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R/+COUNTD
This website contains an archive of files for the Acorn Electron, BBC Micro, Acorn Archimedes, Commodore 16 and Commodore 64 computers, which Dominic Ford has rescued from his private collection of floppy disks and cassettes.
Some of these files were originally commercial releases in the 1980s and 1990s, but they are now widely available online. I assume that copyright over them is no longer being asserted. If you own the copyright and would like files to be removed, please contact me.
Tape/disk: | Home » Personal collection » Acorn ADFS disks » Greaseweazled » adfs_EUG_54.adf |
Filename: | R/+COUNTD |
Read OK: | ✔ |
File size: | 1272 bytes |
Load address: | 52204556 |
Exec address: | 4F432B2E |
Duplicates
There are 3 duplicate copies of this file in the archive:
- AEW website » eug » eug_3_5_discs_Eug-54_A-EUG54.adf » R/+COUNTD
- AEW website » eug » eug_5_25_discs_Eug-54_D-EUG54.dsd » R.+COUNTD
- Personal collection » Acorn ADFS disks » Electron_User_Group » EUG_54.ADF » R/+COUNTD
- Personal collection » Acorn ADFS disks » Greaseweazled » adfs_EUG_54.adf » R/+COUNTD
File contents
Product: COUNTDOWN TO DOOM Supplier : TOPOLOGIKA, PO Box 39, Stilton, PETERBOROUGH PE7 3RL Available on 3.5" DFS Disk Reviewed by (the) Dave in EUG 54 NOT the Acornsoft ROM cartridge version, Peter Killworth's COUNTDOWN TO DOOM re-release by Topologika is a mammoth upgrade to the original with many more puzzles, locations and characters. In many respects a cult classic it is both one of the few Electron games solely produced on disk (and in fact one of only ten games ever which were customised to work only with PRES' AP4 upgrade) and one that is still available from its software company to this day. The first installment in a trilogy of text adventures about the plague planet Doomawangara (followed by RETURN TO DOOM and THE LAST DAYS OF DOOM in 1988 and 1990 respectively), it mixes a surprisingly detailed narrative of exits and locations with unexpected sarcastic comments when you try particular actions. The scene is set when your spaceship crashlands and a countdown (of the title) starts ticking away to ship collapse. The description of what is left of your ship's interior hardly inspires hope that any of it is fixable but, with Doomawangara best described as a spaceship graveyard, there is a small chance you can collect enough sundries to get the craft airborne again. A simple puzzle will see you out onto terra firma (after blowing up even more of your ship) and present you with a swamp, jungle, valley, desert, mountain path and narrow path; all exquisitely detailed as, you will quickly appreciate, is the norm. What is irksome about continuing from this point is that any false sense of security you had developed thanks to the simpilicity of your escape is then repeatedly squished. Almost every move you make now re- sults in a hideous and sometimes quite unconnected death. For example, you choose the desert, death by heatstroke; swamp, death by drowning; narrow path, death by slugs falling out of the sky; etc. As in all adventures, there are objects to find and use correctly. Unlike in many, there is no need to EXAMINE anything. Doing so brings up the message "I've already told you everything you need to know about that!" which comes direct from the hand of Peter Killworth, NOT the Doom-stranded adventurer who is refered to in the second person. Once again though, you are forced to die a number of bloodthirsty deaths to discover