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Demons to Diamonds - Atari - Atari 2600    Manual Scan icon HTML Manual   

Demons to Diamonds
The Demons to Diamonds manual is 12 pages

Page I (front cover)

DEMONS TO DIAMONDS(tm)
ATARI(R) GAME PROGRAM(tm) INSTRUCTIONS

ATARI(R)
A Warner Communications Company                        CX2615

COMPLETE                 HELPFUL                       FOR ONE OR
GAME PLAY                HINTS                         TWO PLAYERS
INSTRUCTIONS        Section 7

Page II

NOTE:  Although DEMONS TO DIAMONDS(tm) was primarily designed for
children in the 6 to 12 age range, we find that people of all ages enjoy
this engaging game.

NOTE:  Always turn othe console POWER switch OFF when inserting or
removing an ATARI(R) Game Program(tm) cartridge.  This will protect the
electronic components and prolong the life of your ATARI Video Computer
System(tm) game.
(C) 1982, ATARI, INC.  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Page III

Transcriber's note:  pages III through 8 have the words ATARI(R) GAME
PROGRAM(tm) INSTRUCTIONS centered at the top of each page.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.  SATURDAY AT THE COSMIC CARNIVAL          1
2.  GAME PLAY                                2
3.  USING THE CONTROLLERS                    4
4.  CONSOLE CONTROLS                         4
5.  GAME VARIATIONS                          5
6.  SCORING                                  6
7.  HELPFUL HINTS                            7
8.  GAME SELECT MATRIX                       8

Page 1

ATARI(R) GAME PROGRAM(tm) INSTRUCTIONS
1. SATURDAY AT THE COSMIC CARNIVAL

You and your best friend are spending a super Saturday at the Cosmic
Carnival.  So far you've done all the usual things.  Now you're
restlessly looking around for a new thrill--something exciting and
different, some competitive skill sport.  Suddenly you hear a taunting
voice coming from the vicinity of Target Skill Gallery.

"Whoa, let's see what that's about!" you say as you make a sharp left
and jog off in the direction of the high pitched speech.

The non-stop voice belongs to a squat, two-food tall demon parading back
and forth in front of a huge, vertical shooting range.

"Hey you!" squeaks the demon, pointing directly at you.  "Would you like
to command a laser base?  Like to hit targets and score points?  Are you
looking for fun, excitement--a game in which you must dodge danger?  We
are the demons and we dare you to try your laser-sharpshooting skills on
us!  We're full of surprises.  We sidestep all over the shooting range.
We yak at you until you shut us up.  We change into new target forms--
precious diamonds or deadly skulls.  Hit a diamond and you'll score a
small fortune in bonus points.  But beware of skulls!

"So come on, reach for your laser, exercise your trigger finger on us.
Put us through our paces and we'll dazzle you with demonic tricks!"

2. GAME PLAY

Your objective in DEMONS TO DIAMONDS is to score as many points as
possible while losing as few lives as possible.  You start the game with
5 lives; 4 of your lives are displayed on your side of the screen in the
far right corner.  They look like white triangles, as shown in Figure 1.

(Figure 1 is a game screen illustration indicating the scores in the top
and bottom center of the screen and lives remaining in the top and
bottom right.)

Use your Paddle Controller to move your laser back and forth across the
top or bottom of the playfield.  Press the red button to fire at demons.
The longer you hold in the red button, the farther your laser will
extend up or down the screen.  The laser disappears when it hits a
demon, a skull, or any object on the screen.

Hit demons the same color as your laser base to score points.  Demons
will first appear in the middle two rows (rows 4 and 5).  When you hit a
demon of your color, it eventually changes into a pulsating diamond.  If
you or your opponent can hit this diamond before it disappears, the one
who hits it scores bonus points.  When you hit a demon of your
opponent's color, it transforms into a skull that shoots in both
directions.  Watch out for these skulls; you lose a life every time you
are struck by a skull's bullet.  In some game variations, you also lose
a life when your laser base is hit by your opponent.  (See Section 5--
GAME VARIATIONS, for details.)

Page 3

Skulls disappear after a while.  Figure 2 shows you a typical DEMONS TO
DIAMONDS game playfield, with demons, skulls, and bonus diamonds.

