The Official Apogee FAQ
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T h e ___ " O f f i c i a l "
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| _ | |_) | (_) | (_| | __/ __/
|_| |_| .__/ \___/ \__, |\___|\___| F A Q
|_| |___/ Version 2.3
Current as of December 21, 1994
(changes and additions since v2.2 are denoted by leading '}' marks)
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Contents:
[1] Introduction
[1.1] A word from me
[1.2] About this FAQ
[1.2.1] Obtaining the latest version of the FAQ
} [1.2.2] Revision history
} [1.3] Obtaining other Apogee-related FAQs
[1.4] What is Apogee?
[1.5] What does "Apogee" mean?
[1.6] How Apogee markets its games
[1.7] Getting the latest information
} [1.7.1] Electronic news
[1.7.2] Apogee's internet mailing list
} [1.7.3] Finger files
[1.8] Apogee's staff
[2] Historical Information
[2.1] What is Apogee's relationship with 3D Realms?
[2.2] What is Apogee's relationship with id?
[2.3] What awards has Apogee won?
[2.4] History of specific games
[2.4.1] Commander Keen
[2.4.2] Wolfenstein 3D and Spear of Destiny
[2.4.3] Halloween Harry and Alien Carnage
[3] Games Lists
} [3.1] What games are currently available from Apogee?
} [3.2] The games are too big to download! Are there "split" versions?
[3.3] What combination deals does Apogee offer?
} [3.4] What upgrade patches are currently available?
[3.5] What slide shows are currently available from Apogee?
[3.6] What are upcoming releases from Apogee?
[3.7] What Apogee games are no longer supported?
[3.8] Which of Apogee's games are good?
[4] The Almanac
[4.1] Release dates
} [4.1.1] Games
[4.1.2] Slide shows
[4.2] Cast of characters
[4.2.1] Heroes
[4.2.2] Villains
[4.2.3] Cameos
[4.3] Behind the scenes
} [4.3.1] Programmers
} [4.3.2] Artists
} [4.3.3] Musicians
[5] Obtaining the Games
[5.1] The Shareware Episodes
[5.1.1] Software Creations BBS
} [5.1.2] Anonymous FTP
[5.1.3] CompuServe
[5.1.4] America On-Line
[5.1.5] Fidonet
[5.2] The Registered Episodes
[5.2.1] Ordering information
} [5.2.2] Software Creations BBS
[6] Troubleshooting
[6.1] Things to try first
} [6.2] Setting the BLASTER environment variable
[6.3] By game
[7] Cheats
[7.1] Overview
[7.2] What's that about cows and monkeys in Raptor?
} [7.3] Complete Cheat List
[8] Contacting Apogee
[8.1] By phone
[8.2] By fax
[8.3] By snail mail
[8.4] Through networks
[9] Credits
[10] Dopefish and Friends
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Legal Quagmire: This FAQ is copyright (c) 1994 by Samuel Stoddard. No part
of this FAQ may be distributed unless it remains intact, with all credits,
attributions, and other miscellaneous praises to myself preserved. You may
keep as many copies of this FAQ as you like, on whatever and however many
different mediums that you like, and you can even read more than one copy
at one time. There's a whole lot of trademarks in here that are acknowledged
implicitly even if they aren't acknowledged explicitly in the following
statement: I hereby explicitly acknowledge the following trademarks: Apogee,
id, 3D Realms, FormGen, Softdisk, GT, Cygnus, Argo Games, Microsoft, Stacker,
all game titles, operating system titles, and other software titles, and all
the other trademarks in here. All the trademarks that are not explicitly
explicitly acknowledged are implicitly acknowledged as explicitly acknowledged
trademarks. All trademarks (including, but not limited to, those that are
explicitly acknowledged, those that are implicitly acknowledged as explicitly
acknowledged, and those that are explicitly implicitly acknowledged) are also
implicitly acknowledged here to boot. Also, he header for this FAQ was done
with the aid of "Figlet." Finally, I take no responsibility whatsoever for
anything that happens as a result of this FAQ's existence. Except for the
good things.
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[1] Introduction
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[1.1] A word from me
Who am I? I'm just another Apogee fan, the primary difference between you and
me being that I'm the one flaunting my vast sea of Apogee knowledge. I don't
guarantee that all or even any of the facts in this FAQ are true, but I try to
make this as informative and truthful a document as I humanly can without
playing hookey from work or school. (I do have priorities, after all.) If
you have some tidbits of information, or, heck, a whole flood of information
tidbits, let me know and I'll put it in the FAQ along with your name in the
credits. The best way to reach me is through the internet. Try these
addresses in this order: rink@unh.edu, ss1@christa.unh.edu,
stoddard@ctron.com.
[1.2] About this FAQ
This FAQ is copyrighted (see above) by Samuel Stoddard. While it is
authorized and "officialized" by Apogee, it is not the property nor the
work of Apogee. However, Apogee has contributed generously to its
creation and growth; for that, I offer my sincere thanks.
[1.2.1] Obtaining the latest version of the FAQ
There are a few ways to get the latest copy:
- Via anonymous FTP: a latest version of the Apogee FAQ can be found
in the following places:
} - ftp.uml.edu /msdos/games/apogee/faq/apogee.faq
- wcl-l.bham.ac.uk /pub/djh/faq/Apogee.faq
- ftp.wustl.edu /pub/MSDOS_UPLOADS/game_faq/apogeeXX.faq
- ftp.wustl.edu /pub/MSDOS_UPLOADS/games/Apogee/apogeeXX.faq
"XX" is the version number. Note that since I upload to ftp.wustl.edu
directly, this site will receive new versions more quickly than the
other two sites.
