home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
- Here is the ReadMe. It contains the following sections:
-
- . Watching the Demo Movie from DOS
- . Playing the Game
- . Helicopters
- . The Joystick
- . Steering wheels and pedals
- . The sound
- . 2PL Split Screen
- . 2PL Modem Game
- . Network Options
- . Command Line Options
- . and finally ...
-
-
-
- Watching the Demo Movie from DOS
- --------------------------------------------
- Type "VIDEO" from the directory where you installed the game
-
- A note to shop type people: you can type "DEMO" which loops
- this video as a rolling demo (we try!)
-
-
- Playing the Game
- ---------------------
- ** Controls **
-
- Default keys ( which you can change in the game) are
-
- Cursors for left/right/accel/brake
- Keypad-0 for nitro.
- Right-CTRL puts you back on the track if you get hopelessly lost.
-
-
- ** Extra Keys **
-
- Pause pauses
- PrtSc saves a PCX to the racing directory (for the journos: see
- we do try!)
-
- Escape quits the game, or takes you up a level in the menus
-
- Ctrl-Escape is instant-quit from wherever
- (unless you're in a Windows DOS shell(!))
-
-
- F1 is "view the other cars" (shift-F1 cycles in reverse order)
- F2 selects the "Elasticam"(TM) behind-car view, and then either
- (1) forces the camera behind the car
- or (2) switches between 3 different heights.
- F3 is the cabin view
- F4 is the trackside view.
-
-
- +/- are the screen size.
- At full-screen VGA there's a debounce before switching to
- SVGA mode.
- (Full-screen SVGA is only recommended for people with Pentiums.)
- (or better!)
-
-
- ** Extra Keys **
-
- Pause pauses (maybe DOS only)
- PrtSc saves a PCX to the racing directory (for the journos: see
- we do try!)
-
- Escape quits the game, or takes you up a level in the menus
-
- Ctrl-Escape is instant-quit from wherever
- (unless you're in a Windows DOS shell(!))
-
- +/- are the screen size. (DOS)
- At full-screen VGA there's a debounce before switching to
- SVGA mode.
- (Full-screen SVGA is only recommended for people with Fast Pentiums.)
-
- Helicopters
- --------------
- There's no doubt about it, the helicopters take some getting used to...
- (Well, it'd be pretty boring if all the cars behaved exactly the same
- way, wouldn't it?)
-
- SO: The controls are BASICALLY the same as all the vehicles, except that
- the nitro key behaves as "upward thrust", and you fall gently under gravity.
-
- However, you occasionally want to go down faster, and this can be achieved
- by pressing "decelerate" without letting go of the accelerator.
- (not possible on a joystick, but you can't have everything!)
-
- Oh, and to save you having to use the "up-thrust" key ALL the time, there's
- a sort-of "low-altitude automatic hover" built in. You'll still need to
- thrust up to get over hills & stuff, though.
-
- General advice: How to turn a tight bend at speed:
- Anticipate the corner, turning the chopper to skid sideways through the
- corner (even face back at the camera if necessary).
- Don't forget to straighten out "early" as well, or you'll run into the inside
- of the bend.
-
- (For what it's worth, even Domark's testers had trouble when they first
- tried flying the choppers. Perseverance is all! Trust us: they're great
- when you're used to them!)
-
- The Joystick
- ---------------
- Note that re-calibration is meant for DOS users. Please use the Windows '95
- joystick calibration routine if you're using Windows '95
-
- There's a joystick configure screen under "Options...Joystick"
-
- Plug in your stick.
- Click on "Recalibrate"
- Waggle the joystick(s) around to its extremities.
- Centre it/them.
- Hit a fire button.
-
- Click on "analogue" if the stick is an analogue one (ie - not a
- "gamepad") and you'll get true "stick position = steering wheel position"
- steering.
- You'll find it feels totally different (less prone to oversteer).
-
- If you tick the "pl1"/"pl2" options, it automatically sets that player
- to use that joystick as accelerator/brake and steering.
-
- If you want to arrange things in another manner, you can do it on the
- "control defining" screen by moving the stick instead of pressing a key.
