MINES OF MINOS

Instructions

One or two Players
Uses joystick controllers.

(c) 1982 COMMAVID, INC.

Mines of Minos

Something terrible has happened in the mazelike Mines of Minos. The smoothly running robot operation has been interrupted by an invasion of monstrous alien life forms! Aliens stalk the corridors of the mine; only a single robot survives to battle them. Desperately he struggles to find and assemble pieces of his fellow robots scattered around the mine while avoiding the pursuing aliens. If he can assemble a large enough robot army, he can battle the aliens to fight his way down to deeper levels of the mine and even destroy the alien command center at the lowest level. But if the aliens catch him he is doomed and his only weapon against them is his stock of time bombs.

Can you avoid the monsters and assemble enough robots to expel the alien invaders from the Mines of Minos? Find out in this latest video challenge from CommaVid.

GETTING STARTED

• Turn off your game console.
• Insert Mines of Minos cartridge.
• Make sure both joystick controllers are firmly connected to the console (the left joystick is used for one player versions of the game).
• Turn on your game console.
• Select the game skill level by setting the console difficulty switches (Note on Sears Tele-Game, the difficulty switches are called skill switches. The "a" position is called expert, and the "b" position is called novice). Standard Game: Set both difficulty switches to "b". Half Speed Monsters: Set right difficulty switch to "a". Half Speed Robot: Set left difficulty switch to "a".
• Select one of the 12 game variations by repeatedly pressing the game select switch. The game number will appear at the upper left corner of your TV screen. Refer to the Game Variations part of this booklet for a description of each possible game variation.
• Hold the joystick with the red button in the upper left.
• Start the game by pressing the game reset switch.

GAME PLAY

• Move robot through mine with left joystick.
• Kill monsters with time bombs. Push joystick button to drop a bomb, Only one bomb can be dropped at a time.
• Elude monsters by using tunnels at left and right side of the mine.
• Change mine level by holding down joystick button when moving through a tunnel.
• Collect robot parts to build spare robots. Carry a part to the center of either the top or bottom row of any level of the mine. There it is collected and added to your complement of spare robots.
• Don't spend too much time in a level because:
  • Meaner monsters appear.
  • Water gradually fills each level starting at the top. The water slows the robot down and prevents it from dropping bombs.
• Don't move to a new level too quickly. Increase your power level by scoring points. If power level is less than mine level, it takes more than one bomb to kill a monster.
• Win game by destroying the three stationary monsters in the command center on level 5. A stationary monster is destroyed when rammed by your robot.

ADVANCED PLAY FEATURES

• You can safely run over a half-dead or half-alive monster. A dying monster is safe to run over when the sound of the explosion has stopped.
• Some monsters can move through walls. One monster can steal a spare robot from you. You can see the robot jumping inside the monster. Kill the monster to regain your spare robot.
• Ramming a command center monster kills the robot being used. Try to have at least two spare robots before attacking the command center.

TWO-PLAYER GAMES

Some of the game variations are two player games. The left joystick controls the robot and the right joystick controls one of the monsters. Pushing the button on the right joystick changes which monster is under the player's control. The other two monsters will pursue the robot on their own.

The monster being controlled by the joystick is seen as darker in color. If the robot runs into this monster, the monster is destroyed instead of the robot. But if the robot runs into either of the two monsters under their own control, he is destroyed as usual.

SCORING

Destroying a monster = 20 points.
Picking up a robot part = 70 points.
Depositing the robot part -- 70 points.
Every 1000 points scored up to 4000 raises your power level by one unit.

GAME VARIATIONS

Game 1--The standard game: It takes three robot pieces to complete a new robot, and the flood both slows you down and keeps you from dropping a bomb.

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

Game 3: An even greater challenge, it takes six robot pieces to complete a robot.

Game 4: A two-player version of Game 3.

Game 5: For practice, it takes three robot pieces to complete a robot, but there is no flooding.

Game 6: A two-player version of Game 5.

Game 7: The mine floods as usual, but it only takes two robot pieces to complete a robot.

Game 8: A two-player version of Game 7.

Game 9: Three robot pieces to complete a robot, but you can drop bombs in the flood.

Game 10: A two-player version of Game 9.

Game 11: The maze is invisible, except when you blow up a monster. Three robot pieces complete a robot, and you can drop bombs in the flood.

Game 12: A two-player version of Game 11.

Additional game variations can be created using the difficulty switches. With both difficulty switches in the "b" (or novice) position, the robots and monsters both move at normal speed. Raising the left difficulty switch to the "a" (or expert) position causes the robots to move at half speed, while the right difficulty switch in the "a" position causes the monsters to move at half speed.

CommaVid is a different kind of game company, formed by a group of professionals from computing and the physical sciences. We believe that our experience outside the consumer electronic market will aid us in developing interesting products for our customers. New electronic products are like presents--sometimes it's nice to get what you want and other times a surprise is welcome. By combining our own ideas, and reactions of our customers, we hope to create some pleasantly surprising new products. To help us do this we would like both your reactions to this game and any suggestions you would care to pass along for new games or other new computer based consumer products. We will read everything you send to the address below and answer as often as we can. Unless you request otherwise, we will include you in our list for mailings of advance information about our new releases.

The next time you are shopping for fun and games, remember to look for CommaVid.

CommaVid, Inc.
Box 3308
Fox Valley Center
Aurora, Illinois 60505

For fast response to requests for
cartridge repair, write to:

CommaVid Service Center
Box 3326
Fox Valley Center
Aurora, Illinois 60505

Tele-Game is a Trademark of Sears Roebuck and Co. ATARI and Video Computer System are trademarks of ATARI, INC.

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