This game should run on any Mac or compatible with a 12" or bigger monitor, 256 (or more) colors/greys, 32-bit QuickDraw and two (or more) sound channels. If you’ve got anything built in the last five years or so, you should be fine.
Color and Memory
This game uses 256 colors with a custom palette. Some graphics may look nicer (but animations will run a little slower) at “millions” of colors, while staying at 256 will save you a lot of memory. Your call. I don’t recommend setting your monitor to “thousands of colors,” or color values will be a bit off. If you have a newer Mac with plenty of RAM it’s perfectly safe to leave your monitor at its best setting.
“Palace Art” and “Palace Sounds” files
The game is divided into three files: Palace of Sand itself, a Sounds file and an Art file. The Art and Sounds files have to be kept in the same folder as Palace of Sand, and they can’t be renamed. Double-clicking the Art or Sounds file from the Finder is the same as double-clicking the game itself.
• The version numbers of Palace Art and Palace Sounds (visible in “Get Info” box in the Finder) won’t necessarily be the same as the version number of Palace of Sand itself.
PREFERENCES (Edit menu)
Mouse navigation (default: off)
… lets you move around by clicking near the edge of the screen or on visible doors/stairs. When this is turned off, clicking on doors and the like just gives information, and clicks near the edge of the screen are ignored.
Double clicking (default: off)
… affects the way you interact with characters, portable objects and some non-portable objects. Double-click to pick up a portable object, to talk to or fight with a character (the game will know which is right), or to open and close boxes, doors or cupboards; single-click for information. If this option is turned off, click on an object or character to interact with it.
Saving games (default: prompt for save)
“Prompt for save”:
When you quit, start a new game or open a saved game, you’ll be asked if you want to save your current game.
“Automatic save” :
Once you’ve named your game, either by opening a previously saved game or by saving a new game, it will automatically save for you.
“Never save” :
When you quit or open a new game, any changes from your current game will be quietly thrown out. You can still tell the game to save (“Save” and “Save As…” on the File menu); it just won’t do it automatically.
• “Automatic save” and “Prompt for save” rely on a flag which is set whenever you move to a new room, or when any visible object or character changes location. The flag isn’t set when, for example, you carry on a conversation, so you may want to save explicitly if you quit right after talking to someone, or after eating/drinking/sleeping.
COLOR PREFS (Edit menu)
“Always change to 256 colors” :
The game will automatically set your monitor to 256 colors at startup, and switch back to your old setting when you quit (unless you’ve changed it yourself in the meantime).
“Show dialog” (the default) :
… checks your monitor’s color setting and, if it’s set to more than 256 colors, asks if you want to change.
“Leave colors alone” :
… means just that. If you have a new Mac with plenty of memory, use this option.
COMMANDS & INTERFACE
Options
Most common actions can be done in more than one way. For some of these you’ll need to change the default preferences.
Movement:
You can always use compass commands (NORTH, SOUTH…). If you’ve chosen “mouse navigation” you can also move around by clicking.
Picking up objects:
You can pick up any portable object by clicking (or double- clicking) on it. If you prefer, say GET or equivalent with some reasonable approximation of the object’s name. You can also use GET ALL (or EVERYTHING) to pick up all portable objects in the scene.
Dropping objects:
You can drop any item in your inventory by using the Inventory menu and clicking “Drop.” Alternately, say DROP or equivalent with the object’s name. Say DROP ALL (or EVERYTHING) to drop everything you’re carrying.
Giving objects:
This works the same as DROP, except that you can’t “give all.” In most situations, GIVE is the same as SHOW; the game will know which action is appropriate.
Closer looks:
Click on the part of the scene you’re interested in, or type an appropriate command such as READ POSTER or LOOK AT ARTIFACT.
Look out the window:
If you’re curious about the view, type LOOK (out) WINDOW or click on any visible window.
Opening and closing:
To open or close doors, boxes, cabinets and the like, type OPEN or CLOSE/SHUT with the name of the object, or click (double-click, if that’s your preference) on the object.
Common commands:
A few common commands such as LOOK and SEARCH are also on the Commands menu, with cmd-key equivalents.
Exception: You’ll have to use keyboard commands for complex actions such as having a conversation, using an object from your inventory, or looking in a particular place such as under a bed or inside a box.
Keyboard Input
• Everything you type goes to the little box at the bottom of the text window until you hit Return. You’ll get used to it.
• In general, word order and spaces don’t matter, and non-essential words are ignored. The most important exception is that “NO” has to be just that, not “NO WAY” or “NOT AT ALL” or anything fancy.
