Block Out Manual
Contents
1. eee 22 HALL OF FAME MENU All Versions eee 23 HINTS AND STRATEGY ette atria exer on ted 24 INTRODUCTION Welcome to BLOCKOUT the unique game of three dimensional action and strategy It is played with a set of 3 D blocks each composed of 1 to 5 cubes These blocks appear at the top of a multilayered pit and automatically drop down into the pit You must flip rotate and move them into the proper position in order to completely fill a layer with cubes When a layer is full it will disappear giving you more room to maneuver The more layers you completely fill the higher your score will be Be careful though cubes in uncompleted layers will remain at the bottom of the pit giving you less time and room to maneuver When the stack of blocks reaches the top of the pit the game is over Don t worry if you don t do well your first few games the more you play the easier the game becomes BLOCKOUT has many options allowing you to modify the different features of the game This includes changing the dimensions of the pit and the block set used Once you master a setup you can create another one with new challenges BLOCKOUT designed by Aleksander Ustaszewski was inspired by the Soma Cube The Danish writer and mathematician Piet Hein invented the Soma Cube basing it on an unusual geometrical theorem If you combine no more than four cubes into all possible irregular shapes that is there is2. If you are having problems playing the game for the first time watch the computer play in the Demo mode Then try the Practice Mode to become familiar with the game controls Sometimes it becomes difficult to tell the exact position of a block within the pit When this happens try moving the block against the side of the pit From there carefully move it into the desired position Hemember that the faster you move a block into position and drop it the more points you will get If you have problems recognizing the overall shape of a block try rotating it into different positions By getting several views of the block in different positions you should get a better idea of its shape If you are trying to achieve the highest score possible try beginning from a higher starting level You can maneuver the block until it is filled with colors or shades After you drop a block there is still a very short moment when you can move the block if there is room for it BLOCKOUT by California Dreams 1989 LDW Inc All rights reserved
3. Write Setup Saves the current setup to the disk in a file called blockout set This option is also available in the Main Menu Main Menu Returns to the Main Menu Pit Dimensions Menu IBM PC Length Changes the length of the pit You may increase or decrease the length value from 3 to 7 Width Changes the width of the pit You may increase or decrease the width value from 3 to 7 Depth Changes the depth of the pit You may increase or decrease the depth value from 6 to 18 Exit Returns to the Change Setup Menu HALL OF FAME MENU All Versions Start Game Starts the actual game The setup will be the same as the game just played Change Choose Setup Selects the Change Setup IBM PC or Choose Setup menu Main Menu Returns to the Main Menu Quit Game Exits the game and returns to the operating system HINTS AND STRATEGY Unless you have three hands use just one set of keys to rotate the block either Q W and E or A S and D but not both Place three fingers of your left hand on the Q W and E or A S and D keys Place your right hand on the numeric keypad f you have a Macintosh without the numeric keypad see the GAME CONTROLS section Try to keep your hands at these locations at all times when playing Becoming familiar with rotating the blocks using the Q W and E keys or A S and D is important to mastering the game Don t get discouraged if it seems confusing at first
4. a corner somewhere in the shape you will end up with seven different shapes each composed of three or four cubes These shapes are the same as the Basic Set inside the front cover In turn these seven shapes which contain a total of 27 small cubes can be combined into a larger 3 by 3 by 3 cube as illustrated below For a complete description of the Soma Cube see Martin Gardner s 2nd Scientific American Book of Mathematical Puzzles amp Diversions published by Simon and Schuster 1961 The Soma Cube GETTING STARTED Your BLOCKOUT diskette is not copy protected so before you play the game we strongly recommend that you make a back up copy of the original diskette or copy its contents onto your hard disk Then use your back up copy when loading the game If you wish to save your high scores make sure the disk is not write protected Note To skip the title screen press any key or the mouse button if applicable LOADING THE GAME Amiga Turn on your computer system Amiga 1000 owners must use the Kickstart disk When the prompt asking for the Workbench disk appears put the BLOCKOUT diskette into the drive Your computer will load the game automatically Atari ST Place the BLOCKOUT diskette in the disk drive Turn on your monitor and the computer When the desktop appears double click on BLOCKOUT PRG Macintosh Turn your computer using the system diskette or hard disk Insert the BLOCKOUT diskette into th