what is safe to pick up or manipulate. Oh, goody, a gun, I'll fire it. Dead. What's that blob wriggling towards the cliff? I'll TAKE it. Dead. And these are only in the first six or seven locations! Bear- ing in mind that professional adventures such as this tend to get harder and harder the further the adventurer manages to progress, some will probably be very discouraged by these early setbacks which, if you have not SAVEd the position, immediately return you to the start of it. A better solution, which is contained in some other Topologika releases, is to ask "Do you want to pretend you hadn't done that?" and wait for the inevitable Y keypress. This saves a large measure of frus- tration. As you may have guessed, I have not personally made much headway in this hellhole but apart from the spotless spelling and atmosphere, the game has one more feature to recommend it and this is the on line help facility. With the original disk comes a sheet of most-likely-to-be-asked questions. However, instead of having to decrypt a coded answer or look it up on another sheet, you obtain the answer from the game itself by typing HELP and then the NUMBER following the appropriate question. You get one hint and, if this is too cryptic, can ask for further ones until you are given a solution. In this way, the game's appeal is advanced as you can make progress without needing Britain's Biggest Brain. Presented in a stylish clear plastic folder with an illustrated low- down on the planet and a playing guide, COUNTDOWN TO DOOM suggests at every level that it is a very serious adventure which will tax the old grey matter to bursting point. This is exactly what the software itself does and it's no bad thing at all. It incorporates many new items over the original version and, although it includes some tried (or should that be tired?) and tested puzzles from other adventures, manages to cram in a few new ideas too. If you can live with being knocked off every few minutes, and don't mind responses like "Gee, I hope you enjoy- ed that!" if you do something Killworth considers unnecessary, then give this adventure a go. But be warned though, it's not easy! Dave Edwards, EUG #54
00000000 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 | | 00000010 20 20 20 20 50 72 6f 64 75 63 74 3a 20 20 20 20 | Product: | 00000020 20 43 4f 55 4e 54 44 4f 57 4e 20 54 4f 20 44 4f | COUNTDOWN TO DO| 00000030 4f 4d 0d 20 20 20 20 53 75 70 70 6c 69 65 72 20 |OM. Supplier | 00000040 3a 20 20 20 54 4f 50 4f 4c 4f 47 49 4b 41 2c 20 |: TOPOLOGIKA, | 00000050 50 4f 20 42 6f 78 20 33 39 2c 20 53 74 69 6c 74 |PO Box 39, Stilt| 00000060 6f 6e 2c 20 50 45 54 45 52 42 4f 52 4f 55 47 48 |on, PETERBOROUGH| 00000070 20 50 45 37 20 33 52 4c 0d 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 | PE7 3RL. | 00000080 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 41 | A| 00000090 76 61 69 6c 61 62 6c 65 20 6f 6e 20 33 2e 35 22 |vailable on 3.5"| 000000a0 20 44 46 53 20 44 69 73 6b 0d 20 20 20 20 20 20 | DFS Disk. | 000000b0 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 52 65 76 | Rev| 000000c0 69 65 77 65 64 20 62 79 20 28 74 68 65 29 20 44 |iewed by (the) D| 000000d0 61 76 65 20 69 6e 20 45 55 47 20 35 34 0d 0d 4e |ave in EUG 54..N| 000000e0 4f 54 20 74 68 65 20 41 63 6f 72 6e 73 6f 66 74 |OT the Acornsoft| 000000f0 20 52 4f 4d 20 63 61 72 74 72 69 64 67 65 20 76 | ROM cartridge v| 00000100 65 72 73 69 6f 6e 2c 20 50 65 74 65 72 20 4b 69 |ersion, Peter Ki| 00000110 6c 6c 77 6f 72 74 68 27 73 20 43 4f 