-
- Win 95 has proven to be a big obstacle in the selection of joysticks
- and wheels. Please please please check that you have calibrated your
- wheel or stick correctly. Here's how we did it....
-
- Select the preferences box (START -> SETTINGS -> CONTROL PANEL) then
- choose joystick option. For a "normal" stick usually choose joystick
- one with 2 axis and 2 buttons then click calibrate waggle the thing
- around and test it to make sure.
-
- Steering wheels and pedals
- --------------------------------
-
- Support has been added for the Thrustmaster formula T1 and
- virtual pilot pro wheels and sticks..
-
- Choose "configure joystick" and click on the control mech for the
- player you want to have wheel control.
-
- "PEDALS" is for pedals where the two pedals are totally independent: e.g.
- ch-pedals in "car mode": The brake pedal is mapped onto the X axis of
- stick 2, and the accelerator to the Y axis of stick 2.
-
- "PEDALS2" is for ch-pedals, thrustmaster and others, in "aeroplane mode",
- where the brake pedal and accelerator pedal both share the X
- axis of stick 2.
-
- For pedals where the brake & accelerator share the Y axis of stick 1,
- "joystick" mode is the one to choose.
-
- We suggest that you use analogue control for a realistic feel to the
- game.
-
- Again Win95 confused some of our guys in testing
-
- Wheels are done in the same way select as joysticks custom select
- 2 axis and waggle wheel in calibrate then test to make sure.
-
- Pedals gave us the most problems... Usually you have to have an additional
- joystick. Plug the pedals into the joy port and the wheel/stick into
- the double adapter then coming out of the port.
-
- Configure the wheel/stick on joystick 1 and the pedals on joystick 2.
- We used the pedals as a custom 2 axis (2 button for what it was worth) and
- then tested it (calibration wasn't really needed for some reason).
- One pedal adjusted one axis and the other adjusted another axis
- in plane mode. We then chosen "PEDALS2" as the chosen joystick controller.
-
- We have found that the Thrust Master pedals should be configured as second
- joystick like the cp products pedals. However these pedals affect the x
- axis in the test program. Having successfully calibrated the pedals, chose
- option "PEDALS2" as the joystick controller.
-
- The sound
- -------------
- We use the Miles drivers for creating sound effects in Big Red
- Racing. These drivers have been used in many games before so you
- may find you have another game which works with them.
-
- The install utility runs a program called SETSOUND. This
- establishes which card is installed in your machine. Should you
- change your sound card after installing the game
- : run SETSOUND to create a new sound driver.
-
- Next time you run the Racing, and are prompted with enter your
- name, type in a new name. You will then be prompted with a
- create new config. By answering yes to this (hit Y), the new name
- will use the new sound driver yet keeping the old driver intact.
-
- 2PL Split Screen
- --------------------
-
- Player 2's default keys (again, alterable) are:-
-
- Q,A,R,T for driving
- ALT for nitro
-
- Left-CTRL for "putting on track"
-
- Player 2, being on the left end of the keyboard, gets F1..F4 for the views.
-
- F1 gives PL2 control of the mouse
- F2,F3,F4 are the same as 1PL mode
-
- ...And Player 1 gets to use F9...F12 instead
-
- F9 gives PL1 control of the mouse
- F10,F11,F12 are PL1's view keys (see F2,F3,F4)
-
- 2PL Modem Game
- ----------------------
-
- The modem game has to be played by launching it through the
- modem launch program called modem. This is a similar
- program to that that DOOM uses so people should be reasonably
- aware of what's going on. You simply type modem at the
- command line.
-
- First select you name using the cursory up and down thing
- like the install program. The instructions I think are quite
- explanatory and easy to understand.
-
- Now select your modem type from the list provided once you
- have both got the right modem set up, choose the connect
- option. To establish if you have got the right modem strings,
- try to connect. If the modems response to initialization is to
- return an error or even not answer at all, try returning to DOS
- and attempt to connect again, try switching the modem off then on
- and attempt to connect again and finally try to switch your
- computer off then on and attempt to connect again. The init
- strings used are the same that are used on DOOM, so if all else
- fails, check that DOOM works and edit the MODEM.INI file.
