We hope you enjoy the game. Please read the following file before you play, as it answers some frequently asked questions and also includes some useful tidbits of info.
Have fun!
Alex Metcalf, David Wareing
authors, Bubble Trouble.
REQUIREMENTS
68020 or better (Bubble Trouble is completely Power Mac native)
2900k free memory
640x480 screen or larger, supporting 256 colours/grays or more
System 7.0 or later
Sound Manager 3.0 (part of System 7.5 or later) on 68K Machines.
Sound Manager 3.1 on PowerPC machines.
SPECIAL NOTE ON SOUND PLAYBACK
If you are playing Bubble Trouble on a Power Macintosh, you should definitely be using at least Sound Manager 3.1 which was the first PowerPC native version. With an earlier version of the Sound Manager, you will probably suffer from severely reduced game speed. You can find Sound Manager 3.1 on the World Wide Web (www.apple.com) or you can get it from your local Apple dealer.
If you are playing on a 68000 based Macintosh (i.e. 020, 030 or 040 processor), then you will need at least Sound Manager 3 which is available as a separate system extension for users of System 7.0 or 7.1 (all versions). This can also be obtained from Apple on the Internet, or from your local Apple dealer.
WHERE'S THE INSTRUCTIONS?
You control "Blinky", a young fish floundering in an underwater maze. To escape, you must defend yourself from the dangerous Denizens of the Deep and earn yourself treasure in the process. The game itself is very easy to control. Just watch a few game demos to learn the basics, and then use the Preferences dialog box to set your controls. You shouldn't have any trouble learning how to play the game. Just dive in at the deep end and see what works!
WHERE CAN I GO FOR MORE COOL BUBBLE TROUBLE STUFF?
Check out the Bubble Trouble web site at:
http://Bubble-Trouble.com/
You can get updates, more music, tips and hints on game play, and much more!
MULTIPLE RESOLUTION MONITORS
If you have a screen which supports multiple resolutions, Bubble Trouble will give you the option of resizing your screen to 640x480 for the best gaming experience. A drawback of this system is that your desktop icons may be moved around, thanks to an apparent bug in the Finder. If you don't want your screen resized, hold down the option key when you open Bubble Trouble. You can turn the resizing off permanently in the Preferences once Bubble Trouble is open. A file called "Display Library" is supplied with Bubble Trouble. This should be placed in your Extensions folder (inside the System folder).
HOW DO I MAKE THE GAME RUN FASTER?
Because of the complex graphics, sound, music, and code, Bubble Trouble may not always run at full speed on 'slower' Macs such as those with 68020 (e.g. LC) and 68030 (e.g. LCII, LCIII) processors. If this is the case, try these speedup tactics in the following order until the game plays smoothly and quickly enough:
Ñ Quit any active applications before opening Bubble Trouble,
Ñ Turn off Virtual Memory if you have it on (this includes RAM Doubler) and restart,
Ñ Restart with all non-essential Extensions turned off (except for Sound Manager 3),
Ñ In the Bubble Trouble sound Preferences:
- Turn off 'use better music'
- Turn on 'reduce music quality'
Ñ Turn off the 'bubbles' option the game Preferences,
Ñ Turn off the 'stars' option in the game Preferences,
Ñ In the Bubble Trouble sound Preferences:
- Set the music volume to 'off'
ADDING YOUR OWN MUSIC
Bubble Trouble is one of the few Mac games which uses MOD music files for the game music. MOD files were originally made popular by their extensive use on the Amiga, and are now available in their thousands on the Internet. If you want to use your own MOD files in Bubble Trouble, simply put them into the music folder and change their names appropriately. If you are using large (e.g. bigger than 150k) files you will need to increase Bubble Trouble's memory allocation. Rule of thumb: you will need to allocate extra memory to Bubble Trouble at twice the size of the MOD to be played. Be aware that many MODs available are often nothing more than huge samples of recorded music. These MODs are especially large and will require that you give Bubble Trouble much more real memory (not Virtual Memory!). Also be aware that there are several types of MODs, and these types range in complexity. Many use only 4 channels, others may take 16. The more complex the MOD, the slower it may play! In general, don't try and play 8 or 16 channel MODs on a non-PowerPC machine.
HAVING PROBLEMS?
Bubble Trouble uses its own drawing routines in order to speed up the game on slower machines. However, these routines may not be as compatible as Apple's QuickDraw software. If you encounter problems on your machine, go to Bubble Trouble's preferences window and choose "QuickDraw" instead of "QuickerDraw". Note that this option will default to QuickDraw on PowerMacs (which are generally fast enough not to need any help from us).
If you are still having troubles, restart your Macintosh and hold down the "shift" key to disable all extensions. Extension conflicts are the number 1 cause of crashes and other problems, so it's a good idea to keep extensions to a minimum, and to treat all newly installed Extensions with some caution. (Also, it will help speed up your computer and will use up memory).
If problems still persist, contact Ambrosia.
KNOWN BUGS
Ñ When your screen is resized, your desktop icons may have been moved and not properly repositioned. Sorry, but this is a Finder/Display Manager bug. Work on it Apple!
Ñ Some testers (ok, one of them - you know you are :) have reported a "freezeup" of certain movement keys while playing the game. This usually causes our hero (Blinky) to continue to move in the current direction, regardless of whatever keys the player hits. The solution is to simply tap the current direction key again, which will free up the other keys.
TECHNICAL STUFF
Bubble Trouble was written in C using Metrowerks CodeWarrior environment and has been compiled for both 68K and PPC Macs as a FAT binary. Alex Metcalf develops in Wales and Bristol, and David Wareing develops in Adelaide, South Australia. Bubble Trouble uses the Ambrosia Monitor Tool and the Sound Tool for fast 8 channel audio. Bubble Trouble is published by Ambrosia in New York state.
