ATARI(R) 7800(TM) Game Manual CENTIPEDE ZAP THAT PEST! You�re trapped in the perilous Enchanted Forest. Dark, dangerous mushrooms push up through the squishy forest floor, snaring you on every side. Threatening thumps and evil buzzlngs fill the air. Something slimy flashes through the mushrooms, moving in on you. Suddenly, glaring eyes and quivering antennae Jump out right at you! It�s the Centipede and It�s attacking! You grab a stick and Jab It at the evil eyes. To your surprise, sparks blast from the magic stick, turning the Centipede�s head into a mushroom. But Instantly, another head grows back! You Jab and Jab again, destroying the Centipede before its diminishing body can grow new heads! But worse perils lurk in the forest-other, fiercer Centipedes, deadly Spiders, venomous fleas, poisonous Scorpions. You pick up two more sticks. With these magic wands, you might stay alive! Getting Started 1. Insert the Centipede TM cartridge into your ATARI� 7800 TM ProSystem as explained in your Owner�s Manual, and turn on your console. 2. Plug a controller into the left controller jack for one player, and another into the right controller jack for two players. 3. Move the joystick handle forward or backward or press (Select) to choose a one- or two-player game from the four game variations: One Player; Two Player Alternating; Dual Player Competition; or Team Play. Move the joystick handle to the left or right to choose one of the four difficulty levels: Novice, Standard, Advanced, and Expert. 4. Press (Reset) or the controller button to start the game. 5. Press a controller button to shoot sparks from your wand. Hold down the button to rapid fire. 6. Press (Pause) to pause a game; press it again to resume play. Playing the Game Sparking the Evil Insects You start the game with three magic wands. Use these to spark the enemy and score points, if the enemy bites you, you become temporarily paralyzed and lose a wand. Plan your strategy and think fast to avoid the paralyzing insect bites. The Centipede attacks in 12 distinct waves, in Wave 1, it has a head attached to 11 body segments. in Wave 2, it has a head attached to ten segments plus a detached head. The Centipede in Wave 3 has an attached head, nine segments, and two detached heads. The segments continue to transform into heads until in Wave 12 the Centipede has 12 independently attacking heads. The Centipede attacks from the top of the screen and winds down towards you. When you spark any part of it with your wand, that segment becomes a powerless mushroom. The segment behind it becomes the head of a new Centipede. When you hit every segment of a Centipede, it disappears briefly, then reappears at the top of the screen in a new and fiercer attack wave. Dotting the forest floor are Magic Mushrooms. These act like shields for you but can also speed the Centipede in its attack. The Centipede slithers along horizontally in one direction. When it gets to a mushroom or the edge of the screen, it turns down to the next row of mushrooms and slides in the opposite direction. Each time you spark a mushroom you destroy part of it. It takes four hits to eliminate a mushroom entirely. if you lose a wand, all partially destroyed mushrooms are magically restored. Trying to distract you from sparking the Centipede, the Spider jumps all over the Enchanted Forest, eliminating every mushroom it touches. The closer the Spider comes to you, the more points you score when you zap it. The Flea starts bugging you after you shoot away most of the mushrooms near you. It drops straight down, creating mushrooms as it falls. You must hit the Flea twice to make it disappear. But be warned: after the first shot, the Flea drops twice as fast! Beginning with the third wave, the Scorpion scurries across the middle of the Enchanted Forest, poisoning every mushroom it touches. At first it moves slowly, but as the battle goes on it moves faster and faster and appears more often. Poison mushrooms are a different color from the other mushrooms. When the Centipede bumps into a poison mushroom, it goes crazy and plunges straight through the field of mushrooms towards you. if you lose a wand, all whole and partially destroyed poison mushrooms are transformed back into Magic Mushrooms. If the Centipede, Spider, or Flea bites you, you become temporarily paralyzed and your wand is snatched away. Your points are added to your running score, and the rejuvenated Centipede attacks again. You must replay the wave until the Centipede is totally destroyed. The Enchanted Forest is a challenging but dangerous region. By learning what dangers might lurk behind every mushroom, you�ll become a skilled and victorious wand-wielder. Strategy Shoot away mushrooms in a straight line upwards to create a "corridor." When the Centipede reaches this gap it will fall straight down and can be easily picked off. Shoot Centipede heads to create new heads from the body segments left behind. Since heads are worth ten times more than body segments, you�ll score lots of points. Since the Flea doesn�t appear until you destroy most of the mushrooms near you, set up a mushroom shield to prevent this lightning-fast pest from striking. To do that, don�t shoot away mushrooms closest to your magic wand. Each creature makes a distinct sound. Learn these sounds so you�ll know without looking what is attacking and where it is. Game Variations Centipede offers four game variations: One Player. Two Player Alternating. Two players take turns. Dual Player Competition. Both players play at the same time, but score separately. One player�s shot can paralyze the other player. Team Play. Both players play at the same time and their scores are added together. The players can�t paralyze each other. SCORING Each time you score 12,000 points, you win a bonus wand and musical fanfare exalts your bravery. You can have a total of six magic wands at one time. When you lose your last wand, the game ends. Point values are listed below: Centipede: head ......................... 100 points body segment .................. 10 points Spider: close range (look out!).......... 900 points medium range .................... 600 points distant range ................... 300 points Flea .................................... 200 points Scorpion ............................... 1000 points Magic Mushroom: shot 1 to 3 times ......... 5 points when restored totally eliminated ........ 1 point Poison Mushroom: not shot at all .......... 5 points when restored shot 1 to 3 times ........ 5 points when restored totally eliminated ....... 1 point ||| / | \ ATARI Reproduction of this document or any portion of its contents is not allowed without the specific written permission of Atari corporation. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the product documentation in this manual. However, because we are constantly improving and updating our computer software and hardware, Atari corporation is unable to guarantee the accuracy of printed material after the date of publication and disclaims liability for changes, errors, and omissions. ATARI is a registered trademark, and centipede and 7800 are trademarks of Atari corporation. Copyright 1982. 1986, Atari Corporation Printed in Hong Kong Sunnyvale, CA 94086 C024857-01 Rev. B All Rights Reserved. B.T.5.1988