-
- The MODEM.INI file looks something like this :-
-
- ;
- ;Big Red Modem Interface
- ;
-
- DEVICE Pace Linnet 32 Plus vfx
- INITSTRING AT &C0 F8 \N0
- HANGSTRING AT Z H
- DIALSTRING ATDT
- BAUD 9600
- PORT 1
- LINE SPEED 19200
- TELEPHONE
- NAME
-
- Hopefully the above should be fairly self explanatory. But
- just in case:
-
- Note all strings and numbers start at the 13th position in!
-
- DEVICE is the name of the modem.
- INITSTRING is the string used to initialize the modem.
- HANGSTRING is the string used to hang up the phone.
- BAUD is the speed the modem talks to the outside world.
- PORT is the serial port the modem is connected to.
- LINE SPEED is the speed the serial port talks to the modem.
- TELEPHONE is the default number to call when you dial.
- NAME is your name.
-
- Having corrected the strings and the correct baud rates
- again attempt to connect upon getting your strings right you
- should see you modem respond with an OK. You can experiment
- with the modem strings by using the chat mode to chat directly
- to your modem. When in chat mode, all modems should respond with
- OK when you type +++ (then wait a second or two) +++ and then
- then AT followed by enter. If this doesn't work then its likely
- you haven't set the baud rates properly.
-
- Assuming your modem choice is correct, (read what
- appears in the modem response box if ), one person must choose
- to dial while the other chooses to answer the phone.
-
- Having established a connection, you will then be able to chat to
- each other by typing stuff on the keyboard and watching the
- response box.
-
- Press escape to exit and then choose to play the game. At the time
- of writing, you still then have to select the modem game from
- within racing, (short cut keys M for multi play then M for modem).
- By the final cut this will be the defaulted to when the game
- is run.
-
- Network Options
- ---------------
- DOS Racing runs on IPX network we use Novell although it has been tested on
- other networks with an IPX protocol driver running on top.
-
- The problem with network driven games are usually due to a disparity with
- the speeds of the various computers on the net.
-
- If you have problems with the network version of racing there are a few
- parameters that you can play around with. These parameters are stored
- in the config file that is loaded in when you choose your name at the start
- of the game. To look at your config file use a text editor such as edit to
- load in the file "YOURNAME".CFG. Look through the file and find the
- reference to netspeed followed by three numbers separated by spaces.
-
- The first parameter is the number of 70ths of a second that have to have
- passed between the computer sending out packets during the game. If your
- computer is particularly fast say a p120, you may find that it is flooding
- the network with game packets. Slower computers have no choice but to
- listen to what the fast computer is saying and therefore not redraw the
- screen smoothly. In instances like this slow down the fast PC by increasing
- this number and speed up slower computers by reducing this number.
-
- The second parameter is a similar value, but it is for the original
- signing up the particular player to the net game. As the net game
- starts, the game BROADCASTS to the entire net that it is about to
- start playing racing. A broadcast is received by all PC's on the net
- and so you should try to reduce the amount of these particular writes.
- Do this by increasing the second parameter.
-
- The third parameter was added to help the computer that could not
- keep up with the rest of the game. Simply put, if the game received
- a message updating the position of the other players at relatively
- long pauses in time, the car would appear to jerk from it current
- place to the next. The third value adds what is called interpolation.
- What this does is to make a guess at where the car is going and
- let it continue in that direction until it is told next time where it is.
- By its very nature, the computer is guessing where your opponent is
- going and so sometimes depending on how regularly its getting messages
- from the other player, it gets it wrong. The result is a warping effect.
- A car will warp from one location to another. If you find this effect
- irritating to remove it, make the third parameter a zero.
-
- Command Line Options
- --------------------
- use "RACING -CFG <yourname>" to bypass the name-entry screen
- use "RACING -NOSOUND" to avoid loading a "wrong" sound driver
-
- and finally ...
- ----------------
- A big thank you to the "Flying Wolfpack" group here at Domark US for
- their many hours of network play testing....... James.
-