5. bypass the graphics mode menu by typing one of the following commands at the DOS prompt bl h for Hercules mode bl el for EGA low resolution mode bl eh for EGA high resolution mode bl c for CGA mode bl t for Tandy mode After typing the command line press Enter Your computer will attempt to run BLOCKOUT in the specified graphics mode which will be saved in the blockout set file COPY PROTECTION After the program has loaded it will display a block on the screen The block will be divided into a number of cubes and one of these cubes will be highlighted You will need to locate the same block on the inside front or rear cover of your User s Manual Once you have located the block find the color of the cube that is highlighted on the screen Amiga Atari ST Macintosh use the mouse and mouse button to point and select the proper color IBM PC Select the color on the menu using the cursor keys and press Enter If an incorrect color is selected the BLOCKOUT program will end and return control to the computer s operating system There is a chart on the back cover of the manual to help you identify the individual colors PLAYING THE GAME PLAYING FOR THE FIRST TIME While BLOCKOUT is a relatively simple game you may need some time to get used to the interface The easiest way to do this is to follow these steps After successfully loading BLOCKOUT the program will present you with the Main Menu Selec
6. score as well as the pit dimensions and block set B Loc K SCORING There are a total of 11 difficulty levels in BLOCKOUT You will be able to start the game at any of the first ten levels After a certain number of cubes has been played the level will increase making the game more difficult In larger pits you must drop more cubes before the difficulty level changes Your score in BLOCKOUT increases e With the complexity of both the individual block and the block set e With the height from which the block is dropped using the Space Bar e As the level increases As the size of the pit decreases Bonus points are awarded for e Filling an entire layer e Filling more than one layer at a time Clearing the entire pit Note The score in BLOCKOUT does not depend on the Ro tation Speed parameter HALL OF FAME Once the game is over press Enter or Return the Hall of Fame will then appear displaying the ten highest scores If your score is higher than the lowest score on the list you will be allowed to enter your name After typing in your name using the keyboard press Enter to save the new score to disk Pressing Enter without typing a name will also save the score If you don t want to save your new score press the Esc key or select the Cancel button Every setup will have its own Hall of Fame This will allow you to save the ten h
7. width OOmwOQOC Length OO amp OO Predefined Setups This window allows you to choose from several preselected setups Watch how selecting predefined setups changes the parameters in other windows Flat Fun Changes the current setup to Flat Fun This setup was designed with the novice player in mind Its Flat block set and large pit allow for easier play than the more advanced setups 3 D Mania Changes the current setup to 3 D Mania Designed for advanced players this setup uses the Basic block set with a narrow pit This is the favorite setup of the developers of the game Out of Control Changes the current setup to Out of Control This setup is quite different than the other two When using the Extended block set the game becomes a complex logic puzzle Block Set This window allows you to select one of the three block sets See the inside front and back cover of the manual for diagrams of the blocks Flat Set The Flat set consists of the two dimensional blocks 1 2 5 6 9 10 13 and 14 that are composed of 1 to 4 cubes Basic Set The Basic set consists of blocks 1 through 7 They are formed by combining three or four cubes into the irregular shapes These seven shapes which contain a total of 27 cubes can be fitted together to form a larger 3 x 3 x 3 Soma Cube see INTRODUCTION Extended Set The Extended set consists of all block combinations of 1 to 5 cubes blocks 1 41 Note If the curre
8. COLOR KEY grey brown pink red orange yellow dark green light green dark blue _ SEIN a s N light blue dark purple EBDULNEBSSNLUSNSSNUSMSN light purple California Dreams CALI FORNIA 3 780 Montague Expwy 3 403 i 06 San Jose CA 95131 U S A Printed in Hong Kong ke Lu O v lt c FLAT SET BLOCKOUT by California Dreams 1989 LDW Inc All rights reserved User s Manual for the Amiga Atari ST Macintosh Tandy and IBM PC and Compatibles CREDITS Programming PZK Co Development Group Game designer and lead programmer Aleksander Ustaszewski Package design Hyru Gau and Tom Finnegan Producers Tomasz Sielicki and Stefan Zielinski User s Manual Eric Nickelson LEGAL INFORMATION Amiga Kickstart Workbench and Commodore 64 128 are trademarks or registered trademarks of Commodore Amiga Inc The Amiga version of BLOCKOUT program includes portions of the Workbench program 1989 by Commodore Amiga Inc all rights reserved Atari ST is a trademark of Atari Corp Macintosh and Apple IIGS are registered trademarks of Apple Computer Inc APPLE IIGS SYSTEM DISK are copyrighted programs of Apple Computer Inc licensed to Logical Design Works Inc to distribute for use only in combination with BLOCKOUT Apple Software shall not be copied onto another diskette except for archive purposes or into memory unless as part of the e
