Project: Starfighter

Project: Starfighter
Copyright Parallel Realities 2003
Copyright Guus Sliepen, Astrid S. de Wijn and others 2012

This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License
as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2
of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

See the GNU General Public License for more details.

You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along
with this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc.,
51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301 USA.


Introduction:

Project: Starfighter is an old school 2D shoot 'em up. In the game you take
on the role of a rebel pilot called Chris, who is attempting to overthrow a
military corporation called Weapco. Weapco has seized control of the known
universe and currently rules it with an iron fist. Chris can no longer
stand back and watch as millions of people suffer and die. He steals an
experimental craft known as "Firefly" and begins his mission to fight his
way to Sol, freeing key systems along the way. The game opens with Chris
attempting to escape a Weapco patrol that has intercepted him. 


Controls:  (Note - Keys cannot be changed)

Menus.
 Arrow Keys - Highlight option
 Left Control / Space - Select menu option

Intermission Screen.
 Mouse - Move cursor
 Left Mouse Button - Selected option
 Right Mouse Button - Toggle planet orbit On / Off

In Game.
 Arrow Keys - Control Firefly
 Left Ctrl - Fire primary weapon
 Space - Fire secondary weapon
 Shift - Toggle Primary Weapon Concentrate / Spread (see Weaponry)
 T - Targetting Arrow On /Off
 P - Pause / Unpause
 Escape - Flee (not possible until all primary missions completed)
 Escape whilst paused - Quit to title screen


How to Play:

When first starting Project: Starfighter you will see the text scrolling
introduction. You can either wait for this to finish or you can skip it by
pressing ctrl or space.

The title sequence will begin. Once the menu is shown (or you opt to skip
to it by pressing space or ctrl) you may select from the options shown

Start New Game.
 This will start a new game 

Load Game.
 This will bring up a list of currently available games to be loaded, along
 with the planet that the game was saved in. This option is only shown when
 there is at least one saved game available. 

Continue Current Game.
 This will automatically load the most recently saved game. This option is
 only shown when there is at least one saved game available. 

Options.
 This will show a list of game options. Options for sound, music and an
 auto save slot can be changed. Music and Sound can be switched to either
 On or Off.

The Auto Save Slot allows the player to select a save slot that will
 automatically be updated when the player finishes a mission. This can
 be switched from None to 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5. When this option is set to a
 number, that save slot will be used to save a game at the end of a
 mission. Note that any currently existing game will be automatically
 overwritten. 

Quit.
 This will quit the game. Quitting is immediate, without prompting (the
 game can also be quit at anytime by clicking the close button of the
 window). 


Loading and Saving Games:

Games can be loaded from the title screen. When there are saved games
available, the option "Load Game" will be shown. Selecting this will
show a list of available games to be loaded. Select a game from the
list to load, you will then be taken to the Intermission screen. To
go back, selected Back to Main Menu.

Games can be saved in two ways. The first way is to save a game on the
Intermission screen. Move the cursor to the Save Game icon and select
it. You will see a list of five game slots that can be used to save a
game to. Click one of these and then click the "Save" button to save
the game. The second way is to use the Auto Save function. This will
automatically save your game after you have successfully completed a
mission. To make use of this feature you must choose a save slot that
you wish to auto save into. This can be done on the title screen in
the options section or on the intermission screen at the options section.


Getting Missions:

In each System, the player can get missions by going to the Comms section
of the Intermission screen. Here allies will inform you of tasks that need
to be performed and what planet these tasks apply to. Once the player has
decided which task they will perform, they must go to the corresponding
planet in the system (see Moving Around for more details). Once stationed
at the planet click "Start Mission" to proceed to the mission briefing
screen. The "StartMission" icon will not be shown if the mission of the
planet has been completed.

Mission Briefing.
Before the beginning of each mission you will be presented with a mission
briefing screen. This will outline the mission's primary and (if any)
secondary objectives. It will also inform you of mission restrictions,
such as time limits. Once you have read this, press ctrl or space to
continue.

Completing Missions.
Each mission in the game has one or more objectives tied to it. These
objectives are either Primary or Secondary objectives. In order to complete
the mission, the player must complete all the primary mission objectives.
For example, when the game begins Chris is fleeing a WEAPCO patrol. The
primary objective for this mission is to destroy all the enemy fighters.
Once this is achieved the Firefly will leave the sector and the mission
will be marked as a success.

One thing to note is that some missions will have both Primary and
Secondary objectives. In this case, the Firefly does not leave the
sector if all primary mission objectives are complete and secondary
objectives remain. The player may then attempt to complete remaining
secondary objectives or press Escape to leave the sector. Secondary
objectives are optional.

During the mission you will see messages appearing at the bottom of the
screen. These messages can be related to items that you pick up, as well
as mission related information.

White messages are standard for picking up items such as cash and power ups
Green messages signify successful completion of mission objectives Light
Blue messages give further details about Primary mission requirements
Red messages indicate mission failures, warnings and wing mate ejections
Yellow messages give further details about Secondary mission requirements. 


The Target Arrow:

The Target Arrow can be used to locate enemies and point you in the
direction that the enemy craft is. You can toggle the Target Arrow on or
off by pressing "T" on the keyboard. This arrow is very useful for finding
enemies that are evasive (such as transports) on missions that require you
to destroy all present craft. Simply follow the arrow to find the enemy.
The arrow will not be displayed when you are within the immediate vacinity
of the target. On certain missions (such as Bosses) the arrow will
initially point towards a certain target that is part of the mission
objective. The target's current remaining shield is also displayed in
the bottom right hand corner of the screen. Please note that due to the
nature of the game, the target arrow cannot be cycled through enemies. 


