TRON MAZE-A-TRON
Cartridge Instructions
(1 Player Vs. Computer)
*TRON MAZE-A-TRON is a trademark of and used
under license from Walt Disney Productions.
In the computer fantasy world of TRON, the power-hungry Master
Control Program (the MCP) seeks to control the human race. You are
Flynn, the daring, young programmer, transported into the heart of
the computer, to find and disable the MCP.
MAZE-A-TRON is played in ROUNDS. Each round consists of two
PHASES--the Circuit Maze (Phase I) and the Master Control Program
(Phase II). Each time you complete both phases of a round, you
automatically advance one GAME LEVEL.
Game Level affects both DIFFICULTY and SCORING. Difficulty
increases with each level up through Level 12. Scoring increases with
each level up through Level 99.
OBJECT OF THE GAME
Phase I (Circuit Maze). Store up energy and zeroes as you move
Flynn through the Maze. Find the RAM Chips and clear them to zero
in the shortest time. Avoid losing turns.
Phase II (MCP). Find pairs of numbers (BIT PAIRS) in the two center
columns that match the bit pair at the TOP of the two outer columns.
Turn the matching bit pairs in the center column to BLACK, before
the move off the screen. Watch out for laser blasts from the MCP.
Three hits--one turn lost and return to the Maze. If the OUTER
columns move off screen, you return to the Maze and start the next
round.
You can lose 2 turns. When you lose your third turn, the game ends.
CHECK YOUR CONTROLS
SELECT MAZE SPEED
DISC: Fast
1: Medium Fast
2: Medium
3: Slow
STOP (0): Stop screen movement for 2 seconds if you have at least 30
energy units (Phase I)
PRACTICE (Enter): Select practice mode
ZERO/FIRE (UPPER SIDE KEYS): Sets black 1 in RAM chip to black 0
(Phase I)/Fires bit gun to turn numbers in bit stream to black (Phase
II)
FORCE SHIELD (LOWER SIDE KEYS): Activate Force Shield (Phases I &
II)
DISC: Move Flynn through Maze (Phase I)/Move bit gun sight (Phase
II)
IMPORTANT: You cannot use the ZERO/FIRE and the FORCE SHIELD
buttons simultaneously.
WHEN YOU SEE THE GAME TITLE, SELECT A GAME SPEED.
DISC: FAST
KEY 1: MEDIUM FAST
KEY 2: MEDIUM
KEY 3: SLOW
Game speed is not the same as game level. Game speed only affects
the STARTING SPEED AT WHICH THE MAZE MOVES in Phase I. Maze
speed increases from this starting point with each level you achieve.
Game speed does not affect Phase II game play (except in Practice
Mode).
AFTER SELECTING GAME SPEED, CHOOSE PRACTICE MODE OR GAME
PLAY.
To practice press the PRACTICE KEY.
To go directly to game play, press any other key or the Disc.
PRACTICE MODE
Practice Mode takes you directly to Phase II -- the Master Control
Program. Phase II game play is described below. The only difference
between Practice Mode and Phase II game play is in scoring. Practice
Mode is played at level 0, but you still get 100 points for each
matching bit pair turned black. If you pop the stack or get hit 3
times by the lasers, you return to the Maze, with the Question
"PRACTICE?"
If you go to Practice Mode immediately after selecting game speed,
the speed of the Bit Stream will vary, depending on the speed you
selected. In actual game play, game speed does not affect the speed
of the Bit Stream.
MAZE COMPONENTS
As you move through the Maze, you will encounter different
computer chips. Some will help you. Some should be avoided.
I/O (INPUT/OUTPUT) TRANSPORT
(large vertical chip)
* Jump from circuit board to circuit board.
* Enter from top or bottom.
BUS
(made up of four parallel lines)
* Circuit "wiring" that forms the maze.
* Cannot be crossed. Move around them.
ZAPS
(pulses on bus wires)
* Electric impulses in the circuit "wiring" that drain energy if you
touch them.
* Avoid at all times.
LATCH
(chip with image of a lock on it)
* Collect zeroes to use in the RAM chips.
* Enter from either side.
RECOGNIZERS
(horseshoe shape)
* The guards of the MCP that seek to destroy you. If they touch you
with your Shield off, you lose a turn and return to starting point.
Contact with your Shield or a ROM Force Field disables them. (They
are harmless when blue.)
* TOUCH ONLY WITH FORCE SHIELD ON!
