Boingo Electro is a sketch of a neat little game idea we had. We've had a lot of fun with it and hope you will too. Boingo Electro is freeware. If you enjoy the game, please see the Dadgum Games Catalog for information about our commercial products.
Boingo Electro requires a Power Macintosh. It really shouldn't, but it was written using the PowerPC-only graphics system developed for Bumbler Bee-Luxe, so that's the way it is.
Comments and feedback are strongly encouraged: jhague@dadgum.com
PLAYING BOINGO ELECTRO
You control Boingo, a bouncy little, er, “fellow” with wild hair. Boingo gets his energy to run and jump from power jewels at the bottom of the screen. His current energy level is displayed on a meter in the lower left corner of the screen.
Boingo can jump and move left and right. See the title screen for the keys to use. Boingo will continue to jump for as long as you hold down the jump key. He will fall when the key is released. Note that you can–and should–move Boingo left and right while he is jumping or falling.
The Enemy
Nasty little electric raindrops fall from the top of the screen, bent on shorting out Boingo's power jewels. If a raindrop hits a jewel, Boingo loses a big chunk of energy. Fortunately, it also gets rid of the offending raindrop. Raindrops are blue when falling and orange when scooting along a platform. Boingo can bonk a raindrop back toward the top of the screen by touching it when it is blue. This trick gives you 100 points times the current level number. Touching an orange raindrop causes energy to be quickly zapped away from Boingo for as long as he is in contact with the drop.
In later levels, pulsing yellow electrodes start showing up on platforms. Touching these is the same as touching an orange raindrop––BZZZZT!
The Goal
Boingo's job is to protect the power jewels from the raindrops while avoiding electrocution in the process. A level ends when a set number of raindrops has been eliminated. At the end of a level, Boingo gets 500 points and can take a breather while his energy reserves are recharged a bit. The game ends when Boingo runs out of energy.
KEYS
There are several sets of keys to choose from. All keys are active all the time, so you can pick and choose which keys you like (e.g. use the movement keys from one set and the jump key from another).
Key Set 1 (similar to the Bumbler Bee-Luxe defaults)
Move left the left Option key.
Move right with the left Command key.
Jump with either Shift or Control or the “J” key
Key Set 2 (if you like using the cursor keys)
Move left with the left arrow.
Move right with the right arrow.
Jump with either the up or down arrow (or you might find it easier to use shift or control or “J”).
Key Set 3 (if you like using the numeric keypad)
Move left with the 4 key on the numeric keypad.
Move right with the 6 key on the numeric keypad.
Jump with either the 8 or 5 key on the numeric keypad (or you might find it easier to use shift or control or “J”).
Key Summary
Move left: left option, left arrow, 4 on the numeric keypad
Move right: left command, right arrow, 6 on the numeric keypad
Jump: shift, control, up arrow, down arrow, 8 or 5 on the numeric keypad, “J”
Press Command-Q at any time to quit Boingo Electro.
Press esc (escape) while playing to return to the title screen.
Press 0…9 from the title screen to change the sound volume (0 = off, 9 = loud).
PLAYING TIPS
• Try to control the top of the screen for as long as possible. Bonking a raindrop once up there will get rid of it. From lower positions there is the chance that the raindrop will latch on to a platform and continue its descent.
• Along the same lines, sometimes it is a good idea to dart away from a troublesome raindrop near the middle of the screen when you see a new and easily bonkable one come into view. Getting rid of the latter moves you closer to the end of the level––repeatedly bonking the former doesn't.
• There are long, vertical “chutes” at the screen edges. When a raindrop has been bonked and is moving directly upward in one of these areas, you can ignore it and concentrate on the other enemies.
• When a raindrop lands on a platform containing a jewel, there is a fifty percent chance that it will move away from the jewel instead of toward it. When you're being overwhelmed, sometimes it is best to play the odds rather than risking it all to try to save one jewel.
CREDITS
Beta testing:
Kevin Avila (who has got to have one of the strangest Mac set-ups in the world)
Jessica Ball
Mark Phaedrus
Mandus Soderberg
Development System: PowerFantasm 5 from Lightsoft (http://www.tau.it/lightsoft/)
Boingo Electro Copyright 1997 Dadgum Games. All Rights Reserved.
