zzarko
Registered: Feb 2003
Posts: 73 |
Release id #47903 : Dominion
Long time ago (1990-1991) I came over this game, and although I tried to understand how to play it, I never found out. I was intrigued by the gameplay of flying through corridors. Anyhow, I remembered the game today for some reason, and tried to find how to play it. I was expecting that NOS would have the docs, but intro scroller informed me that there wasn't.
I tracked ZZAP issue where the review was (it was a cover tape game for issue 62, described on page 28), OCR-ed it and corrected OCR mistakes. I do not know is it OK to paste this text, moderators can delete the post if it is not. I am pasting it here as maybe there is someone else like me who would like to try to play Dominion.
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DOMINION (Thalamus)
Picture a colony in the far reaches of space, a huge colony hewn out of rock on the populated world known as Lamina.
Dominion is set in a series of corridors descending into the planet.
At its heart lies a radioactive hell spewing out death-dealing energy to the surface.
A construction team is busy trying to build a defence and needs the ore badly.
Starting in the top levels of the station you're charged with the task of venturing deeper and deeper into the planet, finding ore for the construction crews.
Unfortunately, a passing alien fleet has decided to enter Lamina's corridors, eager for radiation to power their ships.
They do not look happily on attempts to cut-off the radiation.
The battle to calm the escape of the radioactive gases is never-ending, but if you reach the 20th rank you'll die the most honoured of heroes.
After all, who said life was fair?
THE GAME
You are in command of the Dominion, a single seat craft initially armed with a plasma laser, and a tractor beam for capturing alien defences.
The objective is to penetrate the station's twisting corridors while delivering ore to the radiation shield construction teams. Radiation constantly erodes your cargo so reaching the trading posts quickly is vital.
But hitting the sides of the tunnel costs energy.
When you arrive at the trading post the three types of ore can be traded for add-on systems.
HELD displays the ore in the ship hold.
All ports have a reasonable supply of ores, although market prices vary considerably.
Use the joystick to select an option then hit B or S to buy/sell.
Use left/right to move along the four quantity digits, using the number keys to change the digits.
Press RETURN to transact.
The overall trading strategy is to make sure that you always have some Ore C, as this is attacked first by radiation before Ore B, and finally the valuable Ore A.
You can sell off Ore B to raise the capital to buy more A or C etc.
Try and reach as deep a level as possible and you can sell Ore A at very high prices.
Trading posts can also repair any ship damage.
ADD-ON SYSTEMS
Boosters: these can be hired for one tunnel at a time.
They convert power from your guns (disabling them) into speed, so enabling fast progress through the most radioactive tunnels - thus minimising ore damage.
A licence must first be purchased, (select the option then Y to transact).
For each tunnel, a hire charge is levied: Y to transact.
Out-Phase Gun: A far more powerful main gun, will allow you to scythe through opposition.
Again Y to transact.
It's all very well moving around the uppermost level but to get the BIG points and rise through the ranks you need to go down a few levels and risk the higher, faster ore-eating radiation.
To go down a level you need to get a lift pass by using the tractor beam on one of the common black alien craft.
To tractor-beam it let it fly in front of the Dominion (using the blue scanner running across the status panel to locate them), move behind it so that the TARGET indicator lights up yellow and use the tractor beam on it.
The alien is drawn to the craft and when you reach the trading post it can exchanged for transportation down a level.
A Brown Lepton ship will give you a vital cargo shield if you shoot it once to disable it before tractor-beaming it and returning it to the trading post.
The alien opposition comes in many forms, getting particularly nasty the deeper you go together with higher radiation.
Aliens start shooting back, some try to ram you, others merely pester and some even set up mines complete with guards to drain your engine-power as you go by.
(Use the two throttle controls to trim the engine performance if one malfunctions).
Watch that the radiation count doesn't start to affect the transmission of visual data with the screen darkening or lightening as the sensors receive radioactive damage.
If this happens stop everything and change the Video output level to rectify the situation.
Your gaining a rank is based on how efficiently you trade, the number of wall collisions, the number of shots fired, the number of shots that hit/miss and more.
Can you reach the 20th rank?
JOYSTICK CONTROLS
Left/Right - Left/Right (Logical enough)
Up/Down - Dive/Climb
Fire - Fires plasma gun (if RANGE indicator is high)
- Activate tractor beam (if RANGE indicator is low)
- Double click of fire button and then held down with up and down accelerates/decelerates the Dominion
Function Key Controls
F1 - Adjusts the firing/tractor beam range
(F1 raises slider - Shift & F1 lowers slider)
(Bottom of slider = maximum tractor beam range)
(Top of slider = maximum gun range)
F3 - Adjusts the Video output level
(F3 raises level Shift & F1 lowers level)
F5/F7 - Controls throttle for left and right engines.
(F5 raises left engine speed- Shift & F5 lowers it)
(F7 raises right engine speed - Shift & F7 lowers it)
Extra Keys
Space Bar-Launch the Dominion from the trading post
Shift & Run-Stop-Abort the game
CREDITS
Game concept, design and programming - Paul O' Malley
Sound - Martin Walker
Unauthorised copying, hiring, lending, public per- formance and broadcasting of this game are unquestionably prohibited. 1990 Thalamus. |
