Tempest 2000 by Atari Author: DJ Tigresa and MC Pantera Email: djtigresa@classicgaming.com, mcpantera@classicgaming.com An old FAQ from mid 90s ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INTRODUCTION ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Back in 1981, Tempest introduced the gaming world to an extra-sensory visual and futuristic play expe rience that went beyond any video game concept ever developed. With never-before-seen QuadraScan Color video graphics, Tempest set new standards for 3D animation and challenge, and became the first arcade game to be a guaranteed hit. In Tempest 2000, the video game that defined arcade intergalactic warfare has officially warped into the 64-bit dimension. This time, Atari has energized the original with powerful 3D polygons, particle displays, Melt graphics, cycle-shading, and a 100% pure CD-quality techno-rave soundtrack.. plus three new blistering modes of high-velocity, brain-warping action unlike anything you’ve ever experienced. Ride the rim and unleash your SuperZapper on crafty Flippers and Fuseballs in Traditional Tempest. Team up with a friend, or an Al. Droid, and light up the webs against pesky Spikers and Pulsars in Tempest Plus. Venture through 100 uncharted galaxies filled with hostile Demon Heads and Warp Bonus Tokens in Tempest 2000. Then use your Mirror and go Blaster-to-Blaster against the most formidable alien of them all—your best buddy—in Tempest Duel. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Traditional Tempest ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Traditional Tempest is considered the “training ground” for all the other Tempest games. Here, you learn to move on the web and target your enemies. Traditional Tempest is tame compared to the other forms of Tempest, so if you’re having trouble with the other games, put some time in on Traditional. Flipper: This is the first enemy you’ll encounter in Traditional. The Flipper can be a nasty opponent later in the game, but early on, it’s fairly benign. Flippers move from one web corridor to the next by flipping over the boundaries, firing missiles along the way. Should they reach the rim of the web, Flippers flip towards you and can capture your Blaster by making contact with it. You can move your Blaster through a Flipper while it’s moving along the rim of the web, but this is a tough maneuver to pull off. Tanker: The Tanker carries two enemies. Early on it only carries Flippers, but later in the game, it may be carrying Fuseballs or Pulsars. Shoot down the lane a Tanker is in, then move left or right before your shot reaches it and shoot down the adjoining lanes. Do this cor rectly and the enemies inside the Tanker will be destroyed immediately after the Tanker itself is hit. Spiker: Spikers are deceptively dangerous because they stay in one corridor when build ing their spikes. The best strategy to avoid being spiked is to make sure you always have at least one clear lane, and don’t stray too far from that lane. Fuseball: Fuseballs travel almost exclusively between the web corridors, and rarely go into the corridors themselves. The only time Fuseballs are vulnerable is when they move into the corridors. The best way to destroy a Fuseball is to shoot to the left and the right of the Fuseball until it moves into a corridor and is destroyed. Pulsar: Pulsars are expanding and contracting lightning bolt-like forms that transform from a straight line into a zig-zag. When the Pulsar is a straight line, it’s harmless and easy to shoot; when it contracts into a lightning bolt and roars (!), it electrifies the web corridor. If the corridor is flashing, it’s electrified, so avoid it. Precise control of your Blaster is absolutely the most important skill to learn in Tempest. You corridor of the web at any time. Once you get to the higher levels of the game—especially Tempest 2000—there’s simply no room for error. Always go after the most dangerous enemies first. Here’s a list that ranks the enemies from most to least dangerous: Tankers carrying Pulsars; Pulsars; Tankers carrying Fuseballs; Fuseballs; Tankers carrying Flippers; Flippers; Spikers; Spikes. If you’re in desperate trouble, try this technique. Move your Blaster sideways on top of a web corridor, then fire a constant stream of shots. This usually destroys all the enemies that make it to the rim of the web, except for the Fuseballs, which must be destroyed before they reach the rim. Finally, don’t forget to use the SuperZapper, particularly when the web is full of enemies— but remember that if an enemy is next to you on the web, it can still get you. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tempest Plus ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This version is a combination of Traditional Tempest and Tempest 2000 (although it’s much more on the Traditional side). The player can play by himself, with a friend in cooperative mode, or with an Al. Droid. The Droid is a good training tool, and very helpful when you need help getting past a particular web. The Droid can’t predict your moves, however, so don’t rely on it too heavily. Most of the strategies from Traditional Tempest apply to Tempest Plus, but here’s a basic strat egy for the two-player cooperative mode. Split the web up into two sections and have each player be responsible for guarding his half of the web. This is simple and effective. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tempest 2000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is the coolest version of Tempest, with power-ups, new enemies, and mundo bizarro Warp Bonus Worlds. The power-ups are the biggest different between Tempest 2000 and the other modes. Here’s a list of power-ups, in the order they appear in each web: 2,000 Points; Jump; 2,000 Points; A.T. Droid; Particle Laser; 2,000 Points; Warp Token/Instant SuperZapper; 2,000 Points. The Yes! Yes! Yes! power-up is given when a power-up is caught by the player while moving down one web to the next web. After catching this special power-up, the next power-up you obtain is an Al. Droid. Demon Head: This is the first of four Tempest 2000-specific enemies. If you shoot a Demon Head while it’s deep in the web, its horns fly off and fly up the web corridor, impervious to your Blaster shots. If you shoot a Demon Head at the rim of the web, however, you can destroy the horns with a single