- Through Usenet: I will try to post it in alt.games.apogee once every two
weeks, and in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.misc and comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action
once a month. New versions will be posted to all three newsgroups
immediately.
- Email: write me at ss1@kepler.unh.edu or stoddard@ctron.com.
[1.2.2] Revision history
The revision history of this FAQ is as follows:
} Version 2.3 - Revision of the "blaster environment variable" section.
} Updated "behind the scenes." Other updates.
Version 2.2 - Behind the scenes sections added. Other minor updates.
Version 2.1 - Minor updates.
Version 2.0 - The almanac added. Game release dates added. Tech
support addresses added. Other major changes,
additions, and revisions.
Version 1.1 - Minor updates and additions to several sections.
Version 1.0 - Cheats section completed. Many major additions.
Version 0.4 - Formatting and typo fixes. Minor additions. Not
publicly released.
Version 0.3 - First public release. The first batch of Joe Siegler's
additional information incorporated.
Version 0.2 - Minor changes made before Joe Siegler's response.
Version 0.1 - Sent to Joe Siegler for suggestions and corrections.
[1.3] Obtaining other Apogee-related FAQs
Several FAQs about individual Apogee games are available. A list,
with instructions for obtaining the latest versions, follows:
Game Maintainer How To Get It
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Rise of the Triad Rylan Hilman FTP to ftp.uml.edu, and download
} /msdos/games/apogee/faq/rott.faq, or
send mail to rhilman@oasis.rain.com.
Wolfenstein 3D Stanley Stasiak FTP to wcl-l.bham.ac.uk and download
/pub/djh/faqs/Wolfenstein-3D.faq.
Commander Keen Bill Amon FTP to wcl-l.bham.ac.uk and download
/pub/djh/faqs/commander.keen.faq, or
send mail to wamon@mbunix.mitre.org.
Note that you could probably get copies of any or all of these by simply
posting a request to alt.games.apogee or comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action.
However, to keep requests posts to a minimum, please do not do this, unless
you are unable to obtain it via the other means listed here.
[1.4] What is Apogee?
Apogee is a games distributor for PC games of many sorts. It is a diverse
gaming company, contributing to several different genres of games. While
much of what Apogee publishes are games written primarily by other companies,
such as Cygnus or Argo Games, Apogee writes their own games as well. Apogee's
staff includes an array of talented programmers, artists, and musicians. For
many years now, Apogee has been among the leading shareware games companies
for the PC and compatible market.
[1.5] What does "Apogee" mean?
According to the American Heritage dictionary, "apogee" means: "the point
in the orbit of the moon or of an artificial satellite most distant from
the earth." Or, more generally, "the farthest or highest point; apex."
Related words are the Greek "apogaion," the neuter form of "apogaios"
which means "away from the earth." There is also the New Latin word
"apogaeum," which is derived from the Greek word. There is a French word
"Apogee" (with an accent over the first 'e'). In English, there is the
related word "apogean" and the antonym "perigee."
All this is academic, however, for according to the Apogee slogan, "Apogee
means action." :-)
[1.6] How Apogee markets its games
In 1987, Apogee came up with a unique method of marketing their games. Since
then, other shareware companies have adopted their strategy. Their scheme is
this: each game they produce is divided into three to four, sometimes even
six, episodes. The first episode is free. It can be downloaded from
CompuServe, BBS's, or the Internet, or bought in a store that distributes
shareware games for disk copying charges. You can distribute the shareware
episode to your friends yourself, if you like, provided you leave all the
original files intact.
If you like the shareware episode of a game, Apogee requires that you register
it. This is the normal rule regarding shareware. Upon registration, you will
receive the complete game. Apogee uses this marketing scheme so that people
can have a good idea about the game they are buying before they put their cash
on the line.
[1.7] Getting the latest information
There are a few ways to get the latest information about Apogee, even if you
want it more quickly than keeping up with the latest revisions of this FAQ
would do. These methods are mentioned briefly in the following sections:
[1.7.1] Electronic news
On Usenet, the newsgroups alt.games.apogee, comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.misc.action,
and comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.misc, and alt.games.apogee all carry discussion
}about Apogee's latest. Apogee monitors these, plus the gaming, shareware, and
}Apogee support conferences on Fidonet, Rime, Intelec, ILink, U'NI-Net, and
}Smartnet.
[1.7.2] Apogee's internet mailing list
Apogee has an Internet mailing list. Whenever new games or slide shows are
released (or other important information), Apogee sends the information out in
a mailing. If you would like to be on this mailing list, contact Joe Siegler
(joe.siegler@swcbbs.com or apogee@metronet.com). It is free of charge.
[1.7.3] Finger files
}On the internet, you can finger apogee@fohnix.metronet.com, and receive all
the latest information about Apogee. Usually this entails both recent and
}upcoming releases, among other things. If apogee@fohnix.metronet.com does
}not work, try apogee@metronet.com.
[1.8] Apogee's staff
Scott Miller - President, Co-owner
George Broussard - Executive VP, Co-owner
Steven Blackburn - VP Operations
Tom Hall - Creative Director
Greg Malone - Creative Director
Dennis Scarff - Vice President, World Operations
Joe Siegler - On-Line Support Manager & Technical Support
Kevin Green - Customer Support Supervisor & Technical Support
Dan Linton - SysOp/Owner of Software Creations BBS
Lee Jackson - Technical Support
Steve Quarrella - Technical Support
Joe Selinske - Technical Support
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[2] Historical Information
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[2.1] What is Apogee's relationship with 3D Realms?
