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Falcon 3.0 Demo - Spectrum HoloByte ABOUT THE DEMO Falcon 3.0 is the most complete combat flight simulator ever created. Modeled after the F-16 Fighting Falcon, Falcon 3.0 continues the long line of quality flight simulators brought to you by Spectrum HoloByte. The demo version of Falcon 3.0 gives you a taste of dogfighting action with the spirit of modern aerial combat. This demo is a pre-release, limited version of the actual program, so there may be some modifications, corrections and additions made to the final released version. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS The Falcon 3.0 demo requires an IBM AT or compatible (8 MHz 80286 minimum) with at least 640K RAM and VGA graphics. You must have 560K free RAM in order to run this demo. If you don't have 560K free RAM, disable any ram- resident programs (mouse drivers, virus checkers, etc.) and then reboot your computer. Sound can be played through either the internal speaker, an Ad Lib sound card or SoundBlaster sound card. See the LOADING section for more instructions. INSTALLING TO A HARD DRIVE This procedure is described below: 1. Insert Sampler Disk 1 into floppy drive A. 2. From the DOS prompt, type A: and then press Enter. 3. Type CD\ and then press Enter to be sure that you are in the root directory. 4. Type INSTALL and then press Enter to start the installation program. Once it has loaded, simply follow the directions onscreen to install your demo. LOADING FROM A HARD DRIVE The following instructions assume you have already installed the Falcon 3.0 demo to your hard drive: 1. From the DOS prompt, type C: and then press Enter. 2. Type CD\FALCON3 and then press Enter. 3. To start the demo, type FALCON3 and then press Enter. LOADING FROM A FLOPPY DRIVE Before playing, be sure you have made a backup copy of your original disk. 1. Insert Sampler Disk 1 into floppy drive A. 2. From the DOS prompt, type A: and then press Enter. 3. To start the demo, type FALCON3 and then press Enter. INSTRUCTIONS FOR USE The demo version of Falcon 3.0 is an interactive demo. This means that you will be able to fly around in the simulation. Due to space limitations and other constraints, this demo is by no means a complete game. Many of the functions have been removed in order to save space and to simplify game play. About Falcon 3.0... ------------------- The object of the demo version of Falcon 3.0 is to fly around the world and destroy any enemy plane you encounter. Any ground targets you find are enemy forces, so fire at will. Your game will end after about 10 minutes (when your fuel runs out) or if you are shot down. Keep a careful eye on your wingman; he's out there to help save your hide. So, power up, happy hunting and check six for that MiG-29. He's a killer. Introduction screens: -------------------- After you load the program, there will be a couple of introduction screens with basic information on the game. After these screens have passed by there will be an animation sequence. You can press any key to bypass each screen as it appears, or Esc to skip all screens. Once the animation has finished, you will be in the cockpit. Flight controls: --------------- Following are the keys you need to control your F-16's flight: J, left arrow Bank left L, right arrow Bank right I, up arrow Nose down M, down arrow Pull up These control keys are duplicated on the numeric keypad as well with the 4, 6, 8 and 2 keys respectively. The following keys control your acceleration: + Increase throttle - Decrease throttle / Afterburner/Military power toggle > Increase afterburner stage < Decrease afterburner stage It is to your advantage not to fly in afterburner while dogfighting because of the tendency to overshoot your target. Use afterburner only to increase to combat speed or to evade an enemy plane. Weapon selection and firing: --------------------------- Following are the keys to select and fire your weapons: Enter Select air-to-air weapons Backspace Select air-to-ground weapons Spacebar Fire selected weapon T Select new target (air-to-air or air-to-ground) When you hear a high pitched tone, your missile has locked onto a target. This is the best time to fire your air-to-air missiles. On the joystick, one button controls weapons firing while the other toggles through the various air-to-air weapons. Front cockpit and displays: -------------------------- There are a number of items that are in your front cockpit field of view. These are graphically represented below (see the corresponding number for information on that item): +-------------------+ / \ + + | | | | | | | 1 | | | +-+ +-+ | | | | | | | | | | | | +---------------+-+-----------------------+-+---------------+ / +---+ +---------------------+ +---+ \ / +----+ / \ | | / \ \ + / 4 | | 3 | | | | 6 | + | / | \ / | | \ / | | +-------+ +---+ | | +---+ | | | | | | +-----------------+ | 2 | +---+-----+-------+ | | | | | | | | 7 | | | | | | | | | +-----+ | | | | 5 | | | | | 8 | 10 | | | | | | | | +-----+ | | | | | | | | | 9 | | | | +-----------------+ +---------------------+ +---+-----+-------+ | +-----------------------------------------------------------------+ 1. Head Up Display (HUD). This is the most important display in your cockpit. It contains heading, altitude, speed and weapon information vital to your survival. During combat, you will be looking here most of the time. See the HUD section for more details. 