55 4e 54 44 |llworth's COUNTD| 00000120 4f 57 4e 20 54 4f 0d 44 4f 4f 4d 20 72 65 2d 72 |OWN TO.DOOM re-r| 00000130 65 6c 65 61 73 65 20 62 79 20 54 6f 70 6f 6c 6f |elease by Topolo| 00000140 67 69 6b 61 20 69 73 20 61 20 6d 61 6d 6d 6f 74 |gika is a mammot| 00000150 68 20 75 70 67 72 61 64 65 20 74 6f 20 74 68 65 |h upgrade to the| 00000160 20 6f 72 69 67 69 6e 61 6c 20 77 69 74 68 0d 6d | original with.m| 00000170 61 6e 79 20 6d 6f 72 65 20 70 75 7a 7a 6c 65 73 |any more puzzles| 00000180 2c 20 6c 6f 63 61 74 69 6f 6e 73 20 61 6e 64 20 |, locations and | 00000190 63 68 61 72 61 63 74 65 72 73 2e 20 49 6e 20 6d |characters. In m| 000001a0 61 6e 79 20 72 65 73 70 65 63 74 73 20 61 20 63 |any respects a c| 000001b0 75 6c 74 0d 63 6c 61 73 73 69 63 20 69 74 20 69 |ult.classic it i| 000001c0 73 20 62 6f 74 68 20 6f 6e 65 20 6f 66 20 74 68 |s both one of th| 000001d0 65 20 66 65 77 20 45 6c 65 63 74 72 6f 6e 20 67 |e few Electron g| 000001e0 61 6d 65 73 20 73 6f 6c 65 6c 79 20 70 72 6f 64 |ames solely prod| 000001f0 75 63 65 64 20 6f 6e 20 64 69 73 6b 0d 28 61 6e |uced on disk.(an| 00000200 64 20 69 6e 20 66 61 63 74 20 6f 6e 65 20 6f 66 |d in fact one of| 00000210 20 6f 6e 6c 79 20 74 65 6e 20 67 61 6d 65 73 20 | only ten games | 00000220 65 76 65 72 20 77 68 69 63 68 20 77 65 72 65 20 |ever which were | 00000230 63 75 73 74 6f 6d 69 73 65 64 20 74 6f 20 77 6f |customised to wo| 00000240 72 6b 20 0d 6f 6e 6c 79 20 77 69 74 68 20 50 52 |rk .only with PR| 00000250 45 53 27 20 41 50 34 20 75 70 67 72 61 64 65 29 |ES' AP4 upgrade)| 00000260 20 61 6e 64 20 6f 6e 65 20 74 68 61 74 20 69 73 | and one that is| 00000270 20 73 74 69 6c 6c 20 61 76 61 69 6c 61 62 6c 65 | still available| 00000280 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 69 74 73 0d 73 6f 66 74 77 61 | from its.softwa| 00000290 72 65 20 63 6f 6d 70 61 6e 79 20 74 6f 20 74 68 |re company to th| 000002a0 69 73 20 64 61 79 2e 0d 20 20 20 54 68 65 20 66 |is day.. The f| 000002b0 69 72 73 74 20 69 6e 73 74 61 6c 6c 6d 65 6e 74 |irst installment| 000002c0 20 69 6e 20 61 20 74 72 69 6c 6f 67 79 20 6f 66 | in a trilogy of| 000002d0 20 74 65 78 74 20 61 64 76 65 6e 74 75 72 65 73 | text adventures| 000002e0 20 61 62 6f 75 74 20 74 68 65 20 0d 70 6c 61 67 | about the .plag| 000002f0 75 65 20 70 6c 61 6e 65 74 20 44 6f 6f 6d 61 77 |ue planet Doomaw| 00000300 61 6e 67 61 72 61 20 28 66 6f 6c 6c 6f 77 65 64 |angara (followed| 00000310 20 62 79 20 52 45 54 55 52 4e 20 54 4f 20 44 4f | by RETURN TO DO| 00000320 4f 4d 20 61 6e 64 20 54 48 45 20 4c 41 53 54 20 |OM and THE LAST | 00000330 44 41 59 53 0d 4f 46 20 44 4f 4f 4d 20 69 6e 20 |DAYS.OF DOOM in | 00000340 31 39 38 38 20 61 6e 64 20 31 39 39 30 20 72 65 |1988 and 1990 re| 00000350 73 70 65 63 74 69 76 65 6c 79 29 2c 20 69 74 20 |spectively), it | 00000360 6d 69 78 65 73 20 61 20 73 75 72 70 72 69 73 69 |mixes a surprisi| 00000370 6e 67 6c 79 20 64 65 74 61 69 6c 65 64 0d 6e 61 |ngly detailed.na| 00000380 72 72 61 74 69 76 65 20 6f 66 20 65 78 69 74 73 |rrative of exits| 00000390 20 61 6e 64 20 6c 6f 63 61 74 69 6f 6e 73 20 77 | and locations w| 000003a0 69 74 68 20 75 6e 65 78 70 65 63 74 65 64 20 73 |ith unexpected s| 000003b0 61 72 63 61 73 74 69 63 20 63 6f 6d 6d 65 6e 74 |arcastic comment| 000003c0 73 20 77 68 65 6e 0d 79 6f 75 20 74 72 79 20 70 |s when.you try p| 000003d0 61 72 74 69 63 75 6c 61 72 20 61 63 74 69 6f 6e |articular action| 000003e0 73 2e 0d 20 20 20 54 68 65 20 73 63 65 6e 65 20 |s.. The scene | 000003f0 69 73 20 73 65 74 20 77 68 65 6e 20 79 6f 