Apogee and 3D Realms are sister companies, both divisions of Action
Entertainment, Inc. Originally, Action Entertainment's next-generation
of 3D games were going to be published under the Apogee name. However,
in late August of 1994, 3D Realms was born, and the four next-generation
3D games that Action had under production are now under 3D Realms.
[2.2] What is Apogee's relationship with id?
Apogee Software and id Software are completely different companies. I believe
most of the id guys are former employees of Softdisk, who decided to do their
own thing. They wrote the legendary Commander Keen series and Wolfenstein
3-D, which were *distributed* by Apogee. So if you play these games, you will
see both Apogee's and id's labels.
Then, id wrote Doom. They decided to publish this (and all future id
releases) themselves, instead of going through Apogee, FormGen, or others.
According to Joe Siegler, there was no "divorce" between id and Apogee. They
just parted ways peacefully, and employees of both get together regularly.
Some people still falsely believe that Doom is an Apogee game. It's not!
It's by id and only id. Apogee has nothing to do with it. Nowhere in DOOM
will you find any reference to Apogee.
Also, Apogee is significantly bigger than id. They work on twenty-some games
at a time, including those it distributes for other companies. id consists of
a relatively small crew of programmers, and, for the most part, work on a
single game at a time.
Keen: Aliens and Spear of Destiny were written by id and distributed through
FormGen. Apogee resells these games and will provide tech support for them if
you bought them through Apogee. As for Doom, Apogee does not even resell this,
and thus, will not provide tech support for it.
As a final note of confusion, Apogee and id are both situated in Texas, just
down the road from each other.
[2.3] What awards has Apogee won?
Apogee has won over a hundred national and international awards -- far too
many to list here -- but here are some of the highlights:
Commander Keen - Best Entertainment Software - 1992
Commander Keen - Best Overall - 1992
Math Rescue - Best Education Software - 1993
Wolfenstein 3D - Best Entertainment Software - 1993
Wolfenstein 3D - Best New Home, Hobby, Entertainment - 1993
Wolfenstein 3D - Best Overall, People's Choice - 1993
[2.4] History of specific games
[2.4.1] Commander Keen
Joe Siegler's explanation of the history of the Keen series:
Here's a short history of the Commander Keen games. First, I'll list
all the games and their titles. All of them were written by id
Software.
1) Marooned on Mars ---\
2) The Earth Explodes | ---> Invasion of the Vorticons
3) Keen Must Die ---/
3.5) Keen Dreams
4) Secret of the Oracle --\__ Goodbye Galaxy
5) The Armageddon Machine --/
6) Aliens Ate My Babysitter
Episodes 1-3 are collectively called "Invasion of the Vorticons,"
and are published by Apogee Software. This series of Commander Keen
was released on December 14th, 1990, according to Tom Hall, Apogee's
Creative Director, and at the time, Creative Director of id Software.
Episodes 4 & 5 are collectively called "Goodbye Galaxy," and are also
published by Apogee Software. This series of Commander Keen was
released somewhere around June of 1991. There was also a special CGA
edition of Keens 4-5 made. The game is functionally exactly the same
as the standard EGA version of the game, but the graphics are in CGA.
Episode 6 is a "stand alone" game, and is entitled "Aliens Ate my
Babysitter." This episode of Keen is distributed by FormGen. It is
commercial software, and is available at your local software store
(such as CompUSA). This is also sold by Apogee, but Apogee only
resells this product, we don't actually distribute it. FormGen also
decided to put off-disk copy protection on the full version of this
game. Furthermore, FormGen also has a playable 3 level commercial
demo available for perusal before purchase. Apogee Software sells a
version of Keen 6 in CGA. I do not know if FormGen sells the CGA
version of Keen 6 in the stores; it may only be available from Apogee
Software. Check with FormGen for more details.
Keen Dreams has kind of an interesting story. This is referred to as
the "Lost Episode" of Commander Keen. I like to think of it as "Keen
Episode 3.5." The reason for that is that Keen Dreams falls in between
Vorticons and Galaxy, both in terms of technology and story line.
Before the id guys actually formed id, the majority of them worked at
Softdisk, a computer software publisher in Shreveport, LA. The
founding members of id Software left Softdisk to do the Vorticons
series of Keen for Apogee Software. However, they were contractually
obligated to deliver another game to Softdisk, and since development
had started on the Galaxy series, they threw together a Keen game for
Softdisk, and Keen Dreams was born. This game is not sold by Apogee
Software, nor does Apogee have anything at all to do with it. You'd
need to contact Softdisk for any further information regarding Keen
Dreams.
Episodes 1, 3.5, 4, and the 3 level demo for Episode 6 are
the only ones that you are legally allowed to upload and download
anywhere. Episodes 2, 3, 5, and the full version of Episode 6 are
commercial software, and should not appear on any BBS, online service,
or should otherwise be sold except for authorized sellers of the
games.
Here are the BBS filenames as currently available from Apogee for the
various Keen games from Apogee.
Keen 1 -> #1KEEN.ZIP
Keen 4 -> #4KEEN.ZIP
Keen 4 -> #4KEENC.ZIP (Special CGA Version)
I've seen the 3 level Aliens Demo available with the filename
#6K-DEMO.ZIP. I've seen Keen Dreams available with the filename
KDREAMS.ZIP. However, neither of these are Apogee products, and I
cannot vouch for the files' names.
If you played Keen 5, there was a screen that said something to the
effect of "Join us in December 1992 for the greatest Keen adventure
yet." There was a picture of Keen smiling, with a Santa Claus hat on.
