ACTION SERVICE

TABLE OF CONTENTS

What You Need
Loading Instructions
The Game
The Courses
The Option Screen
 Game Options
 Instant Replay: The VCR
Playing The Game
 On-Screen Displays
 Controlling Your Man
 Level 1: Physical
 Level 2: Risk
 Level 3: Combat
The Construction Set

WHAT YOU NEED

Amiga 500, 1000 or 2000 computer
512Kb min memory
Disk drive
Colour monitor or TV
Joystick
Formatted save disk (optional)

LOADING INSTRUCTIONS

Plug a joystick into Port 1.

Turn on your monitor and computer. If necessary, insert Kickstart 1.2 into the disk drive.

When asked for a Workbench disk, insert the Action Service game disk into the disk drive. The game will load into your computer's memory; when the title screen appears, press FIRE to begin.


THE GAME

The Courses:

Physical - An obstacle course that has you scaling brick walls, crawling under barbed wire and through drain pipes, with attack dogs in hot pursuit.

Risk - Fewer obstacles, more danger - now the course is riddled with land mines! Lay dynamite and throw grenades for extra points.

Combat - Fight in ruthless hand-to-hand combat, sneak up behind enemy guards, and blast armed opponents with machine-gun fire.

Combined - If you thought a single run was tough, try your hand at all three together when you run the Physical, Risk, and Combat courses one after another.

CCS (Cobra Construction Set) - The ultimate challenge. A nerve-wracking course of non-stop action, designed to make even the best players humble.

THE OPTION SCREEN

When the Option Screen appears, you will see an 8-button control panel on the right side of the screen. Each of these buttons selects a different option, shown in the corresponding window on the top half of the screen.

CONTROL PANEL
                         ___   ___   ___   ___
                        |   | |   | |   | |   |
                        | 1 | | 2 | | 3 | | 4 |
                        |___| |___| |___| |___|
                         ___   ___   ___   ___
                        |   | |   | |   | |   |
                        | 5 | | 6 | | 7 | | 8 |
                        |___| |___| |___| |___|
                    _________   ________   _________
                    \        | |        | |        /
                     \ Scroll| |        | |Scroll /
                      \ Left | | Select | |Right /
                       \     | |        | |     /
                        \    | |        | |    /
                         \   | |        | |   /
                          \  | |        | |  /
                           \ | |        | | /
                            \| |________| |/
                               
To select an option, position the cursor on top of a button and press fire.

The LED over that button will change from green to red to show that it has been selected.

CONTROLS

Joystick

         Up
         |
 Left ------- Right
         |
        Down

FIRE: Fire Button

GAME OPTIONS

High Scores - Highlight Button 1 to see the ten best game scores.

Quit - Select this option to leave the game; the High Score Table is automatically saved to the game disk when you select QUIT.  Highlight Button 2, then position the cursor over the square Select panel beneath the buttons and press FIRE. Follow the on-screen instructions to insert the game disk and press RETURN (or ENTER).

Enter Names - Enter player names by selecting this option. Highlight Button 3, then position the cursor over the square Select panel beneath the buttons and press FIRE to erase the current name. Enter a new name using the keyboard, then press RETURN (or ENTER).

To enter another name, you must repeat this process with a different name tag. Position the cursor over the right scroll panel and press fire to scroll through the available name tags. To scroll in the opposite direction, position the cursor over the left scroll panel and press FIRE.

NOTE: Player names are not saved to disk - you must re-enter your name each time you boot.

Play - Select this option to choose a course and begin play. The PLAY option will always be selected when the game loads, and will default to the PHYSICAL level. To play on the PHYSICAL level, simply position the cursor over the square Select panel beneath the buttons and press FIRE.

To scroll through the available courses, position the cursor over one of the scroll panels and press FIRE. When the course you wish to play appears in the upper right window, position the cursor over the Select panel and press FIRE to begin that course.

Save/Load High Scores - Select this option to save or load a player's high score for a particular level. Highlight Button 5, then position the cursor over one of the scroll panels and press FIRE to alternate between SAVE and LOAD.

NOTE: To save or load a player's high score for a certain level, that level must be displayed in Window 4.

SAVE - To SAVE the high score on the current level for the player whose name appears in Window 3, insert a formatted data disk into the disk drive. Make sure that the SAVE disk icon is displayed in Window 5, then position the cursor over the square Select panel and press FIRE. That player's high score for the current level will be saved to disk.

NOTE: For instructions on formatting a data disk, look under DISK in the Construction Set section of this manual.

LOAD - To LOAD a player's high score for the current level. Highlight Button 3 and select the name of the player whose high score you wish to load (player names must be re-entered each time you boot). Then insert your save disk into the disk drive and highlight Button 5. Make sure that the LOAD disk icon is displayed in Window 5, then position the cursor over the square Select panel and press FIRE. The player's highscore for the current level will be loaded into memory and will appear in Window 3.