75 72 |is set when your| 00000400 20 73 70 61 63 65 73 68 69 70 20 63 72 61 73 68 | spaceship crash| 00000410 6c 61 6e 64 73 20 61 6e 64 20 61 20 63 6f 75 6e |lands and a coun| 00000420 74 64 6f 77 6e 20 28 6f 66 0d 74 68 65 20 74 69 |tdown (of.the ti| 00000430 74 6c 65 29 20 73 74 61 72 74 73 20 74 69 63 6b |tle) starts tick| 00000440 69 6e 67 20 61 77 61 79 20 74 6f 20 73 68 69 70 |ing away to ship| 00000450 20 63 6f 6c 6c 61 70 73 65 2e 20 54 68 65 20 64 | collapse. The d| 00000460 65 73 63 72 69 70 74 69 6f 6e 20 6f 66 20 77 68 |escription of wh| 00000470 61 74 0d 69 73 20 6c 65 66 74 20 6f 66 20 79 6f |at.is left of yo| 00000480 75 72 20 73 68 69 70 27 73 20 69 6e 74 65 72 69 |ur ship's interi| 00000490 6f 72 20 68 61 72 64 6c 79 20 69 6e 73 70 69 72 |or hardly inspir| 000004a0 65 73 20 68 6f 70 65 20 74 68 61 74 20 61 6e 79 |es hope that any| 000004b0 20 6f 66 20 69 74 20 69 73 0d 66 69 78 61 62 6c | of it is.fixabl| 000004c0 65 20 62 75 74 2c 20 77 69 74 68 20 44 6f 6f 6d |e but, with Doom| 000004d0 61 77 61 6e 67 61 72 61 20 62 65 73 74 20 64 65 |awangara best de| 000004e0 73 63 72 69 62 65 64 20 61 73 20 61 20 73 70 61 |scribed as a spa| 000004f0 63 65 73 68 69 70 20 67 72 61 76 65 79 61 72 64 |ceship graveyard| 00000500 2c 0d 74 68 65 72 65 20 69 73 20 61 20 73 6d 61 |,.there is a sma| 00000510 6c 6c 20 63 68 61 6e 63 65 20 79 6f 75 20 63 61 |ll chance you ca| 00000520 6e 20 63 6f 6c 6c 65 63 74 20 65 6e 6f 75 67 68 |n collect enough| 00000530 20 73 75 6e 64 72 69 65 73 20 74 6f 20 67 65 74 | sundries to get| 00000540 20 74 68 65 20 63 72 61 66 74 0d 61 69 72 62 6f | the craft.airbo| 00000550 72 6e 65 20 61 67 61 69 6e 2e 20 41 20 73 69 6d |rne again. A sim| 00000560 70 6c 65 20 70 75 7a 7a 6c 65 20 77 69 6c 6c 20 |ple puzzle will | 00000570 73 65 65 20 79 6f 75 20 6f 75 74 20 6f 6e 74 6f |see you out onto| 00000580 20 74 65 72 72 61 20 66 69 72 6d 61 20 28 61 66 | terra firma (af| 00000590 74 65 72 0d 62 6c 6f 77 69 6e 67 20 75 70 20 65 |ter.blowing up e| 000005a0 76 65 6e 20 6d 6f 72 65 20 6f 66 20 79 6f 75 72 |ven more of your| 000005b0 20 73 68 69 70 29 20 61 6e 64 20 70 72 65 73 65 | ship) and prese| 000005c0 6e 74 20 79 6f 75 20 77 69 74 68 20 61 20 73 77 |nt you with a sw| 000005d0 61 6d 70 2c 20 6a 75 6e 67 6c 65 2c 0d 76 61 6c |amp, jungle,.val| 000005e0 6c 65 79 2c 20 64 65 73 65 72 74 2c 20 6d 6f 75 |ley, desert, mou| 000005f0 6e 74 61 69 6e 20 70 61 74 68 20 61 6e 64 20 6e |ntain path and n| 00000600 61 72 72 6f 77 20 70 61 74 68 3b 20 61 6c 6c 20 |arrow path; all | 00000610 65 78 71 75 69 73 69 74 65 6c 79 20 64 65 74 61 |exquisitely deta| 00000620 69 6c 65 64 20 0d 61 73 2c 20 79 6f 75 20 77 69 |iled .as, you wi| 00000630 6c 6c 20 71 75 69 63 6b 6c 79 20 61 70 70 72 65 |ll quickly appre| 00000640 63 69 61 74 65 2c 20 69 73 20 74 68 65 20 6e 6f |ciate, is the no| 00000650 72 6d 2e 0d 20 20 20 57 68 61 74 20 69 73 20 69 |rm.. What is i| 00000660 72 6b 73 6f 6d 65 20 61 62 6f 75 74 20 63 6f 6e |rksome about con| 00000670 74 69 6e 75 69 6e 67 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 74 68 69 |tinuing from thi| 00000680 73 20 70 6f 69 6e 74 20 69 73 20 74 68 61 74 20 |s point is that | 00000690 61 6e 79 20 66 61 6c 73 65 0d 73 65 6e 73 65 20 |any false.sense | 000006a0 6f 66 20 73 65 63 75 72 69 74 79 20 79 6f 75 20 |of security you | 000006b0 68 61 64 20 64 65 76 65 6c 6f 70 65 64 20 74 68 |had developed th| 000006c0 61 6e 6b 73 20 74 6f 20 74 68 65 20 73 69 6d 70 |anks to the simp| 000006d0 69 6c 69 63 69 74 79 20 6f 66 20 79 6f 75 72 0d |ilicity of your.