Secret Service 56b/SSERVCD_56B.bin/Sinclair/Games/information/Sophistry.txt

Text File | 1998-02-02 | 14KB | 363 lines

THE SPECTRUM GAMES DATABASE

SOPHISTRY

PUBLISHER
CRL, distributed by Electronic Arts

AUTHORS
TFMG and TEBS

YEAR
Original Release, May 1988
Re-released on Crash magazine tape - Issue 63, April 89

DESCRIPTION
A unique arcade/puzzle game.

CONTROLS
Keys/Kempston/Sinclair/Cursor

On menu screen: Left/Right = highlight main option
                          Up/Down = highlight sub-option
                          Fire = select option/sub-option
                          Fire held down = return to main menu

In game: Up/Down/Left/Right = move pod
               Fire = Use upper
               Fire held down = Pause (fire again to unpause)

Game defaults to Cursor when originally loaded.

INSTRUCTIONS
The map of Sophistry comprises 21 levels. Each of these
levels is made up of many interlocking 'boards', which are
the 3D screens which have to be solved one at a time.

At the start of the game, only 20% of the entire map is
'open' - the rest is inaccessable because of locks present
between the levels. Your objective is to obtain all 64 keys
needed to unlock them, and they can be obtained either by
setting out to find them (they are all scattered throughout
the complex) or by amassing enough points to buy them.

To do this, you control a little pod who makes his way
through the complex by 'solving' each screen. He is only able
to jump in four directions, and release 'uppers' (more on
that later), but special tiles and screens can alter his
actions.

The main game screen (or 'board')
Select the little picture of the joystick on the menu and
press fire to get a look at this.

Each 3D screen is made up of lots of little blocks. The most
common are the simple Scoring blocks, which have a Specrum
UDG shapes on them, and jumping onto them will give you a
score relative to whichever shape is on the particular tile.
(Full information on this can be accessed from in the game)
There is also a 'Joker' tile, which has an empty rectangle
upon it. This is worth no points, and cannot be 'altered' by
DEC, TRACK or Uppers (see later).

Scoring blocks can be jumped on in various sequences to gain
bonus points. Experimentation is best here, but one such is
the jumping on of identical-valued blocks in sequence.
These multiple-block actions will also award the player with
Bonuses (denoted by the first two-digit number on the status
line, underneath the picture of the joystick), which will be
traded for Uppers upon the completion of a board.

Uppers are denoted on the game screen by the number
next to the upwards-pointing arrow. Tapping the fire button
on a board will cause all the Scoring blocks to increment by
one, up to a maximum of the block which scores 9. The joker
is not affected. These Uppers come in very useful depending
on the type of board being played.

Remember that score is a very important aspect to this game.
Points can be used to buy keys, as well as lives and uppers,
so it is advisable to obtain as many points as possible on
screens where it is easy to do so.

Another important block is the TARGET block, which has a
thick circle on it. This plays a part in the puzzles on many
screens, and its function is specific to the type of screen -
see the instructions for each screen type for details. Once
you have landed on it, it will move to another position on
the board.

The filled in blocks with the split rectangles upon them are
the exits to other boards. The edge of the board upon which
the exit lies determines which direction it is an exit to,
and to use it, simply jump off in that direction. So, to go
'east', jump onto the exit on the right-hand edge of the
board and jump right. If there are two or more exits on one
edge of a board, they will all take the player to the same
screen, but remember that not all blocks on any one screen
are accesible from any one exit.

The blocks looking like holes are 'vertical' exits to other
levels. There is one type which will take the player up a
level, and another which allows travel down a level. They are
subtley different - see the main program to have a look at
them. Remember that some of these exits will be permanently
locked until you have found or bought the keys needed to open
them.

Wormholes look like vertical exits, but act like
'transporters', taking the player to another board, maybe on
a different vertical level, and almost certainly not at the
same horizontal position. They are not random, however.

