=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
=+=+            M E M B R A N E  M A S S A C R E            =+=+
=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
           Programmed and Designed by: Stephen Whitmore
=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+


Section I: Welcome!
====================
  First and foremost, a very hearty 'thank you!' for taking the time
to download my ~16-day project, Membrane Massacre. And an additional
'thank you!' for taking the time to read the README. I won't even
touch upon the rarity of BOTH of these events occurance in succession. ;)



Section II: Criticism
======================
  Before you jump into the game and start blasting sinister infected
bacteria away, remember that Membrane Massacre is the product of a single
hobbyist developer whittling away code at university. The quality is
definitely not commercial-calibre, but for ~15 days, I'm told that it's
pretty darn good!

  If you enjoy Membrane Massacre -- or, better yet, if you don't -- then
I encourage you to take the time to send me an email about your experience
with the game. Even one person that I don't know, taking the time to share
some of their (constructive!) criticism with me about my project, means
a lot to me. So drop me a line. (hopedagger@gmail.com)


Section III: Controls
======================
  Okay, okay! I guess you're more interested in finding out the controls than
skimming through a README. Fair enough. I aimed to keep the controls fairly
intuitive, so don't be surprised if things don't work more or less as what you
would have unconsciously assumed:

  Mouse :: Movement  	   => Aim/rotate the Ship
  Mouse :: Left Click 	   => Fire current weapon
  Mouse :: Right Click	   => Cycle through to next weapon
  Keyboard :: 1/2/3/4/5    => Select a certain weapon (variant of above)
  Keyboard :: Arrow Keys   => Move your ship forward/backwards, and left/right
  Keyboard :: W/A/S/D      => Move your ship forward/backwards, and left/right
  Keyboard :: Enter        => Begin the game in the title screen, or end the game
                              in the victory sequence
  Keyboard :: Escape       => Exit the game at any time


Section IV: Story & GamePlay
=============================
  You take on the role of Dr. Smallship, a doctor in the late 21st century that
invents a powerful shrinking device. With a new deadly bacterial infection spreading
across the world that medical science has no cure for, our doctor gets the idea of
shrinking a fully-armed space fighter in order to do things the old-fashioned way!
This is of course his first attempt at such a mission, so hopefully things all go
to plan. If they do, the world may have hope yet!
  Unfortunately, on your way into your patient, you were ambushed by several bacteria
who managed to consume all of your weapons except your primitive energy weapon, the
Blaster! Hopefully as you work your way through the patient's body, you'll recover
them. Especially that experimental Freeze Bomb...

  The objective of the game is to pilot your ship, the TIBS (Tiny Itsy-Bitsy Ship),
through the body of your first (brave!) patient who is infected with the deadly
nameless bacteria that is sweeping the world, and destroy the sinister bacteria that
are eating away at the patient's innards. You will visit the brain, the stomach, and
finally the heart of the patient, the three areas that the bacteria attack. There is
evidence that suggests a massive 'boss' bacteria that commands all of the others with
its enlarged nucleus. Let's hope he didn't manage to consume any of your weapons!


Section VI: Weapons
====================
  With your mission into the human body, you wisely equipped your ship with 5 powerful
weapons that you were confident would assist you in the battles ahead of you. Should
you recover them, they are:

  (1) The Blaster        => A simple-energy based weapon that does minimal damage, but
                            its energy cells never run out of charge.
  (2) Dual-Machinguns    => High-powered machineguns mounted to either side of your ship,
                            these fast-firing weapons deal good damage, and also are
                            formidable at pushing enemies back.
  (3) Missile-Launcher   => A military-grade missile launcher positioned beneath the
                            cockpit that fires a highly-explosive projectile that will
                            explode upon contact with either an enemy or the body. These
                            missiles are highly damaging, so be sure you don't hurt the
                            patient!
  (4) Mach-1337 Laser    => Fueled from an ultra-dense nuclear substance in the core of
                            your ship, the Mach-1337 Laser fires a perfectly steady beam
                            of superheated light that can slice through foes with flawless
                            precision. Very handy for digging a clean-cut path through
                            a wall.
  (5) MK-IV Freeze Bomb  => A highly experimental weapon that launches a large cluster of
                            particles at an absolute-zero temperature in a radius around
                            the ship. These particles, should they collide with an enemy,
                            will both freeze their movements for several seconds (depending
                            on how many particles struck them) and almost permanently
                            hinder their cell-division capabilities.



Section V: Technology, Tools, etc.
===================================
  For those interested, here are the technology and tools used to create Membrane
Massacre:

  License: Freeware
  Language: C++
  IDE: Bloodshed Dev-C++ (initially) & Microsoft Visual Studio 2003
  Libraries: Allegro (http://alleg.sourceforge.net)
  Lines of Code: Around 2,600
  Hours of Agonizing Debugging: Too many ;)


Section VI: Goodbye!
=====================
  No reason to end a README on anything but a good note. Hope your have had/will have
a great time playing!