| 000006e0 65 73 63 61 70 65 20 69 73 20 74 68 65 6e 20 72 |escape is then r| 000006f0 65 70 65 61 74 65 64 6c 79 20 73 71 75 69 73 68 |epeatedly squish| 00000700 65 64 2e 20 41 6c 6d 6f 73 74 20 65 76 65 72 79 |ed. Almost every| 00000710 20 6d 6f 76 65 20 79 6f 75 20 6d 61 6b 65 20 6e | move you make n| 00000720 6f 77 20 72 65 2d 0d 73 75 6c 74 73 20 69 6e 20 |ow re-.sults in | 00000730 61 20 68 69 64 65 6f 75 73 20 61 6e 64 20 73 6f |a hideous and so| 00000740 6d 65 74 69 6d 65 73 20 71 75 69 74 65 20 75 6e |metimes quite un| 00000750 63 6f 6e 6e 65 63 74 65 64 20 64 65 61 74 68 2e |connected death.| 00000760 20 46 6f 72 20 65 78 61 6d 70 6c 65 2c 20 0d 79 | For example, .y| 00000770 6f 75 20 63 68 6f 6f 73 65 20 74 68 65 20 64 65 |ou choose the de| 00000780 73 65 72 74 2c 20 64 65 61 74 68 20 62 79 20 68 |sert, death by h| 00000790 65 61 74 73 74 72 6f 6b 65 3b 20 73 77 61 6d 70 |eatstroke; swamp| 000007a0 2c 20 64 65 61 74 68 20 62 79 20 64 72 6f 77 6e |, death by drown| 000007b0 69 6e 67 3b 0d 6e 61 72 72 6f 77 20 70 61 74 68 |ing;.narrow path| 000007c0 2c 20 64 65 61 74 68 20 62 79 20 73 6c 75 67 73 |, death by slugs| 000007d0 20 66 61 6c 6c 69 6e 67 20 6f 75 74 20 6f 66 20 | falling out of | 000007e0 74 68 65 20 73 6b 79 3b 20 65 74 63 2e 0d 20 20 |the sky; etc.. | 000007f0 20 41 73 20 69 6e 20 61 6c 6c 20 61 64 76 65 6e | As in all adven| 00000800 74 75 72 65 73 2c 20 74 68 65 72 65 20 61 72 65 |tures, there are| 00000810 20 6f 62 6a 65 63 74 73 20 74 6f 20 66 69 6e 64 | objects to find| 00000820 20 61 6e 64 20 75 73 65 20 63 6f 72 72 65 63 74 | and use correct| 00000830 6c 79 2e 20 0d 55 6e 6c 69 6b 65 20 69 6e 20 6d |ly. .Unlike in m| 00000840 61 6e 79 2c 20 74 68 65 72 65 20 69 73 20 6e 6f |any, there is no| 00000850 20 6e 65 65 64 20 74 6f 20 45 58 41 4d 49 4e 45 | need to EXAMINE| 00000860 20 61 6e 79 74 68 69 6e 67 2e 20 44 6f 69 6e 67 | anything. Doing| 00000870 20 73 6f 20 62 72 69 6e 67 73 20 75 70 0d 74 68 | so brings up.th| 00000880 65 20 6d 65 73 73 61 67 65 20 22 49 27 76 65 20 |e message "I've | 00000890 61 6c 72 65 61 64 79 20 74 6f 6c 64 20 79 6f 75 |already told you| 000008a0 20 65 76 65 72 79 74 68 69 6e 67 20 79 6f 75 20 | everything you | 000008b0 6e 65 65 64 20 74 6f 20 6b 6e 6f 77 20 61 62 6f |need to know abo| 000008c0 75 74 0d 74 68 61 74 21 22 20 77 68 69 63 68 20 |ut.that!" which | 000008d0 63 6f 6d 65 73 20 64 69 72 65 63 74 20 66 72 6f |comes direct fro| 000008e0 6d 20 74 68 65 20 68 61 6e 64 20 6f 66 20 50 65 |m the hand of Pe| 000008f0 74 65 72 20 4b 69 6c 6c 77 6f 72 74 68 2c 20 4e |ter Killworth, N| 00000900 4f 54 20 74 68 65 20 0d 44 6f 6f 6d 2d 73 74 72 |OT the .Doom-str| 00000910 61 6e 64 65 64 20 61 64 76 65 6e 74 75 72 65 72 |anded adventurer| 00000920 20 77 68 6f 20 69 73 20 72 65 66 65 72 65 64 20 | who is refered | 00000930 74 6f 20 69 6e 20 74 68 65 20 73 65 63 6f 6e 64 |to in the second| 00000940 20 70 65 72 73 6f 6e 2e 20 4f 6e 63 65 0d 61 67 | person. Once.ag| 00000950 61 69 6e 20 74 68 6f 75 67 68 2c 20 79 6f 75 20 |ain though, you | 00000960 61 72 65 20 66 6f 72 63 65 64 20 74 6f 20 64 69 |are forced to di| 00000970 65 20 61 20 6e 75 6d 62 65 72 20 6f 66 20 62 6c |e a number of bl| 00000980 6f 6f 64 74 68 69 72 73 74 79 20 64 65 61 74 68 |oodthirsty death| 00000990 73 20 74 6f 0d 64 69 73 63 6f 76 65 72 20 77 68 |s to.discover wh| 000009a0 61 74 20 69 73 20 73 61 66 65 20 74 6f 20 70 69 |at is safe to pi| 000009b0 63 6b 20 75 70 20 6f 72 20 6d 61 6e 69 70 75 6c |ck up or manipul| 000009c0 61 