Save/Load Replay

Select this option to save or load a player's run on a particular level. Highlight Button 6, then position the cursor over one of the scroll panels and press FIRE to alternate between SAVE and LOAD.

NOTE: Replays are saved on their own level, and must be loaded from the level; when you save or load a replay, its level must be displayed in Window 4.

SAVE - Insert a formatted data disk into the disk drive. Make sure that the SAVE disk icon is displayed in Window 6, then position the cursor over the square Select panel and press FIRE to select SAVE. Press FIRE again to get a cursor in the VCR slot, then type in a name and press RETURN (or ENTER) to save the last run.

If you have already saved runs on that level, the name of a saved run will appear in the VCR slot when you select SAVE. To save the new run over the old run, position the cursor over the square Select panel and press FIRE while the old name is displayed.

To save the new run to a new name, position the cursor over one of the scroll panels and press FIRE until (........) appears. Position the cursor over the square Select panel and press FIRE to get a cursor in the VCR slot, then type in a name and press RETURN (or ENTER) to save the last run.

NOTE: If you press RETURN or ENTER without typing in a name, the run will be called NAMELESS.

LOAD - Make sure that the LOAD disk icon is displayed in Window 6; then insert your save disk into the disk drive, position the cursor over the Select panel, and press FIRE to select LOAD.

The name of a saved run will appear in the VCR slot. If more than one run has been saved on that level, click on either scroll panel to view the names of other saved runs. (If no runs have been saved on that level, NO FILE will appear in the VCR slot.) When the name of the run you wish to load is displayed in the VCR slot, position the cursor over the Select panel and press FIRE to load that run into memory.

To replay the run, simply position the cursor over the VCR slot and press FIRE.

Player Scores

Highlight Button 7 to see your current top scores for all five courses. To view other players' top scores, position the cursor over one of the scroll panels and press FIRE.

Top Five Players

Highlight Button 8 to see the top five players in the current course. To view the top five players in other courses, position the cursor over one of the scroll panels and press FIRE.

Instant Replay - The VCRA VCR slot appears on the left side of the Control Panel. The VCR feature allows you to review the first few minutes of the last run. To replay the last run, position the cursor over the VCR slot and press FIRE. If you have not yet run a course, a demo run will be displayed when you select VCR.

You will also select VCR to view a saved Replay which has been loaded into memory - see the section above titled Save/Load Replay for complete details.

VCR CONTROLS

Joystick

               Fast
                |
 (No action) ------- Fast Forward
                |
               Slow

FIRE: Pause
ESC:  Return to the Option Screen

Edit - To enter the course Construction Set, position the cursor over the word EDIT on the right side of the Control Panel and press FIRE (to exit the Construction Set, select END).

The Construction Set feature allows you to design your own courses and save them to a formatted data disk. For complete instructions, see the section at the end of this manual titled, The Construction Set.

PLAYING THE GAME

To begin play on Level 1 (PHYSICAL), highlight Button 4; if you wish to select another course, follow the instructions given above for the PLAY option. Position the cursor over the square Select panel and press FIRE to start.

On-Screen Displays

High Score - The highest score for the current level is displayed on the right side of the screen.

Your Score - Your current score is displayed on the left side of the screen.

Timer - The game timer is displayed on the left side of the screen beneath your score. The timer starts at 4000 and runs down to 0000.

Bonus Points - If you complete the course before time runs out, Bonus Points will be added to your score at the end of the run.

The Sergeant - The drill sergeant assigned to your course can be seen in Window 1 (upper left corner of the screen). If you successfully perform a special manoeuvre, the extra points will be displayed in this window. If you disregard an order or do not perform a manoeuvre correctly, points will be deducted from your score.

Dangers/Commands - During each run, dangers or special commands will appear along the course; these will be displayed in Window 2 (second window on top row). See below for a complete list of dangers and commands, and how to react to them.

NOTE: Be sure to keep moving at all times - if your man is not moving forward, points will be deducted from your score.

Controlling Your Man - You will control your man using the four joystick positions and the FIRE button. The actions you perform will vary, depending on the course and your current situation.

LEVEL 1: PHYSICAL

CONTROLS

Joystick

         Fighting Mode
     (Not used in Level 1)
              |
 Drop Flat ------- Run
              |
       Kneel/Lie Down

FIRE: (if running) Jump

SPACE: PAUSE game
ESC:   Return to the Option Screen

CONTROLS: (LYING DOWN)

Joystick

      Push-Ups
         |
Crawl ------- Crawl
         |
      Push-Ups

FIRE: (if lying down) - Kneel
      (if kneeling)   - Stand Up

Special Manoeuvres:

Crawl - Drop flat by moving the joystick left, then move the joystick repeatedly left and right.

