VECTOR MIRAGE - - DEMO - - MANUAL (readme.txt) -WARNINGS- (a) Some small number of people may experience an epileptic seizure or loss of consciousness when exposed to certain visual images or flashing lights / patterns which may appear in video games. Even those who have no predisposition for such seizures or loss of consciousness may have an undiagnosed condition that could cause these seizures or loss of consciousness while watching / playing video games. If you or anyone in your family has ever had symptoms related to epilepsy when exposed to images, lights, or patterns common in video games, consult your doctor prior to playing Vector Mirage. Parents should monitor the use of video games by their children. If any player experiences dizziness, blurred vision, eye or muscle twitches, disorientation, any involuntary movement or convulsion, or loss of consciousness - STOP USE IMMEDIATELY AND CONSULT YOUR DOCTOR BEFORE RESUMING USE. (b) Vector Mirage has not been rated by the Entertainment Software Rating Board ("ESRB"). For more information regarding the ESRB, you can visit their website at www.esrb.com. (c) Vector Mirage does not utilize the force feedback capabilities of any supported input devices. -CONTENTS- A. Introduction B. System Requirements C. Maximizing Performance D. Installation E. About DirectX F. Basic DirectX Trouble-Shooting G. Determining DirectX8.1 Compatibility H. Input Devices I. Vector Mirage Controls J. Vector Mirage Trouble-Shooting K. Playing Vector Mirage L. Basic Vector Mirage Strategy -INTRODUCTION- Thank you for checking out the Vector Mirage Demo from Fathom Image LLC. Vector Mirage is a refreshing update on the classic shooter genre and we believe it delivers an intense gaming experience. This document serves as the manual for the Vector Mirage Demo, but for the most updated or any corrected information - check us out at our official website, www.fathomimage.com! The Vector Mirage Demo will only allow you to play the first (3) missions, for the full game check out our official website and ORDER your copy! Vector Mirage has been developed on the Windows 98 platform, and tested on the Windows 98, ME, 2000, and XP platforms. Vector Mirage utilizes DirectX8.1 and is not compatible with Windows 95 or Windows NT. Vector Mirage is not guaranteed to be fully compatible under any of the tested platforms nor is it guaranteed to be fully compatible with the various laptops available at the time of development. If you experience problems running Vector Mirage, we recommend consulting your software and/or hardware vendor(s), or Microsoft directly. Vector Mirage does not support Windows multi-monitor or other custom display modes such as Matrox DualHead and Nvidia TwinView. If multi- monitor support is enabled on your system, then disable it as indicated in your manufacturer's guidelines. -SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS- Minimum: - OS: Windows 98, ME, 2000, or XP. - CPU: 400Mhz Pentium2, AMD K62 or compatible processor. - Memory: 64MB. - Video Adapter: 100% DirectX 8.1 compatible (DirectX 8.1 runtime required), 800x600 resolution at 16 or 32 bit color. - Audio: DirectX7 compatible sound card and drivers, speakers. - Input: Keyboard and mouse required. Joystick optional. - CD-ROM: Install and play game. - Harddisk: ~40MB minimum available drive space. Recommended: - CPU: 700+Mhz Pentium3/4/Celeron, AMD Athlon/Duron or compatible processor. - Memory: 128MB. - Video Adapter: Hardware T&L highly recommended. - CD-ROM: 8x speed or better. -MAXIMIZING PERFORMANCE- - Ensure your system meets the recommended requirement(s). - Ensure your video drivers are up to date and 100% DirectX 8.1 compatible. - Ensure there's enough free space on your harddisk for Window's virtual memory. - Ensure Windows Hardware Acceleration is set properly for your system. - Ensure that your monitor's vertical refresh rate is set correctly. *(1) - Restart your computer prior to play. - Defragment your harddisk prior to play. - Disable any power saving features on your system prior to play. - Disable fullscene anti-aliasing if your video card supports it prior to play. - Do not install Vector Mirage on a compressed harddisk or partition. - Do not play Vector Mirage while other DirectX applications or titles are running. - Increase system RAM. *(2) - Install a video card that supports hardware T&L. *(2) *(1) = Windows XP users may experience lower frame rates without SP1. *(2) = This is a hardware-based solution. -INSTALLATION- Locate the installation executable 'install.exe' for the Vector Mirage Demo. Run this .exe to install the Vector Mirage Demo. Follow the onscreen installation prompts to successfully install the demo. Uninstallation: Profiles