74 65 2e 20 4f 68 2c 20 67 6f 6f 64 79 2c 20 |ate. Oh, goody, | 000009d0 61 20 67 75 6e 2c 20 49 27 6c 6c 0d 66 69 72 65 |a gun, I'll.fire| 000009e0 20 69 74 2e 20 44 65 61 64 2e 20 57 68 61 74 27 | it. Dead. What'| 000009f0 73 20 74 68 61 74 20 62 6c 6f 62 20 77 72 69 67 |s that blob wrig| 00000a00 67 6c 69 6e 67 20 74 6f 77 61 72 64 73 20 74 68 |gling towards th| 00000a10 65 20 63 6c 69 66 66 3f 20 49 27 6c 6c 20 54 41 |e cliff? I'll TA| 00000a20 4b 45 0d 69 74 2e 20 44 65 61 64 2e 20 41 6e 64 |KE.it. Dead. And| 00000a30 20 74 68 65 73 65 20 61 72 65 20 6f 6e 6c 79 20 | these are only | 00000a40 69 6e 20 74 68 65 20 66 69 72 73 74 20 73 69 78 |in the first six| 00000a50 20 6f 72 20 73 65 76 65 6e 20 6c 6f 63 61 74 69 | or seven locati| 00000a60 6f 6e 73 21 20 42 65 61 72 2d 0d 69 6e 67 20 69 |ons! Bear-.ing i| 00000a70 6e 20 6d 69 6e 64 20 74 68 61 74 20 70 72 6f 66 |n mind that prof| 00000a80 65 73 73 69 6f 6e 61 6c 20 61 64 76 65 6e 74 75 |essional adventu| 00000a90 72 65 73 20 73 75 63 68 20 61 73 20 74 68 69 73 |res such as this| 00000aa0 20 74 65 6e 64 20 74 6f 20 67 65 74 20 68 61 72 | tend to get har| 00000ab0 64 65 72 0d 61 6e 64 20 68 61 72 64 65 72 20 74 |der.and harder t| 00000ac0 68 65 20 66 75 72 74 68 65 72 20 74 68 65 20 61 |he further the a| 00000ad0 64 76 65 6e 74 75 72 65 72 20 6d 61 6e 61 67 65 |dventurer manage| 00000ae0 73 20 74 6f 20 70 72 6f 67 72 65 73 73 2c 20 73 |s to progress, s| 00000af0 6f 6d 65 20 77 69 6c 6c 20 0d 70 72 6f 62 61 62 |ome will .probab| 00000b00 6c 79 20 62 65 20 76 65 72 79 20 64 69 73 63 6f |ly be very disco| 00000b10 75 72 61 67 65 64 20 62 79 20 74 68 65 73 65 20 |uraged by these | 00000b20 65 61 72 6c 79 20 73 65 74 62 61 63 6b 73 20 77 |early setbacks w| 00000b30 68 69 63 68 2c 20 69 66 20 79 6f 75 20 68 61 76 |hich, if you hav| 00000b40 65 0d 6e 6f 74 20 53 41 56 45 64 20 74 68 65 20 |e.not SAVEd the | 00000b50 70 6f 73 69 74 69 6f 6e 2c 20 69 6d 6d 65 64 69 |position, immedi| 00000b60 61 74 65 6c 79 20 72 65 74 75 72 6e 20 79 6f 75 |ately return you| 00000b70 20 74 6f 20 74 68 65 20 73 74 61 72 74 20 6f 66 | to the start of| 00000b80 20 69 74 2e 0d 20 20 20 41 20 62 65 74 74 65 72 | it.. A better| 00000b90 20 73 6f 6c 75 74 69 6f 6e 2c 20 77 68 69 63 68 | solution, which| 00000ba0 20 69 73 20 63 6f 6e 74 61 69 6e 65 64 20 69 6e | is contained in| 00000bb0 20 73 6f 6d 65 20 6f 74 68 65 72 20 54 6f 70 6f | some other Topo| 00000bc0 6c 6f 67 69 6b 61 20 0d 72 65 6c 65 61 73 65 73 |logika .releases| 00000bd0 2c 20 69 73 20 74 6f 20 61 73 6b 20 22 44 6f 20 |, is to ask "Do | 00000be0 79 6f 75 20 77 61 6e 74 20 74 6f 20 70 72 65 74 |you want to pret| 00000bf0 65 6e 64 20 79 6f 75 20 68 61 64 6e 27 74 20 64 |end you hadn't d| 00000c00 6f 6e 65 20 74 68 61 74 3f 22 20 61 6e 64 0d 77 |one that?" and.w| 00000c10 61 69 74 20 66 6f 72 20 74 68 65 20 69 6e 65 76 |ait for the inev| 00000c20 69 74 61 62 6c 65 20 59 20 6b 65 79 70 72 65 73 |itable Y keypres| 00000c30 73 2e 20 54 68 69 73 20 73 61 76 65 73 20 61 20 |s. This saves a | 00000c40 6c 61 72 67 65 20 6d 65 61 73 75 72 65 20 6f 66 |large measure of| 00000c50 20 66 72 75 73 2d 0d 74 72 61 74 69 6f 6e 2e 0d | frus-.tration..