At the time, id Software was intending to do a third series of
Commander Keen, tentatively entitled "Commander Keen: The Universe is
Toast." However, other projects came up (Wolfenstein 3D, Spear of
Destiny, and later, Doom). At this time, there is no development
going on in the Commander Keen department. There will eventually be
more Commander Keen games by Apogee Software. However, even if the
work were to commence on the game TODAY, it would still take about 12
months to see the light of day. The earliest development could start
on this game would be early in 1995, so I would not look for any new
Commander Keen games before the Spring of 1996.
[2.4.2] Wolfenstein 3D and Spear of Destiny
Joe Siegler's explanation of the history of the Wolfenstein series:
On May 5, 1992, Apogee Software released the shareware episode of
Wolfenstein 3D, and has been distributing it in the shareware market
since then. Apogee is the official distributor of Wolfenstein 3D's
original six episodes in the shareware market.
Somewhere around September of 1992, FormGen Corp released Spear of
Destiny. This is a retail sequel to Wolfenstein 3D. This game
consisted of one episode with 20 levels. It has some new wall
art, a couple of new objects, and new boss creatures. This game
is essentially the same as Wolf3D generally, but is completely
new in the level design aspect. It is available in stores like
CompUSA. Apogee also resells this product, but is not responsible
for the distribution of it. Apogee has to buy it from FormGen
like any other store would. There is a six level playable demo
floating around for Spear of Destiny. It's the same first two levels
that appear in the full version of the game. This is not shareware.
Commercial demos are for the most part non-interactive. This one *is*
interactive, and since it bears a close resemblance to Wolfenstein 3D,
which is shareware, the SOD demo is frequently mistaken for being
shareware, which it is not.
There have been numerous editors and extra levels appear for both
Wolfenstein 3D and Spear of Destiny. In regards to Wolf3D, Apogee
respectfully requests that you not make or distribute any editor/extra
level/add on that will modify the shareware episode. If you choose to
do this, please make these items for the registered version only; and
be aware that Apogee cannot support user-created items.
Somewhere in mid/late 1993, id Software decided that they were going
to publish these same six original episodes in the retail market.
These are the same six episodes that Apogee had been selling since May
of 1992. Since Apogee was at that time not set up for retail
distribution, id Software went with another company, and that company
is GT Software. This package is available in CompUSA and contains
the same six episodes that Apogee is the distributor of. Apogee has
absolutely nothing at all to do with this product. The GT Software
version of Wolfenstein 3D is totally a GT deal. Apogee has no control
over the packaging, the quality control, or the price.
In May of 1994, FormGen Corporation released an update to Spear of
Destiny. It was two new episodes, and are available in the stores.
The collective name of the product is "Spear of Destiny Mission Add-On
Packs". The new epsiodes each have their own individual titles,
these being "Mission 2: Return to Danger", and "Mission 3: Ultimate
Challenge." These are add-ons to Spear of Destiny and have some new
level graphics, some differently colored actors, but is essentially
more levels for Spear of Destiny. These extra versions do require
that you have the first Spear of Destiny game (the original six Apogee
Wolf3D episodes are not required). Apogee Software has absolutely
nothing to do with this product. We do not sell it, and we do not
support it. This is a FormGen deal completely. I might also add that
id Software didn't have anything to do with these either. This was
completely a FormGen program.
id Software has also either written or released versions of
Wolfenstein 3D for other platforms over time. All of these versions
are ones that Apogee has nothing to do with. id Software holds the
copyright to Wolfenstein 3D and can license it to others for other
platforms or can do whatever they want with it. These versions are
listed for completeness' sake only.
The Super Nintendo version was released around Jan/Feb of 1994.
This was published through a company called "Imagineer." Due to
Nintendo restrictions, some of the cooler elements had to be removed.
These were, 1) all Nazi references, 2) the dogs (replaced with rats),
and 3) blood (replaced with sweat). This is still a cool game,
considering what it's programmed for. There was a version released
for the Atari Jaguar around August of 1994, and this version is
probably the graphically best of any version published. When you
go up right against walls and the like, they do not become blocky or
chunky. They're actually quite good. They're still blocky somewhat,
but they are very good when viewed close up as compared to previous
versions of Wolfenstein 3D. This version was published by Atari. id
also licensed Wolf3D so that it could be published on the Macintosh
computer. This version is out as of October 1994 and is being
distributed by Interplay (I think). WolfMac is a shareware title,
and there is a shareware version of it out. When you register, you
get something like 30 levels. Again, Apogee has nothing to do with
these versions of Wolfenstein 3D; you would need to contact the
various companies or id Software directly for more information on them.
The premiere issue of Game Developer's Magazine stated that Apogee
Software was working on a game called "Wolfenstein 3D: Part II," which
was to be a totally new game, with completely new actors, and totally
new everything; the only thing the same being the title Wolfenstein 3D.
This information is incorrect; there is no such title under production
at either Apogee or id Software.
[2.4.3] Halloween Harry and Alien Carnage
Halloween Harry was written by Sub-Zero software, located in Australia.
Apogee is the game's distributor. In October of 1993, Apogee released
v1.1 of Halloween Harry in the United States. As with both Mystic Towers
and Wacky Wheels, the first American version was 1.1, not 1.0. The reason
for this is that an incomplete version of the game was released overseas
and referred to as v1.0. Please note, however, that these are not complete,
finished versions of the games.
A month later, v1.2 of the game was released. A year after that, Apogee
suggested a title change to "Alien Carnage." Sub-Zero agreed. Thus, in
early November of 1994, "Halloween Harry" was dropped from Apogee's
distribution, and "Alien Carnage" added. Alien Carnage v1.0 is essentially
Halloween Harry v1.2 with a name change, price change, and episode
reorganization. The shareware version of Alien Carnage (its first episode)
is Halloween Harry's episode three. With the exception of this
reorganization, Alien Carnage consists of the same episodes as Halloween
Harry. The shareware version of Halloween Harry is still legal to
distribute; however, Apogee prefers you distribute the shareware version of
Alien Carnage only, as this version has the new pricing information
screens.