9. UT tii Numeric keypad All versions o o 025 cNuN GAME CONTROLS Moving the Blocks Keyboard Macintosh move down and left move down SU 5 move down and right move left move right move up and left move up move up and right VO Note The mouse except for the IBM PC and the cursor keys will also move the block around the pit Rotating the Blocks Q Flips the block counter clockwise around x axis W Turns the block counter clockwise around y axis E Spins the block counter clockwise around z axis A Flips the block clockwise around x axis S Turns the block clockwise around y axis D Spins the block clockwise around z axis Di Other Game Controls IBM PC Amiga Atari ST Macintosh Drop the Space Space or Mouse Button block Pause resume P P P H Return the game Note When you drop a block there is still a very short moment when you can move the block if there is a room for it in the pit PLAYING SCREEN The playing screen for BLOCKOUT is divided into three areas the pit the layer bar and game information In the center of the screen is the pit This is the area where you will position the blocks On the left side of the screen is the layer bar This vertical bar will show the color or shade of each layer of blocks in the pit On the right side of the screen the game information is displayed the current score number of cubes played and high
10. e disk drive and double click on the BLOCKOUT icon IBM PC Turn on your computer system using your DOS disk When the DOS prompt appears insert the BLOCKOUT diskette in drive A If you are not in drive A switch to drive A by typing a and pressing Enter Then type bl and press Enter Your computer will load the BLOCKOUT program If you wish to install BLOCKOUT on your hard disk insert the BLOCKOUT diskette in drive A and type the following command at the DOS prompt install c Replace c with the letter designating your hard drive The game will be copied into a subdirectory called blockout created in the current hard disk directory You can also copy all files from the original game disk into your hard disk using the DOS copy command Once the game is loaded a menu will appear allowing you to select the graphics mode in which you will play the game The program will highlight the best available graphics mode that your computer supports but you may select any mode desired Some graphics modes may not work on your computer You may select the graphics mode by using the up and down cursor keys and Enter or by pressing the highlighted letter of the desired choice The graphics mode you select will be saved automatically to a file called blockout set This file will also contain any current setup saved by the Write Setup option The next time you load the game the graphics mode will be set automatically You may
11. ette To obtain a replacement diskette return the diskette postage prepaid to CD at the address below accompanied by proof of date of purchase if necessary a brief description of the defect a check for the correct amount if necessary and your name and return address The software diskettes and documentation are provided AS IS There is no warranty of merchantability no warranty of fitness for a particular use and no other warranty of any kind either expressed or implied regarding the software diskettes or documentation except as expressly provided in the preceding paragraph Accordingly the entire risk as to the use results and performance of the software diskettes and documentation is assumed by you In no event will CD be liable to you or anyone else for any consequential special or indirect damages resulting from possession use or malfunction of this product including without limitation damage to property and to the extent permitted by law damages for personal injury even if CD has been advised of the possibility of any such damages or loss Some states do not allow limitations on the duration of implied warranties and or the exclusion or limitation of incidental or consequential damages and thus the preceding limitation and or exclusions and limitations may not apply to you This warranty gives you specific legal rights and you may have other rights depending on the laws in your state You agree that the liabilit
12. file called blockout set The setup will automatically load the next time you boot the game Practice Mode Starts the practice mode in the current setup In this mode the blocks do not automatically descend until the Space bar is pressed The player has unlimited time to move and rotate the block Press the Esc or equivalent key to exit the practice mode Demo Starts a demonstration of the game in the current setup The computer takes over the role of the human player and automatically adjusts the position of each block and then drops it into place Pressing any key will exit the demo Note The demo mode will start automatically if you don t play for a while Help Displays a screen listing the game controls and showing examples of three blocks each rotating along a different axis Selecting one of the two rows of keys in the menu will change the rotation direction Quit Game Exits the game and returns to the operating system sp CHOOSE SETUP MENU Amiga Atari ST Macintosh The Choose Setup menu allows you to alter different features of the game It contains several windows and buttons To select an option in a window click on the selector next to the option name Choose Setup Predefined Setups f Block Set Rotation Flat Fun Flat Fast Q 3 D Mania O Basic Medium Extended O Slow Out of Control Pit Dimensions 3 4 5 86 7 8 910 11 12 13 14 15 1617 18 Depth QOOOOOe wOoOoOOQOoQo
