                    -----------------------------------------
                    Star Fighter - Version 1.04 Playable Demo
             Copyright 1996, The 3DO Company & Krisalis Software Ltd
                    -----------------------------------------


Game Notes
----------
You are now looking at the first playable preview of Star Fighter for the PC!
This game was designed to take advantage of a Pentium processor [The
programmers at Krisalis hand-coded each line in assembly from the original
3DO version].

To see the true power of the graphics engine, try it out on a P133 or better
with a PCI graphics card.  Of course, Star Fighter supports all ranges of
machines down to a 486, but nothing can beat the experience of flying around
and destroying massive chains of buildings in hi-res 640x480 at 24 frames
per second.  Just compare Star Fighter against the competition to see the
superior graphics quality in hi-resolution.

If you own a 486, Star Fighter will run extremely fast in low-resolution
mode, plus we will soon be supporting Creative Labs' 3D Blaster!


History
-------
If you are at all familiar with the 3DO version of Star Fighter, you will
notice right away that the PC edition bears as little resemblance to its
predecessor as it did to the Archimedes classic.  For one, the game engine
now utilizes a natural fogging technique to bring terrain into view without
pop-up.  We have also added realistic textures to every object among the 8
planet types, ranging from photographic quality grass, water, ice, and rock
to steel and glass skyscrapers.  All 60 maps have been updated and all
fighter craft enhanced with additional polygon and texture detail.

Best of all, we have retained the same playability that made the original
game so great.  A few logical loopholes have been closed here and there,
and the mission objectives have been tweaked to provide an extremely
challenging game with plenty of hidden features.  Hunting for crystal
combinations is now more convenient with the addition of a ship-board
analytical computer, and an altimeter makes cockpit control easier for
flight simulator enthusiasts.


Game Tips
---------

Here’s how to rapidly get into the game and see all the new features:

First, you should experiment with the detail and fog settings for your
machine.  Star Fighter makes its best guess at default settings based on
your processor speed, but you will want to override these to see the
maximum extent of the game engine.  These settings should be adjusted
every time the program is exited and re-started.

· Press F8 several times to increase game detail to the highest level.
  Detail settings can range from flat shaded polygons all the way up to
  fully fogged and shaded textures with transparency effects for explosions 
  and engine flames.  F7 reduces detail.
 
· Press and hold F6 down to reduce fog and extend the viewing region further
  into the distance.  F5 increases fogging.
 
· If you want to see what a difference a high resolution 640x480 display
  can make, just press F9 to toggle between lo-res 320x200 and high.

Wicked things to check out:

· Every single item in the game can be destroyed.  For some particularly
  good effects, use air-to-ground (ATG) missiles to take out a large
  collection of buildings.  Towers that look like a space needle with a
  revolving restaurant on top provide very satisfying explosions.
  Look for pipelines and glass bridges, where destroying one link can set
  off a massive chain reaction that ripples down the entire line.
 
· Terraform the planet surface by firing your lasers into a hill or
  mountain.  This can actually be used as a tactical advantage when
  destroying hillside gun installations by blowing the ground out from
  underneath.
 
· Check out the multiple camera settings.  You can view the Star Fighter
  from any or distance.  The complete freedom of camera movement in this
  game is unparalleled.  You can play from a flight simulator cockpit view
  down to a Zaxxon ¾ perspective if you desire.  Test out the missile-cam
  for a mad effect.


Minimum Requirements:
---------------------
 Processor:  486/33 MHz minimum, Pentium 90 MHz or better suggested.
    Memory:  6 MB RAM minimum (5.5 MB extended memory XMS, 400K conventional),
             8 MB RAM suggested (required for Windows 95).
 Hard Disk:  1 MB of uncompressed space available.
    CD-ROM:  Double-speed (300 K/s transfer rate).
       O/S:  MS-DOS 5.0 or later or Windows 95.
Video Card:  VESA local bus or PCI video supporting 256 color
	     SVGA (320x200 / 640x480).
Sound Card:  Creative Labs Sound Blaster or 100% compatible.
             Supports Sound Blaster (Basic, Pro, ASP, 16, and AWE 32),
             Ensoniq SoundScape (8 and 16), Microsoft Sound System
             (8 and 16 Mono/Stereo), Pro Audio Spectrum (Basic and 16),
             Gravis UltraSound (Basic and Max), ESS Audio Drive (488 and 688),
             Roland RAP-10, and Adlib Gold (1000 and 2000).

