A VIDEO GAME CARTRIDGE FROM PARKER BROTHERS STAR WARS THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK *TM FOR INTELLIVISION(R), INTELLIVISION II(R), TANDYVISION(TM) AND SEARS SUPER VIDEO ARCADE(TM) (C) Lucasfilm Ltd. (LFL) 1983. All rights reserved. Trademark owned by Lucasfilm and used by Parker Brothers under authorization. Rules (C) 1983 Parker Brothers, Beverly, MA 01915. Printed in U.S.A. The Empire's revenge has begun! Right now an army of Imperial Walkers*(TM) is marching towards the Rebels' power generator on the Ice Planet Hoth.* (TM) If they reach it, the entire Rebel base will blow sky high! To stop them, the Rebels must rely on missle-firing Snowspeeders.*(TM) The Snowspeeders are quick and agile and in the hands of a skillful commander, they can destroy the mighty Walkers. OBJECT ------ To destroy as many of the Imperial Walkers as you can before they reach the power generator at the end of the battlefield--or before the Imperial Walkers destroy your fleet of Snowspeeders. SETTING THE CONSOLE CONTROLS ---------------------------- 1. Make sure the cartridge is placed firmly into the cartridge slot. 2. Turn the OFF/ON switch to ON. 3. Press the ENTER button on the controller. You'll see "Players?" Press 1 or 2, depending on whether you're playing a one- or two-player game. 4. Then you'll see "Level?" Refer to the Game Selection Box for the level at which you wish to play. Press that level number. 5. Press ENTER and you're ready to play. THE HAND-HELD CONTROLLERS ------------------------- Use the directional disc on your hand-held controller to fly your Snowspeeder in all four directions as well. To slow it down, simply change direction. To fire your missiles, press either of the two top fire buttons. THE BATTLEFIELD --------------- This is the battlefield on the Ice Planet Hoth. The entire battlefield is 15 TV screens wide. The radar band monitors the entire battlefield. PLAYING ------- A Rebel commander receives 5 Snowspeeders per game. At the start of the game, the first Snowspeeder is displayed in the Ice Zone. The remaining "on deck" Snowspeeders are displayed at the top of the screen. To start the action: Fly your Snowspeeder down screen (move left) to meet the oncoming Walkers. The Walkers approach in a single file from left to right. They can bunch up behind one another but they can never pass one another. Although up to 5 Walkers can be seen on the radar band at a time, only 1 Walker will appear on the TV screen at a time. Radar Band. Use the radar band to keep an eye on the positions of all 5 Walkers and to see which Walker you're presently battling on screen. NOTE: When your Snowspeeder flies off one end of the radar band, it will reappear at the other end. Remember: As soon as the lead Walker reaches the right end of the radar band, it blows up the power generator and ends the game. Just before this happens, however, you'll hear a warning sound and the sky will begin to flash. DESTROYING THE IMPERIAL WALKERS ------------------------------- It takes 30 "hits" to the body to destroy an Imperial Walker. Each group of 8 hits (6 in the last group) weakens the Walker one stage and changes its color. Each color change means that the Walker is walking slower, firing less often, and aiming less accurately. An Imperial Walker may go through 3 color changes before it's finally destroyed; from black to blue, red, tan, then POW! -- it's gone! There IS a quicker way to destroy an Imperial Walker--by firing a missile into a "bomb hatch." BOMB HATCHES ------------ Bomb hatches are orange squares that appear from time to time on an Imperial Walker. Hit a bomb hatch and it's instant destruction! When you destroy an Imperial Walker, a new one will enter the battlefield. Each new Walker will be even tougher than the last. It will walk faster, fire its missiles more rapidly, and aim its fire more accurately. Therefore, the longer you stay in the game, the more difficult it becomes. ATTACK OF THE IMPERIAL WALKERS ------------------------------ Imperial Walkers fire deadly missiles at Snowspeeders. They even have the ability to "track" your Snowspeeder and aim their missiles by raising or lowering their heads. They can fire at Snowspeeders approaching them from behind as well as head on. DAMAGED SNOWSPEEDERS -------------------- When a Snowspeeder is hit by a Walker's missile, it becomes "damaged" and its color changes to yellow. In a damaged state, each successing hit increases the chances the Snowspeeder will be destroyed. A Snowspeeder can take up to 4 hits before it's destroyed. However, it can be destroyed in fewer than 4. REPAIRS ------- Land a damaged Snowspeeder in a "valley" and it's instantly repaired. The Snowspeeder will change back to its original color to show that it has full power again. Each Snowspeeder is allowed two repairs. When your Snowspeeder is destroyed, the action stops for a moment. The next Snowspeeder will appear on screen. (You can start again whenever you're ready by pressing the direction disc.) The new Snowspeeder will pick up where the last one left off. That is, Walkers will be in the same positions and will show any damage they've already received. So try to stay out of the Walker's line of fire. If you can, try to shoot down the Walker's missiles. That's right! If you can shoot down a missile (or get very close to it without its hitting you), the Walker's missile will explode. THE FORCE*(TM) -------------- When you hear the Rebels' theme song and your Snowspeeder begins to flash, "The Force is with you." The Force will be with you for about 20 seconds. During this time, your Snowspeeder is all-powerful. It cannot be damaged; it cannot be destroyed. So when you gain The Force, move right in on an Imperial Walker and fire away! NOTE: If you've already had your Snowspeeder repaired and you gain The Force, you can have your Snowspeeder repaired twice more. END OF GAME ----------- The game ends when the lead Imperial Walker reaches the power generator -- or -- when the last of your Snowspeeders is destroyed. To play again, press RESET, then press ENTER and select the appropriate number of players and the game level at which you wish to play. GAME VARIATIONS --------------- THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK has 4 game variations. (See Game Selection Box.) Game variations are described as follows: Smart Bombs. Sometimes a bomb hatch will release a "smart bomb" that will actually follow your Snowspeeder. You can try to shoot it down for more points or you can try to outfly it until it disappears from the screen. If a smart bomb hits your Snowspeeder it will either damage or destroy the Snowspeeder. (Smart bombs do more damage than missiles. So if your Snowspeeder is already damaged when hit by a smart bomb, the smart bomb will probably destroy it.) Solid Walkers. When you play a game with Solid Walkers, you're in for some precision flying. With Solid Walkers, you CANNOT fly your Snowspeeder into the Walker's body (although you can fly through its legs). If you do, your Snowspeeder will blow up -- but not without weakening the Walker. Fly into a walker weakened to blue, and the Walker is destroyed. TWO-PLAYER GAMES ---------------- In a two-player game, players alternate as Rebel Snowspeeder commanders flying one Snowspeeder on a turn. The left player goes first. Each player's score is displayed throughout the game. The first player's score is to the left; the second player's score to the right. * In a two-player game, when the lead Walker blows up the power generator, you're out of the game. Your opponent, however, may continue to play as long as he or she can defend the power generator. REBEL STRATEGY HINTS -------------------- a) Remember to watch the radar band for the positions of all Walkers (especially the lead one) and to keep track of which Walker you're battling on screen. b) Try to weaken the LEAD Walker WITHOUT DESTROYING IT. If you do, the lead Walker will slow down the walking speed of all the others. This will give you more time to weaken and destroy the other Walkers before the lead one reaches the power generator. c) Try to get the Walker to track your Snowspeeder in one direction, then quickly move out of its line of fire and attack it from a safe position. d) In a game with Solid Walkers, you may want to crash your Snowspeeder into the Walker's body if you know you can't destroy the Walker before it reaches the power generator. By doing so, you score 25 points and stay in the game -- if you have Snowspeeders remaining in the battle. JOIN THE OFFICIAL STAR WARS(TM) FAN CLUB! ----------------------------------------- and receive * A beautiful "RETURN OF THE JEDI" Membership kit. * A subscription to "BANTHA TRACKS," the club's official newsletter. * Participate in special club-sponsored contests. * Purchase genuine collector's items. * Utilize the question and answer service. * Become an official Star Wars pen pal. Please mail this application form along with $6.00, ($7.00 Canadian, $8.00 Foreign -- U.S. currency only) to: Official STAR WARS Fan Club P.O. Box 2202 Dept. PB San Rafael, CA 94912 U.S.A. Name _____________________________________ Age _______________________ Address ______________________________________________________________ City _____________________________________ State _____________________ Country __________________________________ Zip/Postal Code ___________ Please send checks or money orders -- NO CASH. Allow 4-8 weeks for delivery of membership kit. BANTHA TRACKS is published during the months of February, May, August, and November. TM: (C) Lucasfilm Ltd. (LFL) 1983. Satisfaction Guaranteed. SCORING ------- Hitting an Imperial Walker ......................... 1 point Shooting down a Walker's missile in flight ......... 10 points Crashing Snowspeeder into Walker without destroying Walker .................................. 25 points Destroying an Imperial Walker ...................... 50 points Hitting a bomb hatch ............................... 100 points Shooting down a smart bomb ......................... 100 points BONUS: For every 2,000 points scored, you'll receive one extra Snowspeeder. GAME SELECTION BOX ------------------ The higher the game number, the faster the Walkers approach, the more rapidly they fire their missiles, and the better they aim their fire. Game Numbers Game Variations 1 None 2 Solid Walkers 3 Smart Bombs 4 Solid Walkers and Smart Bombs If you have any difficulty operating or playing THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, call our Electronic Service Department at these toll free numbers: In Massachusetts: 1-800-892-0297 All other states 1-800-225-0540 (not available in Alaska, Hawaii, or Canada) Lines are open 8:30am to 4:30pm (EST) Mon.--Fri. (excluding holidays) If you are unable to reach us via the Answer Service Line or if you have any questions or comments about STAR WARS: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, write to the Consumer Department in the location nearest you: In the U.S.A.: Parker Brothers, P.O. Box 1012, Beverly, MA 01915 In Australia and new Zealand: Toltoys Pty. Ltd., 104 Bourke Road, Alexandria, N.S.W. 2015. In the United Kingdom: Palitoy Company, Owen Street, Coalville, Leicester LE6 2DE England This document typed by gchance@ecst.csuchico.edu. ------------------------------------------------------------------ This file was downloaded from, the Classic Cartridge Web page at: http://www.steverd.com ------------------------------------------------------------------