README.TXT
~~~~~~~~~~

   Description for Imperial Games' XPYDERZ version 0.48 Pre-PreRelease
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

   Files included in XPYDERZP.ZIP
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   README.TXT    - this text
   LIESMICH.TXT  - german version of this text
   PLAYINGX.TXT  - game description/instructions (from F1 menu) as text file
   SPIELENX.TXT  - the same game description in german
   XPYDERZ.EXE   - executable file for XPYDERZ
   XPYDERZ.FSY   - data file for XPYDERZ
   XPYDERZ.ICO   - Windows icon for XPYDERZ
   FILE_ID.DIZ   - description file for BBS


   Installation
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~
   To install XPYDERZ, just unpack the XPYDERZP.ZIP file into some
   directory. No additional actions necessary. Maybe you have done that
   already - because otherwise you couldn'n read this text yet.

   Note: In the full version there will be an installation file making
         possible to install different sized versions of XPYDERZ (for
         example without mulitplayer or integrated level editor) in case
         that the heap memory size available is too low.


   Running capabilities
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   XPYDERZ is a DOS prrogram.
   It will run under MS-DOS (version 3.3 and above)

   XPYDERZ will furthermore (tested) run under the following versions of
   Microsoft Windows:
   Windows 98, Windows NT4, Windows 2000, Windows XP

   XPYDERZ may possibly run (not tested) under:
   Windows 3.1, Windows 3.11, Windows 95, Windows ME

   XPYDERZ will NOT run under:
   Windows Vista (all versions)

   XPYDERZ will run (tested) under DOSbox.

   At least needed is (for this Pre-PreRelease)
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   - An IBM compatible PC 80386 + FPU and above
   - At least 460 kB heap memory
   - An IBM compatible keyboard
   - A VGA register compatible graphic card with at least 256kB memory

   Recommended: an IBM compatible PC with 150 MHz and fast (PCI)
   VGA graphic card. Or everything, that's faster.
   On 386er PCs I recommend to set down the "performance" values (low
   resolution, no vertical retrace synchronization).


   Start
   ~~~~~
   DOS:     Change into the directory in which you unpacked XPYDERZ and
            type XPYDERZ at the prompt.

   WINDOWS: Change into the directory in which you unpacked XPYDERZ and
            doubleclick the XPYDERZ icon.
            It is possible, to create an link of XPYDERZ onto your desktop.
            In the full version the install file will provide this option
            automatically.

            Note: Some of the keys you select for player control in XPYDERZ
                  may intersect with some standard Windows keys or key
                  combinations (for example ALT+SPACE). Thus you should
                  deactivate the keys/key combinations you want to use in
                  XPYDERZ in the "properties" window of XPYDERZ.EXE.

   If you have started XPYDERZ the first time, the language selection
   appears. You can select your desired language by the cursor keys.
   At this time English and German are available. You confirm your
   selection by pressing ENTER.
   For later changing the language, call the OPTIONS menu (either by F4
   or choosing OPTIONS in the main menu) and choose SELECT LANGUAGE.

   After this you will see the title screen.
   Here you can use the F-keys to execute different functions - or just
   press ESC to start the game.

   F1 is the help key. On the first page the function keys are explained -
   functions marked with an * are not yet available in this Pre-PreRelease.
   On the following pages (ENTER, cursor keys) a description of the game
   will be given. I could write this description once more into this text -
   but for this Pre-PreRelease it would be too much expentidure. If you
   really need such a description, please read the description included
   in the game. But normally this game can be played without any
   description, by trying out everything by oneself. (And, being serious:
   Who is really reading instructions?)


   Performance notes
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   For very slow computers - or if the screen on a very fast computer is
   flickering, here some hints:

   Change into the OPTIONS menu and select PERFORMANCE.
   Herein are some options available:

   ABSOLUTE SPEED
     This is normally at 100% and actually shouln'd be changed. The speed
     will be determined and calibrated the start of the program
     automatically - so that one second in the game is one real life
     second. Normally this value is 100% in true DOS. In some versions of
     Windows (that is, in fact WinNT4 and Win2000) this timing has to be
     adjusted - so don't be surprised, if XPYDERZ in Win2000 will show for
     example this value as 123%.

   SYNCHRONIZE V-RETRACE
     This option adjusts the screen building rate to the monitor frame
     rate. Here you can choose from three selections:
     [ ]       (no adjusting - for slow computers)
     [*]       (always adjusting - for fast computers)
     [*] AUTO  (automatic adjusting, determines whether retrace adjusting
                is needed or not)
     This value is AUTO per default.
     (Note: In "DOS emulators" - maybe in DOSbox, too - this value may
     cause any problems, if these emulators don't support the VGA bit for
     determination of the "vertical retrace". In this case please deactivate
     this parameter and hope it won't be flickering anyway.)