The top-left of the screen shows a 3D representation of the
exits available, with stalks showing the exits which can be
used. This may change depending on the type of screen being
played, for example if a certain amount of time must elapse
before an exit opens. Trying to use an exit without it being
open will result in loss of life, as will attempting to jump
off a board at an unmarked exit, or jumping to where there
isn't a block. The block to the right of the 'exit-map'
simply shows the block which the pod is currently sitting on.

You will also encounter blocks with question marks on, which
will perform a random action, such as giving score or
stripping the player of all current Bonuses. The action
performed will be scrolled across the bottom of the screen
when the block is jumped on.

Lastly, Key blocks hold one of the 64 keys needed to complete
the game. They are always in the same place throughout the
complex, but may not always be easily accessible. Remember
that keys can be bought as well as found. If you find a key,
jumping on it will collect it and tell you what lock it is
relevant to.

As well as the specific actions of each type of board, there
are also three variables to each board, shown by the text
beneath the game screen.

DEC shows the Decrement Status. If this is ON, each time the
pod jumps off a block, that block will decrease in point
value by one, and it's UDG shape will change correspondingly.
If the pod jumps off a block with a points value of 0 (i.e. a
blank block), that block will disappear. However, it can be
retrieved by using an upper, which will force it back to a
value of 0. Jokers are not affected by DEC. If the Decrement
Status is off, point values are unaffected by the pod.

TRACK shows the Tracking Status. If this is ON, when the pod
jumps off a block, that block will sink, meaning that if the
pod tries to jump on it again, a life will be lost. Jokers,
exits and Bonus blocks are not affected. In fact, jumping
on the Bonus block will cause all sunken blocks to revert
back to their original position, making them accesible again.

The LOCKED status details when and if the exits on the board
will be unlocked, as shown by the 3D symbol in the top-left
corner.
UNLOCKED - all exits are unlocked for as long as the pod
           remains on the board.
SCORELOCKED - a certain number of points need to be amassed
                 before the exits will be opened. Usually this
                 is cumulative - exits are opened one at a time,
                 and the 'most useful' exits are normally the
                 last to open.
TIMELOCKED - a certain amount of time needs to pass before
                     each exit is opened.

On certain boards, if the pod remains for too long without
exiting, a Seeker will be released, which will attempt to
collide with the pod and destroy it, resulting in the loss of
a life. However, points can be used to restrict the
activities of the Seekers.




However, the main obstacles to the pods progression are the
different types of board it will come across. These are all
described fully in the game, but here is a brief description
of each one:

FREEWAY - No restrictions.
COUNTDOWN - Limited amount of time to exit board.
REPULSION - After a certain amount of time, movement in each
               of the four directions will be prevented.
STOPWATCH - Stopwatch counts down, when it reaches zero, you
               must have either exited, be on the Target block,
               or not have moved.
JUMPY - The blocks around you will alternately sink. You can
            only jump onto a block that is currently sunk.
REACTION - Jumping off a block will cause it to move as far
            as it can in the opposite direction. The distance
            it moves will be the distance you jump.
CHAIN - A chain of low blocks follows you around. Contact
            results in loss of a life.
HI-LO - A minimum or maximum points total is shown, which you
            must keep within before jumping on the Target block.
            Failure means loss of life.
NO RETURN - Jumping off a block means it will disappear
               forever.
INERTIA - You cannot stop moving unless you land on the
           Target block.
RATIONS - You are limited to landing on the Target block a
                certain number of times.

Usually, all these types of board are combined with the DEC,
TRACK and LOCK status, to make the board as difficult as
possible to complete.


THE MENU SCREEN
At the start of the game, and upon losing a life or exiting a
board, you will be returned to the menu screen. This is to
allow you to access information about the next board and/or
the map as a whole, exchange points for uppers or extra
lives, or quit the game. It should be pointed out here that
losing all lives will not result in the game automatically
restarting, instead this has to be done from the Menu Screen.
This is to allow you to buy a life even if your current quota
of lives is nil.

