 degrees) and shooting with enough force to get it high into the air.
  Then watch as the wind magically takes it to your opponent's area.  (heehee)

- Be sure to try out the different level types under the menu.  There are 5 level types
  Rolling Hills, Frozen Tundra, Desert Storm, Mountains/Valleys, and Cliffs/Gorges.  When
  the game is started up, Rolling Hills is the default level type.

- In case you math whizzes out there are wondering, I used SIN and COS functions to randomly
  generate every level type, even Cliffs/Gorges - I'll let you figure that one out. ;-)

- The levels, positons, wind direction, and wind speed are all randomly chosen by the computer.
  This is what I liked so much about the original 2D Artillery game.  You never will get the
  same game twice.  Have Fun!




- PLEASE read the "Help Us" text file that is in this folder.  My brother Brian and I
  appreciate your support.



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Comments, suggestions, or problem reports are welcome.  Email us at brianlof@swbell.net
If you want to download more Binary Brotherz true 3D games, or just want to check out the
latest news about our upcoming projects/games, please visit our website at
http://home.swbell.net/brianlof/game.html  -  Thank you for playing our games!
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