Hi, This is the second release of Omega for the Atari ST. This version is dated April 19th and may contain some minor bugs. This file will tell you what you need to know to play the game. UPDATE INFO The second version of Omega was needed because the first version contained a serious bug, causing the game to crash when reloading a game that was saved outside of the city level. That error has been corrected, but in the process, save files have become incompatible. So, sorry, you cannot use the saved game positions of version one. This is version 2.02 of Omega. The following changes have been made since version 2.01 of January 30, 1991: - the line-of-sight routine, which determines which monsters you can see, has been changed substantially. It is more logical now, but shows less monsters. - configuration options are now set by file. Note to users of older versions: using the environment to set configuration options still works. - the help files have been updated. The old documentation is still available in the file OMEGA.DOC in the MISC directory. - The program is somewhat smaller; memory usage is the same as before. - The program is somewhat faster. MANIFEST First of all, this archive should contain the following files : OMEGA.TOS the game itself OMEGA.CNF sample configuration file OMEGA.AD the Omega ad (great for BBSes) OMEGA.DOC the Omega manual README.TXT this file INSTALL.TXT installation guide DATA folder with : *.TXT text files needed in the game *.DATA data/level files needed in the game OMEGA.HI high-score file OMEGA.LOG log file to generate NPCs OMEGAHI.BAK backup of high-score file MISC folder with : PFXPAK.PRG executable program packer OMEGA.CNF another sample condiguration file OMEGA.DOC old documentation file SAVE folder with : (now empty) save files, level files, omega standard setup INSTALLATION Omega's minimum requirements are : -1 Mb of memory -Double-sided floppy or harddisk -Medium or High resolution If your system is not up to this minimum, forget about playing Omega. The file INSTALL.TXT contains an installation guide. If you've used Omega before, you can use your old installation environment: no changes are needed. STARTUP You may want to read the manual OMEGA.DOC before playing; all the information in the manual is also available on-line (press the 'Help' key). When starting, you'll need to know a few essentials : - the '@' character is you, the player - movement is with the numeric keypad - the 'Help' key gets you on-line help - the '/' key gives you info on the meaning of on-screen chars - the 'x' key enters examine mode; walk the cursor to a point (with the numeric keypad) and press '.'. You will now get more information. NOT IN THE MANUAL The 'X' key will report the amount of free memory remaining. Save and restore if this gets below 20 Kb. PROBLEMS There may be some bugs left; Omega was an extremely buggy game when I started porting and some bugs may be left. Mailing me (with CLEAR and CONCISE bug reports) will help me to repair any possible bugs. My address is below. However, you should be careful: Omega is a very complicated game and many things that seem bugs at first are features (really!). Examples of this are the NPC players you'll meet : every time you quit, a Non-Player Character will be added to the log. You may therefore meet NPCs with your name, which may be a bit confusing. All this works far better on a multi-user system, which the ST isn't. PLANNED CHANGES The following changes are planned for the next minor update of Omega, due in a month, maybe two months: - Increased compression speed (loading, saving of levels) For the next major release of Omega (due later this year), planned changes are: - More sites in the city site list (sewer entrace, cemetary) - Compression of the files in the DATA directory to save space - Saving and restoring the village levels, dragon's lair, star peak etc. (All levels but the temporary, such as the Arena and the tactical screen). If you would like other changes, please tell me about them. I am thinking about adding support for MiNT (file locking, minix file systems and terminals), but will only do so if enough people ask for it. So, please write... COPYRIGHT Omega is copyrighted by Laurence R. Brothers, but the binaries are public domain as long as the version and copyright messages are NOT removed. I would also appreciate it if you did not claim any credit for work you have not done, and leave the startup screen intact. The standard sources are available by FTP at paul.rutgers (check your FTP list); the modified sources (for Pure C) are available from me and can be requested by e-mail. And no, I'm sorry, but the university does not allow anonymous FTP access for sources or latest binaries. CHEATING The wizard mode has been obscured (mail me if you really need it). The best way of cheating that's left is to make a complete backup of the SAVE directory, including level files. Then, if you die, you can go back to the last backup you made. Note that as the level and save files are compressed, ARCing them will not result in very large savings. Level files have an identifying mark, so that level files from one game cannot be used in a different game. Attempts to do so will result in an error message and the game will quit. THANKS TO Thanks go to : Laurence R. Brothers, for writing the game Omega Rene van 't Veen, for his ST curses library Han Ko Bicknese, for making me do this port Led Zeppelin, Joe Satriani and Queensr˜che for keeping me awake during long nights of debugging HOW TO REACH ME My e-mail address is : biersma@dutikos.tudelft.nl Please mention Omega in the message header; this will ensure promper filing and handling (I hope). My real-world address is : Hildo Biersma Tollensstraat 138 2513 GE Den Haag Holland (that's in Europe)