MUSCLE CAR 2
Readme file 02/01/02
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I. How to play
A. Controls
B. Camera
C. Modes w/ tips
II. General Troubleshooting
A. DirectX 8.0
B. Installation problems
C. Game performance
D. Software Conflict
III.Hardware Conflicts
A. Video Cards
IV. Contacting Technical Support
A. USA and Canada
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I. How to Play
ALL menu controls are activated with directional arrows and the enter key on your keyboard.
A. Controls are:
Directional
UP Forward acceration
DOWN Reverse and disc brake
Left Steer
Right Steer
Extra
CTRL Hand brake
SHIFT Nitrous-Oxide Boost (5 sec. timed boost w/10 sec. intervals)
Q key Quick Recovery
A key Horn
Z key Garage menu in Career mode
B. Camera
F1 First driver perspective, aka Hood-cam.
F2 Default
F3 Birds-eye perpective, aka Hot-wheels.
F4 Rear View - toggle view
C. Modes
TIME TRIALS
This is a practice mode only. Follow or pass the pace car in consecutive level play. Player must make each checkpoit before the time expires. The countdown is regenerated at each checkpoit. No saved status available in this mode.
Tips: Play this mode first and get use to the controls; take advantage of the on screen tips as the pop up.
RALLY
In this mode the player races against opponants in a sanctioned (legal) circuit races. The player MUST come in First, Second, or Third place to clear each track. All tracks in each circuit must be cleared, in any order, before the next circuit race set will be available. Each player automatically saves the character's (being played) progress during play. These are leagl races, enjoy.
This mode progression is accessed in both Rally and Bandit mode.
Tips: Look out for additional boost icons along road-side, especially when youve fallen behind.
Bandit
In this mode the player will be up against only one opponant as you race the "Underground Circuit". These races are designed for the upcoming racer who is not afraid of being on the wrong side of the law. The player MUST come in First, Second, or Third place to clear each track. All tracks in each circuit must be cleared before the next circuit race set will be available. Each player automatically saves the character's (being played) progress during play.
Cops may hinder the players progression by slowing player down, stopping player, or issueing a warning; remember once you start this race, you are breaking the law. Unsanctioned races are illegal !
This mode progression is accessed in both Rally and Bandit mode.
Tips: Once in front of cops, use your boost and dont look back. Q key is very helpful, if you wipe out.
Career
This mode offers both the excitement of "Rally" races, and the challenge of the cop pursuit in "Bandit". In the city, competitiion is fierce and you must be able to win to get into the big time.
In this mode the player must win, place, or show in the first sanctioned race around the city or continue trying. This will provide a small bankroll to start a career with. Pick up street races (whether speed or Barrel) to increase bankroll while avoiding the cops. Cops may hinder the players progression by slowing player down, stopping player, or ticketing; remember once you start this race, you are breaking the law. Street races are illegal, and the penalty can be $50 for each time a cop gets close enough, but the player may also gain extra money during races by hitting objects.
If you lose all your money, you may have one amnesty race but if you lose it, the game is over. If you win enough, there are sanctioned "Rally" races to enter, and even though the entrance fees are high, the payoff is great, but you must "win" for the big money. With enough money, you may try other races or buy extra cars.
The goal is to accumulate all the cars you want and with the most money. All stats are saved under the name you used to start.
HOW TO:
After completing the first race around the city, find a street race. Pull up beside the car under the floating RACE! sign, and stop to activate challenge. These races can be navigated by the blue icons on the interface map, or you may follow the floating arrow. You may also follow the arrow to a Rally race which is not represented on the map.
TIPs: First, race the initial set of street races for easy money...harder street races will generate afterwards.
After first set of street races, buy an extra nitro, tires, or engine upgrade to race a class A Circuit race with.
Use this method in advancing for an advantage over the opponent cars. Upgrade your car ASAP!!!
