Little Dude Readme file
Episode 1: Space Station Mutilation
Version 1.0
Completed December 13, 1997
TI-83 version completed May 21, 1998

Chris "Weasel" Edwards
cxe162@psu.edu
http://www.personal.psu.edu/cxe162

Files needed: LDUDE1.83P   (and the Ashell operating system)
Size: 10950 bytes

Run Ashell to play the game, and choose "Little Dude episode 1"


	Little Dude is my very first assembly game.  I know the title
sounds a little silly.  I was originally planning to use it only as a
temporary title, but I eventually got used to it.
	There's a lot to say about the game, but reading everything in
this file will help prevent you from getting stuck in the game.
	
	Little Dude arrives at Space Station Liberty to refuel his
ship, but finds the entire crew dead.  He meets up with the killers, a
bunch of slimy, tentacled-aliens.  Luckily, he has his blaster rifle
with him, and an infinite amount of ammo for it.
(Don't look for it in the graphics, though.)
	At first, it looks like the aliens are the only challenge he'll
be facing.  Then he discovers some parts of the station are locked and
require him to find the keys.  He also discovers some walls that can be
opened by finding and pushing buttons.  He runs into conveyor belts and
pools of glowing corrosive liquids that make his job tougher still.


**********************************************************************
	What follows are descriptions of some of the things you'll run
across throughout the game:

Warps-
	These appear as dotted-line squares.  They are the only way to
travel between rooms.  Sometimes, they act like doors, connecting to
adjacent rooms.  Sometimes, however, they can lead to totally
unexpected places.  Not all warps can be used from both ends.  Some
warps go to places other than where they came from.

Aliens-
	These things aren't too bright, but they like to drain Little
Dude's life fast if given the chance.  They regenerate health whenever
Little Dude travels through a warp, but once dead they stay dead.  They
can sometimes show up in places the appeared to be safe earlier or in
places where Little Dude already slaughtered others.  You'll know one
when you see it.

Keys-
	Keys look like keys.  Any key will work in any lock, but the
key is lost after one use.  Because of this, Little Dude will often
need to collect multiple keys.  Any keys Little Dude is currently
holding will appear on the right side of the screen.

Locks-
	Locks look like keyholes in the floor.  Little Dude can walk
over locks, but if he has a key and does so, he will use the key in the
lock.  (Occasionally, you want to avoid locks so as not to waste keys.)

Doors-
	Doors are like walls, but look slightly different.  It's
important to learn to recognize them.  When a key is put in a lock, any
doors in the eight positions surrounding the lock will disappear, but
no other doors will.  Some doors can be opened with more than one lock.
(If you don't see any doors surrounding a lock, there's no reason to
use a key in it.)

First Aid Kits-
	These are small black boxes with white crosses.  When Little
Dude picks one up, he automatically uses it, whether he's injured or
not.  One kit restores just part of his health.

Level end Portal-
	This looks like a swirly portal thing (sort of).  Just walk
into it to beat the level (there are five levels total).

Buttons-
	Buttons look like tiny little circles.  Just walk over one to
push it.  It will disappear into the floor.  Sometimes, a new button
will pop up somewhere to reverse the effect, but not always.  When a
button is pushed, certain walls will become floors and certain floors
will become walls.  There's no way to tell what will happen without
pushing the button, though.  Something important to know: a button will
only make changes to the walls and floors you can currently see, and
will not affect any other rooms.

Hidden Buttons-
	You can't see hidden buttons.  They work in conjunction with
normal buttons, but they're used more for booby traps.  When you
trigger one, it will have the same affect as pushing a normal button,
except that all hidden buttons on the screen will immediately be
disabled forever.

Fake Walls-
	Some walls are actually holograms that Little Dude can walk
through.  They look like normal walls, and usually (but not always)
conceal secret rooms.

Extra Lives-
	An extra life appears as the letters "LD".  If little Dude
one up, he will not actually be awarded with an extra life until
(unless) he completes the level it's in.  These are also very scarce.