(Figure 2 is a game screen indicating a bonus diamond, a demon, a laser
base and a skull.)

Demons move back and forth across the screen.  They change color when
they bump into either wall.  They can also move up or down the screen
into new rows when they hit the side walls.  Each time you shoot all the
demons on the screen, you get a new wave of the little devils to shoot
at.

The screen flashes briefly to signal the end of one wave and the start
of another.  At first, the demons move slowly and the skulls are
stationary.  As the game progresses, the demons pick up speed and the
skulls move about.  By the fifth wave in all two-player versions and
immediately in one-player games, the skulls spontaneously appear.  At
first skulls do not move, but by wave 3 in one-player games and wave 7
in two-player games, they move up and down the screen, making it hard to
dodge their deadly fire.

When a skull's bullet hits you, you will know.  A deep, reechoing doom
bong sounds and everything on the screen momentarily stops.

In two-player games, you score bonus points for lives that remain after
your opponent has lost all his lives.  A high, bell-like sound rings off
each remaining life as your bonus points are added.  (For more about
SCOREING, see Section 6.)

Page 4

3.  USING THE CONTROLLERS

Use one set of Paddle Controllers with this ATARI(R) Game Program(tm)
cartridge.  Be sure to plug the controller cables firmly into the LEFT
CONTROLLER jack at the back of your Video Computer System(tm) game.
Hold the controller with the red button to your upper left toward the
television screen.  See your owner's manual for further details.

NOTE:  If unsure about which controller to use, turn the knob on either
controller.  The paddle will move horizontally across the top or bottom
of the screen.  Turn the knob clockwise to move the paddle right; turn
it counterclockwise to move it left.  Press the red button to fire your
laser.  The longer you hold in the button, the farther your laser will
go up or down the screen.

(Transcriber's note:  This section is illustrated with a line drawing of
standard Atari paddle controllers.)

4.  CONSOLE CONTROLS

GAME SELECT SWITCH

Use the GAME SELECT switch to choose the game you wish to play.  If you
press and hold down this switch, the game number automatically changes
at the top center of the screen, while the number of players for that
game appears at the top right, as shown in figure 3.

There are 6 game numbers in total.  For a breakdown of GAME VARIATIONS,
see Section 6.

(Figure 3 shows a game screen showing a Game Number where the top score
would be, and the number of players indicated with the bars which
indicate the number of lives remaining.)

Page 5

GAME RESET SWITCH

Once you have selected the game number you wish to play, press down the
GAME RESET switch to start the game.  In two-player versions, scores
then appear at the top and bottom center of the screen; lives remaining
will appear at the top and bottom right side of the screen.  (See Figure
1.)  In one-player games, your score is displayed at the bottom center,
your lives at bottom right.

DIFFICULTY SWITCHES

DIFFICULTY switches control the speed of the skull's bullets in all
games.  In the A position, the bullets fire almost twice as fast as in
the B position.

Use the LEFT DIFFICULTY switch for one-player games.  For two-player
games, the bottom player uses the LEFT DIFFICULTY switch and the top
player uses the RIGHT DIFFICULTY switch.

TV TYPE SWITCH

On a color television, the game will appear in color.  On a black and
white set, the demons are black and white, the top player's laser base
is white, and the bottom player's base is black.  The TV TYPE switch is
not used in this game.

5.  GAME VARIATIONS

DEMONS TO DIAMONDS contains 6 game variations.  Games 1 through 3 are
standard versions, while Games 4 through 6 are easier versions suitable
for beginners.  Here is a breakdown of your game choices:

GAME 1:  A one-player DEMONS TO DIAMONDS game in which the skulls fire
bullets at normal speed, shoot often, and move quickly up and down the
screen.

GAME 2:  A two-player version of Game 1.

GAME 3:  A two-player version of Game 1, except that you or your
opponent lose a life each time you hit the other's laser base.

GAME 4:  An easy one-player game in which the skulls fire more slowly
than in standard games, don't fire as often, and take longer to move up
and down the screen.

GAME 5:  A two-player game exactly like Game 4.

GAME 6:  A two-player easy game like Game 4, except you and your
opponent can lose lives by hitting each other's laser base.

