Instructions on how to play  
Catastrophes 
------------  

a one- or two-player game for cbm c-64 computers  

the aim is to construct buildings as high as possible by laying bricks after bricks onto the ones layed out as yet on small islands in the water of a sea. 

if you are successful through six days (i.e. you reach the target score prescribed by your "contract" each day starting with sunrise and ending with sunset) you fulfil the requirements of the contract. your result is published by one of the leading newspapers! 

actual scores together with the target and high score are continuously displayed. you get 100 points for each well placed brick and 500 points for each new storey. over the target scoring is doubled: this is your productivity bonus! 

bricks are supplied by small ships and are picked up by joystick-controlled helicopters. the vertical and horizontal movement of the helicopters is controlled by the joystick steering columns, while picking and placing the bricks are activated by the firing button. 

the bricks layed out can be replaced, as well (but for the bottom ones): they can be picked up and placed into new position just as they were new supplies from the ships. 

construction is repetitively disturbed by sudden, randomistically occurring catastrophes: earthquakes, hurricanes, electric storms and floods. all of them damage the buildings and accordingly decrease your score: 

- earthquakes destroy all parts of the buildings being too thin 
- hurricanes totally destroy several top layers of bricks 
- electric storms cut out a full vertical slice of bricks from the buildings 
- floods increase the water level thus covering some brick layers and prohibiting the layout in several brick slices 

the damaging effect of each catastrophe depends on the actual intensity grade: normal intensity on the 1st, 3rd and 5th days while increased one on the 2nd, 4th and 6th days. 

earthquakes, hurricanes and electric storms are appropriately forecasted by corresponding sound or graphic effects and by the flashing light of a background pharos. this forecast makes it possible to apply separate tactics (including brick-replacement) in the construction during such forecast periods. note that hurricanes disturb the helicopters motion, as well. 

floods occur if the actual visible height of the buildings exceed a certain level. 

the player/s/ thus should be fast and wise, as well: the success of construction depends on both skill and strategy. 

airplanes flying through the scene also disturb the construction: their clashing with a helicopter can destroy your transporting vehicle (of which you have only 4 spares) 

the arrival of an airplane is forecasted by its sound, too. 

trying to place a brick (i.e. firing) at an improper place results in dropping of the transported brick,which means 30 points lost. 

the players can select the skill level by their choice: they can choose among amateur and pro. by this way they can control the game speed and the average time interval between consecutive catastrophes and airplane arrivals (game speed means helicopter and airplane speeds: these speeds are increasing after each pair of working days but there are different grades in amateur and pro level). 

if you finish studying these instructions, simply fire and the introductory titleboard will be displayed again while the full game programme will be loaded. this further loading will take about 60 secs. 

when loading is finished, a fanfare sound can be heard and starting the game can be initiated by firing. pressing the fire button results here in a more detailed titleboard and in a fanfare sound. this is the select / start phase and now the appropriate skill level can be selected and the game can be started by using any of the joysticks 

without any joystick action during several seconds in the introductory phase or in the select / start phase, a demo of about 3 mins follows automatically showing how the catastrophes and how the construction itself are going on. (there is a built-in automatic helicopter motion in this demo. note that such a working mode can be used as a random automatic race which members of a party or of a group of playing children can lay their bets on!) 

a one-second firing will now cause re-entering into the select / start phase. 

without such a firing, the demo phase concludes with the first (introductory) titleboard again and you can start from this point as it was described above. 

during the actual game, i.e. during the real one- or two- player construction, the actual scores together with the high and the target score are continuously displayed. 

at the end of the game (i.e. either at the 6th sunset or at a situation in which the contract is lost because of five lost helicopters,of fully flooded buildings or of missing the target) the above mentioned newspaper report with more detailed score informations is displayed. these informations include the achieved heights, and catastrophe statistics. the report informs the readers about the contractors success or failure and at the same time reports about an "invitation of new tenders". here the player/s/ can start a new game. 

this is the normal exit from playing a game. however, you can turn back at any stage to the introductory title-board (and thus to the very beginning) : press the run/stop key either during construction or in the select/start phases. 

note that the heights of the buildings can be increased well over the limits caused by the size of the screen: with heights near to the top of the visible area, the construction is interrupted for several seconds, while the picture smoothly scrolls down (which means simply a change in the viewing angle of the whole picture). after that, construction can be continued. 

different tunes of multiple voices, characteristic sound effects and graphical representation assure further pleasure in playing the game. 

in case of an only player, care should be taken of one building only and the opponent will be the computer itself (its playing strength is adaptively adjusted to the skill level of the player): the automatic control of the unattended helicopter starts after several seconds of no action at the unattended joystick. (this means also that there is no problem if you want to have a short coffee or cigarette break or you are disturbed for a while during either a one- or a two-player game: the computer takes your job until you return to go on again with constructing your building). note that such an automatic opponent is a very fast but not a very wise and careful constructor. 

however, if you dont want the computer to be an opponent, the unused helicopter is to be driven out of the screen (the red one to the left, and/or the green one to the right hand side, respectively) 

anyhow, there is a constant, everlasting challenge: to try to achieve new and new height and score records! 

happy constructing!  