2. Radar/Electro-Optical display (REO). The REO contains data on incoming planes, their speed, altitude and targeting information. If there are no targets within range of your radar, this display will be blank. See the REO section for more details. 3. Threat Warning Azimuth Indicator (TWAI). The TWAI shows the direction of incoming threats. In this display, your F-16 is located in the center of the circle. The upper half of the circle is in front of your plane, while the lower half of the circle is behind your plane. 4. Threat Warning Panel. Two lights can appear on this panel: the Lock- on (LCK) light and the Launch (LNH) light. When the LCK light appears, it means that an enemy plane has a lock on your F-16. You should try evasive maneuvers in an effort to try to shake him. If the LNH light appears, it means that the enemy plane has launched a missile at your aircraft. You must try evasive maneuvers and dump chaff/flares (see numbers 8 and 9 below) to try to shake the missile. 5. Stores Control Panel (SCP). The SCP displays what weapon system you have currently loaded. The number on the first line indicates how many of the current weapon you have loaded. (In this demo version, you have an unlimited amount of every weapon.) The different air-to- air weapons are as follows: AIM9P and AIM9M (Sidewinder), AIM120 (AMRAAM) and M61 (Internal Gun). The air-to-ground weapons are as follows: AGM65B (Maverick) and M61 (Internal Gun). 6. RPM Gauge. This tells you what percentage of thrust you are applying to your engine. When in afterburner mode, this gauge will always read at 100%. To find out your true airspeed (TAS), look at the Airspeed Scale on the HUD. 7. Mil/AB Indicator. This indicator shows you whether you are using standard engine power (MIL) or afterburner power (AB1 - AB5) to power your F-16. 8. Flare Indicator. This displays the amount of infrared flares you have remaining. Flares are used to spoof heat-seeking missiles. (In this demo version, you have an unlimited amount of flares.) Hit Insert to dispense flares. 9. Chaff Indicator. This displays the amount of chaff packets you have remaining. Chaff are packets of tiny foil strips designed to fool radar-guided missiles. (In this demo version, you have an unlimited amount of chaff.) Hit Delete to dispense chaff. 10. Aircraft Status Control Panel. There are a number of lights that can illuminate on this panel. These are listed below: FLAP This light turns on when you use your flaps to slow down. AUTO When you engage the autopilot, this light will illuminate. If there is an enemy nearby, engaging the autopilot will make your F-16 track the enemy plane and fire the currently selected weapon if it is within firing range. WHEEL This light will turn on if you lower the landing gear (the G key). BRAKE If you use the speed brakes for slowing the plane, this light will illuminate. The Head-Up Display (HUD): ------------------------- The HUD is the most critical piece of equipment on your F-16. Everything you need to fly is contained on the HUD. Following is the essential items on the HUD, in clockwise order starting from the upper left hand corner: +-------------------+ / 1 2 \ + + | 6 | | | | | | 5 7 3 | | | +-+ +-+ | | | | | | | | | | 4 | | --+-+-----------------------+-+-- 1. G Force Indicator. This indicator is located just above the Airspeed scale and measures how many G's you are currently pulling. 2. Directional Indicator. When there is an enemy plane within radar range, a line will appear from this crosshair. This line shows the direction to find the enemy plane. 3. Altitude Scale. This scale is located on the far right hand side of the HUD and shows your current altitude in thousands of feet. There is a digital display of your altitude in the lower right hand corner of the HUD. 4. Heading Scale. The Heading Scale is located at the bottom of every air-to-air HUD (top of every air-to-ground HUD) and displays your current direction in tens of degrees. 5. Airspeed Scale. This scale is located on the far left hand side of the HUD and shows your current airspeed in tens of knots. 