FLIP-FLOP
(chip with images of arrows on it)
* Use to change direction of screen movement.
* Enter from either side.
TRANSFORMER
(has vertical stripes in middle)
* Absorb energy for Force Shield. The longer you stay, the more
energy you gain until Force Shield is fully charged.
* Enter from either side.
FORCE FIELD & ROM CHIPS
(chips close together with X-shaped force field between them)
* The deadly read-only memory chips. If you touch the Force Field
without your Shield ON you lose a turn and return to the starting
point.
* Pass through Force Fields with Force Shield ON. Lead Recognizers
through ROM Force Field to disable them.
RESISTORS
(thin, vertical, single lead top and bottom, horizontal stripes)
* No use or danger. Just part of the Maze.
RAM CHIPS
(chips with numbers on them)
* The object of your search . Turn all numbers in the chips to black
zeroes.
* Enter from top to turn left number black. Enter from bottom to turn
right number black. If you turn a number 1 black, remain in chip
and press ZERO (top side) button (if you have zeroes stored from
Latches).
GAME PLAY -- PHASE I
(Circuit Maze)
When the game starts, you see a readout along the bottom of the
screen. This tells you:
LEFT: Energy units if force shield (starts at 25).
CENTER: Number of zeroes stored (starts at 0).
RIGHT: Number of turns remaining before game ends (starts at 3).
The readout remains on screen for a couple of seconds, then
disappears . A current readout appears any time you are sent back to
the starting point.
THE MAZE STARTS TO MOVE when the figure of Flynn appears. This
is the figure you control. This is you! Use the Disc to move through
the Maze. Do not move off the screen or you return to the starting
point, where you, Flynn, first entered the Maze.
MOVING IN THE MAZE
Move around the green BUS lines. You cannot move through them.
In danger of moving off screen? CHANGE DIRECTION OF SCREEN
MOTION by stepping into either side of a FLIP-FLOP. You must exit
the same side entered.
Or STOP SCREEN MOTION FOR 2 SECONDS, by pressing the STOP (0)
key on your hand controller. The cost--30 energy units, if you have
them.
MOVE FROM CIRCUIT BOARD TO CIRCUIT BOARD by stepping into an
I/O TRANSPORT. Your "de-materialized" form is transported across
the circuit boards, then "re-materialized" at some point on the same
board or on a different board. You have no control over your point of
reentry. It is possible to end up back where you began.
It is also possible to be transported directly into a RAM Chip section
(cluster of chips with numbers on them).
RETURN TO GAME STARTING POINT
Cause: Move off screen
Result: Return with all energy and stored zeroes intact. No loss of
turns.
Cause: Touched by Recognizer or ROM Force Field without Force
Shield up.
Result: Return with all energy and stored zeroes intact. One turn lost.
SUCCEEDING IN THE MAZE
1. YOUR FORCE SHIELD protects you against Recognizers and ROM
Force Fields. You start with 25 energy units in your Shield. This is not
much energy. Energize your Shield by finding and moving into a
TRANSFORMER.
You can enter either side of a transformer, but must exit from the
same side. The longer you stay in the transformer, the more energy
is absorbed. When maximum charge is reached, the Shield stops
charging.
(Details of energy gain and use are below.)
2. GATHER ZEROES for later use in clearing the RAM Chips, by moving
into a LATCH.
You can enter from either side of a latch, but must exit from the
same side. The longer you stay in a latch, the more zeroes you gather.
You hear a series of RISING NOTES each time 1 ZERO is gathered and
stored. Maximum number of zeroes = 255.
3. AVOID RECOGNIZERS. If they touch you without your Force Shield
on, you will lose one turn and return to game starting point.
Activate your Force Shield WHEN THE RECOGNIZER IS ABOUT TO
TOUCH YOU, by pressing the FORCE SHIELD BUTTON.
Keep your Shield on until the Recognizer turns blue (harmless)
Avoid wasting energy. Do not keep your Shield on while waiting for
the Recognizer to reach you. Take the offensive! Activate your Shield
and go after the Recognizer.
Stay away from the sides of the screen. A Recognizer may be waiting
just off-screen and touch you before you have time to move or get
your Shield up.
4. STAY AWAY FROM THE ZAPS. They drain energy at an alarming
rate (200 units/second).
Whenever you touch a ZAP, you her a BELL-LIKE TONE. If you
continue to touch it, you continue to lose energy, until all of you
energy is lost.
