MYTH: History in the Making
action platform game for Commodore 64, 1989
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Magical tales of intrigue and mystery were spawned thousands of
years ago, as the world's civilisation believed that
mythological gods and demons carved out the way of the world.
They were said to have dealt their own hand in the epic Game of
Life and ruled their domains with cast iron law and powerful
sorcery not known to mere mortals. The subsequent fear of such
sorcery enabled the gods to mold their own world, like an
elaborate game of chess, and pre-ordain the fate and destiny of
their minions. The combination of ruling bodies kept the world
in balance and laid the foundations of our history.
Only a mortal can attempt to change the eras of time...
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An everyday lad lounges at his desk fully submerged in an article
he reads aloud in his complex mind, about Medusa, the terrifying
snakes that entwine her scalp, and shivering coldness of her
black-eyed stare as she turns courageous men to solid stone. The
lad seems arrogantly amused with what he reads and curls his
upper lip in an aggrieved sneer, signaling his resentment at the
brash, uniformed way in which his favorite daydreams had been
handled.
"This guy's a jerk", rolls off his silver tongue as he hurls the
trash magazine into an overused bin. It seems near bursting with
a hive of knowledgeable mythological drawings, screwed up and
scribbled out, that weren't quite good enough or didn't depict
how a certain fable was meant to annihilate all who dared
challenge it or who didn't respect its vital role in the strat-
egic Game of Live and History. He would spend hours thumbing
through books and sketching the theories as he understood them,
believing that mythology was for real, believing everything was
there for a reason, believing that titanic gods watched his
every moves and even played some of them for him so as to ensure
that foreseen destiny would indeed take its course.
This guy was hooked, at times he wore blinkers to everyday life,
or upset school teachers with his hankering on about myths and
how they were the only history any of us need learn if we were
to ensure the future turns of the world were in the right
direction.
Maybe he seemed a little confused, strange to some teachers, but
everyone warmed to him. He wore the right trainers, the right
jeans, he hung out with the right guys, danced to the right
music. His cockiness and arrogance was a lure to all the best
girls in school and his contempt for those who wouldn't listen
to him, shieded him, and gave him bigger following than the
school football captain. This guy was a happening, a hero to
younger kids, a thorn in the side of history teachers and a
real worry to his parents who had seen his obsession grow from a
passing interest to the only supporting crutch his life seemed
to be leaning on. This obsession wooed him to sleep at night and
led him through everyday life with hypnotic effect. He couldn't
wait to get home and lose himself in mythological literature, to
draw his favorite characters and dream of long-fought battles
through time itself.
If he only knew. Word of his undying loyalty to mythology had
not only spanned the length and breadth of the school playing
fields and formed major points of discussion over school dinners,
but had astonishingly penetrated the Heavens.
The last remaining good titans had been casting a hopeful net
over our planet for some time, a global search that had them
clammering for a mortal with character, cunning, and most of all,
belief. These great universal dictators had swallowed their pride
and had finally succumbed to the fact that their means of
rulership was now rapidly becoming a laughing stock. Strong,
steadfast beings who aggressively ruled the Heavens, the Seas,
the Land, were now in a state of panic. The evil god Dameron, a
self-appointed leader, turning the skies black with rage and the
seas red with the blood of many a god who dared question his
tyranny. Bloodbaths arose in the Heavens, death was meeting
those who refused to control their part of History in his way
and the once seemingly solid temple of this History was now being
severely rocked to its very foundations.
The law stated that the great gods could not interfere directly
with the destiny of Modern History, but that the world's future
lay with its past and therefore by changing the past, Dameron
will conquer the future and forever destroy mortal Life.
An encouraging fire engulfed the era of time as they found who
they were looking for and with the discovery of a mortal with
such a belief they breathed tentative, if not premature, sighs
of relief into the soul of our hopeful History.
They were to visit him in his sleep and bargain with mortality,
convince him that his relentless pursuit of mythology was to be
rewarded by actually meeting the gods he dreamt of by battling
the demons he scribbled on pieces of old paper, by solving the
life and death riddles of ancient leaders. He must confront the
twisted power of Dameron and struggle through all the corner-
stones of time, putting right the evil god's wrongdoings and
setting the wheels of our History in motion once again in the
right direction.
They were to take him through all mythological eras of time,
including roman-greek, norse-viking and egyptian. then onwards
towards the greatest challenge for no mere mortal except this
one, Dameron. The world's future is at stake and must be
brought back to tranquil normality. He must remember his
arrogance, he must have faith in the prophecies he tried to
enforce upon others.
He must believe that this is
History in the Making!
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INTRODUCTION TO THE GAME
This game has 4 levels. They are:
1. Greek Legends
2. Norse Legends
3. Egyptian Legends
4. The Final Confrontation (with Dameron)
Each level has several phases, which can be quite different in
play. The end of the last level is followed by a game End
Sequence.
To get an initial familiarization with the game you should have
the preview that was issued by System 3 in 1989 where the 2 first
levels have been put in "auto" mode by the authors (not available
in the main game).
