MAXIMILLIAN B. ACTION/STRATEGY GAME BY JD CASTEN Hey, kids! Help the intrepid duck Max (Slyvester Biffdrop's clever cousin) conquer the mechanical monster that's making mouse lives miserable. This BASIC program works on Atari 8-bit computers with at least 32K memory, disk or cassette Maximillian B. approached the large oak doors slowly and cautiously. As he drew ever closer, the doors creaked open, revealing an office the size of a basketball court and barren except for a large desk. "Hurry up, Maxy babe," echoed a voice from behind the desk. "My oh my, what a beak you have! You know, plastic surgery can do wonders these days." Max's bill began to clatter. Aunt Icked, the family's wealthy oddball, always gave him the chills. "You asked to see me?" gagged Max. Aunt Icked rarely summoned him just to make fun of his long beak. "Yes Max, I have an assignment for you. This is big-time, Max." Aunt Icked pulled a few documents and a train ticket out of her desk and handed them to Max. "Shouldn't cousin Sly handle matters of this sort? I'm an inventor, not an inspector." But Max's heart began to pound harder: this was a dream come true for him. "No," replied Aunt Icked, "this job requires someone with extra brain-power -- but you'll do. You and your Clijum-9 aircar are perfect for this mission. Besides, Sly has had terrible nightmares lately, and he needs all the rest he can get." "What's the mission?" questioned Max. Max swelled with pride: he had become an inspector. Aunt Icked sighed gravely. "A Mechanical Electrical Operational Weapon manufactured by Icked Industries has gone haywire. The contraption took off in the middle of the night and holed up somewhere in the Rodentential section of Burger city. Evidently the machine has been terrorizing the mice and other rodent residents. Your mission is to enter the fortress and destroy the Mechanical Electrical Operational Weapon. The details are in those documents. Get your little ducktail moving." THE MISSION On the train ride to Burger City, Max studied the material. Apparently the mechanical menace had built a fortress in a large mountain of deadly vampire vegetation. Max would have to climb and jump on the framework of the fortress, but could he avoid the vampire vegetation? The fortress has nine rooms, most of them isolated from one another by locked doors. The only way for Max to unlock a door is to overload the power pulsar in each room by feeding all the power charges from the room into the pulsar. The power charges move in straight paths until something blocks their way, making them turn counter-clockwise. The charges are lethal, so Max will need to move special blue inso-cubes around to change the paths of the charges. Once Max finds the Mechanical Electrical Operational Weapon, he must neutralize it with charges to complete his mission. CLIJUM-9 OPERATION In his amazing Clijum-9 micromini aircar, Max can move horizontally, jump, climb walls and pick up and deposit inso-cubes. To move, push the joystick left or right. To jump, push the trigger. To climb, hold the joystick in direction of the wall (this makes the Clijum-9 grasp the wall) and press the trigger (this moves it up). To pick up an inso-cube, push the joystick up, and to put one down, push the joystick down. Combinations of operations can (and must) be used by pushing the joystick in diagonal directions. To pick up an inso-cube, the cube must be in front of Max's aircar. When he picks it up, Max carries it on his back, so there must be space behind Max before he can grab an inso-cube, or else it might be destroyed. If a power charge hits the inso-cube while Max is carrying it, the cube will be destroyed. Max begins with nine lives in Room One of the fortress. If Max loses a life, he'll have to start over at the room entrance. This "room restart" can also be activated at any time without losing a life by pressing any key. The game ends when Max destroys the Mechanical Electical Operational Weapon or when he loses all nine lives. HINTS First, get thoroughly familiar with the Clijum-9 aircar. Remember that left and right motion in jumps can be controlled continually with the joystick. Max is tough and can take falls from any height. He can't fly, but he can glide down in any direction. Inso-cubes can be put anywhere -- even in mid-air -- but not where they won't fit -- say, down a small hole. Maximillian B. is just as much a logic game as one of action. Completion of the game rests heavily on strategic positioning of the inso-cubes. It only takes one cube to change the direction of a charge. In some cases (such as room one -- this is a hint) the charges will be trapped by inso-cubes, and Max must set them free. On these screens, it is wise to set up a path for the charges to follow before letting them free. There are many ways to solve each screen, and it is possible to complete the mission. Good luck to you and Max.
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