13. ighest scores for each combination of pit and block set The only exceptions are pits with reversed length and width dimensions For example a 4 x 5 x 10 pit would have the same Hall of Fame as a 5 x 4 x 10 pit MENUS BLOCKOUT has a system of menus that allows you to alter different features of the game Amiga Atari ST Macintosh Select a menu option by using the mouse and mouse button or by pressing the first letter of the option name If you are in a submenu pressing the Esc key or equivalent will return you to the Main Menu IBM PC Selections in the different menus can be made by using the up and down cursor keys and Enter or the first letter of the option you wish to choose Some selections will contain a colon followed by a value This value can be changed with the Enter key or with the left and right cursor keys In a submenu pressing the Esc key will return you to the previous menu MAIN MENU All Versions Start Game Starts the actual game with the specified setup Flat Fun is the default Upon selecting this option you will be allowed to set the starting level 0 being the easiest You can use Enter the up and down cursor keys the 0 through 9 keys or the mouse if applicable to select the level Choose Setup Selects the Choose Setup menu This menu allows you to choose from several preselected setups or change the setup completely Write Setup Saves the current setup to the disk in a
14. me Out of Control Changes the current setup to Out of Control This setup is quite different than the other two When using the Extended block set the game becomes a complex logic puzzle Change Setup Selects the Change Setup menu allowing you to change all the aspects of the game setup Main Menu Returns to the Main Menu Change Setup Menu IBM PC Pit Dimensions Selects the Pit Dimensions Menu allowing you to change the depth width and length of the pit Block Set Selects one of the three block sets Flat Basic or Extended see the inside front and back cover of the manual The Flat set consists of the two dimensional blocks 1 2 5 6 9 10 13 and 14 that are com posed of 1 to 4 cubes The Basic set consists of blocks 1 through 7 They are formed by combining no more than four cubes into the irregular shapes These seven shapes which contain a total of 27 cubes can be fitted to gether to form a larger 3 x 3 x 3 Soma Cube see INTRODUCTION The Extended set consists of all block combinations of 1 to 5 cubes blocks 1 41 Note f the current pit is too small to fit a block from the Extended set this type of block is not generated Rotation Speed Selects one of three speeds Slow Medium or Fast This option controls the speed of the rotation and transition of the blocks when moving down the pit The game scoring does not depend on this parameter Start Game Starts the actual game
15. nt pit is too small to fit a block from the Extended set this type of block is not generated Rotation This window controls the speed of the rotation and transition of the blocks when moving down the pit The game scoring does not depend on this parameter Select one of the three speeds Fast Medium or Slow Pit Dimensions This window allows you to change the depth 6 to 18 width 3 to 7 and length 3 to 7 of the pit Please note that there is a separate top ten list for each block set and pit combination Sound This window allows you to turn sound effects off and on At the bottom of the Choose Setup window you will find the following buttons Start Game Main Menu Write Setup and Cancel Start Game Starts the actual game Main Menu Returns to the Main Menu with the new setup if you change it Write Setup Saves the current setup to the disk in a file called blockout set This option is also available in the Main Menu Cancel Returns to the Main Menu without any changes in the game setup CHOOSE SETUP MENU IBM PC Flat Fun Changes the current setup to Flat Fun This setup was designed with the novice player in mind Its Flat block set and large pit allow for easier play than the more advanced setups 3 D Mania Changes the current setup to 3 D Mania Designed for advanced players this setup uses the Basic block set with a narrow pit This is the favorite setup of the developers of the ga