shot. Something to keep in mind! Mirror: The Mirror reflects your shots back at you, making it one of the most annoying ene mies in the game. The preferred method of destroying a Mirror is to shoot it and quickly move out of the way. Keep blasting and mov ing until the Mirror is destroyed. UFO: The UFO starts from the bottom of the web and flies up to the rim very quickly. When it reaches the rim, it flies into the air above the web and starts shooting downward at you! If a UFO gets above you, you can’t destroy it until you the Jump power-up and can leap above the web to shoot it. Mutant Flippers: These enemies are just like Flippers, only a whole lot faster and deadlier. Joy! The Particle Laser is extremely useful because it’s so much stronger than the normal shot. It’s almost required for easy disposal of the Spikers and Demon Heads. Watch the Spikes in the web and make sure you have an open lane of escape when you complete the web and start flying down the web to the next level. Here’s a nifty practice technique: Try to get through as many levels as possible without using Jump. This forces you to look at new ways of completing levels, since the Jump power isn’t always going to save your bacon. You’ll also learn excellent avoidance tech niques—for example, that when a Fuseball moving between web corridors, you can move through it without being killed. There are 16 different web patterns in Tempest 2000, starting with a basic circle and advancing to much more complicated (and difficult) formations. Players usually get stuck on one of the final four web patterns, spending hours and hours trying to get past the same level. Don’t fall into this same trap! Instead, try starting two or four levels before the level you’re stuck on and work your way to the Warp Bonus Round. Get through the Round and you skip through five levels, hope fully also skipping the one you’ve been stuck on. If you’re playing for points, don’t complete a Warp Bonus Round. Get as far into the Warp as you can, and then die at the end, since you’ll rack up much more than 20,000 points over the next five levels. On the later levels, don’t use your SuperZapper until you’ve at least obtained the first 2,000 Points power-up. This way, you should survive at least long enough to get the extremely helpful Jump power-up. Destroy the UFOs and Mirrors quickly. If you don’t have the Jump power-up, these can be real trouble, and they also block web corridors. It’s often a wise move to concentrate on destroying UFO and Mirrors while letting Flippers get to the rim of the web. The key to success in the Beastly Mode (which can be accessed after you finish all 100 levels in Tempest 2000 mode) is to learn how to fire properly. In the words of Jeff Minter, designer of Tempest 2000, not even an “amphetamine-crazed bongo-player” can press the fire button fast enough. Try this experiment: In Beastly Mode, hold down the fire but ton and watch the shots. You’ll fire a continuous stream of five or six shots, then a pause, then a single shot, another pause, and five or six shots again. Every time you press the fire button, the sequence starts over from the beginning. You need to learn (especially against the Mutant Flippers) to hold the fire button down (and get the stream of shots) just before the Flippers hits you. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tempest Duel ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tempest Duel allows you to go head-to-head with any other player brave (or foolish!) enough to challenge you. You and your oppo nent are each equipped with a Blaster and a Mirror, which you can use to reflect your opponent’s shots back at him or her. There are also two objects in the web: a Purple Generator and a Cube. The Purple Generator creates Red and Blue Flippers. The Red Flippers go after Player One’s Blaster, while the Blue Flippers pursue Player Two. You can move the Purple Generator toward your opponent by shooting it, which is a wise move, since the Flippers that come out of the Generator are closer to your opponent than to you. You can also move the Cube toward your opponent by shooting it. If the Cube reaches either end of the web, it flies the player on that end. Use the Cube in conjunction with the Generator to really annoy your opponent. Don’t shoot unless you have a target, and never shoot at your opponent when he’s shooting at you. When you shoot, you lose the protection of the Mirror. It’s always better and safer to reflect your opponent’s shots than to send out more of your own. Another useful strategy is to move into the corridors that are pursuing you and lead your opponent into shooting your Flippers. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Secerts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Controller Type: You need two controllers to activate this tip. At the “Game Options” screen, press and hold PAUSE on Controllers I and 2. A third menu option called “Controller Type” appears. This option lets you switch between joypad and rotary control. There isn’t yet a rotary controller available for the Jaguar, but once there is, you’ll be able to use it with Tempest 2000. Once this menu option has been activated, it stays on permanently. The only way to shut it off again is by clearing out memory as described in the Tempest 2000 manual (hold down *, OPTION, and # at the “Select Game Type” screen). Level Skip: This cheat works in all three solo Tempest modes—Traditional Tempest, Tempest Plus, and Tempest 2000. At the “Select Game Type” screen, move the cursor to the version of the game you want to play. Hold down 1, 4, 7, and * on the numeric keypad, then press A to start the game. If you’ve done it right, you’ll hear a slower “Excellent!” sound. During the game, you can skip ahead one level at any time by pressing OPTION. Warp Skip: This cheat only works in the Tempest 2000 mode. At the “Select Game Type” screen, move the cursor to Tempest 2000. Hold down 1, 4, 7, and * on the numeric keypad, then press A to start the game. (Yes, this is the same activation method as the Level Skip above.) During the game, press 3 and 6, or 6 and 9, simultaneously. The words “Warp Enabled” appear on the screen. Now press OPTION to enter the Warp Bonus Round and zap yourself ahead a whopping five levels. Web Rotation: At the web selection screen, press Left and Right on the control pad to rotate the web.