| Playing Outlive
Demo |
|
| General Information |
There
are two maps available in the Outlive Demo to play in Multi-player mode: |
| Combat |
| Allows up to 8 players on 4 teams. You will access it
through the Multiplayer button. |
|
| Duel |
| Allows up to 4 players on 2 teams. You will access it
through the Multiplayer button. |
|
| We recommend that you play
the tutorial map before playing with other players. The tutorial will demonstrate the
features of Outlive that set it apart from other games in this genre. |
| Below, you will find a
summary of the main playability topics that will be useful in Outlive Demo games: |
|
| Multiplayer Games |
| It is possible to play the
Outlive Demo via serial cable, modem, IPX or TCP/IP. Immediately after you choose the type
of connection, a list of created sessions (games) will be presented. To enter a game, you
must select the game and click on the Enter option. To create a new game, you must click
on the Create option. |
|
| Types of connection |
| Serial |
| Players: 2. |
| You must enter the port the
serial cable is connected to, and the transmission rate, which must be the same between
the two connected computers. |
| Modem |
| Players: 2. |
| To create a new game, you
must choose the Answer Call option. To enter a Game already created, you must enter the
phone number of the player who created the session. |
| Local Network (IPX) |
| Players: 16 (8 pairs). |
| The IPX protocol must be
installed. All sessions created on the local network will be listed. |
| Internet (TCP/IP) |
| Players: 16 (8 pairs). |
| The TCP/IP protocol must be
installed. To create a game, it is not necessary to enter an IP address. To join a game,
you must enter the IP address of the game creator (except when the game is created on a
local network). |
|
| Considerations |
- In
games via TCP/IP, the player may get information on the connection by typing the console
command "#PING ON". A window will appearing with the state of the connection,
the ping and the percentage of packet loss. The connection status may be:
| - Good Connection: Ping
smaller than 500ms and packet loss smaller than 2%. |
| - Average Connection: Ping
between 500 and 1200ms and packet loss between 2% and 5%. |
| - Bad Connection: Ping
higher than 1200ms or packet loss higher than 5%. |
|
| - When the connection is
bad, the connection information window will be automatically displayed. Since the internet
can be very unstable at times, connections may vary during a game. If the bad connection
sign appears momentarily, it may only mean a momentary instability. But, if the window
persists for several minutes, the connection is probably unsuitable for play, and the
player with the poor connection must decide if he will continue playing. |
|
| Interface |
|
A.
Menu - Allows the player to load and save games, configure game, sound and video
options, view mission objectives and quit the battle or game. |
| B. Mini Map -
Offers a general view of the battlefield. The player can use the mini map to give orders
to his units and to place troops. Above the mini map there are the Game Clock and Help buttons. Clicking on the Game Clock allows the player to pause the game.
Clicking on Help allows the player to obtain information about game items. |
| C. Information
- Reserved area to display information from the Interface Modes. |
| D. Order Buttons
- Allows the player to give orders to his units. |
| E. Mode Buttons
- Changes Interface Modes. There are 4 modes: Information, Paths, Messages and Diplomacy. |
F.
Credit Screen - Allows the player to control the level of maintenance and
technological research expense. |
| G. Warning Screen
- Shows the player when a research or an espionage mission is finished, or when there is
an important message. |
| H. Game Area
- Place where the battles happen. The Game Area can be maximized when all the interface
modes are minimized. |
|
Energy |
Energy
is essential for buildings to work at full capacity. For example, with insufficient
energy, a Research Lab will conduct research slower; vehicles will take longer to be
produced by Factories; Defense Towers will shoot slower and do less damage. |
Energy
Sources: Energy is generated by special buildings, existing only for this
purpose. The Humans have Wind and Nuclear Power Plants for energy generation; Robots have
Solar Collectors and Radioactive Generators. (see Chapters 10 and 11 for more
information). |
 |
| Wind Power Plant |
|
Energy Net: For a
human building to receive energy from a Wind or Nuclear Power Plant, the buildings must be
built close together so they can form an Energy Net. When a building is not receiving
energy, it can be linked to an Energy Net through an Transmission Substation. |
 |
| Transmission Substation |
|
For the Robots, the establishment of
Energy Nets is a little different, because the buildings don’t need to be built near
each other. The Robots have only one energy net, and all the Robot buildings are linked to
this net, no matter the distance between them. |
| When a construction doesn’t belong
to an Energy Net, it works at 25% capacity. The exception is the Market, which stops
