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 Swarm Racer v2.0

 (c) Copyright 2006 Lexaloffle Games Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
 http://www.lexaloffle.com

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Contents:

1. System Requirements
2. Menus and Options
3. How to Play
4. Credits
5. History


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1. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
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To play Swarm Racer you will need:

- MacOS X  or  Windows 95 (or later).
- 400MHz processor or faster.

If you have any trouble getting Swarm Racer to run, please visit our
support web page: 

http://www.lexaloffle.com/help.htm


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2. MENUS AND OPTIONS
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Use the cursor keys to choose a menu item and press enter or space to
select it. Alternative you can press the first letter of any option. To
go exit any menu, press escape.

MAIN MENU

	RACE: This takes you to the race menu.
	PLAY MOVIE: Plays whatever is in the clipboard.
	INSTRUCTIONS: Shows some basic instructions.
	OPTIONS: Go to the options menu.
	EXIT: Exits the game.


RACE MENU

	There are 8 tracks to choose from. Press 1-8, or select them by
	pressing left and right. The menu options are:
	
	RACE: Play the currently selected track.
	SUBMIT FASTED TIME ONLINE: This opens a web browser and submits
	your fastest time to the global fastest times board.
	COPY LAST MOVIE TO CLIPBOARD: Copies the last game you played
	into the clipboard.
	PLAY LAST MOVIE: Shows the last game you played. (Not the one
	in the clipboard).
	BACK: Go back to the main menu.


OPTIONS MENU

	SOUND VOLUME: Press left and right to change.
	MUSIC VOLUME: Press left and right to change.
	ENGINE VOLUME: Press left and right to change.
	ENGINE SOUND: Choose the sound the engine makes.
	VIDEO MODE: Switch between windowed and fullscreen modes.
	BEE COLOUR: Change the colour of the bees in the game.
	BACK: Go back to the main menu.


MOVIES

Swarm Racer allows you to record and play back movies of a race. If you
copy the last movie to the clipboard, it is saved in a text format which
can then be pasted into a text file or a post on the bbs:

http://www.lexaloffle.com/bbs

To play a movie that has been saved as some text, copy the text into the
clipboard (e.g. select the text and then choose Edit->Copy) and then
press PLAY MOVIE from the main menu.


OTHER KEYS

You can switch between windowed and fullscreens modes at any time by
holding down ALT + enter.


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3. HOW TO PLAY
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The object of Swarm Racer is to collect all of the gems in each track as
fast as possible. This requires a bit of planning, a bit of luck, and a
lot of swarm controlling finesse. 

KEYS

Cursors: Move
Z: Spread Out
X: Regroup
R: Restart

If you have trouble with key locking, you can mix and match with this
alternative set of key:

ASDW: Move
CTRL: Spread Out
ALT: Regroup

TIPS

The key to getting fast times is learning how to control your swarm
effectively. Here are some tips:

1. No bee left behind. Sometimes it is worth ditching the odd stray bee,
but in general try to keep your swarm together with the regroup key (X)
whenever it starts getting messy.

2. Spread out to collect large areas of gems. If you keep your finger
down on Z, your swarm will eventually move into a large circle which
makes it easier to sweep through a lot of gems at once.

3. Use the walls. To get your swarm into a really tight pack, try
running up against the side of a wall or into a corner.

4. Watch movies. Study how other people handle their swarms by visiting
the BBS: http://www.lexaloffle.com/bbs


WALL TYPES

	RED: Blinky
	These walls blink on and off in a regular fashion, so you can predict 
	the pattern with a bit of examination.

	GREEN: Bouncey
	Try holding down the regroup key to avoid having your swarm separated 
	from bouncing all over the place.	

	YELLOW: Sticky
	Not really a wall - your bees can move through this, but very
	slowly. In general it's best to just avoid them.	


TROPHIES

If you get a fast time, you win a trophy. The times required for each
trophy are shown at the start of each race, and your best trophy for
each track is shown on the race menu screen. Try to collect all 8 gold
trophies. Go on. Bet you can't.


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4. CREDITS
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Swarm Racer was designed and coded by Joseph White.

Music by Vincenzo: www.freshmindworkz.hu/vincenzo

Sound effects made using Milky Tracker: www.milkytracker.net

This game was written using SDL: www.libsdl.org

Special thanks to Stef Animal for helping with the sound and providing
valuable insight. You rock Stef. Also many thanks to all of the Ludum
Dare dudes for feedback and inspiration for the original version.


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5. HISTORY
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v2.0
Added a whole bunch of stuff.

v1.0 
Ludum Dare version.