6. Aiming Reticle. In air-to-air missile mode (AIM9P, AIM9M and AIM120), this circle in the middle of the HUD will flash when you have a lock on an enemy plane. If you fire a missile without this circle flashing, you are most likely to miss your target. In air-to-air gun mode (M61), there is a "funnel" showing the path of your bullets. In air-to-ground missile mode (GBU15 and AGM65B), there will be a crosshair to target ground objects. Finally, in air-to-ground gun mode (M61), there will be a small reticle to indicate the path of the bullets. 7. Pitch Ladder. These bars, located in the center of your HUD, show you whether you are climbing (solid lines) or diving (dashed lines). The positive numbers indicate climb rate while the negative numbers indicate dive rate. The Radar/Electro-Optical Display (REO): --------------------------------------- The REO displays important information about enemy targets. Your F-16 is considered to be at the bottom center of the REO. Enemy aircraft will appear from the top of the display and make their way to the bottom. The closer an enemy plane is to the bottom of the display, the closer he is to your aircraft. The following information will be displayed on the REO when an enemy plane comes within the 20 mile range of your radar: +---------------------+ | 1 2 | | | | | | | | | | 3 | | | | 5 | | 6 | | 4 7 | | 8 | +---------------------+ 1. REO Mode. If there are no enemy planes in the vicinity, this will read "20 ACM" (Air Combat Mode). When an enemy plane comes within 10 miles of the forward half of your aircraft, this will change to "10 STT" (Single Target Track). The radar has been greatly simplified for this demo. 2. Enemy Altitude. This number indicates the enemy aircraft's altitude (in thousands of feet). 3. Waterline/Horizon Reference. The "W" indicates the position of your aircraft relative to the horizon. If the ends of the bar are pointing upward, your plane is inverted. 4. Enemy Bearing/Distance. The first number here shows the bearing of the enemy plane relative to the position of your F-16. The second number shows the distance to the enemy plane (in miles). 5. Enemy Heading. This shows what compass direction the enemy plane is heading. If you are flying with a heading of 0 degrees and his heading is 90 degrees, he is heading due right of you. 6. Enemy Airspeed. This is the velocity (in knots) of the targeted enemy plane. 7. Intercept Angle. This indicates the angle (in degrees) you need to take in order to intercept the enemy plane. 8. Closure Rate. This number (measured in knots) indicates the rate you are gaining or losing on the enemy. A positive number indicates that you are closing, while a negative number indicates that the plane is moving away. Views: ----- There are a number of different views to see the action. The keys and description of them are listed below: 1 Satellite view. From here, you can view your F-16 as if looking down from a satellite. 2 Ground view. This view is the opposite of the Satellite view. Here, you are looking at your F-16 from the ground. 3 Front view. This view accesses your HUD and many other important instruments. 4 Left view. This view shows some secondary instruments. 5 Right view. This view shows your caution lights and an actual clock! 6 Rear view. This view gives you access to the rear of your plane (your "six"). 8 Padlock view. This view gives you 360 degree targeting in a combat situation. This will be described in a separate section. 9 Track view. This outside view shows your plane from directly behind as if you were holding the plane out on a stick. The plane itself will not change direction or move, while the horizon and landscape will. 0 Chase view. This outside view is from the perspective of another plane "chasing" your F-16. The following keys can be used in the Satellite, Ground, Track and Chase plane views: F1 Zoom in. F2 Zoom out. F3 Rotate X axis. (If you hold down the Shift and F3 keys together, you can rotate the opposite direction.) F4 Rotate Y axis. (If you hold down the Shift and F4 keys together, you can rotate the opposite direction.) Padlock view: ------------ This is a 360 degree view that is utilized in air-to-air combat. There are four main areas on this screen and these are described below: The upper left hand display shows all the relative information about your current target and the status of your aircraft. TARGET This is the currently selected target. To switch to the next target, press the T key. (To switch to the last selected target, press Shift and the T key.) ALT This is the current altitude of your F-16. YAW This is the amount of yaw (horizontal movement) that your plane is incurring. PITCH This is the amount of pitch (climb or dive) that your plane is incurring. SPEED This is your F-16's current airspeed (in knots). The