Although Star Fighter will run on any 486 processor, the minimum
realistic requirement is a 486 running at 33Mhz.

StarFighter will run nicely in MS-DOS or Windows 95.


Re-configuring your sound card
------------------------------
After installing Star Fighter, to change the sound card settings,
press either one of the shift keys while Star Fighter loads.  This will
display the sound configuration screen.


640x480 Mode (High resolution)
------------------------------
High Resolution mode (640x480) is not recommended for machines slower than
a Pentium running at 90Mhz (or equivalent).  You may press the F9 key within
Star Fighter to toggle between low and high resolutions.


Windows 95
----------
When running Star Fighter in high resolution (640x480) mode in a DOS box
under Windows 95, it is not recommended that you switch between full-screen
and a window, as the testing we have done has shown that display is not
always restored correctly.

Keyboard
--------
StarFighter responds to the keyboard at all times in addition to input from
control pads or joysticks.  Use the directional arrows, space bar, enter key,
and escape key to navigate the various menu systems.  The default keyboard
configuration is described below:

General

Up:			P or Up Arrow
Down:			L or Down Arrow
Left:			Z or Left Arrow
Right:			X or Right Arrow
Select Item:		Space or Enter
Previous Menu:		Escape or Left Control
Skip Movie:		Space or Enter
Toggle Resolution:	F9 (Toggle low (320x200) and high (640x480) res)
Increase View:		F6 (Less fog - decrease frame rate)
Decrease View:		F5 (More fog - faster frame rate)
Increase Detail:	F8
Decrease Detail:	F7

Aboard Ship

Fire Weapon:		Enter
Select Weapon:		Left Alt
Thrust:			Space
Toggle Camera:		Right Shift
View Map:		B
E. C. M.:		Left Shift
Pause Menu:		Left Control

Strategic Map

Lock on Target:		Space
Status/Target Info:	B
Mission Briefing:	Right Shift
Zoom In:		Enter
Zoom Out:		Left Alt
Exit/Previous Menu:	Left Control

External Camera

Rotate View:		Up/Down/Left/Right
Zoom In:		Enter
Zoom Out:		Left Alt

Other

Pause Game:		F1 (press any key to resume)
Quit to DOS:		F12

Problems with StarFighter
-------------------------

If StarFighter is running too slowly for your liking, there are a couple of
things you can do to improve the situation:

        1.      Decrease the detail level. Using the F7 key, you can lower
                the amount of detail used, thus speeding the game play.

        2.      Decrease the visibility. Using the F5 key, you can lower
                the visibility by bringing in the fog. This will result in
                faster game play.


Star Fighter Credits
--------------------

Krisalis Software Ltd.

Producer:                  Tony Kavanagh.
Director:                  Pete Harrap.
Original Design:           FEDNET - T.D. Parry and A.P. Hutchings.
PC & Console Programming:  Pete Harrap, Mark Incley, Richard Teather,
                           and Karen Crowhurst.
Modelling & Cinematics:    Dave Colledge.
Artwork:                   Mark Potente and Neil Adamson.
Music & Sound:             John Avery, Rhubarb Productions.
Quality Assurance:         Steve Sumner, Richard Beirne, and Graham Morley.
Thanks To:                 Mark Adamson and Darryl Blandford.

The 3DO Company

Executive Producer:        Greg Richardson.
Producer:                  Nick Earl.
Director:                  Gary Lake.
Narration:                 Howard Swain.
Audio & Sound F/X:         Bob Vieira, Jeffrey Bihr, Spark Studios.
Quality Assurance:         Mike Herauf, Jason Wildblood, Dan Silberman.
Thanks To:                 Scott Walker for providing novice pilot input
                           and low score testing.


USES SMACKER VIDEO TECHNOLOGY BY INVISIBLE INC.
D.B.A. RAD SOFTWARE.

End of readme.txt
