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S I L V E R S T A R S T O R Y
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Version 1.0
by Devin "The no-this-is-NOT-a-gag-FAQ Kid" de Gruyl
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|CONTENTS |
| |
|1. Introduction |
|2. What The Bloody Heck IS This Thing? |
|3. Sounds Cool! How Do I Play It? |
|4. What Next? |
|5. On To The Battlefield! |
|6. Tips & Strategies |
|7. Gameplay Options |
|8. Credit Where Credit Is Due |
|9. Happy Trails |
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1. Introduction
LUNAR: Silver Star Story Complete, the PlayStation version of the classic SegaCD
RPG LUNAR: The Silver Star, certainly contains one of the most impressive
collection of pack-in extras since the days of Infocom text adventures.
(Remember things such as the "DON'T PANIC!" button and the Microscopic Space
Fleet from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy?) Besides the game itself,
contained within the largest PSX game box to date is a 120-page HARDBOUND manual
conatining LUNAR artwork, interviews with the game's creators, and even an
excerpt from the Official Strategy Guide; a full-color cloth map that should
bring back memories of the Ultima series; a soundtrack CD containing music
selections from both the SegaCD original and PSX remake; and a fourth CD
consisting of a full-length movie detailing how LUNAR (and, to a lesser extent,
Working Designs and Game Arts) came to be.
It is that "Making of LUNAR" CD that contains probably one of the coolest
"easter eggs" of the modern gaming era. Hidden on that disc is a secret mini-
game, "Lords of LUNAR." This game, based on quite possibly the greatest
multiplayer game ever devised - Warlords - will most likely surprise you with
its playability. I, myself, have wasted far more time on this than it probably
deserves, but it's just that much fun! So much so, in fact, that I decided to
write this short document about it.
2. What The Bloody Heck IS This Thing?
First, some history. In 1980, when the Atari 2600 system was blazing the trail
for home video game systems, Atari released a little gem called Warlords. The
game was essentially a multiplayer version of Breakout, with a twist; not only
did you have to smash your way through your opponent's wall ("castle"), but you
also had to strike his/her "king" esconsed behind that wall. Of course, your
opponents (up to three) were also trying to do the same to you... Warlords
quickly became one of the 2600's best titles, and even today, many old-time
gamers get a thrill off of challenging some friends to a round. Simply put, no
other multiplayer game before or since has matched Warlords for sheer
playability and fun - no, not even Quake, at least not in the eyes of the
"retrogamers"!
"Lords of LUNAR" is, in essence, a PlayStation upgrade of that little classic.
What makes this unique is that, unlike other such "easter egg" hidden games,
somebody at Working Designs actually took the time to work some PLAYABILITY into
this game; this really IS an enhancement to the old 2600 cart, with a whole host
of gameplay options, support for up to eight players (with the proper
attachments, of course), and even Dual Shock support!
3. Sounds Cool! How Do I Play It?
Start by inserting the "Making of LUNAR" CD into your PSX. Turn it on, and wait
for the movie to begin. At any time during the movie, enter the following key
sequence on Gamepad #1:
UP, DOWN, LEFT, RIGHT, TRIANGLE, START
Doing so will call up the "Lords of LUNAR" title screen. Press START at this
screen to begin, or, select EXIT to resume the movie from where you left it.
4. What Next?
After you start the game, you're asked how many players you want. With two
Multitaps plugged into your PSX and the proper number of controllers, up to
eight human players can get into the action! Otherwise, the computer will be
more than happy to provide worthy opponents for you.
Once you've decided how many human and computer players are in the game, the
human players decide where they want their "castle" on the screen. There are
nine possible locations, arranged in a 3x3 grid. Then, you're asked to choose
the character you want to represent your "king". You get to choose from the
complete LUNAR cast! Naturally, there is no advantage to any one character over
another, so you can just choose your favorite.
After that, you're taken to a screenful of options. You can custimize just
about every aspect of gameplay from this screen, from game-win requirements to
whether or not you want to play with "ghosts". The complete list is printed
below.
Select what options you want, then press START to begin the game.
5. On To The Battlefield!
Once the game begins, you are presented with up to eight portraits of LUNAR
characters, each surrounded by a brick wall, or "castle." Each castle will have
a paddle in front of it, which can be maneuvered to any point around the
castle's perimeter. A ball will also be bouncing around.
The object of the game is to strike the ball with your paddle in such a way that
it will bounce off the castles of your opponents. As it does, the ball will
chip away at that wall, until it can hit the character. If that character is
hit, the player controlling his/her paddle is knocked out of the game. Play
continues until only one player is left in the game, and that player recieves
one point.
The conditions for winning are determined at the Options screen prior to
beginning the contest.
6. Tips & Strategies
* This game was MADE for parties! With one player, it's merely fun... with two,
it can cause some friendly rivalries... with four, it's all-out war... and with
the maximum eight, it's total mayhem! Don't be put off by the simplistic
graphics and gameplay... give the game a chance, and I think you'll be surprised
at just how much of a blast "Lords of LUNAR" can be!
