Nightshade
Typed out by tsrken@voicenet.com
NES-BY-USA
How to play Nightshade(tm)
Ultra(r)
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Crime has a name ... and they call it Sutekh!
Pssst, come 'ere. Don't be afraid, I ain't gonna hurt ya. My name's Daryl
Woolridge, but my friends call me "Flamingo". That's on account of my wooden
leg here. Lost it a few years back when some runaway shopping cart slammed
into me. Pinned my leg upside Al's Grocery. But that's another story. You're
new here, ain't ya? Let me tell ya 'bout Metro City. Dark times have settled
here. There was lots a growth and prosperity in the 70's and 80's, but that's
led us to crime and corruption. Now summa the more powerful crime bosses have
joined together under the control of 'dis new guy - Sutekh.
At first a few of the crime lords refused to give up their territories. Man,
there was some fierce battles on these streets, I'm tellin ya. But this Su-
tekh's dudes are tough. They mopped up guys like "Tonsils" McCurry who ran the
bootleg video 'n CD business. Sutekh punished anyone who got in his way, and
I'm here to tell ya, some of the stuff he done wasn't pretty. Sheesh, I remem-
ber the trap he set for Madame Curio... ah, but I'm gettin' off track again.
Word spread of Sutekh's nastiness, until one brave guy finally came to Metro
city's aid. It was this costumed superhero-type guy, Vortex, he called 'isself,
and he had the coolest high-tech weapons an' stuff. He had all sorts of gadgets
he used to track down Sutekh. When he fin'lly got him, they had the mother of
all brawls. Man, it's the stuff of legends, I kid you not. I'll tell you sump-
thin' else. Ol' Flamingo here seen the whole thing. Naw, it's true! That Vortex
had these force gloves that packed a mean punch. He bashed Sutekh in the chops
and send 'im clean across the street! Unfortunately, he wasn't good enough.
Sutekh and 'is thugs out and out overpowered Vortex. But even outgunned and
overpowered, Vortex fought bravely to the end. I was there right before he
lost it, and I heard him tell Sutekh "You haven't won yet Sutekh, there will
be others..." I swear I did. Then they drug him off somewhere. Metro city
ain't heard from Vortex since.
Well, that's all ol' news now. Word on the street is that there's a new guy
around. Maybe Vortex was right after all. Some guy was tellin' me the other
day that he seen a dark figure stalking the alleys, ambushing the criminal
types who run the action around 'ere. The Police Chief, a tuff guy they call
Dave "Mr. Law" Kirtley, has made no comment on record, but insiders say the
police are eager to gain Nightshade's cooperation in ridding the city of
Sutekh's influence. The Metro Press has reporters digging into the background
of Nightshade, but so far they've asked more questions then they've answered.
'Scuse me, there's my bus. I gotta run.
Who is Nightshade? Will he be able to succeed where the mighty Vortex failed,
or is this just another dashed hope for the fair people of Metro City?
---
The story of Nightshade
A Bookworm With A Secret
Mark Gray is an encyclopedia researcher for Global Encyclopedia, Inc., the
Metro City based publishers of one of the all-time best-selling reference
guides available. His passion for social and criminal history is surpassed
only by his passion for adventure. This fixation guided him to the development
of a crime-fighting alter-ego. Mark Gray sheds his bookish day-job persona,
dons a trench coat, fedora and shades and steals into the dusk as the advent-
urous crime fighter: Nightshade!
From Darkness Comes Nightshade
Mark Gray followed Vortex's actions and escapades for years. He knew everything
about the hero, except his identity and hideout. Gray believed that Vortex
made a grave error by underestimating Sutekh. After the cataclysmic battle
between the two, Mark vowed to avenge his defeated idol, Vortex.
Mark slips into his trench coat, fedora and shades to protect his identity.
With his exceptional physical training and keen intellect as his only weapons
he sets out to continue Vortex's goal of a crime-free Metro City. He patrolled
the inner city neighborhoods, gathering information, searching for weapons
left behind by Vortex, and, when necessary, apprehending would-be muggers,
drug dealers and thieves. His street brawls led to confrontations with Sutekh's
minions: mummies and jackals, King Rat, Goliath and his thugs, and the League
of Unreasonable Gentlemen, to name a few. Television and newspaper reports
carried stories of the new, mysterous crime-fighter in Metro City, and the
Nightshade legend was born!
In the Claws of Sutekh
It wasn't long before Sutekh and Nightshade crossed paths. The evil lunatic
had his men ambush Nightshade, and prepared to remove the last obstacle between
himself and total control of Metro City. Even now, Nightshade lies bound some-
where under the city, facing certain death. Can he escape a tragic end, or has
Metro City's newest crime fighter met his match?