working when it doesn’t receive energy. However, the Market always works with 100% of
its capacity when it is linked to an Energy Net. |
 |
| Nuclear Power Plant |
|
To verify the amount of energy of a
Net, select an energy building (Wind Power Plant, Nuclear Power Plant, Transmission
Substation, Solar Collector or Radiactive Generator). If the Energy Network is at 100% or
above, the buildings belonging to this Net will be working at full capacity. |
|
Credits |
Credits
are essential for the support of the base. They are obtained through the exploration of
Ore Mines and through scrap metal collection. Credits may also be transferred between
players. |
 |
| Iron Mine |
|
 |
| Uranium Mine |
|
|
 |
| Extractor |
|
|
 |
| Refinery |
|
|
 |
| Processor |
|
|
Ore
Mines: There are two types of Ore Mines: Iron and Uranium. Uranium Mines are more
valuable than the Iron Mines, however they send out radiation that damages vehicles and
buildings. To extract credits from Ore Mines, build an Ore Extractor (Mining Facility for
Robots) or an Ore Processor (Ore Assimilator for Robots) over a Mine (see Chapters 10 and
11 for more information about buildings). |
| Another factor affecting
Mines is Purity. Purity ranges from 25% to 100%. The greater the Purity, the faster
credits will be extracted. During extraction, the Purity will decrease, eventually
reaching the minimum of 25%. At 25%, Purity never decreases and collection speed remains
consistent. |
 |
| Gathering Scraps |
|
Scrap
Iron: When a vehicle is destroyed, it may leave scrap metal behind. The value of
the scrap metal depends on the value of the vehicle that was destroyed. Heavier vehicles
make leave valuable scraps. Scraps can be collected using a Gatherer or a Marauder. |
| Maintenance Level: Maintenance
is the cost of maintaining vehicles and it varies with a vehicle’s value. Reducing
the maintenance level (initially set at 100%) makes maintenance cheaper. However,
characteristics as damage, armor, energy for special abilities and automatic repair of
units are adversely affected. To change the Maintenance Level, use the Credits Screen. |
| Research Level: The
Research Level determines the speed of research. Reducing the Research Level, spreads out
the cost of research over a longer period of time. This makes the research take longer,
but may free up credits in an emergency. To change the Research Level, use the Credits
Screen. |
|
Research |
Research
is conducted at the Research Lab or Tech Center. Research is absolutely essential in
ensuring technological development of an army. |
 |
| Research Lab |
|
Developing
Researches: Researches are divided into 5 categories: Basic Constructions,
Resource Constructions, Vehicles Research (or Basic Vehicles in the case of the Robots),
Aircraft Research (or Advanced Vehicles in the case of the Robots) and All Researches. |
| The first four categories have
subdivisions, making it possible to access the specific research of each unit or
construction. The last category contains all the researches available in the game. |
Note:
When a research is halted and then resumed, it resumes from the point at which it
was previously stopped. |
| Target Researches:
It is possible to choose any research from the Technological Tree to be accomplished. When
a research has requirements, it is called a target research. When a target research is
chosen, all the advances that are required for it will be completed automatically until
the target research is obtained. |
| Research Scientist:
It is possible to get the assistance of a Research Scientists when deciding what research
to undertake: |
| - Select the Research Lab
(Tech Center for Robots). |
| - Click on Auto-Research to
activate the Research Scientist. If the Lab has no current projects, the Scientist will
choose one. If a research is in progress, the Scientist will wait until it is completed
before choosing a new one. |
| - Researches will be
completed one by one until there are no more left to be researched. |
| - To deactivate automatic
research, click again on the Auto-Research button. The Scientist will be deactivated,
however the research that is in progress will be finished. |
|
Market |
 |
| Market |
|
The Market is the place to buy and sell vehicles. When a player buys
or sells a vehicle to the Market, the price and stock of that vehicle are affected for all
other players. Through the purchase and sale of vehicles, the Market becomes an
alternative way of obtaining credits and units. |
|
Intelligence |
 |
| Intelligence Center |
|
Espionage is an
essential weapon in battle. The more information a player has about his enemies, the
better his chances of defeating those enemies To use espionage, the player must build an
Intelligence Center or Information Center. |
| The success of an espionage mission is
based on probability: the higher the probability, the greater the chance of success.
Researches in the field of espionage (see Chapter 7 for more information) make it possible
to increase the probability of success decrease the chances of being spied on by enemies. |
| Another factor
that determines the probability of success of an espionage mission is the type of mission.
