

*********

The Project 64 etext of the Critical Mass manual. Original document
released 1983 by Sirius.  Converted by Paul David Doherty
<h0142kdd@rz.hu-berlin.de>, retrieved from the Sirius section of the
Preserving Classic Adventures (PreCAP) Project
<precap@zes.hu-berlin.de>.

CRITMA10.TXT, November 1996, etext #117.

*********

Critical Mass Manual
--------------------

[text on box:]

On June 1st, the United Nations received the following message: "Good
morning. Just thought I'd drop a line to let you know that precisely
at 8 p.m. on June 9th, I'll be destroying the world's five largest
cities with thermal nuclear weapons. It ought to be a real blast!
Sorry, but that's about all I can tell you. Thanks for your time and
have a a nice day!"

The delegates gathered quickly. How could this demented person be
found and stopped? The task would require someone who could
understand how the sicko thought. Well, naturally, they thought of
you! Hurry now, you've got just nine days to prevent this heinous
crime and save 50 million lives! That is, unless you've got something
more important to do.

Critical Mass is an ingenious action-adventure game that combines
challenging riddles with fast action sequences. This great
combination along with the innovative plot puts Critical Mass in a
class all by itself.


[instruction booklet:]

=====================================================================
SIRIUS (tm) presents
                           CRITICAL MASS
                    Game Design By Bob Blauschild
=====================================================================

Critical Mass (tm)
------------------

To Begin:

  Insert the Critical Mass diskette in drive #1 and boot as normal.
  After a few seconds, a short demonstration of the game will be
  shown. If you wish to interrupt the demonstration and begin the
  game, press the Space Bar. You will be presented with the following
  three choices: Press B to make a copy of the backside of the disk,
  (Instead of pressing B, Apple users must use COPY or COPYA from
  their Dos 3.3 System Master to make a copy of the back side of
  their disk), Press S to start a new game or press R, followed by a
  number 1 to 5, to restore a game that was previously saved.

PLEASE NOTE:

  You will not be able to use the SAVE or RESTORE commands on the
  original disk. Use the special copy program supplied on the front
  side of your game disk to make a copy of the back side of the disk
  BEFORE YOU START YOUR FIRST GAME. Apple users must use COPY or
  COPYA from the Dos 3.3 System Master to make the copy. Use your
  resulting copy of the Critical Mass game for play.

Commands:

  Commands are entered from the keyboard. The computer understands
  only the first verb and noun in each sentence. The order in which
  you enter the verb and noun is not important, and in some cases a
  single word will suffice.

  Examples:
            Boat = Go Boat
            Go to Boat = Go Boat
            Go to Boat, Go North = Go Boat
            Boat Go = Go Boat

  Directions can be given by using N, S, E, W, U (up) or D (down).

  A few examples of commonly used verbs are: go, get, run, look,
  give, drop, read, open, leave and hit.

Special Commands:

  *MO: Turns the sound OFF.
  *M: Turns the sound ON.
  *S or SAVE: Followed by a number 1-5 may be entered at almost
      anytime during the game and allows you to save your progress up
      to that point. This allows you to return quickly to various
      saved points in the game. And, should you happen to be killed
      while on your mission, you can restore the game without losing
      your previous progress. This SAVE game feature also makes it
      possible to continue the game at a later date. (Be sure to save
      your progress in the game before you turn the computer off.)
      Five different progress points can be saved on your copy of the
      back side of the disk and any point can be re-defined at any
      time. If you enter SAVE by mistake you can press 0 to resume
      play. NOTE: The game cannot be saved during certain action
      sequences.
  *R or RESTORE: Followed by a number 1-5 allows you to begin the
      game from the corresponding saved point. If you type RESTORE by
      mistake you can press 0 to resume play.
  HINT: May result in helpful clue.
  I or INVENTORY: Lists an inventory of objects you have.
  RETURN (without any previous typing): Lets you review the last few
      commands. To return to the game play screens, press RETURN
      again.

The Clock:

  Your mission begins on June 1 at 8 a.m., Eastern Standard Time. You
  have until June 5 [sic] at 8 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, to stop
  the madman. The time is shown in the upper right corner and is
  expressed using a 24 hour clock, (i.e., 0800 = 8 a.m.,
  2000 = 8 p.m.). As you travel through the time zones, the clock
  will reflect the LOCAL time. The date is shown in the upper left
  corner.

Elapsed Time:

  Each command uses 1 minute.
  Taxi Rides use 30 minutes per ride.
  A boat on the Sea uses 30 minutes per direction.
  A boat near Land uses 1 minute per direction.
  Walking uses 1 minute per direction.
  Time elapsed for city to city travel varies by type of
  transportation.
  If you are knocked unconscious a certain block of time will pass.
  If you do not enter a command within 10 seconds of your previous
  command, the clock will advance 1 minute.