6.  SCORING

DEMONS

Every time you hit a demon of your own color, you receive 1 to 8 points,
depending upon which row the demon occupies.  For example, a demonin the
row nearest your laser base is worth 1 point, while a demon in the third
row from your laser is worth 3 points.  For a breakdown of point value
per row, see Figure 4.

DIAMONDS

Each pulsating diamond is worth 10 to 80 points, or 10 times the value
of the row it occupies (see Figure 4).

(Figure 4 is pretty useless, since the scoring system is described well
enough in the text.)

Page 7

BONUS LIVES

Lives that you have remaining after an opponent has lost all 5 lives are
credited to your score.  The value of a bonus life increases with each
wave, as shown in Figure 5-Bonus Life Scoring Table.

Figure 5:
Wave Number              1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8    9
Points Per Life Left     10   20   30   50   100  150  200  250  300

Wave Number              10   11   12   13   14   15   16
Points Per Life Left     350  400  500  750  1000 1500 2000

7.  HELPFUL HINTS

Create skulls as far as possible from your laser base; these are more
likely to hit your opponent than you.

Aim at demons of your own color that are as far away as possible; they
are worth more points than the close ones.  But beware of your opponent
hitting your bonus diamond.  He gets those points, too.

Try to hit the diamonds whenever you can.  They are worth a lot of
points and, if you can hit them consistently, your score will rise
quickly.

Spontaneous skulls usually appear at the edge of the rows.  Don't spend
too much time in this vicinity.  The safest position is just to the
right or left of the center, as shown in Figure 6.

(Figure 6 shows a base a bit to the right of center.)

Take care when firing into the center of the screen.  This is where
demons first appear, and you can inadvertently hit an opponent while
aiming at your own color.  The same thing can happen when you try to hit
your own color at the edge of the screen.  Since demons change color
when they bump into the right and left sides, you can usually end up
hitting an opponent and making a skull there.

8.  GAME SELECT MATRIX

Game Number              1    2    3    4    5    6
Number of Players        1    2    2    1    2    2
Slow Skull Bullets                      X    X    X
Fast Skull Bullets       X    X    X
Can Shoot Opponent                 X              X
Cannon Shoot Opponent    X    X         X    X

Page 9 (back cover)

GAME PROGRAM(tm) CARTRIDGE
LIMITED NINETY DAY WARRANTY

ATARI, INC. ("Atari") warrants to the original consumer purchaser that
your ATARI(R) Game Program cartridge is free from any defects in
material or workmanship for a period of ninety days from the date of
purchase.  If any such defect is discovered within the warranty period,
Atari's sole obligation will be to replace the cartridge free of charge
on receipt of the cartridge (charges prepaid, if mailed or shipped) with
proof of date of purchase at either the retail store where the cartridge
was purchased or at one of the ATARI Regional Service Centers listed
below:

     Atari, Inc.                             Atari, Inc.
     1312 Crossman Ave.                      43 Belmont Dr.
     Sunnyvale, CA 94086                     Somerset, NJ 08873

     Atari, Inc.                             Atari, Inc.
     5400 Newport Dr.                        2109 East Division St.
     Suite 1                                 Arlington, TX 76001
     Rolling Meadows, IL 60008

This warranty shall not apply if the cartridge (i) has been misused or
shows signs of excessive wear; (ii) has been damaged by being used with
any products not supplied by ATARI, or (iii) has been damaged by being
serviced or modified by anyone other than an ATARI Regional Service
Center.

ANY APPLICABLE IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF
MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS, ARE HEREBY LIMITED TO NINETY DAYS FROM THE
DATE OF PURCHASE.  CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES RESULTING FROM A
BREACH OF ANY APPLICABLE EXPESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES ARE HEREBY
EXCLUDED.

Some states do not allow limitations on how long an implied warranty
lasts or do not allow the exclusion or limitations of incidental or
consequential damages, so the above limitations or exclusions may not
apply to you.

This warranty gives you specific legal rights and you may also have
other rights which vary from state to state.

ATARI(R)
A Warner Communications Company

ATARI, INC., Consumer Division
P.O. Box 427, Sunnyvale, CA 94086

CO16943-15 REV. 1 (C)1982 ATARI, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Printed in USA

-------------------Atari 2600 Instructions Archive-------------------

This document obtained from the History of Home Video Games Homepage, �1997-1998 by Greg Chance