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[3] Games Lists
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Please note that this information is constantly changing, especially when new
games are added to the list of Apogee products. Please note that some of the
information given here could become out of date rather quickly.
[3.1] What games are currently available from Apogee?
A list of Apogee games follows. The filename given is the file -- on
CompuServe, BBS's, and the Internet -- which contains the first episode of
each game. Note that on the Internet, the filenames do not contain the
leading '#' mark. On CompuServe, there are no numbers or punctuation in
the filenames at all.
The price given is the cost of the *complete* game with all episodes. The "Ep"
field contains the number of episodes in the complete version. The "Ver"
field contains the latest version number of the game. "Gph" is the best
graphics mode that the game utilizes.
Name Genre Filename Price Ep Ver Gph
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}Rise of the Triad 3D Action #1rott.zip $29.95 5 1.0 VGA*~
}Boppin Puzzle #1bop11.zip $29.95 4 1.1 VGA*~
Wacky Wheels Auto Racing #1wacky.zip $34.95 6 1.1 VGA*
Mystic Towers 3D Puzzle #1mystic.zip $24.95 6 1.1 VGA
Hocus Pocus Platform #1hp11.zip $24.95 4 1.1 VGA
Raptor: Call of the Shadows Shooter #1rap12.zip $34.95 3 1.2 VGA
Blake Stone: Planet Strike 3D Action <none> $24.95 1 1.01 VGA+~
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold 3D Action #1bs30.zip $29.95 6 3.0 VGA~
Duke Nukem II Platform #4duke.zip $34.95 4 1.0 VGA
Alien Carnage Platform #1ac.zip $19.95 4 1.0 VGA^
Wolfenstein 3D 3D Action #1wolf14.zip $49.95 6 1.4 VGA~
Bio Menace Platform #1bio11.zip $29.95 3 1.1 EGA~
Monster Bash Platform #1bash21.zip $34.95 3 2.1 EGA*~
Commander Keen: Galaxy Platform #4keen.zip $34.95 2 1.4 EGA*^
Commander Keen: Vorticons Platform #1keen.zip $29.95 3 1.31 EGA^
Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure Platform #1cosmo.zip $34.95 3 1.2 EGA
Duke Nukem I Platform #1duke.zip $29.95 3 2.0 EGA
Major Stryker Shooter #1majr14.zip $29.95 3 1.4 EGA
Crystal Caves Platform #1crystl.zip $29.95 3 1.0 EGA
Secret Agent Platform #1agent.zip $29.95 3 1.0 EGA
Math Rescue Edu-Game #1math.zip $29.95 3 2.0 EGA
Word Rescue Edu-Game #1rescue.zip $29.95 3 2.0 EGA
Dark Ages Platform #1dark.zip $29.95 3 1.0 EGA
Paganitzu Puzzle #1paga.zip $29.95 3 1.02 EGA*~
Arctic Adventure Platform #1arctic.zip $24.95 4 2.0 CGA
Pharaoh's Tomb Platform #1ptomb.zip $24.95 4 3.0 CGA
Monuments of Mars Platform #1mars.zip $24.95 4 1.0 CGA
The Kroz Series Puzzle #1kroz.zip $24.95 7 1.0 TEXT
Spear of Destiny 3D Action $34.95 1 1.4 VGA+~
Commander Keen: Aliens Ate My BabySitter Platform $34.95 1 1.4 EGA+*
+ - Spear of Destiny and Aliens Ate My Babysitter are commercial pieces of
software by FormGen Corporation. id Software wrote both of them, and
FormGen distributes them. Apogee only resells these titles. There are
demos available from FormGen for these games, but they are not Apogee
titles, and Apogee does not distribute the demos for these games.
Blake Stone: Planet Strike is also distributed by FormGen, but written
by Apogee. There is no demo or shareware version of the game.
* - There is an optional CGA mode in Paganitzu.
There are CGA versions of Keen: Galaxy and Keen: Aliens.
There is a "Monster Bash Lite" version of this game, which contains the
first three levels of the shareware episode. Apogee does not
distribute this version anymore, but it is still legal to pass
around. If it still exists on an FTP site or BBS, its filename
will probably be "1mblite.zip".
There is a smaller registered version of Wacky Wheels, which contains
only the first three sets of tracks, available for $24.95.
} There is a smaller registered version of Boppin called Basic Boppin which
contains only the first two episodes of the game, is available for
$19.95. This version does not contain the level editor, nor the
} ability to play user-created levels. The $29.95 version is
} called Super Boppin, and contains the complete game and level
} editor.
} There are several versions of Rise of the Triad available. The regular
} registered is $29.95, and contains 32 regular levels and 30
} comm-bat zones. The power pack add-on contains 10 extra comm-bat
} zones, a random level generator, and BMP and WAV files from the
} game. Super Triad is for CD only, costs $34.95, and contains
} everything in the regular registered, plus the power pack, plus
} more BMP and WAV files, plus some extra Apogee shareware games.
} The Site License version is also for CD only, costs $89.95,
} includes 10 more comm-bat zones, a signed site license agreement,
} and eleven command cards. The shareware episode is not included
} in the regular registered version; the shareware levels can be
} considered add-on levels in the registered version. For people
} to play a networked game using the registered version, each
} member must have either their own registered versions, or a
} site license version owned between them.
^ - The full titles of the Keen games are "Commander Keen: Goodbye Galaxy!"
and "Commander Keen: Invasion of the Vorticons." Alien Carnage used
to be known as "Halloween Harry."