The tape version (by CTX) allows you to restart from the level
you are upon "Game Over" while all the disk versions reload the
introduction at "Game Over," which is a nuisance.
There are disk versions (Triangle, C+LT, Hell/FBR) with unlimited
lives and energy trainers. It is recommended to use them to get
acquainted with the game, especially how to move. Use the Pause
key (P key) to examine the screens. The Triangle/3532 version is
one-disk (through level compression) while the two others are
two-disks. Also the Triangle version allows you to start from
any one of the four levels (but it reloads the intro...). To
view the end sequence go through the last level with trainer on.
[Watch out! There are incomplete versions out there - the ones
not mentioned here!]
CONTROLS OF THE CHARACTER MOVEMENTS
Plug joystick in Port 2 (no keyboard controls).
Upon Level load completion press Fire to start (this allows you
to take a rest in-between levels...).
Without Fire button pressed, the joystick controls the movements
around the screen. There is walking and jumping (2 kinds). With
Fire depressed, you are in the fighting mode, and motion of
joystick then gives (Level 1 through 3):
Throw Daggers
High kick (pulled _____ | ______ High punch
opposite to facing) \ | / or weapon blow
\ | /
\ | / Middle punch
Kick (pulled -------------X------------ or stab with weapon
opposite to facing) / | \ (or throw fire bolts)
/ | \
Low kick (pulled _____/ | \_______ Lower punch
opposite to facing) | or stab with weapon
Kneel / Crouch
(or icon pick up)
Notes:
1. Directions are for facing right. When facing left, reverse
all directions.
2. Some weapons have to be worked with fire button in conjunc-
tion with joystick movement (you will have to try!).
WEAPONS
Levels 1 thru 3 have various weapons that you obtain by
various ways (for you to find out - hints are provided below).
You start with your bare fists...
You select the weapon by pressing the < | | > keys to scroll
, | | .
left-right or right-left. The center top of the screen shows
only 3 slots, so not all the weapons you have show. You have to
scroll. The center one is the one in use.
Level 4 is unique in this area as you are on a magic carpet
fighting like a jet fighter... So the controls are like hori-
zontal shoot'em up games. You do get various weapons there too.
LIVES/ENERGY
The top right of the screen shows the number of lives in reserve
and your energy. Instead of an energy bar you have 3 (at start)
energy pellets which change color upon use. In the game you may
have up to 4 such pellets as you can gain new ones in the play.
So it is for lives. You can have up to 7 in reserve even though
you start only with 2.
GENERAL HINTS
Always remember you can pause/unpause the game using the P key!
The first aspects of the game you should MASTER are the JOYSTICK
controls. The highly interactive nature of the game is required
because of some of the COMPLEX MOVES the main character has to
perform. A high level of competence at the controls will enhance
your game play CONSIDERABLY. Try use with trainers on!
Because of the adventure elements, our second suggestion is that
you should get into the habit of RECORDING what happens on each
screen. This will enable you to obtain HIGHER SCORES with
repeated play.
The last point is, NEVER take anything FOR GRANTED - some things
are not as they appear. Be curious, nosey, etc. and try
everything. Throwing things in fire can bring unexpected results
for example.
CLUES
Sword : Don't make any bones about the job at hand
Fire : No need to harp on about it, just make them green
bolts with envy. It all adds up to a lot, so save some for a
rainy day.
Trident : Get it by bringing out the demon, this by killing the
skeleton and knocking his skull in the flames. Once
out, kill the demon with collected firebolts, these
are limited, so use them wisely. the trident can only
be used once, so be sure! There...
Be a killjoy, two's company but three's a crowd.
Nymph: If she beckons, approach with caution, you should come out
a stronger player than before.
Shield (Shell?): Once you have brought the greeks to heel, their
idols are brought crashing down to earth.
Chimera : Be a killjoy, two's company but three's a crowd.
Medusa : Head off in the right direction and open your eyes to
all around you.
Firebrand : Alter yourself accordingly and give it some stick
Headdress : Usefull when mummy's around, but if you get it
wrong, tut
Canopic jars : You must retain order if you are to continue.
(Vases?) (Take a welcome break and your quest could prove
fruitful.)
Gems: Just what the doctor ordered.
FIRST LEVEL TIP
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Here's a tip for the first level to get you started:
After you have killed a couple of skeletons one of them will
leave behind a sword. After you have grabbed the sword you
should uncut the chain around the neck of the skeleton on
top right of the screen and take it. Go downwards, near the
fire, and make sure to grab the special weapon there to be able
to kill the monster (who looks like a big dog) a bit further on
in the level. After that, you're all done to enter the second
part of the first level.
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Some useful keyboard shortcuts
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[PAUSE] - stop/continue game
[F9] - quick load game state
[F12] - quick save game state (still stored after leaving the site)
[F10] - toggle performance meter
[F11] - toggle fullscreen mode
[ScrollLock] - quick switch control ports
[PageDown] - make a screenshot (320x200)