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Spider Fighter - Activision - Atari 2600     HTML Manual   

Spider Fighter
ACTIVISION
SPIDER FIGHTER
BUG BRIEFING


---------------------------SPIDER FIGHTER BASICS-------------------------------
The object of the game is to protect your fruit orchard from insect fruit 
theives, scoring points by exterminating the attackers.

1.  Hook up your video game system.  Follow manufacturer's instructions.

2.  With power OFF, plug in game cartridge.

3.  Turn power ON.  If no picture appears, check connection of your game system
    to TV, then repeat steps 1-3.

4.  Plug in left Joystick Controller.  It's the only one you'll need.

5.  Set both difficulty switches to a to begin.

6.  Game select switch has no effect.

7.  Use of Joystick Controller.  Hold Joystick Controller with the red button
    in the upper left position.  Fire poison pellet volleys by repeatedly
    depressing red button.  Move Joystick left or right to move mobile blaster
    left or right across the screen.

8.  To begin or start a new game.  Press game reset.  Action begins when the
    first Master Nest descends.

9.  Difficulty switches.

          Left Difficulty            Right Difficulty
          A. Regular Game            A. Straight Pellets
          B. Expert Game             B. Guided Pellets

    Left difficulty switch affects speed, fire-power and point values of 
    insects.  Right difficulty switch selects guided pellet option: in b
    position, pellet's can be "steered" after they've been fired.

[Note to owners of Sears Tele-Games Video Arcade: Difficulty is called skill, 
and a is expert, b is novice]

10. Fruit Orchard.  Your fruit orchard is growing oranges, grapes, 
    strawberries and bananas.  You must protect each variety of fruit from
    waves of insects.  Four waves attack oranges, grapes and strawberries.
    Then, unlimited waves of insects attack your bananas.  Each wave starts
    out with three fruit and four Master Nests.

         _____                          ___          ______
        / o   \              __--_     /   \        /      \  
        \   o /          __-- __--     \    >      /        \ 
         \ o /       __-- __--          \   \      \        / 
          \_/      -------               \___\      \______/  
                                                             
     Strawberry         Banana          Grapes       Orange 
       
11. Reinforcements,  You begin each game with four bug blasters in reserve.  If
    you manage to save all three fruit from an insect wave, you're awarded an
    aditional blaster.  You can only have up to four reserve blasters on the
    screen at one time.

12. Scoring.  Each time you exterminate an attacking insect, you score points.
    The point values for each insect are listed below:

                         SPIDER FIGHTER POINT SYSTEM
                    Insect                    Point Values
                                              (Regular Game Only)
                    Master Nest                   100
                    Stinger                        50
                    Spy Pod                        50
                    Green Widow                    30

    In the expert game, point values for insects are multiplied when you are
    protecting certain fruit:  insects are worth twice as much when protecting
    grapes, four times as much for strawberries, and eight times as the regular
    game point values when bananas are present.

       Bonus points:  If you manage to save all three fruit in a wave, and you
       also have four bug blasters in reserve, then you will receive 500 bonus
       points.


                     [screen shot]


-------------------------------BUG GLOSSARY------------------------------------

 _____    The Master Nests.  This is the ringleader and major fruit thief.  It
-------   is protected from poison by a white band, until it releases a Spy
=======   Pod.  Its sole aim is to keep you busy with bugs, so that it can slip
__-_-_-   away with your fruit.
 -----

  /\      Spy Pods.  These sneaky critters scout around and instruct the Master
[]==[]    Nest to release more insects.  As long as any Spy Pods remain on the
  \/      screen, the Master Nest continues to release its creepy offspring.
          Destroy the Spy Pods and you slow infestation!


 \ /      Green Widows.  Green Widows fly interference, protecting the Master
 ===      Nest with cover-fire.  They also act as living shields, sacrificing
 / \      themselves by intercepting your poison pellets.  Even though Green
          Widows are slower and dumber, by careful!  They still deal a deadly
          bite.

 \ /      Stingers.  The most dangerous and aggressive of the pack.  Stingers
  =       track your blaster with the single-minded goal of destroying you.
-----     Warning!  When you kill the Master Nest, Pods and Widows instantly
/---\     transform into Stingers!  Then, the mortality rate is very high.
 ===
/   \



-------------------------HOW TO JOIN THE ACTIVISION----------------------------
                              "SPIDER FIGHTERS"

If you score 40,000 points or more on the regular game level, you qualify for 
Activision's elite corp of Spider Fighters.  Send us a picture of your TV
screen showing your score, along with your name and address, and we'll send you
an official Spider Fighters emblem.





                       BECOMING A MASTER BUG BLASTER
              Tips from Larry Miller, designer of Spider Fighter

     Larry is the newest addition to the Activision design team.  He's an
     experienced designer, having completed a number of games for home
     computers.

"As you can see, keeping a fruit orchard isn't exactly easy.  Those bugs can
really become a nuisance.  You can never get rid of them entirely, but you can
control them.

"There are various strategies you can experiment with, but one of the most
effective that I have found is to first gun down the lone Spy Pod.  If you can
exterminate that Pod, you halt the flow of reinforcements.  Afterwards, you can
pick off the rest of the attackers, leaving the Master Nest for last.

"Occasionally, the Master Nest will release a continuous stream of Spy Pods, 
and each one you hit seems to be replaced.  If this happens, you must 
immediately destroy the Master Nest and take your chances against a squadron
full of angry Stingers.  Normally, though, it is best to destroy the slower
Spy Pods and Green Widows that hover near the bottom of the screen before 
killing the Master Nest.  A low-flying Stinger is your worst enemy.

"So maintain a stiff upper lip, and send me a line in between Spider fights. 
I'd sure like to know how this year's fruit harvest will fare."

[Larry Miller]



Look for Activsion video games wherever you buy video game cartridges.  Drop us
a note, and we'll gladly add your name to our mailing list and keep you posted
on new Activsion game cartridges as they become available.

ACTIVSION
Activision, Inc., Drawer No. 7287
Mountain View, CA  94042

(c) 1982 Activision AX-021-03

-------------------Atari 2600 Instructions Archive-------------------

This document obtained from the History of Home Video Games Homepage, �1997-1998 by Greg Chance