~ - These games contain some measure of graphic violence, and may be
unsuitable for young game players.
} Of these, Rise of the Triad, Blake Stone, and Wolfenstein 3D have
} official notices about violent content.
} Boppin v1.0 has an option to minimize the violence somewhat. Boppin v1.1
} does not have violent content unless a command line parameter is
} given. (See the cheats section.)
} Rise of the Triad has adjustable violence levels.
[3.2] The games are too big to download! Are there "split" versions?
Most of the larger games have split versions available from Software
Creations, the Internet, etc. Again, the filenames have a leading '#'
mark except on the Internet.
Game Split Filenames
---- ---------------
}Rise of the Triad 1rott-a.zip 1rott-b.zip 1rott-c.zip 1rott-d.zip 1rott-e.zip
}Boppin 1bop11a.zip 1bopp11.zip 1bopp11.zip
Wacky Wheels 1ww-a.zip 1ww-b.zip 1ww-c.zip 1ww-d.zip
Mystic Towers 1mt-a.zip 1mt-b.zip 1mt-c.zip
Hocus Pocus 1hp11-a.zip 1hp11-b.zip 1hp11-c.zip
Raptor 1rap12a.zip 1rap12b.zip 1rap12c.zip 1rap12d.zip 1rap12e.zip
Blake Stone 1bs30-a.zip 1bs30-b.zip 1bs30-c.zip 1bs30-d.zip
Duke Nukem II 4duke-a.zip 4duke-b.zip 4duke-c.zip
Alien Carnage 1ac-a.zip 1ac-b.zip 1ac-c.zip 1ac-d.zip
Wolfenstein 3D 1wolf-a.zip 1wolf-b.zip
Monster Bash 1bash2a.zip 1bash2b.zip 1bash2c.zip
[3.3] What combination deals does Apogee offer?
Combo Name Games in Combo Price Save
---------- -------------- ------ ----
Blast'em Raptor, Major Stryker $49.95 $15
Duke Duke Nukem I, Duke Nukem II $39.95 $25
Duke/Cosmo Duke Nukem I, Duke Nukem II, Cosmo $59.95 $35
Kid Word Rescue, Math Rescue $39.95 $20
Keen Galaxy/Aliens Keen: Galaxy, Aliens $59.95 $10
Keen Vort/Galaxy Keen: Vorticons, Galaxy $49.95 $15
Keen Fun Pack Keen: Vorticons, Galaxy, Aliens $69.95 $30
[3.4] What upgrade patches are currently available?
These are the upgrades that are available on BBS's and networks only; if
you need an upgrade that isn't listed, call Apogee. The "S/R" field says
whether the patch is for the shareware or registered version of the game.
Filename Game S/R From To
-------- ---- --- ---- ---
} bops11pt.zip Super Boppin Reg 1.0 1.1
} bopb11pt.zip Basic Boppin Reg 1.0 1.1
hppat-r.zip Hocus Pocus Reg 1.0 1.1
rpat_12r.zip Raptor Reg 1.1 1.2
rpat_12s.zip Raptor SW 1.1 1.2
rappat-r.zip Raptor Reg 1.0 1.1
rappat-s.zip Raptor SW 1.0 1.1
bs30pat6.zip Blake Stone Reg 2.1 3.0
bs21pat6.zip Blake Stone Reg 2.0 2.1
bspatch6.zip Blake Stone Reg 1.0 2.0
[3.5] What slide shows are currently available?
Filename Gph Game
-------- --- ----
#1xp-pix.zip VGA XenoPhage: Alien Bloodsport
#1rotpx2.zip VGA Rise of the Triad
#1rotpix.zip VGA Rise of the Triad
#1boppix.zip VGA Boppin
#1ww-pix.zip VGA Wacky Wheels
#1mt-pix.zip VGA Mystic Towers (includes Triad and Ruins shots)*
#1hp-pix.zip VGA Hocus Pocus (includes Shadow Warrior shots)*
#1rappix.zip VGA Raptor: Call of the Shadows
#1bspix3.zip VGA Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold
#4dn-pix.zip VGA Duke Nukem II
#1hhpix2.zip VGA Halloween Harry
#1bm-pix.zip EGA Bio Menace
#1mb-pix.zip EGA Monster Bash
* - "Ruins: Return of the Gods" and "Shadow Warrior" are upcoming games from
3D Realms, Apogee's sister company. Rise of the Triad will be released
under the Apogee name.
[3.6] What are Apogee's upcoming releases?
Game Genre Release Date
---- ----- ------------
Stargunner Shooter 1st Quarter 1995
Realms of Chaos Platform 1st Quarter 1995
Monster Bash VGA Platform Spring 1995
XenoPhage: Alien Bloodsport Fighting 2nd/3rd Quarter 1995
Crazy Baby Platform 2nd/3rd Quarter 1995
Fumes Auto Racing 2nd/3rd Quarter 1995
Crystal Carnage ?? 2nd/3rd Quarter 1995
And from 3D Realms:
Blood 3D Action 1st Quarter 1995
Duke Nukem 3D 3D Action 1st Quarter 1995
Ruins: Return of the Gods 3D Action 1st Quarter 1995
Shadow Warrior 3D Action 1st Quarter 1995
Velocity Brawl 3D Shooter 2nd Quarter 1995
[3.7] What Apogee games are no longer supported?
Apogee no longer takes orders, technical calls, or any other form of support
for the following games: The Thor Trilogy, SuperNova, Beyond the Titanic,
Word Whiz, and Trivia Whiz. Apogee retains the copyright on these games, but
not much else.