Stand Up - Press FIRE once if you are kneeling, twice if you are lying down.

Exit Fighting Mode - Press FIRE (Fighting Mode is not used in the Physical level).

Climb Over a Wall (or out of a ditch) - Press and hold down FIRE while running just as you approach the wall (or the end of a ditch). Once the man is on top of the wall, release FIRE to have him climb down. If you release FIRE too soon, you'll have to press and release it again to get him off the wall.

Jump Up (to reach a ladder, pulley, etc.) - Press and hold down the FIRE button while running just as you approach the ladder or pulley.

Move Forward on Ladder - With FIRE held down, move the joystick left and right. Release FIRE to jump down.

Move Forward on Pulley - Continue holding down FIRE while you are on the pulley and you will move forward automatically. Release the FIRE button to jump down.

Dangers/Commands:

Air Raid - Drop flat and crawl until the helicopter disappears.

Rex the Combat Dog - Jump up and grab onto a ladder, pulley, or tree until Rex goes away.

10 Push-Ups - Drop flat, then repeatedly move the joystick forward and back. When you have done 10 push-ups, the man in Window 2 will disappear.

NOTE: if you disobey orders and do not do 10 push-ups, points will continue to be deducted from your score until you comply.

LEVEL 2: RISK

Special Manoeuvres:

Pick Up Dynamite (from box with white label) - Pull the joystick back and kneel in front of the box; then move the joystick right to pick up the dynamite and press FIRE to stand up.

Place Dynamite (in front of doors only) - Kneel in front of a doorway and move the joystick right, then stand up and get out of the way quickly.

Pick Up/Throw Grenade - Kneel in front of the grenade, then move the joystick right to pick up the grenade. Quickly press FIRE to stand up, then move the joystick forward to throw the grenade.

NOTE: Moving the joystick forward will put your man in Fighting Mode unless he is holding a grenade; press FIRE to exit Fighting Mode.

Enemy Fire - Jump to avoid the bullets.

LEVEL 3: COMBAT

Special Manoeuvres:

Fire Machine Gun - Press FIRE while standing still to pull out the machine gun, and press FIRE again to shoot. Pull the joystick back to put the gun away.

NOTE: You cannot run while you are holding the machine gun.

Man Running Up from Behind - Pull out your machine gun, then quickly turn around and fire.

Hand-to-Hand Combat - As soon as you are approached by an opponent you will automatically be placed in Fighting Mode. Move the joystick forward, back, left and right to perform four different fighting manoeuvre. Press the FIRE button to exit Fighting Mode.

Sneaking Up on Enemy Guard - Drop flat and crawl up behind him; when you are close enough, you'll stand up and punch or kick him automatically.

CONTROLS: (FIGHTING MODE)

Joystick

       Dodge
         |
 Kick ------- Punch
         |
       Crunch

FIRE: Exit Fighting Mode

CONTROLS: (WITH MACHINE GUN)

Joystick

   (No action)
        |
Turn ------- Turn
        |
   Put Gun Away

FIRE: Pull Out Gun/Fire Gun

THE CONSTRUCTION SET

To enter the Construction Set, position the cursor over the word EDIT on the right side of the Option Screen and press FIRE. A course, consisting of 256 numbered sections, appears at the top of the screen. The design options appear below. When designing a course, you control such features as landscape, background and foreground items, the position of the soldier and traps.

VIEW - To move backward or forward in the current course, position the cursor over either the left or right arrows on either side of the word VIEW and press FIRE. To move rapidly, click on the double arrows.

LANDSCAPE - To view the various landscape sections, position the cursor over this option and press FIRE. To select a section of the landscape, position the cursor over that section and press FIRE. You will be returned to the Menu Screen, and the section you choose will appear on the top of the screen.

ITEMS - When you highlight this option, a selection of items that can be placed in your course appears on the right of the screen. To view more items, position the cursor over one of the arrows in the bottom left and right corners of the Items Window and press FIRE.

SELECTING ITEMS - Each item that you place in your course will be either a background or a foreground item. Before you select an item, be sure that the correct option (Back Item or Front Item) is highlighted on the left side of the screen. Then position the cursor over the item you wish to select and press FIRE; that item will now appear in the current section of the course at the top of the screen. Only one Back Item and one Front Item may be placed in each section of the course.

POSITIONING ITEMS - Once an item has been placed in a course section, you may position it both vertically and horizontally. To move the item left or right within its section, place the cursor over one of the boxes at the bottom centre of the Items Window and press FIRE to select a horizontal (X) position.

To move the item up or down, position the cursor over the Height Gauge at the right side of the screen and press FIRE to select the desired vertical (Y) position.

An item's X and Y positions are displayed under the options Back Item and Front Item. To delete a selected item, click in one of the boxes next to the arrows at the bottom of the Items Window and press FIRE.