Now is your chance to face off against the power of Sutekh. With over 100
screens to search, you'll have to keep your eyes peeled for clues to the where-
abouts of the evil Sutekh. Be aware of your surroundings and stay sharp - you
never know what fiendishness lurks behind the corner!
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Nightshade's command controls
Control Pad - Use to move Nightshade in eight directions. Also used to move
the cursor box over an item.
Select Button - Press to call up the Icons Menu.
Start Button - Press to pause the action. Press again to start the action.
B Button - Press to instantly OPERATE something. Also to cancel an order in
the Icons Menu.
A Button - Press to activate an order in the Icons Menu. Also used during the
game to examine objects. Just press the button and the EXAMINE option appears,
along with the cursor box. Move the box over an item and press the A button
again. For more information about the EXAMINE option, see the next section
about the Icons Menu. (Also press to reduce the delay in waiting for text to
finish printing in the text boxes.)
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Recognizing the elements
Nightshade - This is our hero, the protector of the honest citizens of Metro
City.
Popularity Gauge - This is the measure of our hero's recognition by the
citizens. When he does a good deed, word spreads of his actions. With a high
POPULARITY, Nightshade will find it easier to get cooperation from the
public. Beware, though, because failing to commit a good act can lower
POPULARITY. With a bad reputation, Nightshade will have a difficult time
ridding the city of Sutekh.
Health Gauge - This bar measures Nightshade's health. If his strength runs
out, Sutekh's forces will capture him and place him in an escape-proof trap.
Once trapped, our hero will meet his untimely doom, unless you can figure
out a way to free Nightshade!
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Acting actively interested in interacting with the interactive icons menu
activities
Or: how to do stuff in this game...
Nightshade has many resources at his command. To see what they are, press the
Select button. This brings up the Icons Menu, which has ten buttons. From here
you control much of Nightshade's activities in the game. The name of the active
icon (if any) will appear in the top box on the right side of the screen.
Examine - This brings up the cursor. It looks like a box with cross-hairs. Move
it over an object and press the A button to learn more about an item. Notice
that as you move the cursor with the Control Pad, an object name may appear in
the box in the lower right corner of your screen. Here's a helpful tip for
you: if a name doesn't appear, Nightshade will not have information for you.
If you aren't sure if an item is important, try to EXAMINE it. If you don't
know whether an item is just part of the background, then activate the cursor
and move it around until a name appears in the lower right box. You may also
EXAMINE items in your inventory.
Pick Up - Move the cursor over the item you want to PICK UP, then press the A
button. If you change your mind, press the B button. If Nightshade can't PICK
UP an item, or if he isn't close enough, the game will tell you.
Operate - Sometimes Nightshade can OPERATE an item, even though he may not be
able to PICK UP the item or USE it. For examine. if you examine a room and find
a light switch, you can select OPERATE and then move the cursor over the light
switch. (Make sure you're standing next to the item you're trying to operate.)
Pressing the A button will cause our hero to operate the light switch, thus
turning the light on or off. This won't happen, however, if the bulb has
burned out.
Use - This works like OPERATE. To USE an item that nightshade has in his
possession, highlight USE and press the A button. The item list will appear,
and you can select an item to USE. If an item has to be USED with something
else, then you will see the cursor appear again. Move the cursor over the
object you want to USE your item with or on. For example, pretend Nightshade
has a key in his item list. He comes to a door and tries to go through it,
but a message appears saying the door is locked. You would select the USE
button from the Icons Menu. This brings up the item list. Using the Control
Pad, you highlight the Key and press the A button. The menu goes away and the
cursor appears on the screen. You then move the cursor over the door and you
see the word "LOCK" appear in the box in the lower right corner. Press the A
button to USE the key on the lock, and you see the door open!
Items - This option lets you see all of the items which Nightshade has picked
up during his adventures.
System - This contains the game controls. From this menu you can turn sound
effects and music on or off. Just highlight the SFX or MUSIC box and press the
A btuton to toggle between ON or OFF. You will also see a box in the lower
left corner. This tells you how much of the game you have finished. For example,
if you're halfway through, it displays 50%. To return to the game, select OK.
To leave the game select QUIT.
Jump - Select this box to have Nightshade JUMP over something. If there is
nothing to JUMP over, he won't.
Fight - Of course, what superhero ever wiped out crime without an occaisonal
scuffle? When you encounter some wrongdoing, select FIGHT. The cursor will
appear. Move it over the evil-doer and press the A button. The Nightshade logo
will flash on your screen and the battle sequence will begin.
