ColecoVision Cartridge Instructions for Defender ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Defender Play the Original Arcade Classic in Your Own Home MISSION: DEFENDER Aliens from a distant solar system are swarming over the planet Humanis. They're kidnapping Humanoids and mutating them into a permanent part of the alien force. Their mission is to transform all of the Humanoids before destroying the entire planet. First, they infest the planet with Landers which close in on the planet, abducting the Humanoids. Then the attack intensifies. Baiters, Swarmers, and Bombers terrorize the skies. And then, when you least expect it. a deadly Pod collides with your Spaceship, and blasts you to pieces. NOTE: Always turn the POWER switch OFF before inserting or removing the cartridge. YOUR MISSION As Captain of the Spaceship Defender, your mission is to destroy the alien force and save the Humanoids. Your speed and skill have earned you this heroic mission. When Humanoids are abducted, you'll have to destroy the Lander and catch the falling Humanoid before safely returning him to the planet below. DEFENSE STRATEGY The Spaceship Defender has full-range scanning equipment which enables you to employ seek-and destroy tactics. Defender discharges fatal missile fire at the push of a button. You also have two escape options for a last resort course of action: hyperspace and smart bombs. Hyperspace temporarily sends you into a time warp, possibly only to reappear in a more dangerous situation. Smart bombs can destroy all aliens in sight with a touch of a button. Report immediately for this dangerous mission! GAME PLAY As Captain of the Spaceship Defender, your mission is to destroy the aliens before all of the Humanoids are trans- formed to Mutants. You score points for each alien you destroy and for each Humanoid you save. Try not to shoot your Humanoids; they are worth bonus points at the end of each alien attack wave. (See SCORING.) in one-player games, your object is to top your highest score. In two- player games, the player with the highest score wins the game. A game ends when all Defender Spaceships are destroyed Each game begins with three Defender lives and three smart bombs. When Defender collides with an alien or is hit by an alien mine, it exploded with a "blast" If it's the last life, the game is over If any lives remain, another Defender ship appears on the scene. The number of lives remain- ing and smart bombs remaining is displayed at the upper portion of the television screen. The aliens attack in waves; each wave becomes increasingly more difficult. When Defender destroys all the aliens in the first wave, another wave of aliens moves in. The longer that Defender survives, the harder the alien attacks become. Each time a wave is com- pleted, the number of the completed wave and the amount of bonus points earned flashes in the center of the screen. The alien force is made up of six different types of ships: Landers, Bombers, Swarmers, Baiters, Mutants, and Pods. Landers are the first to appear They search the planet for Humanoids to kidnap and mutate. Bomb- ers lay mines to trap you. You cannot shoot mines, so it's best to avoid them. Swarmers are housed in Pods. Several Swarmers are released each time a Pod is destroyed. They track you very closely so kill them the instant they appear. Baiters usually appear near the end of a wave. They're large, they shoot fast, and they move faster than Defender A Mutant is a transformed Humanoid. Mutants are very dangerous; use all your energy to kill them. If the Landers kid nap all the Humanoids and carry them to the top of the screen to trans- form them into Mutants, the entire planet explodes. The most deadly alien of all is the mother ship also known as a Pod. When a Pod is destroyed, it releases 1 to 9 deadly Swarmers. YOUR DEFENSE Defender fires missiles to blast the alien ships. But, when things look real bad, Defender can employ one of two last resort weapons. First, you have three smart bombs which blow up every alien in sight. With every 10,000 points you score, you earn another smart bomb and another Defender life. Use smart bombs sparingly and strategically It's a good idea to keep one smart bomb in reserve in case you get stuck and need a little help to earn another Defender life. When you use a smart bomb, you earn points for every alien it destroys on the screen. Another weapon that can be used as a last resort is hyper- space. This device enables Defender to disappear, warp through time and space, and reappear somewhere else on the screen. You have no control over where you'll reappear Hyperspace can be tricky and dangerous. Some- times invisible space matter can blow up your spaceship during the time warp. Try to use hyperspace only when you have no other alter- native. (See USING THE CONTROLLERS for using smart bombs and hyper- space.) USING THE SCANNER Your scanner is located at the top center of the screen. It works like a radar screen to reflect alien attacks in your viewing screen and at long range distances. The scanner provides the following important information: * How many aliens are approaching, what kind of aliens they are, and what their positions are. * Where the Human- oids are being abducted by Landers. * How many Human- oids remain and where they are. Each blip on the scanner represents an object in the game. Your playing area is bracketed by short line in the center of the scanner The blips are color- ed to help you distinguish between different alien ships. Get into the habit of monitoring the scanner to help you destroy aliens and defend Humanoids. RESCUING HUMANOIDS Here's where the heroics come in. Your mission is to destroy aliens while protecting Humanoids. At the end of a wave, you score 100 bonus points for every Humanoid survivor, multiplied by the number of the wave just completed (up to a maxi- mum of 500 bonus points) All the Humanoids are stranded helplessly on the planet at the bottom of the screen. You are their only hope for survival. Use the scanner to patrol their positions. When a Humanoid is being abducted by a Lander, you'll hear his cry for help. Go to his rescue immediately The scanner is the fastest way to spot his position. There are two techniques for rescuing a Humanoid: * Destroy the Lander and let the Humanoid fall back to the planet. * Destroy the Lander catch the Humanoid, and carry him back to the planet. Letting the Humanoid fall to the planet is only effective if the Humanoid is close enough to land safely Experiment to find out what a safe dis- tance is. If the Humanoid falls safely to the planet, you score 250 points plus 150 points for destroy- ing the Lander If he crash lands, you only score the 150 points for destroying the Lander. Catching a Humanoid in midair is more difficult and is worth more points. To catch a Humanoid, shoot the Lander and maneuver Defender to touch the Humanoid, then bring him back to the planet. If you succeed, you earn 1000 points plus 150 points for destroying the Lander If you catch the Humanoid but don't return him safely you earn 500 points plus the 150 points for destroy- ing the Lander. NOTE: You may carry any number of Humanoids at a time. If you are carrying Humanoids at the end of a wave, they count as survivors and the program automatically returns them to the planet MUTANT TAKEOVER If Defender does not succeed in protecting a Humanoid/ a Lander abducts him and carries him up into space and transforms him into a Mutant. Mutants then return to attack the planet. When all of the Human- oids become Mutants, the planet will explode. You continue playing to score points. If you survive past the next four waves, all Humanoids are reincarnated, and the planet below is rebuilt. USING THE HAND CONTROLLERS SPACESHIP DEFENDER Use the controller stick to thrust the Spaceship Defender up, down, right, and left through space. Also use the controller stick to catch falling Humanoids. MISSILES Press the left controller button to fire missiles at aliens. SMART BOMBS Press the right con- troller button to detonate a smart bomb. HYPERSPACE Press the 0 button to enter hyperspace. START THE GAME Insert your COLECO- VISION cartridge into your Coleco system and turn on the machine. The game will start automatically RESET Press # to restart the game. PAUSE Press * to suspend a game in progress. To con- tinue play press * again. SCORING Your score appears at the top of the screen. Lives remaining and smart bombs remaining are dis- played next to the score. At the end of each wave, you score 100 bonus points for each surviving Humanoid, multiplied by the number of the wave, up to a maximum of 500 bonus points. You earn an additional DEFENDER life and smart bomb every 10,000 points.