   LOW RESOLUTION
     If you activate this value, the screen resolution will be reduced by
     50% - that means instead of 320 by 200 pixels the resolution will
     be reduced down to 160 by 200 pixels. This looks not very fine, but
     increases the game frame rate and is thus useable for very slow
     machines.

   TRANSPARENT MENUES
     Normally the menu screens are transparent, that means you will see
     the running game in the background. On slow machines or slow graphic
     cards the game frame rate will be reduced - that's why you may switch
     the menu transparency off.
     And some users will maybe be irritated by that transparency, if there
     is "something happening in the background" - in this case switch off
     the menu transparency, too.


   Saving and loading savegames
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   If shown in the main menu, this options are planned already, but they
   are not implemented yet. So selecting (and trying using) this options
   will do nothing.


   Setup/change player keys
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   Yes, it's possible:
   -> NEW GAME
     -> PLAYER SETUP
       -> SETUP KEYSET

   In the keys menu you move the marking bar with the cursor keys up and
   down onto the action whose key you want to change. After this you press
   ENTER (a ? appears) and then the key you want to assign to this action.
   If you want - for some reasons - to assign no key to an action you have
   to press DEL instead of ENTER.
   You may use all keyboard keys to play, except ESC, F1 to F12, Print and
   Pause, because these are used by the menus and other functions of
   Xpyderz.


   There are two control modes in Xpyderz!
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   Mode 1 ("arcade") works like this:
   Arrowkey up - drive upwards, arrowkey down - drive downwards, arrowkey
   left - drive to the left, arrowkey right - drive to the right. This
   mode is selected by default (as standard - "ex-works").

   Mode 2 ("cruise") controls your vehicle like in games as for example
   "Micro Machines [tm]":
   Arrowkey up - drive forwards, arrowkey down - drive backwards, arrowkey
   left - turn to the left, arrowkey right - turn to the right. This mode
   is to be selected by the player (that means: you).

   There are two possible ways to select the control mode:
   1st) During game you press the ~ key ("tilde" - left next to "1" - above
        the "tabulator" key) - this way you switch between the two modes.
   2nd) In the "SETUP KEYSET" menu you select at ACTUAL CONTROL MODE IS the
        "cruise" mode for the alternative "Micro Machines [tm]" controls or
        the "arcade" mode for the original Xpyderz controls. This mode you
        selected hee will be used automatically at any start of a new game
        - but you can change it anyway during the game.


   Sounds/musics
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   Sound play routines are built in, but there are no musics and sound
   effects existing in XPYDERZ yet. Yes, it's a Pre-PreRelease.
   Yes, you could complain about this. Or you think, that you maybe
   couldn't just play that Pre-PreRelease, if the programmer had decided
   to provide a Pre-Release just until adding the sounds.


   Little gimmick:  (works only in pure DOS!) If you put behind the
                    Xpyderz.EXE on the command line as parameter a WAV sound
                    file, this WAV will be played on the pc speaker during
                    the game. You may adjust the sound volume in the
                    "options" (F4) menu in "sounds". If the music sounds
                    someway "fizzy" (overpitched), reducing the volume will
                    help.


   Cheats
   ~~~~~~
   Yes, there are. Maybe I should tell, how they are.
   But, I think, try at first to make it without any cheating...


   How to play
   ~~~~~~~~~~~
   Actually the full description of the game you can get bei pressing F1.
   But many people seem not to be capable of doing such a difficult thing
   like pressing a key... for this case I copied the whole game description
   into a different text file named "PLAYINGX.TXT" - So you may print it
   out to have a "paper" version of the game description...


   Contact with the author/programmer
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   To contact the author, for example to tell him your personal opinion
   about XPYDERZ, to mention some errors (bugs), to make (useful!)
   improvement suggestions or in general put any questions to the game
   XPYDERZ, please write an eMail to:

      xpyderz@igames.inside1.net

   You could in fact write me a letter, too - but, it would be postmail.
   For that I would go to my letter-/mailbox to get it. Und therefor I had
   to go outdoors - into the real world. But I'm a computer freak and
   otaku, too... and that's why a would prefer to avoid things like that...

   Questions for the release date of the full version or release dates of
   further pre-releases cannot be answered - it just tooks so long time it
   tooks.


   Final notes
   ~~~~~~~~~~~
   Further versions and the full version will include much more extensive
   descriptions and additional information about XPYDERZ.
   This description text shall only be some little help.

   Most of these confused menus will be completely revised and fixed in the
   full version.

   Please apologize my bad english orthography and grammar - for english
   is not my native language.

   So - have much fun with this XPYDERZ Pre-PreRelease.
____________________________________________________________________________
   (C) Imperial Games 2008