* Get a Dual Shock controller. Seriously. The analog sticks are far preferable
to the standard gamepad. Without the analog controller, your paddle can't make
the kind of quick directional changes you need to survive for long against
experienced players. (The original Warlords game was played with the 2600's
paddle controllers.)
* On the other hand, if you're up against superior competition, you can always
force your opponent(s) to use the digital gamepad as a decent handicap...
* Don't worry about your wall taking some hits. No good player ever won this
game with a fully-intact castle.
* Play some games against computer opposition, and try to watch how the CPU
players react. Then, do your best to duplicate that strategy. The AI in this
game is fairly advanced for what it is...
* Watch the ball at ALL times, even if it's on the other side of the screen from
where you are and the players in that area are locked in combat over it.
Because of the English the paddles impart on the ball, it can bounce back over
to you at any time without warning.
* In multiplayer contests, don't be afraid to make temporary alliances with
another player, especially if you're both getting creamed by a better opponent.
Aside from the obvious advantage of working together against a common enemy,
it's great fun to watch the look on your "ally's" face as you start bombing away
on him/her once the pact is over!
* Although it may look like certain characters are harder to hit because of
their size (Nall, for instance), it's an optical illusion. The computer has an
equal-sized hit area for each character, so it's all even.
* Even if you're out of the game, you can still have an effect on the outcome!
If you have the "Ghosts" option turned ON (see below), you can still move your
(darkened) paddle around, and in so doing, you can still influence the direction
and/or speed of the ball. Call it a way to get revenge from the grave...
7. Gameplay Options
These are all the options you can change before the game starts:
(Options listed in [BRACKETS] denote defaults.)
PLAY TO: [01]
[ROUNDS] or POINTS:
These options determine the conditions for winning the game. Selecting ROUNDS
will end the game after the specified number of rounds, while POINTS will
continue until one player reaches the indicated number of points.
HOLDING: OFF [ON]
With this option on, players can "catch" the ball with their paddles and set up
a shot. Catch the ball by holding down a button once you strike it with your
paddle. If the ball is not shot (by releasing the button) after a certain time,
the ball is automatically shot for you.
CASTLE WIDTH: [06]
CASTLE HEIGHT: [05]
Sets the dimensions of the castles. Note that there will always be three layers
to the castle regardless of the size chosen here.
BLOCK WIDTH: [16]
BLOCK HEIGHT: [13]
Self-explanatory. Smaller blocks are harder to hit and provide more of a
challenge to the seasoned player.
MULTI-BALL MAX: [3]
As players are eliminated from the game, one new ball is added to the mix; this
determines the maximum number of balls in play at any one time. Set this to 1
to turn this feature off; anything higher than the default results in a wild
ride to be sure, especially with the maximum number of players!
PADDLE SIZE: [40]
Determines the size of the paddle.
HOLD TIME: [10]
The maximum time a player can hold onto a ball before the computer automatically
releases it. Obviously, this only works if holding is turned ON.
ROBOT SPEED: [06]
Determines the speed of the computer players. If you find the PSX-guided
opponents moving too fast, turn this down.
VIBRATION: OFF [ON]
Determines whether or not you experience force-feedback when the ball strikes
your paddle. Only works if you're using a Dual Shock controller.
GHOSTS: OFF [ON]
Turning this ON will make the paddles of eliminated players appear as ghostly
shadows on the screen. This is NOT JUST a cosmetic change! These "ghosts" can
still be controlled by the player, and they can affect the game in a unique way.
While they cannot strike the ball directly, a ball passing through a ghost
paddle will quite often speed up, slow down, change direction, or just basically
react in an entirely unexpected manner.
8. Special Thanks
- Victor Ireland and Working Designs, for bringing LUNAR back to the States in a
big way!
- The anonymous Atari 2600 programmer(s?) who created one of the true
masterpieces of the Golden Age! Whoever you are/were, I salute you... and
curse Atari's early practice of forbidding programmers to take credit for
their games!
- Timon Marmex Trzepacz, for putting such care and attention into a quickie
"easter egg"!
- Video Games Express of Grove City, Ohio - my usual source for games, and where
I plunked down my hard-earned cash on L:SSSC just as it was released!
- You, for putting up with me! 8^)
9. Happy Trails
This is my first released attempt at an FAQ. I'm also woring on a walkthrough
for the Saturn version of Magic Knight Rayearth, but that project appears to be
stalled. I'm also working on one for the main L:SSSC game. I hope you enjoy
what I've written here... with any luck at all, I'll have more in the future.
If you have any corrections or additions to this FAQ (or, at the very least, a
better ASCII logo!), please contact me at
<
[email protected]>
..and please make sure to include "[LOLFAQ]" in the header, so I know what
you're contacting me about.
Comments cheerfully welcomed.
Corrections cheerfully accepted.
Flames cheerfully deleted.
Questions already answered in this document cheerfully ignored.
Have a nice day! 8^)
- Devin de Gruyl
8 June 1999