• All movement commands can be abbreviated: N, S, NW, U etc. If you’ve just been asked a question, N becomes NO; otherwise it’s NORTH. Y is YES.
• In some large rooms or open spaces, you can go NORTHWEST, SOUTHEAST and so on. At other times, diagonals are likely to be interpreted as NORTH or SOUTH.
• When picking up or dropping an object, you’re allowed some flexibility in naming: TREASURE and CHEST will both get you a “treasure chest”; BACKPACK or MY PACK will both get your “pack.” You can also use some common two-word phrases like “PICK UP” or “PUT DOWN.”
•• Unlike most of my games, Palace of Sand distinguishes between wearing an object and simply picking it up. GET CLOTHES means pick them up and put them in your pack; WEAR CLOTHES means put on clothes that you’re already carrying (or that are in the room with you). DROP CLOTHES means drop them on the ground; if you just want to return them to your pack, say TAKE OFF.
• If you get a response like “Try a different verb,” do not go in search of a thesaurus; you’re probably getting too elaborate already. Instead, try the commands in the Help window.
• On the other hand, the verb USE won’t get you far, except when you’re dealing with an object such as a key or crowbar that can only be used for one thing. That is, don’t say USE when you mean READ or MOVE or DRINK or…
Mouse Navigation
• When no door is visible, click near the left, right or bottom edges of the picture to move left, right or back. Note that this moves you to a new room, or another part of a large room; it doesn’t simply give you a different view of the the room you’re in.
• Clicking on the bottom of the picture doesn’t necessarily take you back to your previous room. It depends on how many exits the room has, and which direction you’re facing.
• To aid in mapping and to make it easier to go back if you didn’t mean to leave a room, you will always be told what direction you’re going.
• Mouse navigation is disabled in a few rooms. Use compass commands instead.
“Stuff” and “Treasures” Menus
I lifted this idea from two very different shareware games: Dracula’s Castle (“Inventory” menu) and System’s Twilight (“You” menu). The “Stuff” menu lists anything you’re carrying that is more useful than valuable, including anything edible. The “Treasures” menu lists things that are likely to be valuable. Other than that, the two behave exactly the same.
Selecting any menu item gives you a box with more information. You’ll also have the option of dropping the object or giving it to another character. The “Drop” option is greyed-out if you’re not allowed to drop the object, and “Give” is greyed-out when there’s nobody in the room with you.
GENERAL TIPS
• As in all my games: TALK or at least LISTEN to anyone you meet… and pay attention to what they say! If you’re not sure whether a character is hostile or not, click on them (double-click, if that’s your preference). The game will take the appropriate action, either FIGHT or TALK.
• Read room descriptions carefully, and don’t forget to SEARCH.
• Commands may have different consequences the second time around, so try everything twice—within the limits of ordinary common sense.
• Make maps. If you keep running around in circles, you’ll end up collapsing from hunger, thirst or frustration before you get anywhere. If you can’t keep track of where you are, register the game and I’ll send you a full set of floor plans.
• The Palace is a lot bigger on the inside than the outside.
• When you’re inside the Palace, looking out the windows can help you get oriented. Sometimes there’s even a view.
• Once you’ve found a way to get into the Palace, be sure to explore as thoroughly as you can; the household staff may not be as trusting the second time around. But don’t despair—you can always sneak in one way or another.
• You will need to find a way to search the four ground-floor reception rooms (the ones where a staff member intercepts you). One contains an essential object, another a useful one.
• Give help when asked. Accept help when it is offered.
• Male and female players will occasionally need to use different approaches, but you’ll all get there in the end.
• It is possible to find Jake and finish the game without using anything from the Treasury.
• It is possible to find Jake, get all the treasure and finish the game without using your sword or even swinging a fist. If you like getting into fights you are free to do so… at your own risk, of course.
• Sometimes you will be told that you can’t do something. At other times you will be warned that you’d better not do something. Use your judgement.
• As in any adventure game: if you’re in doubt about the consequences of some action, save your game first! You can always revert… well, almost always.
Magic
In the course of the game, you’ll come across a number of magical objects. Most are useful; some are essential. But all carry drawbacks or even dangers, so you’ll have to weigh the disadvantages against the payoffs.
Life, the Universe and Everything
It’s pretty hard to die in this game, unless you take foolish risks. Make sure you’ve got enough food and especially water before exploring any place where you wouldn’t want to be found unconscious (such as male players in the women’s quarters, or vice versa).
