Name : X
Author : Tony Haines
Size : 3108 bytes
Needs : ARM2 RiscOS2 probably sufficient (&Mode4)
Description : A rather gritty game

***

X


The Plot

Towards the end of the twentieth Century, it became necessary to dispose of
large amounts of radioactive material. These substances were sealed into
large drums and transported to large underground silos for storage; forever,
to all intents and purposes.

Considerable thought was put in to where to locate this toxic material, and
suitable sites chosen in spite of political considerations. At typical sites
construction and storage took place concurrently, over many years.

When full, a site would be sealed, with monitoring equipment on guard to
warn when maintainance was required; forever being a long time...

Over time, a mood of resentment developed towards this legacy. Politicians
found it expedient to reduce the maintainance budget. The silos slowly fell
into decay, being held at a level just short of outright neglect.

The long fortold unpredictable event has just occured. After a relatively
minor earthquake, a large increase in radiation has been detected from one
such site.
It falls to you to recover the situation as best you can.




The Game

The site is divided into levels.
The earthquake has had several effects:
* Walls have collapsed
* Some barrels have sprung leaks
* Radiation absorbing blocks have been destroyed or knocked
  out of position.

Barrels and any fluid they may leak is radioactive.
You cannot see where radiation is, however the higher the radiation
on a level, the more snow on your screen. (This is caused by
radioactive particles 'fogging' the film.)
Radioactive particles impinging on barrels cause a chain reaction,
producing more particles. Therefore, while one barrel in isolation is not
particularly radioactive, a cluster of several is.

As the first agent on the scene, you must reduce the radiation level as much
as possible, and fix any leaks to prevent radioactive material reaching the
water table.

You can pick up and move the blocks by moving over them. If you are not
carrying a block, you can squirt fast setting foam to seal cracks and
immobilise fluid.
You do not have to squirt every barrel, just the ones with the
characteristic warped tops, and all the puddles.


Controls:

Z  left
X  right
@  up
?  down
<return>  drop block/spray foam

A buttonpress will make your character turn, further taps will make him take
a single step forwards.

You can tell roughly the amount of radiation you are receiving by the amount
of noise your Geiger counter produces. If you get a very high dose you will
die of radiation sickness. Lower doses increase your risk of cancer,
but you will not notice this during the game.

When you have sealed all leaks and covered all puddles, the exit sign
will change to indicate this. When the radiation level is low enough and
all leaks are sealed, the exit will be inverted. Run for it.

After each level, if you have received a high dose of radiation you will be
relieved from duty.

Each level is built to a different design. Some have been more affected by
the earthquake than others.

Besides the effects of the earthquake, some of the workers appear to have
been labouring under the misapprehension that the moderating blocks were to
keep the radiation in. You may therefore have to reorganise the blocks.

Good Luck (You'll need it)


Hint
Initially there are no puddles covered by blocks. However if you cover
one yourself it will remain, and you will not be able to spray it until it has
been uncovered.



Stuff in More

Guide - game object index
Demo - run it to see the radiation in action
Sources <Dir> Full source code + data
Silo <Dir> - Stuff for making your own levels
ProgInfo - Miscellaneous comments


Comments etc to me at
a.s.haines@bham.ac.uk