will not be deleted. The Vector Mirage Demo installation program will generate a custom uninstallation program, so Windows 'Add/Remove' programs should be unnecessary. WARNINGS: The generated FID that stores your profiles is created the first time the game is run. All profiles are stored in this generated FID and if this file is tampered with in any way the consequences could be unpredictable. In addition, this generated file may be permanently corrupted, in which case it must be deleted and generated again resulting in the total loss of all profile information. Do not tamper with the DAT files included with Vector Mirage. If these files are tampered with in any way, the only option is to uninstall and then reinstall Vector Mirage. If you do not have the DirectX8.1 run-time installed on your Windows platform, please visit Microsoft's website at: www.microsoft.comdirectx and download the DirectX8.1 run-time for your Windows platform. -ABOUT DIRECTX- DirectX is the underlying API used to run Vector Mirage, and DirectX8.1 is required in order to play Vector Mirage. DirectX is backward compatible, so games written for older versions of DirectX will run on newer versions of DirectX. DirectX is produced by Microsoft and is not a product of Fathom Image LLC. Updating DirectX may affect how other applications or hardware components run on your system because DirectX is an extension of Windows, not because you installed Vector Mirage. If you encounter any problems whatsoever after updating DirectX, again refer to Microsoft's website at www.microsoft.comdirectx. -BASIC DIRECTX TROUBLE-SHOOTING- The DirectX Diagnostic Utility will enable you to test various hardware components individually for DirectX compability. If the game runs and doesn't look quite right, for example it doesn't look similar to the screen shots posted on our official website, www.fathomimage.com, run the DirectX Diagnostic Utility and test each component individually. - Select 'Start,' 'Run,' 'Open,' type 'dxdiag,' and select 'OK.' - After the diagnostic utility has evaluated your system, scroll through the tabs and test each individual component following the onscreen prompts. - It may be your video adapter drivers need to be updated or that your video card simply doesn't support all the features of DirectX we've implemented in Vector Mirage, which is more likely on video cards that are more than three years old. - If you encounter any problems the diagnostic utility doesn't clarify, again, please refer to Microsoft's website at www.microsoft.comdirectx. This website will explain DirectX in detail and provide more information than we have in this document. -DETERMINING DIRECTX8.1 COMPATIBILITY- Run the DirectX Diagnostic Utility and after it evaluates your system select the Display* tab at the top of the window. You will see sections regarding your Video Adapter Device, Drivers, and DirectX Features along with a Notes section at the bottom of the window. In the DirectX Features section you'll find the following buttons: Test DirectDraw and Test Direct3D. * If you have multiple 'Display' tabs, select the appropriate tab based on your system configuration. Select Test Direct3D and you will be prompted with the following: "This will test Direct3D on this device. Okay to proceed?" Select YES. "This test will use hardware-accelerated DirectX7 interfaces." Select OK. "Did you see a spinning cube with the DirectX logo on the sides?" If you did not, your video adapter does not support the DirectX7 Direct3D interface and will not run the game. The test failure will be listed in the Notes section at the bottom of the window, although you may need to scroll down to see it. "This test will use hardware-accelerated DirectX8 interfaces." If you made it this far, select OK. "Did you see a spinning cube with the DirectX logo on the sides?" If you did not, your video adapter does not support the DirectX8 Direct3D interface and will not run the game. The test failure will be listed in the Notes section at the bottom of the window, although you may need to scroll down to see it. If you video adapter failed either of the hardware-accelerated interface tests, it's possible the hardware is sufficient with updated drivers. If you decide to update the drivers for your video adapter, run the tests again, and see if your video adapter passes the hardware-accelerated DirectX8 interface test. -INPUT DEVICES- WARNINGS: Some keyboards are limited in that they may not recognize certain combinations of three or more simultaneous key presses. If this is evident during play, this problem is not software-based but is directly attributed to the hardware limitations of the keyboard. Usage may also prove problematic on systems with