| 00000c60 20 20 20 41 73 20 79 6f 75 20 6d 61 79 20 68 61 | As you may ha| 00000c70 76 65 20 67 75 65 73 73 65 64 2c 20 49 20 68 61 |ve guessed, I ha| 00000c80 76 65 20 6e 6f 74 20 70 65 72 73 6f 6e 61 6c 6c |ve not personall| 00000c90 79 20 6d 61 64 65 20 6d 75 63 68 20 68 65 61 64 |y made much head| 00000ca0 77 61 79 20 69 6e 0d 74 68 69 73 20 68 65 6c 6c |way in.this hell| 00000cb0 68 6f 6c 65 20 62 75 74 20 61 70 61 72 74 20 66 |hole but apart f| 00000cc0 72 6f 6d 20 74 68 65 20 73 70 6f 74 6c 65 73 73 |rom the spotless| 00000cd0 20 73 70 65 6c 6c 69 6e 67 20 61 6e 64 20 61 74 | spelling and at| 00000ce0 6d 6f 73 70 68 65 72 65 2c 20 74 68 65 0d 67 61 |mosphere, the.ga| 00000cf0 6d 65 20 68 61 73 20 6f 6e 65 20 6d 6f 72 65 20 |me has one more | 00000d00 66 65 61 74 75 72 65 20 74 6f 20 72 65 63 6f 6d |feature to recom| 00000d10 6d 65 6e 64 20 69 74 20 61 6e 64 20 74 68 69 73 |mend it and this| 00000d20 20 69 73 20 74 68 65 20 6f 6e 20 6c 69 6e 65 20 | is the on line | 00000d30 68 65 6c 70 0d 66 61 63 69 6c 69 74 79 2e 20 0d |help.facility. .| 00000d40 20 20 20 57 69 74 68 20 74 68 65 20 6f 72 69 67 | With the orig| 00000d50 69 6e 61 6c 20 64 69 73 6b 20 63 6f 6d 65 73 20 |inal disk comes | 00000d60 61 20 73 68 65 65 74 20 6f 66 20 6d 6f 73 74 2d |a sheet of most-| 00000d70 6c 69 6b 65 6c 79 2d 74 6f 2d 62 65 2d 61 73 6b |likely-to-be-ask| 00000d80 65 64 20 0d 71 75 65 73 74 69 6f 6e 73 2e 20 48 |ed .questions. H| 00000d90 6f 77 65 76 65 72 2c 20 69 6e 73 74 65 61 64 20 |owever, instead | 00000da0 6f 66 20 68 61 76 69 6e 67 20 74 6f 20 64 65 63 |of having to dec| 00000db0 72 79 70 74 20 61 20 63 6f 64 65 64 20 61 6e 73 |rypt a coded ans| 00000dc0 77 65 72 20 6f 72 20 6c 6f 6f 6b 0d 69 74 20 75 |wer or look.it u| 00000dd0 70 20 6f 6e 20 61 6e 6f 74 68 65 72 20 73 68 65 |p on another she| 00000de0 65 74 2c 20 79 6f 75 20 6f 62 74 61 69 6e 20 74 |et, you obtain t| 00000df0 68 65 20 61 6e 73 77 65 72 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 74 |he answer from t| 00000e00 68 65 20 67 61 6d 65 20 69 74 73 65 6c 66 20 62 |he game itself b| 00000e10 79 0d 74 79 70 69 6e 67 20 48 45 4c 50 20 61 6e |y.typing HELP an| 00000e20 64 20 74 68 65 6e 20 74 68 65 20 4e 55 4d 42 45 |d then the NUMBE| 00000e30 52 20 66 6f 6c 6c 6f 77 69 6e 67 20 74 68 65 20 |R following the | 00000e40 61 70 70 72 6f 70 72 69 61 74 65 20 71 75 65 73 |appropriate ques| 00000e50 74 69 6f 6e 2e 20 59 6f 75 0d 67 65 74 20 6f 6e |tion. You.get on| 00000e60 65 20 68 69 6e 74 20 61 6e 64 2c 20 69 66 20 74 |e hint and, if t| 00000e70 68 69 73 20 69 73 20 74 6f 6f 20 63 72 79 70 74 |his is too crypt| 00000e80 69 63 2c 20 63 61 6e 20 61 73 6b 20 66 6f 72 20 |ic, can ask for | 00000e90 66 75 72 74 68 65 72 20 6f 6e 65 73 20 75 6e 74 |further ones unt| 00000ea0 69 6c 0d 79 6f 75 20 61 72 65 20 67 69 76 65 6e |il.you are given| 00000eb0 20 61 20 73 6f 6c 75 74 69 6f 6e 2e 20 49 6e 20 | a solution. In | 00000ec0 74 68 69 73 20 77 61 79 2c 20 74 68 65 20 67 61 |this way, the ga| 00000ed0 6d 65 27 73 20 61 70 70 65 61 6c 20 69 73 20 61 |me's appeal is a| 00000ee0 64 76 61 6e 63 65 64 20 61 73 0d 79 6f 75 20 63 |dvanced as.you c| 00000ef0 61 6e 20 6d 61 6b 65 20 70 72 6f 67 72 65 73 73 |an make progress| 00000f00 20 77 69 74 68 6f 75 74 20 6e 65 65 64 69 6e 67 | without needing| 00000f10 20 42 72 69 74 61 69 6e 27 73 20 42 69 67 67 65 | Britain's Bigge| 00000f20 73 74 20 42 72 61 69 6e 2e 0d 20 20 20 50 72 65 |st Brain.. Pre| 00000f30 73 65 6e 74 65 64 20 69 6e 20 61 20 73 74 79 6c |sented in a styl| 00000f40 69 73 68 20 63 6c 65 61 72 20 70 6c 61 73 74 69 |ish clear plasti| 00000f50 63 20 66 6f 6c 64 65 72 20 77 69 74 68 20 61 6e |c folder with an| 00000f60 20 69 6c 6c 75 73 74 72 61 74 65 64 20 6c 6f 77 | illustrated low| 00000f70 2d 0d 64 6f 77 6e 20 6f 6e 20 74 68 65 20 70 6c |-.down on the pl| 00000f80 61 6e 65 74 20 61 6e 64 20 61 20 70 6c 61 79 