II. General Troubleshooting:
A. DIRECTX
In order for your game to properly work, your computer's hardware drivers (the software you install for your sound and video cards) must be fully compatible to work with Microsoft DirectX 8.0 or greater. The software is provided to you on the CD, however you must still ensure that your computer is capable of running DirectX 8.0 with no conflicts.
To check your DirectX status:
1. Click on Start
2. Next Click Run
3. Type in "C:\Program Files\directx\setup\dxdiag.exe" and click OK:
4. The DirectX Diagnostics Tool should show up:
If either your DISPLAY(s) or SOUND shows up as "Uncertified" you must contact your sound or video card manufacturer and get newer drivers that are "Certified" by Microsoft to work with DirectX 8.0. This may be the case even if you have just purchased your computer system, as drivers are regularly updated as often as 3 or 4 times per year.
If you do not know what brand sound card and video card you have:
1. Click on Start and highlight Settings
2. Click on Control Panel
3. Double-click on your System icon
4. Bring your Device Manager to the front
5. Your video card is listed under "Display Adapter"
6. Your sound card is listed under "Sound, Video and Game Controls"
B. INSTALLATION PROBLEMS
If you are having problems getting the game to install, there are a few general troubleshooting steps you can take to help things along:
1. First of all, make sure you have enough hard drive space. You must allow for an extra 50 MB of Hard Drive space (on top of the minimum hard drive requirements) in order for the files to be copied and expanded onto your hard drive.
2. You may have old and unused files in your C:\Windows\Temp directory.
If you have any files located here prior to installation, you can delete these.
3. If you have any programs or utilities running during installation, you should turn those programs off.
4. Some systems(such as those running Windows ME) may require a reboot during installation. System may freeze during this process.
C. GAME PERFORMANCE
There are some options you can change while in the game to improve performance.
Detail / game-speed
If you notice that the game is moving at a slow rate, exit to Main menu and use the "DETAIL" config from the Options menu to adjust. The default setting would be for maximum view (HIGH). This means that as much as possible is drawn on the screen. On lower end machines this can make the game move very slowly in spots and interupt play with adverse effects. Turn the view distance down to "MED" or "LOW" to improve performance.
Video Resolution
In the options menu, under Resolution, you will find the Screen Resolution option. If you are having problems with performance or if some textures are missing ( Some buildings and objects are white ) turn down your screen resolution until you get the desired performance. Some cards have many settings, so you may have to find a setting that works for you.
D. SOFTWARE CONFLICT
If you have gone through these troubleshooting steps and your game is still not working properly, this may be the cause of a software conflict. Your system may have one or more utilities running (Virus scanners, Phone answering software, CD Rom utilities, game controller button mappers.) To rule out the possibility of a software conflict, Re-Boot your computer, then press Control+Alt+Delete to bring up the task manager. End all tasks except Explorer and Systray. Retry Muscle Car 2.
III. Hardware Conflicts
A. VIDEO CARDS
1. General Video Card Issues and Troubleshooting - 3D accelerator cards with at least 8MB of video memory are required to play Muscle Car 2. If your 3D video card only has 4MB of RAM, your card is unsupported.
Video resolutions above the default setting of 640X480. If you experience problems with higher video resolutions, try returning your video resolution to the default setting.
Some chipsets and drivers may cause problems with application, please update drivers and contact Hardware manufacture.
Older cards, like Matrox G400, have been known to cause problems. This may be dependent on O.S., drivers, or incompatability.
IV. Contacting Technical Support
A. USA and CANADA
You can ask for help with your Global Star Software game by reaching us by Phone, Online and Mail:
PHONE: Phone during the following hours:
Monday - Friday 9:00am - 5:00pm EST
tech support is (410) 933 9191
INTERNET: http://www.globalstarsoftware.com
email support- [email protected].
PUBLISHER: Global Star Software
6225 Kenway Drive
Mississauga, ON Canada L5T 2L3
DEVELOPER INFO: Carlo Romano
3Romans, LLC
1411 14th St. S. 2
Birmingham, AL 35205
ph 205 933 5286
website - http://www.3romans.com
email - [email protected]