Moving Around Systems:

To play a mission in Starfighter you must be stationed at the relevant
planet. To get to the planet you require, you will need to click on the
planet whilst viewing it on the Show System section of the Intermission
screen. Travelling between planets can be dangerous, but luckily Spirit
is a peaceful place and there are no chances of interceptions, so travel
is instantaneous.

Other systems are not as friendly and whilst travelling to a new
destination the player runs the risk of being intercepted by a WEAPCO
patrol. After Spirit the player will select a planet to travel to by
clicking on it with the mouse. "Destination", followed by the planet's
name will appear in the bottom right hand corner of the screen. A new
icon labelled "Go To Destination" will also appear. Clicking this icon
will make the player travel to the destination planet.

Travelling to new planets is represented at the bottom of the screen by the
two planets (the one being travelled from and the one being travelled to).
A red bar will fill up as the journey progresses. The speed the bar fills
up will vary occurring to how far away the planets are from one another.
At any point during this time the planet can be intercepted (see Inter-
ceptions) Once the red bar has filled up completely the journey will
be completed and you will be stationed that the new planet.


Interceptions:

Interceptions can take place whilst travelling between two planets within a
system. When the player is intercepted they will go directly into a mission
like scenario. The objective of this interception is to clear all attacking
forces. Once this is done, the player will be free to leave.

Interceptions also serve other purposes - Sometimes the WEAPCO patrol may
have slave transports with them. One of the objectives of a later system is
to rescue a certain amount of slaves. This is only possible during
interceptions.

One important thing to remember is that any damage the player receives
during an interception will NOT be repaired until they have reached the
destination planet. Therefore if the player is heavily damaged during one
interception that damage will still be present if they are attacked again.
This can make interceptions very dangerous.


Weaponry and Upgrades:

During the course of the game you will receive money. Money is gained from
destroying enemy craft and picking up cash spheres in game (please be aware
that due to the nature of the game cash is not earned for destroying ships
during Interceptions).

Money can be used to upgrade the Firefly and purchase additional ammunition
for weapons. Items can be purchased from a shop on the Intermission screen.

Temporary Upgrades Temporary upgrades are used to boost the Firefly's
ability to be powered up. For example, at the start of the game the Firefly
can only be powered up to fire two plasma bolts are once. By purchasing an
upgrade for the Firefly, you can allow for power ups to enable you to fire
a maximum of up to five plasma bolts at once. Note that this only affects
power ups and these will still be ammunition limited. To upgrade your
default weapon, you will need permanent power ups (see below). 


Permanent Upgrades:

These power ups are more expensive than temporary upgrades, but are
permanent. Whereas a temporary upgrade requires you to make use of
power ups on an ammunition limited base, permanent power ups are not
limited. This is highly useful when facing heavily shielded and tough
opponents, with no means of getting plasma ammo or transports in sight!
When you power up your permanent weapon, your powered up weapon level
will also be automatically upgraded if it is less powerful than your new
current power up level. When the Firefly's Primary Weapon has been upgraded
to its maximum output (3 plasma cannons) the player can toggle the output
type by pressing Shift. The output type can either be Concentrate (the
default firing type) or Spread. Various situations can call for varying
the output type. 


Secondary Weapons:

As well as primary weapons and temporary upgrades, the Firefly is also
capable of using a secondary weapon. At the start of the game this is a
rocket launcher. Like the other weapons in the game this can be upgraded
by purchasing a new weapon from the shop. At the start of the game, a
Double Rocket Launcher and Micro Rocket Launcher are available for
purchase. Secondary weapons are used in the same way the rocket launcher
is used (Space to fire). However the Laser Cannon and Charge Cannon work
differently. Neither the Charge Cannon or the Laser Cannon are ammunition
limited (unlike the other rocket based weapons). The Charge Cannon works
by the player holding down the Space bar and releasing it. A meter at the
bottom of the screen shows how much charge has been built up. The Laser
Cannon works by the player holding down the Space bar to fire a stream of
laser fire. It is prone to over heating and must be allowed to cool after
usage. 

Certain weapons and upgrades will not be available to you until later in
the game, so remember to save your money for them


Item Spheres:

When an enemy craft is destroyed they will sometimes release ammo and cash
spheres. Certain enemy craft will release power up spheres that can give
your weapon a temporary boost. The following are spheres that can be picked
up during missions,

Cash Sphere - Provides you with an additional cash bonus
Plasma Ammo Sphere - Increases your current plasma ammo
Rocket Ammo Sphere - Increases your current rocket ammo
Power Sphere - Boosts your plasma power
Output Sphere - Boosts the amount of plasma shots you can fire 
Cooler Sphere - Increases your plasma firing rate
Super Sphere - Three / Five way spread, full power and cooling (Rare) 


Cut Scenes:

During the course of the game mini cut scenes will be shown after certain
missions. These scenes serve to extend the plot of the game and provide the
player with gameplay tips. If you wish to skip a cut scene press Escape.
It is advised that you only skip cut scenes if you have already seen them.


Ending the Game:

The game is over when the Firefly's shield units are reduced to 0 (zero),
or a Primary Mission objective is failed. At this point, you will see the
Game Over screen. To continue, press Ctrl or Space. You will then be taken
back to the title screen. In certain missions the game will end if Sid
Wilson is killed.


About:

Parallel Realities started off writing games on the Amiga using AMOS and
then, later, Blitz Basic 2. Games written included the BOTSS Trilogy and
most notably TANX Squadron. TANX Squadron was awarded Amiga Format's
contributor prize of the month in the summer of 1999.

Project: Starfighter originally started life on the Amiga but was never
completed. Development began again for Linux in 2002 with this being our
first C program. The game matured quickly from the initial ideas and this
is the finished product. We do hope you enjoy playing it.