Scheduled Departures:

  Most transportation will leave as scheduled. However, some
  departures are consistently late. After selecting your destination
  and pressing Return, the time will advance to the actual departure
  time. When you arrive at your destination, the clock will reflect
  the time passed while traveling.

Directions:

  In most places, the direction in which you are facing will be
  printed at the top of the screen.

Scoring:

  If you successfully complete Critical Mass you will be scored by
  the total number of moves you have used. The lower the score, the
  better. Each move, or command, adds 1 point. Asking for a HINT adds
  1 point. If you end with a score of 200 or more, you should turn in
  your detective badge and consider another line of work.

Final Note:

  Save the game frequently to avoid having to start over. The disk
  must remain in the drive at all times while the adventure is being
  played. DO NOT remove the disk while the drive's "in use" light is
  on.

  Traveling from city to city takes time, so investigate a city
  thoroughly before laeving.
  After booting, be sure you play the game using the copy you made of
  the back side of the game disk.

  Controls for action sequences can be found throughout the game.
  Make note of any clues or objects you find, they will help you
  later in the game. Have Fun!

IMPORTANT NOTICE:

  If "BOOT ERROR" appears on the screen after booting you may have
  one of the following problems: 1) the disk drive is out of
  adjustment; 2) there is a bad RAM in the computer; 3) you have a
  bad diskette. Try the diskette on another computer to eliminate the
  possibility of a bad diskette. All of our products are tested prior
  to shipping.

Other Stars From Sirius(tm):

  Apple II, II+ and IIe Disk:

  Bandits                 Pascal Graphics Editor  Fly Wars
  Beer Run                Kabul Spy               Free Fall
  Blade of Blackpoole     Repton                  Gorgon
  Flip Out                Snake Byte              Type Attack
  Wavy Navy               Sneakers                Way Out
  Escape From Rungistan   Space Eggs              Plasmania
                          Twerps

  Atari 800 & 1200 Disk:

  Bandits                 Snake Byte              Repton
  Blade of Blackpoole     Sneakers                Type Attack
  Wayout                  Space Eggs              Wavy Navy
  Cyclod                  Twerps

  Commodore 64 Disk:

  Blade of Blackpoole     Snake Byte              Repton
  Wayout                  Turmoil                 Squish 'Em
  Fast Eddie              Type Attack

  IBM-PC Disk With Color Card:

  Fowl Play               Space Eggs              Type Attack
  Gorgon II

  For more information or a more current listing, contact your local
  Sirius (tm) dealer or write us at 10364 Rockingham Drive,
  Sacramento, CA 95827.

SIRIUS REPLACEMENT POLICY: Sirius will replace any defective disk at
no charge if the original disk and proof of purchase are returned to
Sirius within 30 days of purchase. After 30 days, Sirius will replace
any defective disk for $5.00 provided the original disk is returned.
For those outside the U.S.A., please include enough additional funds
to cover return postage.

=====================================================================

Game design by Bob Blauschild

Package, program and audio visual (c) 1983 Sirius
All rights reserved.

Sirius and Critical Mass are trademarks of Sirius Software, Inc.,
Sacramento, California 95827
Apple is a trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.
Atari 800 and 1200 are trademarks of Atari, Inc.
IBM-PC is a trademark of International Business Machines, Inc.
Commodore 64 is a trademark of Commodore Business Machines, Inc.
Sirius is not affiliated with Apple, Atari, IBM or Commodore.

=====================================================================

Critical Mass(tm)

Commodore 64 Addendum
---------------------

To Begin:

  To load the game, place the Critical Mass disk in drive #1 and type
  in:
     LOAD "SIRIUS", 8
  Press the RETURN key. When you receive the "READY" prompt, type in:
     RUN
  Press the RETURN key.

PLEASWE NOTE:

  Commodore 64 users are able to use the SAVE and RESTORE commands on
  the original Critical Mass disk. It is not necessary (also not
  possible) to make a back-up copy.

Special Commands:

  The *MO and *M commands are not available on Commodore 64 Critical
  Mass. To adjust the volume, use the volume control on your monitor
  or television set.

  The SAVE GAME, RESTORE GAME, HINT and INVENTORY commands function
  as described in the instruction booklet.

  To REVIEW the last few commnads, press the f7 key. To return to the
  game play screens, press the f5 key.

Important Notice To Commodore 64 Owners:

  If the disk fails to load in four minutes, try it on another
  computer to eliminate the possibility of a bad diskette. All of our
  products are tested prior to shipping.

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End of the Project 64 etext of the Critical Mass manual.

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