5. LOOK FOR RAM CHIP SECTIONS NEAR THE ROM CHIPS. ROM chips
have Force Fields between them that cause you to lose a turn if you
pass through them without your Shield on. ROM Fields can also help
you. Lead a Recognizer through a ROM Field and the Recognizer will
be disabled, just as if it touched your shield.
6. BE CAREFUL OF GREEN BUS LINES AND RAM CHIPS. It is possible to
get stuck in them if you move too far. The result is that you will be
moved off the screen.
KEEPING ENERGIZED
Your Shield appears whenever you absorb energy from a
Transformer or use your Shield. The COLOR of your Shield indicates
its approximate strength.
PURPLE: WEAK
YELLOW: FAIRLY STRONG
RED: VERY STRONG
You automatically gain 15 energy units when you disable a
Recognizer. (Of course, you also use energy, so it tends to even out.)
You absorb energy from a Transformer in bursts of 10 units. You
hear and see each burst absorbed. Maximum energy for your Shield
is 255 units. When you reach this point, you stop absorbing energy.
NOTE: Your Shield is visible BUT NOT ACTUATED when it is being
charged. You must still press a FORCE SHIELD button if you need to
defend yourself against a Recognizer.
DO NOT RIDE A TRANSFORMER OFF SCREEN OR YOU WILL BE
RETURNED TO THE GAME STARTING POINT.
ENERGY COST
Activate Shield: 20 units/second
Touch ZAP: 200 units/second
Stop screen movement for 2 seconds: 30 units
FINDING AND CLEARING THE RAM CHIPS
There are 4 different circuit boards in the computer maze. Each is
made up of 38 sections. There are only 5 DIFFERENT KINDS of
sections, which are repeated and strung together in different orders
for each different circuit board. The structure of each circuit board is
permanent. It does not change from game to game.
Learn the structure of each circuit board and you will find the RAM
chips more quickly. RAM CHIPS ARE LOCATED ON 2 OF THE CIRCUIT
BOARDS. YOU ONLY NEED TO FIND AND CLEAR 1 SET OF RAM CHIPS.
Remember: Use the I/O Transports often to increase your chances of
quickly finding the RAM Chips.
Turn all numbers within the RAM Chips to BLACK ZEROES.
To turn a number black, enter the RAM Chip from the top or bottom.
Enter from the TOP to turn the LEFT number black.
Enter from the BOTTOM to turn the RIGHT number black.
Do not move your man more than half-way into a RAM Chip (about
waist-deep is right) or you could get stuck and be moved off screen.
If you enter a RAM Chip and turn a NUMBER 1 black, remain in the
Chip and press either ZERO BUTTON on your hand controller. If you
have zeroes stored up from Latches, the black 1 will change to a
black 0. If you are out of zeroes, nothing will happen. You will have
to go get some zeroes from a Latch and return.
Be extra careful now not to move off screen or be touched by a
Recognizer without your Force Shield on. Once you have found the
RAM Chips, you do not want to be sent back to your starting point.
Your chances of clearing all RAM Chips on your first sweep through
are very small. There are Flip-Flops on either side of both RAM
sections (at varying distances), however, so you can reverse screen
direction and make a second or third pass through the RAM Chips.
ONCE YOU HAVE SET ALL THE RAM CHIPS TO BLACK ZEROES, YOU
WILL AUTOMATICALLY GO TO PHASE II OF THE GAME--THE MASTER
CONTROL PROGRAM!
SCORING--PHASE 1
BONUS POINTS You receive bonus points, based on the amount of
time you take to complete Phase I of the game.
2 minutes or less: 5000 points x game level
2 to 5 minutes: 4000 points x game level
5 to 10 minutes: 3000 points x game level
10 to 20 minutes: 2000 points x game level
over 20 minutes: 1000 points x game level
Maximum Bonus Points = 95,000
GAME PLAY -- PHASE II
(Master Control Program)
You are now face-to-face with the Master Control Program, which is
working furiously to restore the system which you disabled by
clearing the RAM Chips.
When the MCP first appears, you see a readout along the bottom of
the screen. This tells you:
LEFT: Present game level.
CENTER: Total points scored so far. This includes points scored in
previous round and bonus points.
RIGHT: Number of laser hits that will return you to the maze.
In a couple of seconds, numbers (called BITS) will begin to appear.