Talk - Sometimes you can gather information from the citizens of Metro City.
One way to do this is to select the TALK icon and try to engage them in
conversation. Another way is to buy information by giving them money (USE
money on the person). Another way is to sit down with a pen and paper and
write them a nice letter. We don't recommend this method. It takes a long
time for a reply, and they aren't real people anyway, so you would look
rather silly doing it.
Cancel - This CANCELs the Icons Menu and lets you go back to whatever you were
doing before.
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Fighting off the enemies of freedom
When the time comes, you'd better be prepared to fight. Sometimes the forces
of evil don't understand reasoning and fair play. When this happens, Nighthade's
logo will flash on the screen and the battle sequence will begin!
Battle Controls:
Control pad = Move
B button = Punch
A button = Jump
B button + Up = Kick
Control pad down = Duck!
Nightshade - The bravest superhero in Metro City - and the only one currently
working.
Enemy - The enemy
Strength Bars - These show the power left for Nightshade and his foes. When
our hero's power is out, he is captured by Sutekh and placed in a death-trap.
If you're lucky, you'll free him and continue the adventure!
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How to handle the super sleuthing of a super detective
A guide for the beginning adventure game player
Adventure games are different from arcade games. The object isn't just to
shoot everything in sight and rack up a gazillion points. Some adventure
games don't even use points. They require you to solve puzzles or problems
and try to achieve a final goal. For example, the goal might be to free Metro
City of the evil Sutekh. To do this, you may have to solve a lot of smaller
problems along the way. There are common questions that new adventure gamers
have, so we'll try to answer them for you.
Q: What good does it do to EXAMINE something?
A: EXAMINE tells you if an item has a special feature. For example, if you
examine a desk, you might receive a message that says "Nightshade finds a
statue of a golden yak." Another way EXAMINE is useful is to select the
EXAMINE option and move the cursor around the screen. If an item has a name
that appears in the item box in the lower right corner, then it is a clue
that something can be done to or with that item.
Q: What should I do with items that I find?
A: If you can pick them up, do. You never know when you'll need an item that
you saw once and left behind. For example, after battling all of the
Hideous Otter-headed Jungle Beasties, then freeing the Princess and saving
the farmer's son, you may earn a voyage across the Silver River to the
Wizard's Keep. Upon entering the Keep and ascending the Stairs Of Amazing
Girth, you might encounter the Knight of Daze, who tells you that the
Wizard will only see you if you present a gift of gold. Now don't you wish
you picked up that yak in the desk?
Q: Is the TALK function useful, or just a distraction?
A: Well, if you had talked to the citizens of Metro City, we can't guarantee
that you would learn that there are no Otter-headed Jungle Beasties in this
game, let alone a Knight of Daze. However, they might have information
about Vortex and his secret hideout...
Q: What about the Staff of Ra? What do I do with it?
A: This is one of those typical adventure-game-Staff-of-Ra questions. Obviously
it's used to fire fireballs at Egyptian-based enemies. To throw a fireball
press UP and the B button. Like any other Staff of Ra, this one has only
eight shots, so use them wisely.
Q: What do I do when I get stuck?
A: We recommend throwing your arms up in despair and going outside to play in
the fresh air, but if you really want to stick with it, then just try lots
of new combinations. For example, if you come to a wall of flame that
prevents further progress, try EXAMINE on items around you. Maybe something
like a giant candle is in the room. You might think "Hey, candles produce
flames, and there is a giant wall of flame in my way." Next you could try
to USE something on the candle, or try to OPERATE the candle. Maybe the
candle is really a lever that turns the wall of flame off and on.
Q: What's the deal with the Personality gauge?
A: Being a superhero these days is very difficult. You want to help rid your
city of evil, but sometimes the people you're trying to help don't know
that if you don't have a good reputation. If your Personality level is
higher, the citizens will recognize you and cooperate. They may be more
willing to give you information about the bad guys. You can raise your
Personality level by helping citizens who are being mugged or are trapped
in burning buildings. Just being polite is a nice way to earn a reputation,
too. Also, proper behavior - such as paying for things you buy from stores
- is very important.
Q: I've tried everything I can think of, but I'm still unable to go any
further in the game. Is there anything I can do?
A: One idea is to enlist the help of a friend or family member. Sometimes when
we try to solve a problem it helps to get another person's insight.
Everyone thinks a little differently, so a sticky situation for you might
be more obvious to someone else, and vice versa. Adventure games are as
much fun for groups as they are for one player.
If all else fails, call the Ultra Game Counselor Department. Our phone number
is: (708) 215-5111.