compacted keyboards, for example laptops, that incorporate keys through multiple function assignments. If you experience an error initializing / acquiring an input device, for example the mouse, try closing other applications that may also be accessing the input device and run the game again. -VECTOR MIRAGE CONTROLS- The keyboard and joystick can each be custom configured and used simultaneously to play Vector Mirage during the Mission Screen. Menus: - The mouse can be used to highlight and select menu options. - TAB and SHIFT-TAB move forward and backward through menu options, ENTER selects. - The joystick will not highlight or select any menu options. - ENTER will bring up the Main Menu on the Title Screen. - ESC will activate/deactive the menus on the Configuration and Mission Screen. Title Screen: - Login - Begin or continue game. - Top Scores - Display Top Scores among all profiles. - Credits - Display game Credits, cycles back to company logo. - Exit - Exits game entirely. Configuration Screen: - Sound - Adjust SFX/BGM balance. - Controls - View and customize Mission Screen controls. - Score - Display profile scores. - Logout - Return to Main Menu on Title Screen. - Exit Menu - Exit Configuration Screen menu. Mission Screen: - Sound - Adjust SFX/BGM balance. - Controls - View and customize Mission Screen controls. - Abort Mission - Exit Mission Screen and return to Configuration Screen. - Logout - Return to Main Menu on Title Screen. - Exit Menu - Exit Mission Screen menu. SubMenus: Sound: - Use < and > to adjust the SFX/BGM balance. - Exit by selecting Prev Menu. Controls: - Highlight and select Joystick or Keyboard to alternate device controls. - If the controls are greyed out, the device is not connected. - Highlight desired action with the mouse and select it, repeat. - Keyboard: - Press desired key to map action to that key. - Joystick - Press/Push desired button/axis to map action to that control. - Actions can be redundant between devices, but not on the same device. - Default Map returns Mission Screen actions to default setting. - Exit by selecting Prev Menu. -NOTES: - If you thrust either Forward or Backward for approx. 2 seconds, your OmniFighter will continue thrusting in that direction until you thrust in a different direction, or your OmniFighter hits or is hit by something. - This is more useful if you're using axes on a joystick to thrust. Score: - Exit by selecting Prev Menu. Login Profile Screen: - You can view the details of a selected profile in the Summary Window. - View all categories by scrolling up and down. - The ?'s in the Extras Category mean they're still locked. - If there are enough profiles, the List of profiles will also scroll up and down. New Profile: 1. Select Name field and type in a unique profile name, which can be up to a maximum of 16 characters. 2. Use < and > to select Normal or Hard difficulty for the profile. 3. Select Load to create the new profile and begin game. Existing Profile: 1. Select a name from the profile list or type it in the Name field. 2. Select Load to load the existing profile. Delete: 1. Select a name from the profile list or type it in the Name field. 2. Select Delete to bring up the Delete Confirmation Menu. 3. Select YES to Delete or NO to Cancel, NO is automatically highlighted. Main Menu: - Select Cancel to return to Main Menu. Default Mission Screen Action Settings: Keyboard: - Forward - Up Arrow - Reverse - Down Arrow - Left - Left Arrow - Right - Right Arrow - Fire - F - Special Weapon - G - Homing Light Weapon - S - Strafe - D - Switch Objectives - N Joystick: - Forward - Up - Reverse - Down - Left - Left - Right - Right - Fire - b0 - Special Weapon - b1 - Homing Light Weapon - b3 - Strafe - b6 - Switch Objectives - b7 - Adjust the button controls to something appropriate for your joystick, because the Default setting MAY not be appropriate. Miscellaneous: - Skip through story between missions, Top Scores, and Credits by pressing ANY KEY. - Exit the Results Screen by pressing ANY KEY. - The game will run an EyeCatch after sitting idle for 1.5 minutes. - The Main Menu will close after sitting idle for 1 minute. - F1 pauses/unpauses the game during the Mission Screen. - Activating/deactivating the Mission Screen menu will also pause/unpause the game. -VECTOR MIRAGE TROUBLE-SHOOTING- - If Vector Mirage errors, an error message will be displayed on the screen. - Record this information before pressing RETURN to exit the game. - This information will help us diagnose the problem. - Vector Mirage will generate and append to an error.log in the root VM folder. - This is very helpful for attaching to an email and sending to us. - This file will also detail your video adapter for us. - This