Star Post
arcade game for Commodore 64, 1983

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You are the lone defender of the
starship outpost in a remote sector of
our galaxy. Three-dimensional invaders
tumble and plunge toward the outpost
attempting to destroy you. Your mission
is to defend the base against the
invaders as they attack from 8 channels
on both sides of the Star Post. You must
also defend against a Superalien which
disrupts your viewscreen as it spirals
it's way toward your Star Post.
There are 3 different game versions:
Beginner, Advanced and Hyper. You must
maneuver your laser cannon in a circular
or back-and-forth motion while firing on
aliens. In addition, your outpost is
equipped with a special SuperZap laser
which eliminates all aliens currently
on your viewscreen. SuperZaps are added
at the rate of 1 per level, and unused
Zaps are stored for later use. Your
Star Post can withstand only 7 alien
hits per play. Each new level resets the
number of hits to 0, but 8 hits in any
one round destroys your Star Post.
BEGINNER VERSION
In the Beginner version the object is to
develop your firing and coordination
skills. Beginner has 8 levels of play.
This game starts at standard speed and
has automatic firing. The number of
alien objects approaching your Star Post
begins with 2 and increases to a maximum
of 8. Aliens increase their speed
gradually for each higher level of play,
while your defending time is increased
by 10 seconds per level.
ADVANCED VERSION
In the Advanced (normal) version the
game starts at normal speed but there
is no automatic firing. Each object must
be zapped individually. The advanced
version has 99 levels of play. The
number of alien objects attacking your
outpost begins with 2 and increases to
a maximum of 16. The number of aliens
and the speed of those aliens increases
with each consecutive level of play.
Your game playing time increases at a
rate of 10 seconds per level.
HYPER VERSION
The Hyper version is designed for
advanced players. It features a very
fast rate of speed for the aliens, which
gets faster the as you complete each
round. The Hyper Version has automatic
firing and 99 levels of play. Like the
Advanced version, attacking aliens
appear on your screen 2 at a time, and
increase to 16. For each level
successfully defended you will have 10
seconds of time added to your next level
of play.
CONTROLS
STAR POST is designed to be used with
the JOYSTICK, PADDLE, or KEYBOARD. Plug
your joystick or paddle into CONTROL
PORT-1 (note this version is altered for
PORT-2), or simply use the keyboard.
Paddles are recommended.
MOVEMENT
JOYSTICK
Push the joystick to the RIGHT to rotate
your laser cannon in a CLOCKWISE
direction. Push the joystick to the LEFT
to rotate your laser cannon in a
COUNTER-CLOCKWISE direction. To use the
SuperZap laser pull the joystick towards
you.
PADDLE
Turn your paddle CLOCKWISE to rotate
your laser cannon CLOCKWISE. Turn your
paddle COUNTER-CLOCKWISE to rotate your
cannon COUNTER-CLOCKWISE. Hit ANY KEY
to use the SuperZap.
KEYBOARD
Press the letter K key to move your
cannon in a CLOCKWISE direction. Press
the letter L to move your cannon in a
COUNTER-CLOCKWISE direction. Hit the
RETURN key to operate the SuperZap.
FIRE
There are 3 different fire modes,
AUTO FIRE, NON-AUTO FIRE and SUPERZAP.
AUTO FIRE operates in both the Beginner
and Hyper versions. NON-AUTO FIRE must
be used in the Advanced version.
SUPERZAP is also available in all 3
versions. To use Automatic Firing, hold
down the fire button on either your
joystick or paddle. If you're using the
keyboard, simply hold down the SPACEBAR.
Non-Automatic Firing requires that you
press the fire button or space bar each
time you shoot. Use the fire button on
your paddle or joystick, or the
SPACEBAR on the keyboard when in the
Non-Auto Fire mode. To fire a SuperZap
pull DOWN on the joystick while pressing
the fire button. If you're using a
paddle hit ANY key on the keyboard. And
if you're using the keyboard to play,
hit the RETURN key.
SPECIAL KEYS AND FUNCTIONS
KEY FUNCTION
F1 Allows you to select PLAY LEVEL
(press F5) and VERSION (press F7)
F3 Pauses GAME
F5 Press to select PLAY LEVEL (1-8)
at start of game
F7 Press to select GAME VERSION
(BEGINNER, ADVANCED, or HYPER)
RETURN Press for SUPERZAP when using
keyboard
DEMO MODE
If you don't hit a key or the fire
button when you turn on the STAR POST
cartridge, the game goes into DEMO MODE.
The game screens and the title page will
be displayed, and your computer will
play the game until you press a key or
the fire button to start the game.
SCORE VALUES
Levels 1-4..........100 points per alien
Levels 5-9..........200 points per alien
Levels 10-14........300 points per alien
Levels 15-19........400 points per alien
Levels and points continue to increase
at the same rate to Level 99
Superalien..2 times the point value of a
normal alien in any level
STRATEGY HINTS
In the versions featuring continuous
fire (Beginner and Hyper games),
constantly holding the fire button (or
spacebar) down as you rotate your laser
cannon is the most effective way to use
your weapon. In the Advanced game, you
should hit the fire button as quickly
and frequently as possible when
rotating, since it is very difficult to
aim accurately when the laser cannon is
in motion.
When the Superalien begins its
spiralling attack pattern, it is a good
idea to turn your attention to gunning
it down immediately. The best strategy
to hit the Superalien is to wait in one
sector and fire until you catch him
passing through that sector.
It is also helpful to save your
SuperZaps up to be used when you really
need them. Some of the more appropriate
times to use your SuperZaps are when the
post is about to be overcome by several
aliens or when you've taken 6 or 7 hits
and you're in immediate danger of losing
the post.
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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)
[F11] - toggle fullscreen mode
[ScrollLock] - quick switch control ports
[PageDown] - make a screenshot (320x200)