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Ms. Pac-Man - Atari - Atari 2600     HTML Manual   

Ms. Pac-Man
                           ATARI (R) 2600 (TM)

                              MS. PAC-MAN *

                                         {picture credited to GUS ALLEN}

* MS. PAC-MAN and characters are trademark of Bally Midway Mfg. Co.
  sublicensed to Atari, Inc. by Namco-America, Inc.

ATARI welcomes your comments. Please address all correspondence to:

                               ATARI, CORP
                           Sunnyvale, CA 94086

NOTE: Always turn the console POWER switch OFF before inserting or removing
an ATARI (R) Game Program (TM) cartridge. This will protect the electronic
components and prolong the life of your ATARI 2600 (TM) Video Computer
System (TM) game.

(C) 1987 ATARI, CORP. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED


TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF VIDEO GAMES
2. GAME PLAY
3. USING THE CONTROLLER
4. CONSOLE CONTROLS
5. GAME VARIATIONS
6. SCORING
7. HINTS FOR SURVIVAL
8. YOUR BEST GAME SCORES


                    1. THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF VIDEO GAMES

{picture credited to GUS ALLEN}

By now you've probably spent some time playing the master of mazes --
PAC-MAN *. Well, lookout PAC-MAN lovers, ATARI is proud to bring you the
"femme fatale" of computer video game world -- MS. PAC-MAN!

That's right, she's here in all her shining glory. MS. PAC-MAN is sure to
steal your heart with her grace and charm.

* Trademark of Bally Midway Mfg. Co. licensed by Namco-America, Inc.

And she's all dolled up with a ribbon in her hair. Just like the arcade
MS. PAC-MAN, this ATARI home version has multiple mazes, floating fruit,
pretzels, an end-of-game cartoon, and four fearless ghosts -- Inky, Blinky,
Pinky, and Sue.

Get ready to feast your eyes on the original video beauty queen. She's
ready to bring you many delightful hours of fun and excitement. So,
sit back, relax and have a good time playing MS. PAC-MAN.

                               2. GAME PLAY

The object of the game is to score as many points as you can while
MS. PAC-MAN eats dots, fruit, pretzels, energy pills, and ghosts. Score
10,000 points and earn a bonus MS. PAC-MAN life.

The game starts with three MS. PAC-MAN lives, which are indicated by three
MS. PAC-MAN symbols at the lower left corner of the screen. When game play
begins, MS. PAC-MAN is located close to the center of the screen, just
below the ghosts' reincarnation chamber in the center of the maze
(see Figure 1).

Use your Joystick controller to guide MS. PAC-MAN around the maze. When
she passes over dots, she gobbles them up, and you score points. If she
eats all the dots on the screen, the maze flashes momentarily, and you
start playing on a new maze.

Figure 1 {picture of the game screen}

MS. PAC-MAN encounters floating fruit and pretzels while traveling around
the maze. Gobble up these munchies, and you score bonus points. But watch
out! Fearful ghosts scurry about trying to gobble up MS. PAC-MAN. Her only
recourse is to eat an energy pill and then go after the ghosts.

As soon as she gulps down the energy pill, the ghosts turn blue with fright.
You earn 200 points for the first ghost, 400 points for the second ghost,
800 for the third ghost, and a whopping 1600 points for the fourth ghost,
all on the same energy pill. (See Section 6, SCORING, for details about
point values.)

Unfortunately, the effects of the energy pills are short-lived, so you'll
have to move fast. After the ghosts are gobbled up, their eyes head back
to the chamber in the center of the screen for reincarnation. If you don't
gobble up the ghosts, they start to blink just before they turn back to
their original colors.

                         3. USING THE CONTROLLER

Use one Joystick Controller with the ATARI Game Program cartridge. Be sure
to plug the controller cable firmly into the LEFT CONTROLLER jack at the
back of your ATARI 2600 Video Computer System console. Hold the controller
with the red button to your upper left, toward the television screen.
(See your Owner's Manual for further details.)

Use the Joystick to maneuver MS. PAC-MAN up, down, right and left around the
maze. Use it also to slide MS. PAC-MAN in and out of tunnels on both sides
of the maze.

Figure 2 {pointing out all four tunnels}

If MS. PAC-MAN exits on the right, she re-enters on the left; if she exits
on the left, she re-enters on the right (see Figure 2).

                           4. CONSOLE CONTROLS

GAME SELECT SWITCH

Use the GAME SELECT switch to choose the game variation you want to play.
Press this switch and the game variation changes as indicated by the number
in the lower right corner of the screen. Read Section 5, GAME VARIATIONS,
for more information about different game variations. (See Figure 3.)

Figure 3 {pointing out game number}

GAME RESET SWITCH

Once you have selected the game variation you want to play, press the
GAME RESET switch to start the game. Pressing the red controller button
also starts the game.

DIFFICULTY SWITCHES

RIGHT and LEFT DIFFICULTY switches are not used in this game.

TV TYPE SWITCH

Set this switch to COLOR if you're playing on a color television set.
Set it to B-W to play the game on a black and white television.

                            5. GAME VARIATIONS

The ATARI MS. PAC-MAN includes the following four game variations:

CHERRIES:
An arcade version MS. PAC-MAN. Just like the original game, MS. PAC-MAN
is pursued by four ghosts.

ONE BEAR:
A good choice for beginners. MS. PAC-MAN is pursued by only one ghost.

TWO BEARS:
A novice player's choice. MS. PAC-MAN is pursued by only two ghosts.

THREE BEARS:
An intermediate player's choice. MS. PAC-MAN is pursued by only three
ghosts.

All four game variations start at the easiest level, cherries. Games then
progress to the highest level, banana. If you survive the banana level,
the mazes alternate between maze three and maze four. Every two times the
maze is cleared of dots, the fruits are randomly selected, and the time
the ghosts stay blue decreases.

                                6. SCORING

You begin the game with three MS. PAC-MAN lives which are indicated at
the lower left side of the screen. Your score is displayed at the bottom
center of the screen (see Figure 4).

Figure 4 {pointing out score}

You earn a bonus MS. PAC-MAN life after the first 10,000 points you score.

Here's how points are scored:

DOT             10 POINTS
ENERGY PILL     50 POINTS

CHERRY          100 POINTS
STRAWBERRY      200 POINTS
ORANGE          500 POINTS
PRETZEL         700 POINTS
APPLE           1000 POINTS
PEAR            2000 POINTS
BANANA          5000 POINTS

FIRST GHOST     200 POINTS
SECOND GHOST    400 POINTS
THIRD GHOST     800 POINTS
FOURTH GHOST    1600 POINTS

                          7. HINTS FOR SURVIVAL

Practice clearing the maze of dots before trying to gobble up the ghosts.

Stay close to an energy pill before eating it, and tease the ghosts into
moving toward you. When the ghosts get close, eat the energy pill and gobble
up as many ghosts as you can.

Use the openings in the maze as escape tunnels. Move to either side to
quickly evade the ghosts. Don't forget, different mazes have different
tunnels.

                         8. YOUR BEST GAME SCORES

Name:           Date:      Game Variation    Score:
____________    _____      _______________   _______
____________    _____      _______________   _______
____________    _____      _______________   _______
____________    _____      _______________   _______
____________    _____      _______________   _______
____________    _____      _______________   _______




                              MS. PAC-MAN *




ATARI, CORP. Sunnyvale, CA 94086

C019741-75/A REV. 1.2675  (C) 1987 ATARI, CORP. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

                                                    PRINTED IN HONG KONG

                                                              B.T.5.1988





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

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