THE UNOFFICIAL

THE UNOFFICIAL
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- F A Q - |_________________

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Maintained by JAM
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This FAQ is in no way connected to Atari Corp.

All information is tentative to final release.
Certain features/elements may not be included in the final
version. This game is being developed by Jeff Minter's muse,
and therefore anything can change without notice on a whim.

No portion of this document can be reproduced with the intent
for profit. Notification of reproduction would be nice! :)

Send comments/contributions to: [email protected]

Last update: 3/7/95
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- WHAT IS DEFENDER 2000?

Defender 2000 is based upon the original arcade game
manufactured by Williams in the early eighties with a
90's spin. It is being programmed by Llamasoft, namely
Jeff Minter.

It will offer fast, smooth graphics while
retaining excellent playability. Jeff's personal goal
for the game: "To make your thumbs bleed!"

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- WHAT IS THE PLOT?

As society evolved, our natural resources became depleted. We
searched for other ways to supplement these resources. Today,
teams of Miners excavate a nearby Asteroid Belt for its life-
supplying minerals. As a member of an elite System Defense Team,
it is your job to ensure the safety of the Asteroids and the
workers that live on them.

But all is not roses.

The hostile Alpha Proximian Empire has failed at an invasion of
our planet. With their failure, they have issued an attack on
the Asteroid Mining Belt. The Alpha Proximian Empire knows that
if they can destroy our resources, we will be helpless - and they
will rule. The invasion fleet has orders to abduct the Humanoids
working in the belt. Knowing that their life is doomed, the
Humanoids will kill them selves upon leaving the Asteroid's
atmosphere. In this situation, the 'energy' of the Humanoid will
be absorbed into the Lander's ship and turn it into a Mutant.

This is were you come in, with your attack ship AKA "Threshold",
the salvation of the planet relies in your many years of
training. Kill all the aliens before the Humanoids are
sacrificed or the Asteroid will be destroyed along with the place
that you call "Home".

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- WHO ARE THE *KNOWN* PLAYERS?

YOU: The Threshold 2000 (Attack Ship)
FEATURES: Sub-light engines, hyper-reverse, hyperspace.
WEAPONS: Lazer torpedo gun unlimited ammo (feeds off engines).
Smart bombs, Limited.
Llightning Llaser (Classified, but kicks butt).
A.I. Droid, Extra set of eyes and lazers
that thinks for itself.

THEM: Landers- Capture Humanoids and kill them.
Mutants- Hyper fast kamikaze killer.
Bombers- Plant stationary charges.
Baiters- Very fast with very accurate aim.
Pods- Not hostile until engaged.
Swarmers- Small, mean enemies (formerly Pods).

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- WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT GAMES IN D2K?

Defender 2000 is a combination of three games:

1. Defender Classic
2. Defender Plus
3. Defender 2000

DEFENDER CLASSIC:
The name says it all. A carbon copy of the original.
This version will contain sampled sound effects from
the original arcade game.

DEFENDER PLUS:
Defender Plus retains the same format as the classic
With a few twists.
Expect to see more detailed animations of the game
characters, new weapons, and most of the features of
Defender's sequel - Stargate! There will also be a new
control method. A new routine for the game's explosions
will cause the average player to enter a hypnotic state
and worship llamas.
The A.I. Droid from T2K will make a return appearance
with a larger dose of intelligence. These Droids, I say
Droids because you can accumulate two, will toast nearby
enemies as well as rescue falling humanoids.

DEFENDER 2000:
Anything Goes! Look for lots of new meanies and mega
weapons. Go Vertical, scroll that is. 2000 will offer
horizontal and vertical movement of your Defender allowing
for some big guys to fill the screen. Beautiful, detailed
backgrounds will offset the nasty bad guys. Just for
variety each level will have multiple and different themes.

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- WHAT KIND OF MUSIC WILL THE GAME HAVE?

YES! The score for D2K will be performed by the same
musicians (Imagitec) that created the rippin tunes from T2K.
The musicians should have at least twice the MEG to
work with (the project is leaning toward the CD media).

A feature call "Q Sound" will be utilized in the game.
"Q Sound" is a recording process which produces three
dimensional sound from conventional stereo speakers.

A music feature that was absent from T2K, a sound check,
may be available in the finished version of D2K.
Expect to hear some sweet samples in the soundtrack.
And don't be surprised to hear a beastie bleating or mooing
in there somewhere! I wonder who thought of that? :)

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- HOW MANY PLAYERS?

Right now the main focus is on a one player game. But
there are a few maybes:

Two players with player #2 controlling the A.I. Droid

Two players with a split screen for the 2K version.

JagNET and Modem capabilities not yet decided.

* Remember that these are NOT definite!

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- HOW MANY LEVELS?

Lots! Expect it to surpass T2K by containing 100 or
more levels!

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- WHAT IS THE GAME CONTROL LIKE?

In Classic there are two modes:

1. Standard: up/down/left/right on the joypad,
no Thrust button

2. Arcade: a configurable pad with Thrust/Reverse buttons

In Plus/2K contains Standard controls with the additions:

Holding the fire button will produce continuous rapid fire.
While firing use left/right, and you can accelerate in
either direction while holding the ship orientation
constant. This will allow you to shoot at an enemy
while retreating from it.

Button C: Smart Bomb
Button B: Fire
Button A: Llightning Llaser/Tractorbeam
Keypad keys 3,6,9,#: Hyperspace

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- WILL THERE BE ANY EASTER EGGS?

Yes. Jeff is planning to have a lot. The more there are,
the more people will talk about the game.
Some of the EEs being considered:

Turn all the humanoids into llamas.

Turn you ship into Flossie the Prettiest Sheep in the World.

Some hidden Llamasoft classic games.

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- WHAT OTHER FEATURES WILL THE GAME CONTAIN?

Bonus Rounds! D2K will contain transitional bonus rounds
similar to T2K. Expect them to be based upon the same
mind altering 1st perspective rounds in T2K.

Game AI. One of the major complaints of the original Defender
game was the difficulty of learning how to play the game.
The learning cure has been flattened to allow 'Greenhorns'
to become addicted to the game instead of becoming
frustrated and tossing the cart. Expert players need not
fret, for the higher levels are challenging even to the
gamers with three eyes. This way everyone will enjoy the
game.

If the game is pressed to a CD. There may even be some
Defender history worked into the game. The possibility
of an interview with Eugene Jarvis the creator of Defender,
Stargate and Robotron has been discussed.

60Hz, 60Hz, 60Hz! This game is going to be FAST!

################################################################
- RUMORS -

There may be an occasional 'Offender' wave where you get
to commit alien genocide.

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- OTHER D2K SOURCES -

HTTP sites:

The Jaguar Homepage http://www.bucknell.edu/~svensson/
- contains general game information

Yak's Zoo http://hyrax.med.uth.tmc.edu/misc/zoo/zoo.htm
- Get it from the goat's mouth

################################################################
- CONTRIBUTORS/SOURCES -

Jeff Minter and Flossie
Me, Myself and I
Electronic Games: Volume One, Number Six - August, 1982

Special Thanks:
Christian "SVEN" Svensson
Atari, for planting the seed when I was 10.

Can't get any simpler than this!

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Send Comments, Suggestions and Contributions to:

Internet mail: [email protected]
Jim Marsteller Jr. - JAM
412-244-6667