Acid-
	This stuff is speckly, and sloshes around.  Little Dude can
walk through it, but it will slowly drain his life.  It can almost
always be avoided, if you are careful.  (Hint: all of the acid in
level 1 can be avoided.)

Conveyor Belts-
	These appear as quickly moving lines.  Because they're moving
so fast, it's impossible to tell exactly which direction one travels
without stepping on it.  While on a conveyor belt, Little Dude can move
in any direction other than opposite that of the belt.  The belts will
move him on there own as well.

Barrels-
	Barrels can be destroyed with Little Dude's gun.  Sometimes,
they'll leave behind impassible piles of rubble.  Sometimes they'll
disappear completely.  They can also be hiding buttons, first aid kits,
or keys.

Damaged Walls-
	Sometimes these have visible cracks, but others look like
normal walls.  They always disappear when Little Dude shoots them.

Everything else-
	Anything else you see is just for looks.  This includes dead
bodies, computers, pipes, and more.  All of them block Little Dude's
path.


***********************************************************************
	Other info:

Health meter-
	Little Dude's health is represented by a first aid kit at the
far right edge of the screen.  Full health is near the bottom of the
screen.  If the first aid kit reaches the top of the screen, Little
Dude will lose a life and restart the current level.  When he runs out
of lives, the game is over.

Pausing-
	Press MODE to pause the game and see the options screen.  The
options are RESUME GAME, LOAD GAME, SAVE GAME, RESTART LEVEL, and END
GAME.  They are all explained below.

Resume game-
	This option leaves the Pause menu and resumes the game
exactly as it was.

Restart level-
	Occasionally, Little Dude can become trapped in a dead end.
In this case, it is neccesary to start at the beginning of the level
again.  Little Dude loses one life when you do this; it's the same as
dying once.

Save game-
	When you do this, you overwrite any previously saved game.
You only save the level and the number of lives you have.

Load game-
	Use this to load the current game save.  You will start at the
beginning of the level in which you saved, with the number of lives
Little Dude had when you saved.  Loading a game is similar to
restarting a level, but you don't lose any lives for doing it.

End game-
	This option returns you to the main menu.  Your current game is
lost, but not your game save, if you have one.

Main menu-
	The main menu has the options NEW GAME, LOAD GAME, CONTROLS,
CREDITS, and QUIT GAME.  Loading a game from the main menu is the same as
loading it from the pause menu.

New game-
	Start at level one with three lives.  (You don't lose your game
save by doing this.)

Controls-
	Gives you a list of the game's controls.  I didn't include them
in this text file.

Credits-
	Lists the game's credits.  Not all of them are me.

Quit game-
	Returns to the ASH operating system.

***********************************************************************
Hints and tips:

	Use strafe when fighting aliens.  It helps.  (holding strafe
makes Little Dude face the same direction wherever he walks.)

	Hold down the shoot button.  Little Dude can shoot aliens
really fast at close range if you hold the button down.  (You can hold
shoot and strafe at the same time, as well as using the arrow keys to
move around.  This is no BASIC game.)

	Sometimes, you'll encounter a lock you don't want to put a key
in, a button you don't want to push, or a warp you don't want to
enter.  Sometimes these things will make it impossible for you to beat
a level without loading or restarting.

	You will be awarded with an ending if you beat all five levels.
It's got more to it than some commercial games, even.

	Thank you for reading this far.  Here's a little secret- leave
Little Dude standing around for a little while, and watch what he does.


						-Chris "Weasel" Edwards


P.S: I plan on releasing two more episodes of Little Dude.  They'll be
the same game, but with slighly different graphics (no more space
stations), different levels, and differnt story lines (including
different endings.  The stories will be connected in chronological
order.
	I will probably release a sequel later, which will include
changes in game play, different/more enemies, etc.  It is not to be
confused with the other episodes of the original game.


P.P.S: Feel free to e-mail me about anything.  Tell me what you
thought of the game.  Give me suggestions for the sequel or even the
other episodes (remember the difference).  Ask questions.  Ask for
hints for beating the game.  Point out bugs (to think!).  My opinion
might change later on, but right now I get less e-mail then I would
like, so I'll most likely repond right away.