file can be deleted if desired without affecting the game. - Email is the primary way to contact us regarding errors. - Give us the screen error message verbatim or attach the error.log file. - Let us know what was happening during the game when the error occured. - Let us know if it was repeatable. - Remember your system should at least meet the minimum system requirements, 100% DirectX8.1 compatibility is critical. - Posting in our FAQ section on our official website, www.fathomimage.com, will be our primary way of notifying players about error related issues. -PLAYING VECTOR MIRAGE- - Selectable text and Arrows will be a different color than read-only text. Configuration - Your OmniFighter: - Enhancement Points upgrade your OmniFighter: - Beam Strength: Increases the strength of each individual shot. - Beam Barrels: Ranges between 2 and 4 barrels, at the strength level. - Shield: Increases the strength of your regeneratable shield. - You cannot over allocate enhancement points on earlier missions. - You do not have to use all enhancement points available. - Beam Cannon (Primary Weapon) Configuration: - Toggles between Staggered and Pulse (volley) fire. - Special Weapon(s) (SPW): - Scroll through your list of weapons and choose. - Pay attention to the list as you progress through the game. - Homing Light Weapon (HLW): - This is an intelligent, automated "system" unique to your fighter alone. - The Homing Light Weapon Action Key: - Hold down to select additional or different targets, if possible. - Release to fire. Configuration - Your Mission: - The < and > to each side of 'Select Mission' toggle between the First and Last beaten mission. - 'View Map' shows you where you are in the world for any given mission. - 'View Text' provides objective and story information for each mission. - 'Launch OmniFighter' begins the mission. Your Heads Up Display (HUD): Panel(s): - Main HUD panel - Centered at the top of the screen: - Green / Red Light(s) - Mirror the status of the HLW and SPW indicators at the lower corners of the screen. - Structure - Top horizontal dark green bar. - Shield - Bottom horizontal light green bar. - Center Disp. - Reinforce either the Defend or Destroy nature of the Objective(s). - Small Objective icon(s) below Main HUD panel: - Arrows - Top indicates Structure and Bottom indicates Shield. - Red is Low and Green is High. - Color: - Yellow - selected. - Blue - not selected. - Grey - destroyed. - NOTE: - If there are multiple Objectives and one is destroyed, your HUD will automatically switch to the next Objective. - The HLW and SPW status' are located at the lower corners of the screen. - The Yellow Arrow in the middle of the left or right side of the screen will always point in the direction of the currently selected Objective when it's not on screen. The text adjacent to the arrow or Objective icon will reinforce either the Defend or Destroy nature of the currently selected Objective. Enemy Target / Objective / HLW Icon(s): - Enemy Target: - Reticle - Indicates the Target's position. - Arrows - Indicate the status of the Target's Structure and Shields, appearing when the Target is within shot range. - Top is Structure and Bottom is Shields. - Red is Low and Green is High. - Facing Reticle - Indicates you're currently facing that Target, appearing with a Red line between you and the Target when the Target is within shot range. - The Reticles and Arrows, if applicable, will gradually fade when you're no longer facing the Target. - Objective: - Yellow icon will appear on currently selected Objective when it is on screen. - HLW: - Icon will appear on Targets selected by HLW. - Color: - Orange - Less than maximum number of Targets selected. - Red - Maximum number of Targets selected. Miscellaneous: - At the beginning of each mission, you will be reminded whether or not you should Defend or Destroy the Objective(s). - The Main HUD panel will turn Red and the screen will flash and sound when your Structure is Low. -BASIC VECTOR MIRAGE STRATEGY- HERE ARE SOME BASIC TIPS TO HELP YOU BEGIN: - Always fire your beam cannon. - Pay attention to the status of your Homing Light Weapon. - Keep moving, keep moving, keep moving. - Anticipate and strafe away from more damaging shots. - Learn which Special Weapons work best for you. - By optimizing the following, you can maximize your score: - Base Score - Left over time - Unallocated enhancement points Copyright 2003 Fathom Image LLC. All rights reserved. Fathom Image and the Fathom Image logo are trademarks of Fathom Image LLC. All other trademarks or registered trademarks comprised within this document are fully acknowledged. Our official website: http://www.fathomimage.com.

Vector Mirage Demo v1.01 (10.11MB)