There are three games that Apogee does not distribute, sell, or register
any more. These three are Jumpman Lives!, Star Trek Trivia, and Star Trek:TNG
Trivia. Apogee retains no copyright on these and requests that the shareware
episodes (if they exist) on any Apogee site be removed from distribution.
[3.8] Which of Apogee's games are good?
What follows is my own personal evaluation of each game. Ratings are given
in several different categories. I try to make the ratings fairly objective,
compensating as best I can for any personal bias. Ratings are given on a
scale of 1-5. 2.5 is a mediocre rating. Anything less is substandard.
A 3 rating would only impress fans of the genre (or games in general). 4 is
excellent. 5 does not mean perfect (in the computer gaming world, perfection
is never achieved, for somebody always comes out with something one step
better), but it does mean you're nuts if you don't love it. :-)
For the "graphics" field, the letter indicates (T)ext, (C)GA, (E)GA, (V)GA,
or (S)VGA. The rating rates how artistically the graphics are used. The
"sound" field rates the sound. The "enemies" field rates how unique and
interesting the enemies are. The "level" field rates the design of the
levels. The "gameplay" field rates how well the game "works." The "overall"
field is not an average, but rather how lastingly enjoyable the game is to
play. "Gameplay" as a strong influence on this rating. Blank fields mean
that I don't (yet) feel qualified enough to give an opinion.
One final note: in Joe Siegler's words, "Ultimately, you, the reader, are
the only person who can make up your own mind about whether a game is good.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and so is the enjoyment factor of
computer games. Only you can decide whether you'll like our games or not."
Name Graphics Sound Enemies Level Gameplay Overall
---- -------- ----- ------- ----- -------- -------
Spear of Destiny V 4 4 4 4.5 5 5
Wolfenstein 3D V 4 4 4 4 5 5
Raptor: Call of the Shadows V 5 5 2.5 3.5 4 5
Duke Nukem I E 2.5 1.5 4.5 5 4.5 4.5
Duke Nukem II V 5 4.5 5 4 4 4.5
Alien Carnage V 4.5 4 3 4 3.5 4
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold V 4 3.5 4 3.5 4 4
Bio Menace E 2.5 2 4.5 4 3.5 3.5
Crystal Caves E 2 1.5 3.5 4.5 4 3.5
Secret Agent E 2 1.5 3 4 3.5 3.5
Commander Keen: Aliens E 3.5 3 3 3.5 3.5 3.5
Commander Keen: Galaxy E 3.5 3 3 3.5 3.5 3.5
Monster Bash E 2.5 3 4.5 3.5 3.5 3.5
Major Stryker E 3 3.5 3 3.5 3.5 3.5
Wacky Wheels V 3.5 3.5 N/A 3 3.5 3
Mystic Towers V 3.5 4 2 3 3 3
Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure E 3 2 3 4 3 3
Commander Keen: Vorticons E 1.5 1.5 2 2.5 3 3
Word Rescue E 1.5 3 3 3 3 3
Math Rescue E 1.5 3 3 3 2.5 3
Paganitzu E 1 2.5 N/A 3 3 3
Hocus Pocus V 5 3.5 2 1.5 2 2.5
Arctic Adventure C 1 1 1.5 3 3 2.5
Dark Ages E 1.5 2 2 2 2.5 2
The Kroz Series T 1 1 1 3 3 2
Monuments of Mars C 1 1 1.5 2.5 2.5 2
Pharaoh's Tomb C 1 1 1.5 2.5 2.5 2
Boppin V 2.5 1 N/A 2.5 1.5 1.5
Blake Stone: Planet Strike V
Rise of the Triad V
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[4] The Almanac
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[4.1] Release dates
What follows are lists of games and slide shows and the dates they
were released. The lists are not complete. Asterisks indicate the
first US release of a game or slide show.
[4.1.1] Games
Game Version Date Released
---- ------- -------------
} Rise of the Triad 1.0 12/21/94 *
} Boppin 1.1 12/09/94
Boppin 1.0 11/15/94 *
Alien Carnage 1.0 11/01/94 *
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold 3.0 11/01/94
Wacky Wheels 1.1 10/17/94 *
Blake Stone: Planet Strike 1.01 10/94
Blake Stone: Planet Strike 1.0 10/94 *
Hocus Pocus 1.1 10/04/94
Raptor: Call of the Shadows 1.2 09/26/94
Mystic Towers 1.1 07/15/94 *
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold 2.1 07/08/94
Hocus Pocus 1.0 06/01/94 *
Raptor: Call of the Shadows 1.1 06/01/94
Raptor: Call of the Shadows 1.0 04/01/94 *
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold 2.0 02/11/94
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold 1.0 12/02/93 *
Duke Nukem II 1.0 12/02/93 *
Halloween Harry 1.2 11/07/93
Halloween Harry 1.1 10/10/93
Bio Menace 1.1 08/24/93
Math Rescue 2.0 08/01/93
Word Rescue 2.0 08/01/93
Monster Bash Lite 2.1 07/27/93
Monster Bash 2.1 05/23/93
Monster Bash 1.1 04/26/93
Monster Bash 1.02 04/12/93
Monster Bash 1.01 04/10/93
Monster Bash 1.0 04/09/93 *
Major Stryker 1.4? 01/93
Wolfenstein 3D 1.4 01/01/93
Math Rescue 1.0 10/92
Wolfenstein 3D 1.0 05/05/92 *
Word Rescue 1.0 Spring 92 *
Cosmic Cosmo 1.2 04/15/92
Cosmic Cosmo 1.0 03/92 *
Secret Agent 1.0 02/92 *
Commander Keen: Goodbye Galaxy! 1.4 02/01/92
Paganitzu 1.02 12/01/91
Duke Nukem 2.0 11/01/91
Crystal Caves 1.0 10/23/91 *
Commander Keen: Goodbye Galaxy! 1.0 06/91 *
Dark Ages 1.0 02/01/91 *
Commander Keen: Vorticons 1.31 01/23/91
Commander Keen: Vorticons 1.0 12/14/90 *
[4.1.2] Slide shows
Game Date Released
---- -------------
Boppin 10/18/94 *
Rise of the Triad #2 10/12/94
Wacky Wheels 08/30/94 *
XenoPhage: Alien Bloodsport 08/15/94 *
Rise of the Triad 07/15/94 *
Mystic Towers 07/01/94 *
Hocus Pocus 05/16/94 *
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold #3 02/11/94
Raptor: Call of the Shadows 01/27/94 *
Duke Nukem II 11/18/93 *
Halloween Harry #2 10/06/93
Monster Bash 06/11/93 *
Bio Menace 05/23/93 *
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold #1 03/25/93 *
[4.2] Cast of characters
[4.2.1] Heroes
Game Name Comments
---- ---- --------
Boppin Yeet
Boppin Boik
Mystic Towers Baron Baldric First appeared in "Baron
Baldric," by Manaccom.