16. programming language or format or decompile or disassemble the software or any copy modification or merged portion in whole or in part except as expressly provided in this license California Dreams 130 Knowles Drive Suite A Los Gatos CA 95030 TEL 408 378 0340 FAX 408 378 0397 TELEX 294526 LDW UR TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION mer en nr et eae ends l GETTING STARTED eoi eerie en e I adds 3 LOADING THE GAME eri dete nete aua ne a rk be E DR adus 3 RIV cut os side teda euo Live sese olea Slt cud Spp a PON Ioa ones 3 EC MESE ER UU IEEE 3 Miaeiiitasbeesetc eiat uec essa etai Eutr ae tent 4 IBM PG ieee inte m E A udeve nae Red 4 COPY PROTECTION eecteeertuet Nuova E r e deed RUE 6 PLAYING THE GAME iio nob en oce eer eb Eee 7 PLAYING FOR THE FIRST TIME eee GAME CONTROLS orcino inn oiseau bar ches 9 Moving the Blocks rM ET 9 Rotating the DBIOGKS oet i AEE 9 Other Game Control Seenaa iena oar Oa agus ain 10 PLAYING SCREEN merania ii aU iu Ende C ev eu marae 11 SCORING aran eena iena cerit dtertbes sd uote Mad u deuda 12 HALL OF EAM netos pepusitentetesa isst tak ro s initi be Kat 13 MENU Scarano ovetexuiua ann ean tb need Ur PN d dec l4 MAIN MENU All VefsiOns 5 eroe te th ae aee l4 CHOOSE SETUP MENU Amiga Atari ST MR COSI l6 CHOOSE SETUP MENU IBM PU issis iiio ea 20 Change Setup Menu IBM PC useiiei diee ies ete 21 Pit Dimensions Menu IBM PC
17. t the Practice Mode option e The playing screen will be displayed Place your left hand on the Q W and E keys and your right hand on the numeric keypad f you have a Macintosh without the numeric keypad see the GAME CONTROLS section below Press the 8 key on the numeric keypad The block will move up towards the top of the screen Next press the 2 key The block will move back down towards the bottom of the screen Press the 6 key and the block will move to the right Press the 4 key and the block will move to the left Next try rotating the block This is done with the left hand using the Q W and E keys Press the E key and watch the block rotate Press the E key again and it will rotate in the same direction Do this a few times to get familiar with the rotation of the block Next experiment with the Q and W keys in the same fashion Watch how the block reacts to each keypress Now try dropping the block into place by pressing the Space bar Once you have become familiar with the game controls press the Esc key or equivalent to exit the Practice Mode You can now try the actual game by selecting the Start Game option You will be presented with another menu that allows you to set the starting level Press Enter or the 0 key to select level O the easiest level The game will begin Now that you have gained some familiarity with the game controls you should be well on your way to mastering BLOCKO
18. xecution of BLOCKOUT When BLOCKOUT has completed execution Apple Software shall not be used by any other program Apple Computer Inc 1983 1989 IBM PC XT and AT are registered trademarks of International Business Machines Corp Tandy is a registered trademark of Tandy Corp BLOCKOUT is a trademark of Kadon Enterprises Inc for its 3 D game with hardwood polycube blocks and is used by permission California Dreams is a trademark of Logical Design Works Inc California Dreams 130 Knowles Drive Suite A Los Gatos CA 95030 TEL 408 378 0340 FAX 408 378 0397 TELEX 294526 LDW UR 1989 1990 Logical Design Works Inc All rights reserved BLOCKOUT LIMITED WARRANTY California Dreams CD a Software Division of Logical Design Works Inc warrants to the original purchaser that the medium on which this program is recorded is free from defects in materials and workmanship for a period of ninety 90 days from the date of purchase as evidenced by your receipt If within 90 days of purchase the medium proves defective it may be returned along with dated proof of purchase to CD and CD will replace it free of charge All users whose registration card is on file with CD will receive the following replacement service If the medium proves defective at any time after the first 90 days or becomes defective due to accident abuse or neglect by purchaser during the first 90 days CD will replace it for a fee of 7 50 per disk
19. y of CD arising out of any kind of legal claim whether in contract tort or otherwise will not exceed the amount you originally paid for the use of this product SOFTWARE LICENSE AGREEMENT The enclosed software program is licensed by California Dreams CD a Software Division of Logical Design Works Inc to customers for their use only on the terms set forth below Opening this package or using the enclosed diskette indicates your acceptance of these terms CD hereby grants you a non exclusive license to use the enclosed software and manual subject to the terms and restrictions set forth in this Software License Agreement This manual and the software accompanying it are copyrighted with all rights reserved You may not copy or otherwise reproduce any part of the software or the manual except that you may load the software into a computer as an essential step in executing the software on the computer The original and any back up copies of the software and the manual are to be used only in connection with a single computer You may physically transfer the software from one computer to another provided that the software is used in connection with only one computer at a time You may not transfer the software electronically from one computer to another over a network You may not distribute copies of the software or the manual to others You may not use copy modify transfer sublicense rent lease convey translate convert to any
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