Food and Drink
You will need to eat and drink periodically. Due to the climate, you’ll need to drink more often than in my other games. You start the game with a supply of food and water. If you run out, it’s up to you to find more.
By default, DRINK means drink from your canteen, and EAT means eat your own food. If you want to eat or drink something else, spell it out. Exception: when you’re in a room with its own food or water supply, EAT or DRINK alone means use what’s in the room; DRINK from CANTEEN or EAT LUNCH means use your own supplies.
Version History (b/w and color)
Palace of Sand (color version)
— v. 1.5.1 released 15 April 1999. Updates Easter-egg list, fixes default save prefs.
— v. 1.5 released 30 January 1999. Fixes a typo that could, in one rare situation, prevent player from completing one task… and, while I was at it, I went in and changed a bunch of other stuff.
— v. 1.4 released 20 January 1999. Fixes all the varied and sundry bugs and hiccups that showed up after the major revisions of v. 1.3.
— v. 1.3 released 27 December 1998. Background sound/music loops in some scenes. The keys to the roof unlock more doors. Many code revisions and bug fixes, most of them invisible. Separate Palace Art and Palace Sounds files. Last but not least… the ceiling of Zainab’s tower now does what you always wanted it to do!
— v. 1.2 released 30July 1998. More code revisions, including a fix to the dream sequence. Updated graphics routines as in Color Pavilion 1.2 and Grey Tower 1.2, and added some simple animations.
— v. 1.1 released 25 June 1998. Code revisions and bug fixes; two new sounds; changed registration cutoff to correspond to other games
— v. 1.0 released 28 May 1998.
Sultan’s Palace (b/w version)
— v. 2.1.1 released 9 November 1997.
— v. 2.1 released 12 September 1997. Many changes to code, including expanded role for Zainab.
— v. 2.0.2 created 8 February 1997.
— v. 2.0.1 released 20 October 1996.
— v. 2.0 released 27 June 1996: added several scenes and a dream sequence.
— v. 1.1 released 4 April 1996: minor code changes.
— v. 1.0 released 27 February 1996 (NOT 1995--oops!)
Thanks
• Thanks to my testers, and to everyone who registered the game in its varied versions. The Easter-egg page is updated with every release.
• Thanks to Staz Software for distributing and supporting FutureBasic, and to the FutureBasic newsgroup.
QUESTIONS
…can be posted to the “Tower” folder under “Adventure” in the MacGames forum on AOL. This is the fastest way to get help, as most players get stuck in the same places and you’ll probably find that your question has already been answered. You can also download “Lucy’s FAQ,” available on my www page and on AOL in the Mac Games / Hints & Helps library. Or, best of all, you can register the game and get pages and pages of maps and hints… and unlimited technical support.
* * * Sorry, folks * * *
If you’re not planning to register this game, you’ve already gotten a lot of my time for free. Please don’t ask me to give you even more. But do send me bug reports if you find any problems.
DISTRIBUTION
Feel free to distribute unregistered copies of this game on BBS’s, shareware compilations, online services or whatever, SO LONG AS YOU
#1 include this ReadMe file
#2 check with me first to make sure you’re releasing the latest version of the game
#3 don’t charge anything over & above ordinary expenses associated with the medium (cost of a CD, mailing or whatever)
#4 make it very clear that this game is SHAREWARE.
Translation
One of the invisible changes in “Palace of Sand” v. 1.3 is that the game can now be translated into other languages if you have access to a resource editor. So if you’re looking for a good independent-study project, or you have friends in other countries, get in touch with me for details!
REGISTRATION
If you’ve registered any version of Palace of Sand (in color), you don’t need to do anything more. If you paid for the WorldBuilder game Sultan’s Palace, e-mail or drop me a postcard for an updated registration code.
Otherwise, send $10 to:
Louise Hope
780 L St.
Arcata CA 95521
Be sure to specify that you’re registering Palace of Sand (color version).
In return, I’ll send you:
• (by e-mail, if you’ve given me an address) the registration code that will smooth your path in various ways
• (by snail mail) a complete set of floor plans, along with some hints and helps
Lucy24@aol.com
http://members.aol.com/Lucy24/LucysWorlds.html
http://lucysworlds.virtualave.net
Plug
Check out my other games:
(Color) Pavilion
Grey Tower (b/w The Tower)
Muddy Water (b/w Canal District)
Color by Number (b/w Double Trouble)
… and watch for Xanadu, coming sometime before the millennium …
* Support Shareware * Support Shareware * Support Shareware *
