--------------------------------------------------------------------- Activision Happy Trails Basics ------------------------------ Black Bart's robbed the stagecoach! He's headed for the Badlands, and you've got to track him down. But first, learn the laws of the West: blaze a trail to the moneybags by arranging the maze, and git deputized by collecting the sheriff's badge. Then, go out and round up Black Bart! 1. Hook up your video game system. Follow manufacturer's instructions. 2. With power OFF, plug in game cartridge. 3. Turn power ON. If no picture appears, check connection of your game system to your TV; then repeat steps 1-3. 4. Slip Happy Trails game overlay onto either hand controller. Single player uses left controller. 5. Select game variation by pressing appropriate number on the overlay (see "Games" section for descriptions). The game selected will then start automatically. To change the game level, press the CLEAR button and then immediately select the game level desired. 6. USE OF CONTROLLER: * DISC: Press TOP of disc to move a trail panel up into an empty square. Press BOTTOM of disc to move a trail panel down. Press LEFT rim of disc to move a trail panel to the left. Press RIGHT rim of disc move a trail panel to the right. * SIDE BUTTONS: Hold down either upper button to travel faster. Release the button to return to normal speed. Press either lower button to reverse direction. 7. To begin play, press any side button or disc to start your hat along the trail. 8. SCORING: * 100 points for each moneybag or sheriff's badge collected. * 300 points for the first Black Bart captured or collided with in any round. * 200 points for each moneybag after the first Black Bart captured. * 600 points for the second Black Bart captured or collided with in any round. * 400 points for each moneybag after the second Black Bart captured. * Each bonus moneybag is worth the Bonus Timer amount at the end of each round. After eight bonus moneybags are earned, additional bonus moneybags are worth 50 points each. 9. TURN POWER OFF BEFORE REMOVING HAPPY TRAILS CARTRIDGE. SPECIAL FEATURES OF HAPPY TRAILS BY ACTIVISION ---------------------------------------------- The Sheriff's Badge: You can only catch Black Bart after you've been deputized. The red sheriff's badge gives you this power (and points) when you move over it. Once you start blinking, move fast! This power won't last forever. Losing Your Hats: You begin with one hat on the trail and three in reserve. It'll cost you a hat each time you blaze into a dead end or the black space. You'll also lose a hat if you run into Black Bart without being deputized or if the bonus timer runs down to 0 while a moneybag or sheriff's badge is still on the screen. The game ends when all your hats are gone. The Bonus Timer is at the bottom right corner of the screen. It starts at 500 and counts down to 0. When it reaches 100, you'll hear the warning buzzer. Hurry! Don't let it reach 0 before you've collected the moneybags and the sheriff's badge. Bonus Hats: A bonus hat appears after you earn your first 10,000 points, and then, with each 20,000 points thereafter. You can only have six reserve hats on the screen at any one time. [picture: composite playfield. Your player is a white cowboy hat with little legs sticking out of it; Black Bart looks the same, but he's jet black (naturally). The sheriff's badge is a red icon with a white star. The moneybags are gray icons with $'s on them. Trail panels come in various colors according to their makeup -- a crossroads is orange, roads curving one way are blue, roads curving the other way are purple, etc. One trail panel is missing, which lets you move panels around; the hole is also black.] GAMES Each Happy Trails game variation has 16 sizes of trail mazes to travel on. The first maze is the smallest. Starting with the 17th maze, trail size starts over, but you'll move at a faster pace, and the trail patterns will be tougher to solve. One Player Games: Control White Hat with left controller. Game 1: Trail patterns will be the same each time you play. Game 3: Same as game 1, except trail pattern is random. Game 5: Hold onto your hat! You're in a heap of a hurry! First maze has 11 panels. Game 7: For quick-thinking, maze-arranging experts only! You travel fast, and you never know which combination of trail panels are next! Two Player Games: Player two uses right controller. Play alternates ONLY after each hat has bit the dust. Trail pattern for each player is the same. Each player registers an independent score. Second player's hat is red. Higher score wins! Game 2: Same as game 1. Game 4: Same as game 3. Game 6: Same as game 5. Game 8: Same as game 7. GETTING THE HANG OF HAPPY TRAILS BY ACTIVISION To be a bountiful trailblazer, you've got to watch where you're going -- BEFORE you get there. So, don't start the action until you've taken the time to study the upcoming terrain. This "study time" before each round will help your pattern recognition, and you'll soon be blazing your way through even the most complex mazes. Also, you'll find that you can slide a panel while your hat is on it. Practice this technique. It can get you out of some tight spots and will also save you time. JOIN THE ACTIVISION "TRAILBLAZERS" If you score 40,000 points or more at Happy Trails by Activision, blaze a trail to your post office and send us a snapshot of your TV screen. Include your name and address and we'll send you the official Trailblazer patch, your proof of membership in this high falootin' club. HOW TO BLAZE A HAPPY TRAIL Tips from Carol Shaw, designer of Happy Trails: Carol is a veritable scholar in computer science. She is also a serious bicyclist, and can often be found cycling through the wilds of her native California coast. Together with her recent hit, River Raid (for the Atari 2600), Happy Trails establishes Carol as one of the hottest new game designers around. "To really play well, you'll need three things: patience, practice and planning. Here are some specific pointers that can help you out: Use the reverse button to avoid dead-ends, the black space or Black Bart. But to really take advantage of this feature, use the reverse button to move your hat back and forth over a 'safe' area, while you're busy rearranging the trail. Once a trail is cleared, use the speed button to move quickly. By saving time, you'll earn more bonus points and reduce the chances of the Bonus Timer reaching zero. As you arrange your trail, keep in mind that you are also arranging Black Bart's trail. Occasionally, you might like to hold Bart hostage by making him walk in a circle, so you can plan your next move. When it's sundown in the Badlands, take a rest and write to me. And may all your trails be happy." -- Carol B. Shaw ---end of manual--- ------------------------------------------------------------------ This file was downloaded from, the Classic Cartridge Web page at: http://www.steverd.com ------------------------------------------------------------------