upper middle display shows where an enemy target is relative to the front of your F-16. The red box is the current viewing area, while the "+" shows the currently selected target. Your objective is to get the red box into the lower center of this display (where the small representation of the HUD is). The upper right display shows a miniature version of your HUD with a target locator line in red. It also shows the current horizon line. The lower large window shows your current eye position. In the padlock view, your eye is constantly on the current target, regardless of which direction you are flying. To use the padlock view, first look at the upper middle display to determine where your current view is. Then, look at the upper right display and follow the locator line until both your target and HUD appear in the lower window. Then fly as normal until you achieve a lock on and fire a missile. REMEMBER: Keep your eye on the upper right-hand display for most of your flying. You won't be confused if you fly according to these instructions. The Menu Bar: ------------ Pressing the Esc key brings up the menu bar. From here, you can select from three menus: File, Control and Options. These are described below: FILE: Return to game This will bring you back to the demo. The Esc key will also do this function. Start over This will restart your game and bring you back to the title screen. Ctrl-R will also restart your game without having to come to this menu. Quit to DOS This will exit the program to DOS. You can use Ctrl-C to exit to DOS without coming to this menu. CONTROL: Keyboard Select this option if you want to fly using the keyboard. Joystick This option has two sub-selections: Default and Calibrate. If you wish to adjust your joystick, select Calibrate and follow the instructions. OPTIONS: The three choices on the Options menu have been automatically chosen for you by the program. These are directly related to the speed of your computer. If you adjust any of these options, you may decrease the speed and playability of the demo. World Detail There are three options here: High, Medium and Low. Medium detail removes the gradient horizon and reduces the amount of terrain displayed. Low detail further reduces the amount of terrain you can view. Terrain There are two options here: On and Off. This simply turns the 3-D terrain on or off and otherwise has no influence on the World Detail option. Change Scale This option will change the size of the aircraft objects in the demo. Increasing the scale of the objects will allow you to see them better, but may also decrease the speed of the demo. LIST OF KEYS Following is a complete list of keys that you can use in Falcon 3.0: A Autopilot B Speed brakes F Flaps G Landing gear I Nose down J Bank left L Bank right M Pull up P Pause game S All sound on/off T Target select 1 Satellite view 2 Ground view 3 Front view 4 Left view 5 Right view 6 Rear view 8 Padlock view 9 Track view 0 Chase view + Increase throttle - Decrease throttle / Afterburner on/off > Increase afterburner stage < Decrease afterburner stage Enter Select air-to-air weapons Backspace Select air-to-ground weapons Esc Menu bar F1 Zoom in F2 Zoom out F3 Rotate X F4 Rotate Y F5 Engine sound on/off F6 Missile sound on/off F10 Falcon 3.0 message bar on/off Ctrl-C Exit to DOS Ctrl-R Restart game Numeric keypad: -------------- 1 Front view 2 Pull up 3 Rear view 4 Bank left 6 Bank right 7 Left view 8 Nose down 9 Right view Ins Flares Del Chaff * Padlock view + Increase throttle - Decrease throttle / Afterburner on/off Enter Select air-to-air weapons GAME FEATURES The complete version of Falcon 3.0 contains the following features: * 256-color VGA graphics * Full music and sound for all major sound cards * 3-D contoured terrain for 270,000 square miles of actual territory * Three theaters of conflict: Kuwait, Panama and Israel * Accurate flight model and avionics * Digitized video animation sequences * 360 degree padlock view for dogfighting * Skill levels to suit any pilot from beginning to advanced * Campaign mode where your missions control the course of the war * Instant action mode for quick combat excitement * Mission editor to create your own scenarios * Training missions to learn how to operate your F-16 * Head-to-head play using direct-connect, modem or network * Replay feature to show your action from any angle For product availability or Customer Support, call 081-928-1454 Mirrorsoft Ltd. 118 Southwark St. London, SE1 0SW --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Falcon 3.0 game, demo and documentation Copyright 1991 Sphere, Inc. All rights reserved. Falcon 3.0 is a trademark and Spectrum HoloByte is a registered trademark of Sphere, Inc. All other trademarks are owned by their respective holders.