INTRODUCTION It's the year 2492 and you are about to compete in the ultimate sport. At speeds over 900 miles per hour, you must run your Sub-Terranean Underground Network (S.T.U.N.) craft through a series of challenging courses in an attempt to retain your title as S.T.U.N. Runner. Meanwhile, ruthless challengers and indestructible droids will do anything to keep you from finishing. (Everyone wants to destroy a champion, right?) You must destroy the challengers before they destroy you. To retain your championship you will need quick reflexes, steady nerves, incredible driving skills, and a fast trigger finger. Good luck! Playing The Game The object of S.T.U.N. Runner is to complete each course before time runs out. Enemy craft will try to slow you down along the way. You can destroy these enemies individually with blasts from you laser or in groups with Shochwaves collected along the way. The game begins when the S.T.U.N. Runner walks to his S.T.U.N. craft and takes his seat in the cockpit. The robot pit crew snaps the chassis together and puts all shields in place. At the start of each level, a map of the course is shown. Look carefully at the map. The map shows the lay of the course, and special items such as speed boosters, and the types of terrain on the course. The Map screen also contains an information area which provides hints and tells you how far you are from the nearest Challenge level. When you have studied the map, press Fire. This is the signal that you are ready to begin. In a few seconds, the race will begin. The screen is divides into two parts. The main section is the game display. This is where the action takes place. The bottom of the screen contains the dashboard. The dashboard displays the following information: Time - The time allowed to complete the level. The time counts down, so you always know how much time remains. When you are about to run out of time, your ship flashes and a warning tone sounds. Score - Your current score. Points are awarded for running over special markers and for destroying enemies. Bonus points based on your time are awarded at the end of each level. Level - The current level number. MPH - Your current speed. Boosts - The number of power boosts you've hit during the current level. Kills - The number of enemies destroyed during the current level. Stars - The number of stars run over during the current level. In addition, if you have earned any Shockwaves, a small circle appears below the Level number of each Shockwave. When you are ready to race, press the fire button. Use the joystick to steer your craft right or left. You must run at maximum speed at all times if you want to finish the course in time. Acceleration and deceleration are automatic. Your craft will slow down if you hit walls, rails, or enemies, or if you aren't on a flat surface. Running over Power Boost pads increases your speed to turbo levels and makes you invincible for a limited time. Press Fire to fire lasers and Space to fire Shockwaves, if you have any. A laser destroys a single enemy. A Shockwave destroys all visible enemies, including the otherwise indestructible metallic droids. Earn Shockwaves by running over Shockwave markers or by running over specified numbers of star markers on certain levels. When you begin, your craft has six shields. When you run into a wall or an enemy, or get hit by enemy shots, a shield will fall off your craft. You can earn another shield by completing a level. Each level has its own unique challenges. Some levels are relatively smooth but full of enemies. Some send you rolling and twisting like the most intense roller coaster. Others are made of narrow tunnels that make avoiding the enemy craft difficult. Some levels are even under construction, requiring you to use extra driving skill to drive only on the faster, finished parts of the course. As you play the game and gain experience, you will learn how to run each course. Levels 5, 10, 15, and 23 are challenge levels. Challenge levels require you to complete the task assigned on the Map screen. If you run out of time on a challenge level, you will fail the challenge and continue on to the next level. All other levels are standard levels which you must complete before time runs out, or the game ends. If you run out of time, you are allowed 3 continues. A continue allows you to begin the next game at the level where you last ran out of time. (Your score is reset to zero, however.) After the second continue, you will return to the Title screen and start the game as though you had just turned it on. Strategy Learn the differences in the various levels. If you know what to expect, you are most likely to succeed. Outside walls are faster in turns. Hit as many boosts as you can. Some levels are impossible to finish without extra speed. Learn to maneuver around the indestructible droids. Don't waste Shockwaves. Use them only when you have to. Use jump ramps to destroy flying enemies. Scoring Points are awarded for running over stars, destroying enemies, and completing levels. Action - Points Destroy Blue Ground Enemy - 25 Run over Red Star - 50 Destroy Red Ground Enemy - 50 Destroy Purple Mug Cycle - 75 Destroy Brown Ground Enemy - 75 Run over Green Star - 500 Destroy Flying Silver Enemy - 750 Destroy Flying Red Bird - 1000 In addition, you earn 200 points for running over a Power Boost Pad. If you run over a Power Boost Pad when you are already using a boost, you earn 200 points, plus the value of the previous boost, up to a maximum of 5000 points. When you complete a level, you earn 1500 points, plus other bonus points based on time, kills, stars, and boosts.