The harder the mission, the smaller the probability of success. It is possible to conduct
six different types of espionage missions: steal information, open sight, steal research,
monitor player, lock constructions and redirect ICBM. |
|
Maintenance |
| Maintenance is the cost of maintaining vehicles and it
varies with a vehicle's value. Reducing the maintenance level (initially set at 100%)
makes maintenance cheaper. However, characteristics such as damage, armor, energy for
special abilities and automatic repair of units are adversely affected. To change the
Maintenance Level, use the Credits Screen. |
|
Terrain Elevation |
| Elevation affects vehicles
and constructions. Land vehicles and towers on low ground cause only 75% damage to targets
in elevated positions. Wind Power Plants and Solar Generators built on elevated land will
generate more energy than the same constructions on lower ground |
|
Damaged Buildings |
 |
| Vehicle Factory |
|
Buildings that are very damaged
don’t work at full capacity, similarly to buildings with low energy (see Chapter 6
for more information). For instance: Wind Power Plants provide less energy, Defense Towers
shoot slower, etc. |
|
Advanced Options |
Advanced
Options are accessed through a button with the same name displayed on the interface when a
vehicle is selected. |
Automatic Retreat: This determines the level of damage that
will cause the vehicle to automatically retreat to its Retreat Point (see below for more
information about Retreat Points). If this percentage is 100%, any damage that the vehicle
suffers will cause it to retreat. If the percentage is 0%, the vehicle will never retreat. |
| Help
Radius: When unit or building belonging to you or your ally suffers an attack, it
will automatically send out a request for help. Units not directly under attack may
respond to requests for help depending on their Help Radius. If the Help Radius is 0%, the
unit will never leave its position to help another unit, similarly to the Hold Position
order. |
| Note:
The Help Radius of Builders, Gatherers, Morphers and Marauders is always configured to 0%
and can’t be changed. |
| Use
Special Abilities Automatically: When activated, the special abilities of the
unit are used automatically. For instance, a Dominator may automatically Incubate an
Abominable when it finds one; Chaos may send out its radioactive cloud when there are
enemies; and so on. |
| Retreat
Point: The Retreat Point is the position a unit will fall back to when it
Retreats. When the vehicle is produced, its Retreat Point is the building where it was
created. To change the Retreat Point of a vehicle, do as follows: |
| - Select any
vehicle. |
| - Click on
Advanced Options. |
| - Click on
Retreat Point. |
| Move the mouse
to the game area and notice that the mouse pointer has changed to a circle. Left click on
the battlefield to establish a new Retreat Point for the unit. |
| Note:
When the Retreat Point is placed on the first or last step of a Path, retreating units
will move to the other end of the Path, irrespective of the Path Type. If the Retreat
Point results in a Robotic unit arriving on a friendly Recycling Base, the unit will
automatically enter Recycling Base to be repaired. |
| Cancel:
Cancels all changes and quits Advanced Options. |
| Apply: Confirms
all changes and quits Advanced Options. |
| Note:
Advanced Options can also be changed directly in any building that produces units.
Advanced Options set at a building will apply to all units produced by that building after
the changes were made. |
| Special
Situations: There are some special situations that bear mention: |
| - Robotic
Constructions in the process of building/demolishing are more vulnerable. They will suffer
greater than normal damage if attacked. |
| - When the
Twister is teleporting it is more vulnerable. It will suffer more damage than normal while
teleporting. |
| - Flags
can’t be teleported. When a Marauder (or Gatherer) carrying a Flag is inside a
Twister, teleportation will cause the unit to drop the Flag at the point where
teleportation was initiated. |
| - When a
Dominator dominates a Transporter or Twister, any vehicles being carried by the unit are
instantly destroyed. |
| - The
Intelligence Center and the Information Center can’t be locked through the Lock
Constructions espionage mission. |
- Heavier Vehicles (like Missile-Launcher, Tank, Heavy Tank, Tempest, Chaos
and Incinerator) suffer more damage than light vehicles from weapons that use fire, such
as the Flamethrower and Incendiary Missile attack. |
|
Abominable |
 |
| Abominable |
|
The Abominable are genetically modified
beings that have their own behavior. They may become aggressive without warning or
run away when threatened. With the proper research, the Humans can create obedient
Abominable at their Headquarters. |
|
Diplomacy |
| Using Diplomacy, it is possible to modify your diplomatic status
with other players and transfer credits. The diplomatic status of one player relative to
another determines how both player's units will interact. Allied players share vision and
their troops help each other. Neutral players neither help nor act in a hostile manner
towards each other. Enemy players troops' will attack each other on sight. In diplomatic
relations between two players, the more hostile option selected by one of the players
predominates. For example, if one player selects Ally but the other player selects
Neutral, what predominates is the situation Neutral. Diplomacy options may be accessed
through the Diplomacy Mode button on the lower right side of the interface or hitting F12. |
|
Robot
Buildings