|  Berks Four | |
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| | Image Gallery | |
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| | Instructions | Joystick in Port 2.
| In the titlescreen | | | F1 | : Switch speed Slow/Fast | | Letters+Numbers | : Enter password | | Space | : Display the instructions | | Fire | : Start game | | | | | In the game | | | M | : Switch map | | Space | : Pause/Resume game | | X | : Quit game |
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| | Author's Note | Berks Four began as an expanded version of my 1980’s game Berks 3 but grew much larger than originally intended. Berks 3 had to run on the C16 and a number of compromises were made to get it running in 16K. The new game was designed to take advantage of the 64K memory on the Plus 4 and uses virtually all the available RAM.
There are no apologies for the old school feel of the game. I aimed to write Berks Four in the same way as I did back in the eighties and many of the original routines were kept and improved where necessary.
Berks 3 consisted of 30 rooms in a 6 by 5 layout. The aim of the game was to explore and locate keys to gain access to the Crystal. Berks Four expands on this so there are now 4 Worlds with the original Berks 3 layout forming World 3. The size of the layout increases from 4 by 4 in World 1 to 6 by 6 in World 4. The last World has been further divided into 3 Zones. Completing a World, or Zone, presents the player with a password that can be used to skip that level next time around.
Anybody familiar with Berks 3 will notice a few changes in Berks Four:
• The major addition to the game is the Location Map which shows an overview of the current World to help you find your way through the labyrinth. The display shows the way each room interconnects and also shows where Room Collectibles remain (keys and lives). The state of the shootaway blocks can be seen and this can help anybody trying to achieve the 100% completion of a World.
• When a World has been completed you will be shown the final score and a percentage completed rating. The percentage reflects how many shootaway blocks remain.
• The main playable character design has changed to allow ‘double barrelled’ firing along the vertical and horizontal axis.
• The default speed of the main character has been slowed down as it became difficult to control in some of the more restricted areas on World 4. The speed can be changed to the original ‘Fast’ setting on the title page.
• Bumping into the shootaway blocks no longer causes the loss of a life. This was always a bit severe.
• You no longer die if bumping into a Berk that has been shot and is flashing before disappearing.
• The scores have generally been reduced and bumping into a wall doesn’t reduce your score.
• The score panel now shows the number of keys that still need to be collected rather than showing the number of keys already collected.
• The Drones (Diamonds) have been kept to their original design for World 1 to 3 but changed for World 4.
• There’s some very basic music on the title page and a few short tunes in the main game. |
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| | Author's Tips | • Pressing the Space Bar during play will pause the game. Press again or use the Fire Button to return to the game.
• While in Paused mode press ‘X’ to exit the game to the title page (after confirmation).
• Pressing ‘M’ while playing, or when in Paused mode, opens the Location Map.
• Each ‘normal’ room has one special collectible item – either a Key or a Heart. Collect all of the keys to gain access to the Final Chamber and collect hearts for an extra life.
• Berks wander aimlessly around a room and can be destroyed.
• Drones home in on your location but can only be stunned. They indicate when they’re about to resume by flashing faster. Keep your eyes on this as it helps.
• Snakes appear in World 4 and are smaller and faster than the Drones. I hate them!
• If you want to make sure the stun time for a Drone or Snake is at maximum (to allow you to safely move past) just keep firing at it until you hear the sound effect to indicate it has been stunned again.
• You can use the shootaway blocks to your advantage by stunning Drones or Snakes behind them allowing you to access tricky areas safely.
• Once you’re familiar with the way the Drones and Snakes home in on you, it’s possible to lure them into a ‘safe location’ and stun them before moving to where you need to go. This is especially useful if you have to clear the way to a Key.
• When a World has been completed you will be shown your score and a percentage completion value. The latter is solely based on the number of shootaway blocks completely removed. The Location Map is invaluable in checking that you’ve removed all of the blocks if you’re trying for 100%.
• When entering a room, the position of enemies is randomly set so be ready with your finger on the Fire Button!
• Sometimes it is wise to back out of a room if the positioning of enemies makes things difficult. |
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| | Cheats - How do I use cheats? | LEVEL 2 JET-BOOT
LEVEL 3 TIMESLIP
LEVEL 4 GEORGINA
LEVEL 4 - ZONE 2 SQUIGGLE
LEVEL 4 - ZONE 3 FSAMURAI
LEVEL 4 - ZONE 4 ROSETTAW
LEVEL 5 VICTORIA | Level codes |
| >4FC1 00 | Unlimited lives (enter in emulator monitor) |
| >1445 2C | Invulnerability (enter in emulator monitor) |
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