The bottom of the screen tells you how much of the structure
is open at the moment, and a 100% open structure means you
can proceed to Level 21 to complete the game.

The five main menu options are shown at the top-left of the
screen, and can be selected by moving the joystick left and
right to highlight the relevant option, and then tapping
fire.

PLAY BOARD (Joystick symbol)
Selecting this will take you to the current board.

HALT
This is the Pause option, and can only be selected from
within the actual game, by holding down fire.

INSTRUCTION MANUAL
Selecting this will present you with a list of things to call
up information about (do this by moving up/down to select it,
and press fire. Pressing fire again will return you to the
main list). The NEXT BOARD option will tell you what type of
board to expect next, the BOARD SYMBOLS tells you general
information about all the different types of block, and the
rest of the options are information about all the different
type of board.
Hold down fire at any time to return to the main Menu Screen.

MAP
Selecting this will give you a simple representation of the
structure of the level you are on, as well as a cursor which
can be moved about on the map. Depending on how well you
are doing, you will be shown information about each board on
the map, as determined by your Information Access Level. At
the start of the game however, you will only be able to see
the general structure of the level.  Hold down fire to return to
the main Menu Screen.

MAIN CONTROL
Selecting this will give you control over just about
everything. The letter and number on this icon (the small
monitor and 'TEC' written below it) tells you your
Information Access Level (starting at D8, which correlates to
level 1, and ranging up to A1). Many options within this
option will be disabled depending on your Access Level.

The sub-options here are:- (hold down fire at any time to
return to the Main Menu)

- CONTROLS, allows you to select a control method, selecting
                    keys will let you define the keys.

- TAPE, allows you to save/load the current game.

- SOUND, lets you turn the sound on or off.

- DATA, gives you information about the various aspects of
            the board and map, the most important being the
            current status of the locks, and which keys you have
            collected.
            Much of this may be restricted depending on your
            Information Access Level.

- XCHANGE, allows you to exchange points for various things.
            To do this, simply select it and you will be told
            if you have insufficent score or if your Access
            Level is too low to do so. The DATA option will
            tell you how many points each key needs to be
            exchanged for.

- RESTART, restarts the whole game from scratch.

HINTS/CHEATS
Most of the CHAIN boards are time-locked with DEC and/or
TRACK on, and it gets a bit dull avoiding the chain for
several minutes. So, decide which exit you want to use, and
jump between it and all the blocks which surround it, thus
DECing them out and preventing the chain from reaching you.
Then, wait around for the exit to open!

RELATED GAMES
None.

INLAY CARD TEXT

SCORES
Crash, Issue 52 (May 88), p85, 90% (CRASH SMASH) - 'Complex,
compelling and original'
SU, May 88, p43, 8/10 - 'Well crucial strategy bouncy thingy,
shame about the funny name' [SU with more typically intelligent
comment]
Your Sinclair, Issue 30 (Jun 88), p47, 9/10 (MEGAGAME) - 'A
cracker'


URL
ftp://ftp.nvg.unit.no/pub/sinclair/snaps/games/by-letter/s/
sophistr.zip

FACTS
It's impossible to travel to Level 1, as for some reason it's
corrupted. Any screen you go to has the wrong information
about LOCK status, and any exits which do open do not exist.
You can also often start the board on a non-existent block,
and each board has a very 'random' feel to it, especially as
there are many blocks you can't get to.  This is obviously not
a problem, as any Keys which are supposed to be there can be
bought with points, but it's an annoying defect in what is
otherwise an excellent game.

NOTES
It is interesting that most of the magazines expressed
surprise that such an original and entertaining game could
come from the CRL stable, and presumably the public couldn't
stem it's disbelief either, as the game was sold barely a
year later to Crash to put on their covertape, suggesting
that full-price sales were less than awe-inspiring.