69 |anet and a playi| 00000f90 6e 67 20 67 75 69 64 65 2c 20 43 4f 55 4e 54 44 |ng guide, COUNTD| 00000fa0 4f 57 4e 20 54 4f 20 44 4f 4f 4d 20 73 75 67 67 |OWN TO DOOM sugg| 00000fb0 65 73 74 73 20 61 74 0d 65 76 65 72 79 20 6c 65 |ests at.every le| 00000fc0 76 65 6c 20 74 68 61 74 20 69 74 20 69 73 20 61 |vel that it is a| 00000fd0 20 76 65 72 79 20 73 65 72 69 6f 75 73 20 61 64 | very serious ad| 00000fe0 76 65 6e 74 75 72 65 20 77 68 69 63 68 20 77 69 |venture which wi| 00000ff0 6c 6c 20 74 61 78 20 74 68 65 20 6f 6c 64 0d 67 |ll tax the old.g| 00001000 72 65 79 20 6d 61 74 74 65 72 20 74 6f 20 62 75 |rey matter to bu| 00001010 72 73 74 69 6e 67 20 70 6f 69 6e 74 2e 20 54 68 |rsting point. Th| 00001020 69 73 20 69 73 20 65 78 61 63 74 6c 79 20 77 68 |is is exactly wh| 00001030 61 74 20 74 68 65 20 73 6f 66 74 77 61 72 65 20 |at the software | 00001040 69 74 73 65 6c 66 0d 64 6f 65 73 20 61 6e 64 20 |itself.does and | 00001050 69 74 27 73 20 6e 6f 20 62 61 64 20 74 68 69 6e |it's no bad thin| 00001060 67 20 61 74 20 61 6c 6c 2e 20 49 74 20 69 6e 63 |g at all. It inc| 00001070 6f 72 70 6f 72 61 74 65 73 20 6d 61 6e 79 20 6e |orporates many n| 00001080 65 77 20 69 74 65 6d 73 20 6f 76 65 72 0d 74 68 |ew items over.th| 00001090 65 20 6f 72 69 67 69 6e 61 6c 20 76 65 72 73 69 |e original versi| 000010a0 6f 6e 20 61 6e 64 2c 20 61 6c 74 68 6f 75 67 68 |on and, although| 000010b0 20 69 74 20 69 6e 63 6c 75 64 65 73 20 73 6f 6d | it includes som| 000010c0 65 20 74 72 69 65 64 20 28 6f 72 20 73 68 6f 75 |e tried (or shou| 000010d0 6c 64 20 0d 74 68 61 74 20 62 65 20 74 69 72 65 |ld .that be tire| 000010e0 64 3f 29 20 61 6e 64 20 74 65 73 74 65 64 20 70 |d?) and tested p| 000010f0 75 7a 7a 6c 65 73 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 6f 74 68 65 |uzzles from othe| 00001100 72 20 61 64 76 65 6e 74 75 72 65 73 2c 20 6d 61 |r adventures, ma| 00001110 6e 61 67 65 73 20 74 6f 0d 63 72 61 6d 20 69 6e |nages to.cram in| 00001120 20 61 20 66 65 77 20 6e 65 77 20 69 64 65 61 73 | a few new ideas| 00001130 20 74 6f 6f 2e 20 49 66 20 79 6f 75 20 63 61 6e | too. If you can| 00001140 20 6c 69 76 65 20 77 69 74 68 20 62 65 69 6e 67 | live with being| 00001150 20 6b 6e 6f 63 6b 65 64 20 6f 66 66 0d 65 76 65 | knocked off.eve| 00001160 72 79 20 66 65 77 20 6d 69 6e 75 74 65 73 2c 20 |ry few minutes, | 00001170 61 6e 64 20 64 6f 6e 27 74 20 6d 69 6e 64 20 72 |and don't mind r| 00001180 65 73 70 6f 6e 73 65 73 20 6c 69 6b 65 20 22 47 |esponses like "G| 00001190 65 65 2c 20 49 20 68 6f 70 65 20 79 6f 75 20 65 |ee, I hope you e| 000011a0 6e 6a 6f 79 2d 0d 65 64 20 74 68 61 74 21 22 20 |njoy-.ed that!" | 000011b0 69 66 20 79 6f 75 20 64 6f 20 73 6f 6d 65 74 68 |if you do someth| 000011c0 69 6e 67 20 4b 69 6c 6c 77 6f 72 74 68 20 63 6f |ing Killworth co| 000011d0 6e 73 69 64 65 72 73 20 75 6e 6e 65 63 65 73 73 |nsiders unnecess| 000011e0 61 72 79 2c 20 74 68 65 6e 20 67 69 76 65 0d 74 |ary, then give.t| 000011f0 68 69 73 20 61 64 76 65 6e 74 75 72 65 20 61 20 |his adventure a | 00001200 67 6f 2e 20 42 75 74 20 62 65 20 77 61 72 6e 65 |go. But be warne| 00001210 64 20 74 68 6f 75 67 68 2c 20 69 74 27 73 20 6e |d though, it's n| 00001220 6f 74 20 65 61 73 79 21 0d 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 |ot easy!. | 00001230 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 | | * 00001250 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 44 61 76 65 | Dave| 00001260 20 45 64 77 61 72 64 73 2c 20 45 55 47 20 23 35 | Edwards, EUG #5| 00001270 34 0d |4.| 00001272