System Wadgebury

By Gus Donnachaidh

Originally published in EUG #37

This is a game which I believe came from BBC PD a few years ago. It doesn't have any copyright messages so it's difficult to tell.

I'm not very good at making up scenarios so the description for this game may sound a little bland. In playing it, it's a lot more fun.

Anyway, you have to move a character around the screen using the Z, X, * and ? keys. A bomb has to be defused and this is done by surrounding it with four round stones. Then there are a number of round white objects which have a sort of nuclear symbol inside them. These need to be pushed into a white square shape. You also need to destroy all the 'soil' and consume the stars before you go onto the next screen.

There's also an EDITOR so that you can design your own screens.

This is what I did and mine is called EUG1. Each screen file has four screens but, for some reason, it doesn't seem possible to immediately load a new file when the fourth screen is completed.

The game is loaded either from the Menu or by CHAINing the file "G.WADGE". You're first asked if you want the game or the editor. Press G and you will be asked for a filename. Type in "EUG1".

The first screen is fairly simple and designed to show what you may find in the game. Oh, and I forgot to say, there are two timers counting down: one is for the bomb and will stop when the bomb is defused, the other is for the rest of the game. Consuming the diamond shapes boosts this second timer.

The editor presents a blank screen. You can load a file (to continue working on it) by pressing L and save a file by pressing S. Transfer the files to a G directory on another disk before doing this, though.

The RETURN key fixes a shape in a position and SPACE removes it.

The keys A, B, C and D swap between each of the four screens in the file. They don't all need to be finished to be loaded into the game and tested.

Finally, the < and > keys scroll through the various shapes available. There is one shape which looks like a white monster. I haven't used this one because I cannot figure out how to destroy it and without destroying it, you can't go onto the next screen. You might work this out though.

The game is fun and can be interesting. If you design a file, send it in and we can all try it out!

To move the game to another disk (Recommended), create a G directory and *COPY the following files to it:
      CODE1, CODE2, CHARS, EDITOR, MAIN, WADGE, EUG1

Gus Donnachaidh, EUG #37