MAN - To change the vertical position of the soldier, select MAN and press FIRE. Then position the cursor over the Height Gauge at the right side of the screen and press FIRE to select the desired height. This height will then be displayed underneath the word MAN (you may repeat this height as many times as you wish by selecting REPEAT). If no height is selected, the height of the man will correspond to the height of the lowest item.

If you do not wish the man to appear on the screen while you are designing your course, select OFF (the default selection is ON).

REPEAT - Use this feature to repeat the last option selected. The option to be repeated (LANDSCAPE, BACK ITEM, FRONT ITEM, TRAPS, or MAN) will be shown beneath the word REPEAT. If MAN is selected, you will repeat the height of the man. If FRONT ITEM or BACK ITEM is selected, you will repeat both the item and its position. Options may be repeated as many times as you wish.

TRAPS - When you highlight this option, a selection of traps that can be placed in your course appears on the right side of the screen. To view more traps, position the cursor over one of the arrows in the bottom left and right corners of the Traps Window and press FIRE.

There are 20 possible traps in all, and each is assigned a number from 1 to 20. When you select and place a trap, it must be assigned a letter corresponding to one of three categories:

A: Dependent on a Back Item
B: Dependent on a Front Item
C: Not dependent on an item

A trap's category may be assigned either before or after you select it. To select a trap, position the cursor over the trap you wish to choose and press FIRE. If you wish to change the trap category, position the cursor over one of the letters (A, B or C) at the bottom of the Traps Window and press FIRE to select that category.

When a trap is selected, its name and number will appear at the top of the screen. The letter before the number indicates its category, and if the trap is dependent on an item either FRONT ITEM or BACK ITEM will appear after the name. Only one trap may be placed in each course section; once a trap has been placed in a section, its category letter and number will appear over that section at the top of the screen.

To delete a selected trap, click in one of the boxes next to the arrows at the bottom of the Traps Window and press FIRE.

PLACING TRAPS:

While there are no restrictions on how traps can be designated and placed, you may want to read the following list of suggestions about placing traps; the traps are (listed in order):

Jump/Fall - Associate with small items such as sand bags, low walls, gas cans, ammo boxes, etc. (A or B)

Jump/Slip - Associate with larger items such as fallen or damaged barrels. (A or B)

Jump Over Wall - Associate with a high wall. (A or B)

Dog Start - The dog appears as soon as you pass the trap.

Crawl - Associate with such items as barbed wire and drain pipes, all of which should be preferably in the foreground. (B)

10 Push-Ups - Place almost anywhere. (C)

Air Raid - Place almost anywhere. (C)

Mine - Associate only with mines, which should be placed in the background. (A)

Grenade - Associate only with grenades, which should be placed in the foreground. (B)

Drown - Associate only with water that does not have a pontoon (raft). (C)

Set Charge - Associate with the Armoured Door background section. (C)

Get Charge - Associate with the small ammo crate, which must be in the foreground and located a reasonable distance in front of the door. (B)

Shooter - Place almost anywhere; the shooter appears.

Rear Attack - Place almost anywhere, the man appears on the left side of the screen after you pass the trap. (C)

High Burst - Place almost anywhere. (C)

Low Burst - Place almost anywhere. (C)

Close Combat -  Place almost anywhere; the man appears on the right side of the screen after you pass the trap. (C)

Sentry - Place almost anywhere; the man appears on the right side of the screen after you pass the trap. (C)

Grenade Combat - Place this trap immediately before a GRENADE trap; the man appears on the right side of the screen after you pass the trap. (C)

Swim - Associate only with water. (C)

DISK - To SAVE a course you have designed, insert a formatted data disk into the disk drive and select DISK, then SAVE. A list of existing courses will appear on the right side of the screen. To save your course over an existing one, position the cursor over the name of the course you wish to delete and press FIRE; the new course will be saved over the old course.

To save the new course under a new name, place the cursor over the dots after the word NAME and press FIRE. Type in a name, then press RETURN (or ENTER) to save the course to that name. To exit without saving, select CANCEL and press FIRE.

To LOAD a course you have designed, insert your data disk into the disk drive and select DISK, then LOAD. A list of existing courses will appear on the right side of the screen. Position the cursor over the name of the course you wish to load and press FIRE. To exit without loading, select CANCEL or (UNDO) and press FIRE.

NOTE: There are several courses on your game disk which can be loaded into memory, then modified and saved to a data disk without affecting any of the 5 original game courses.

RESET - To reset the course at the top of the screen, select RESET and press FIRE. At this point, you will be given the option of continuing or cancelling. To cancel this reset, select NO; to proceed, select YES. The entire course will now be free of all items and traps, with one background throughout.

END - To exit the Construction Set, position the cursor over the option END and press FIRE.
