DEATH TRAP
A single player video game for the Atari 2600 Video Computer System and Sears Video Arcade
Intended for use with the one joystick controller and a color television.

GAME BY: Jim Jacob
COVER ART: Jim Talbot
Rules Paste-Up and Graphics: Jean Baer
Typesetting: Colonial Composition
Prep Dept. Coordinator: Elaine Adkins
Printing: Monarch Services

Any cartridge which fails will be replaced when returned to:
The Avalon Hill Video Game Company
4517 Harford Road, Baltimore, Maryland 21214

As with any video game, turn off television and game when not in use.
(c)1983  The Avalon Hill Video Game Company
All Printed Material, Video Game and Audio Visual Display Copyrighted

DEATH TRAP IS AVALON HILL'S TRADEMARK NAME FOR ITS SPACE SURVIVAL VIDEO GAME
Atari and Atari 2600 Video Computer Systems are trademarks of Atari, Inc. Sears and Sears Video Arcade are trademarks of Sears Roebuck Co.
 

DEATH TRAP
INSTRUCTIONS
 

SCENARIO:

You have just graduated with honors from Cadet training.  Your first mission is especially important.  You must deliver a TOP SECRET diplomatic message to the Emperor of the Glaxiau Empire - immediately!  You proceed to cross the galaxy via the latest Black Hole acceleration techniques when your trips is interrupted by a gigantic space ship which intends on ensuring that the message you carry never reaches the Emperor.  You heard of rumors in school of IT being out there - the reason for so many missing ships.  Your only hope for survival and success in your mission is to destroy ITs power generators before IT kills you with intelligent plasma fireballs or disintegrates you with high energy defensive shields.
 

TO START:

Select either joystick controller by briefly press the fire button.  The game level of difficulty will appear in the screen.  Choose your level of difficulty by pushing the joystick up or down to display the desired difficulty symbol.

EASY - Slow firing fireballs, small shield segments, repair crew onboard.

NORMAL - Normal firing rate, normal shield segments, repair crew onboard.

HARD - Fast firing rate, normal shield segments, no repair crew.

When ready to begin, push your joystick to the right.

MANEUVERING YOUR SHIP:
You can maneuver your ship anytime you are not maneuvering your torpedoes.  To move your ship up, down, left, or right; move the joystick in the corresponding direction WITH THE FIRE BUTTON UP.  Be careful not to maneuver into a defense shield as this will destroy your ship.

TORPEDO LAUNCHING AND CONTROL:
Torpedoes (you have more than enough onboard) can be launched anytime one is visible on the launching platform (on the top side of your ship) by pressing the fire button.  Only one torpedo may be in flight at any time.  To control a torpedo in flight, move the joystick left or right to steer the torpedo, or move the joystick up to accelerate the torpedo, WHILE HOLDING THE FIRE BUTTON DOWN.
 

GAME PLAY - DEFENSIVE:

The prerequisite to winning is surviving.  IT will fire plasma fireballs at you using an evil but archaic computer.  If you keep moving, the computer will have trouble locking on to you.  However, if you sit still, IT will be deadly accurate.  Your ship starts out at full readiness.  This is indicated by the six ship symbols displayed.  When no ship symbols appear, you cannot survive another hit.  If you have a repair crew onboard (determined by level of difficulty when you start the game), they can effect repairs and improve your level of readiness one level every 20 seconds PROVIDED YOU DO NOT RECEIVE ANY ADDITIONAL DAMAGE.  The ship symbols will reflect any improvement in your state of readiness due to completed repairs.  (As an additional aid, your ship color will change as your level of readiness changes.)  The shields generated by IT are higher in energy than your ship can withstand.  Only your small, hisen-housel coated torpedoes can successfully pass through the defense shields, but even they cannot penetrate the moving shield blocks.  Do not attempt to maneuver your ship through a shield.  Unfortunately for you, none of the shields protect YOU from ITs fireballs.
 

GAME PLAY - OFFENSIVE:

Your only method of long term survival is to destroy ITs power generators.  The yellow indicator at the top of thee screen reflects the status of the power stations.  Each power station contains the power generation reactor (white swirling section) and an offensive station (red gun).  Damage can be inflicted by hitting the red gun with your torpedo.  As damage is inflicted it is indicated on the top of the screen by movement of the yellow bar on the side that was hit.  The left and right power stations are also the shield block generators.  Whenever they are hit, they will form a block of moving shield directly below them.  The right station controls the build up of SHIELD B and the left station controls the build up of SHIELD A.  Your torpedoes cannot damage or penetrate these moving blocks.  Your torpedoes cannot damage ITs hull.

Whenever you have not inflicted damage for a period of 15 seconds, IT accumulates sufficient energy to lower SHIELD C (directly above you) reducing your maneuvering room.  When you have destroyed both the left and right power stations, a central power station will appear.  Once damage is inflicted on the central station, defensive SHIELD D (below you) will steadily close in on you.  This gives you a limited amount of time to finish off IT before IT finishes off you.
 

STARTING OVER:

The game may be restarted at any time by pressing the RESET button.  At
the end if each game, pressing the fire button once will start a new game.
 

SCORING:

You start the game with zero points.  Points may be added or subtracted but your score will not be allowed to go negative.  Points are added for your condition of readiness, damage you inflict on IT, and bonus points for destroying each of the 3 power stations.

Readiness - Every few seconds, up to 6 points are added based on your level of readiness.  Readiness points are determined by the number of small ships beneath your score.

Damage - Ten times the total number of hits on ITs power stations are added. (First hit = + 10 points, Fifteenth hit = + 150 points).

Bonus points - Totally destroying left or right power stations= + 2000 points. Center station= + 5000 points.

Penalty - You lose 90 points every time IT is able to lower SHIELD C.
 

GAME DESIGNER NOTE:

The moving block in the defensive shields are generated directly below the left and right red guns.  Careful timing will allow you to create new blocks on top of existing blocks.  This will reduced the amount of interference between you and the guns, and is especially helpful in destroying the central power station when time is limited.