REDUCTIO AD NIHILUM A puzzle game for Zx Spectrum ---------------- THE STORY: Aileen has always dreamed of becoming a sorceress. Now her dreams are close to become true. But first she must graduate from that damned magical college! To become a magician you must understand the principles of universe. The most important principles are balance and harmony. Each force has its counterforce, each matter has its antimatter. Aileen's task is to find a harmony in an alchemical mixture of different elements.Finding a balance depends on the order of your actions. Do it right and the elements will annihilate each other so everything will become nothing. This is reduction to nothing - "Reductio Ad Nihilum". You can wield magic only when you understand the essence of being and nothing. Help Aileen to go through her exams and master the eternal laws! ---------------- THE GAMEPLAY: You play your game on a square board filled with jewels of different types. The jewels represent different substances, elements and forces of nature. Your job is to clear the board so no jewels are left on the board and reach the balance this way. You may clear jewels by selecting 2 jewels of the same type. The jewels must belong to the same row or the same collumn. When you select them, they will explode and dissapear together with everything between them. That's all! Sounds simple but you'll discover that the game requires strategy and planning. If you perform your actions in the right order, you'll manage to clear all the jewels. Do it wrong and you'll be left with jewels remaining and no more legal moves to make. There are 30 levels in games and boards become bigger when you advance. Are you able to do them all? ---------------- CONTROLS: In the game menu you make the choice if you'll control the game with keyboard, Kempston Joystick or Sinclair Joystick. The keys for keyboard are: Q-up A-down O-left P-right SPACE-fire You control a cursor with the direction keys. Move it over a jewel that you want to select and press FIRE. The jewel becomes selected. Now move it over a second jewel of the same type and press FIRE again. If the jewels are of the same type and lay in the same row or collumn you'll clear them and everything between them. If not, you clear selection of your 1st jewel and the jewel you just clicked on becomes your 1st selected jewel that you must match with the 2nd one. It's much simpler in action than while reading, believe me :) You can press R to repeat the level if you believe that you've reached an dead end. You have 5 attempts for each level. If you use them all, it's Game OVer. Try not to repeat levels as it decreases your bonus. At any moment you can press X to quit the game and return to the game menu. Before each level you are given a combination of jewels which is a password for this level. Choose the appropriate option in the main menu to enter the password and begin the gameplay from your chosen level. ---------------- CREDITS: Coding and graphics: Rafał Miazga Music: Mister Beep This game is FREEWARE