Look at the 2 BITS at the TOP of the BIT STACK (the outer two
vertical columns of numbers). Now look at the BITS moving up both
sides of the BIT STREAM (the inner two vertical columns). Is there a
PAIR in the Stream that matches the PAIR at the top of the Stack?
If so, you must turn the MATCHING bit pair BLACK, before it
disappears off the top of the Stream.
1. Use the DISC to move your "bit-gun" sight over the first bit in the
matching pair.
2. Press either FIRE BUTTON.
3. Repeat for the second bit in the matching pair. You must turn
BOTH bits in the matching bit pair black.
Keep watching for matching bit pairs. Turn ALL matching bit pairs
black. YOU HAVE UNLIMITED "AMMO" IN YOUR BIT-GUN, SO KEEP
FIRING!
LOOK OUT FOR LASER BLASTS!
While you're firing at the bits in the Bit Stream, watch out for the
"eyes" of the MCP. These deadly orbs fire "laser blasts" back at you.
If the blasts reach the blue columns near the stack, they will hit you!
Three hits and you return to the Circuit Maze, WITH ONE MORE TURN
LOST, to start the next round.
TO AVOID BEING HIT, ACTIVATE YOUR FORCE SHIELD when you see
the laser blasts coming. (Press either FORCE SHIELD BUTTON.) The
MCP warns you when it is ready to fire--Its glowing orange eyes
turn red with rage.
You have unlimited energy in your Force Shield in Phase II, so you
can use it as often as you like. HOWEVER, YOU CANNOT FIRE YOUR
BIT GUN WHILE YOUR FORCE SHIELD IS UP.
A laser hit by the MCP is not the same as the loss of a turn.
3 laser hits = 1 turn lost and return to the Maze (or the end of the
game if you already lost 2 turns).
3 turns lost = the end of the game.
POPPING THE STACK
If a matching bit pair in the bit stream makes it all the way to the
top of the Stream and moves off screen, WITHOUT BEING TURNED
BLACK, the TOP PAIR IN THE STACK WILL ALSO MOVE OFF SCREEN.
This is called "POPPING THE STACK".
The result of popping the stack is that you now have a NEW BIT
PAIR AT THE TOP OF THE STACK. You must look through the moving
Bit Stream to find matching pairs for the new top bit pair. Then turn
the new matching pairs black before they, too, move off screen
(popping the stack again). This can be tricky, especially at higher
levels.
WHEN THE ENTIRE STACK POPS, YOU WILL BE RETURNED TO THE
CIRCUIT MAZE, TO BEGIN THE NEXT ROUND OF THE GAME. You do not
lose a turn when you return to the maze by popping the stack. The
first and last bit pairs in the stack are RED, so you know when you
are nearing the end of the stack.
SCORING--PHASE II
While in Phase II, you receive 100 points times your present game
level for each MATCHING bit pair that you turn black (You must turn
BOTH bits in the pair black in order to receive any points.)
EXAMPLE: If you have made it to the MCP for the 3rd time, you are
playing at Level 3. You therefore receive 300 points for each
MATCHING bit pair that you turn black.
Your points for turning a matching bit pair black are added to your
score AFTER THAT PAIR MOVES OFF SCREEN. If you are returned to
the Maze or the game ends before a black bit pair moves off screen,
you will not receive the points for that bit pair.
Your total score accumulates from round to round, until the game
ends. To display your final score at the end of the game, press the
DISC. Your score will be displayed for a few seconds; then the screen
will start moving again. Display your score as often as you like. TO
RESTART THE GAME, press any KEY.
GAME LEVELS
During Round 1 of the game (both phases), you play at Level 1. When
you return to the Maze after Round 1, you begin Round 2 at Level 2.
The Maze will move faster and when you advance to the MCP, the Bit
Stream will move faster.
With each new round that you start, you advance 1 level. The Maze
and Bit Stream both move faster, until you pass Level 12. LEVEL 12
IS THE LAST LEVEL AT WHICH GAME DIFFICULTY INCREASE.
Game level also affects scoring (see pages 18 and 24). For scoring
purposes, there are 99 game levels. The levels from 12 to 99 do not
increase in difficulty. They are used only as the multiplier for your
scores.
Example: If you reach Level 20, you will be playing at Level 12
difficulty, but your score for EACH matching bit pair will be 100
points x 20, or 2000 points.
GOOD LUCK, FLYNN! KEEP THE STACK INTACT!
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�1982, 1998 Intellivision Productions, Inc.