Hocus Pocus Hocus Pocus
Blake Stone Robert Wills Stone III Alias Blake Stone.
Duke Nukem II Duke Nukem
Duke Nukem I Duke Nukem
Alien Carnage Halloween Harry
Spear of Destiny B. J. Blazkowicz
Wolfenstein 3D B. J. Blazkowicz
Bio Menace Snake Logan
Monster Bash Johnny Dash
Commander Keen: Aliens Billy Blaze
Commander Keen: Galaxy Billy Blaze
Commander Keen: Vorticons Billy Blaze
Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure Cosmo
Major Stryker Harrison Stryker Related to Duke Nukem.
Crystal Caves Mylo Steamwitz
Secret Agent Agent 006 1/2 A short Duke Nukem?
Paganitzu Alabama Smith Related to Nevada?
Arctic Adventure Nevada Smith His second adventure.
Pharaoh's Tomb Nevada Smith His first adventure.
[4.2.2] Villains
Game Villains
---- --------
Boppin Hunnybunz
Hocus Pocus Trolodon (Terexin isn't really a villain)
Blake Stone: Planet Strike Dr. Pyrus W. Goldfire
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold Dr. Pyrus W. Goldfire
Duke Nukem II The Rigelatins
Duke Nukem I Dr. Proton
Spear of Destiny Trans Grosse, Barnacle Wilheim, UberMutant,
Death Knight, Angel of Death
Wolfenstein 3D Hans, Dr. Schabbs, Hitler, Otto Giftmacher,
Greta Grosse, General Fettgesicht
Bio Menace Dr. Mangle, Master Cain
Monster Bash Count Chuck
Commander Keen 4-5 The Shikadi
Commander Keen 1-3 The Vorticons
Major Stryker The Kretons
Secret Agent Dr. No Body, DVS terrorist leader
Math Rescue The Gruzzles
Word Rescue The Gruzzles
Dark Ages Garth
[4.2.3] Cameos
Frequently, the star of one Apogee game will make a cameo appearance in
another. Or, sometimes, someone from the real world shows up. A list of
such cameos follows. Appearances of Apogee characters in the default
scoreboards of games are not mentioned here, however, since there would be
too many to list.
WARNING: much of the fun of these games is running across these
things during play. Do not read this section if you want to be
surprised!
Game Description
---- -----------
Bio Menace Commander Keen as one of the hostages in episode 2.
Bio Menace Scott Miller, George Broussard, and Jim Norwood, in
episode 2; also artifacts from other Apogee games
including Keen and Duke. Yorp aliens from Keen
are there, among other things, as is a portrait
of Duke Nukem on the wall.
Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure Duke Nukem, in episode 2, level 7.
Duke Nukem I Commander Keen, mentioned by Dr. Proton in the
first episode.
Secret Agent Commander Keen, mentioned in the instructions.
Paganitzu Yorp from Keen: Vorticons; also Keen's helmet.
[4.3] Behind the scenes
[4.3.1] Programmers
Name Games
---- -----
Darren Baker Mystic Towers
Steve Baker Mystic Towers
} Jason Blochowiak Keen: Galaxy Keen: Aliens XenoPhage^
George Broussard Pharaoh's Tomb Arctic Adventure
} Allen H Blum III Major Stryker Duke Nukem 3D*^
John Carmack Keen: Vorticons Keen: Galaxy Keen: Aliens
Wolfenstein 3D
} Robert Crane Alien Carnage Fumes^
Karen Crowther Word Rescue Math Rescue
} Mark Dochtermann Rise of the Triad
} Jim Dose Rise of the Triad
Andrew Edwardson Wacky Wheels
Scott Host Raptor
Steve Hovelroud Mystic Towers
Stephen P Lepisto Boppin
Peder Jungck Secret Agent
Frank Maddin Crystal Caves Monster Bash Shadow Warrior*^
} Nolan Martin Rise of the Triad
Michael Maynard Blake Stone
Scott Miller Word Whiz Trivia Whiz Beyond the Titanic
SuperNova The Kroz Series
} Jim Norwood Bio Menace Shadow Warrior*^
Todd J Replogle The Thor Trilogy Monuments of Mars Dark Ages
Duke Nukem I Cosmo's Adventure Duke Nukem II
Duke Nukem 3D*^
John Romero Keen: Vorticons Keen: Galaxy Keen: Aliens
Wolfenstein 3D
James T Row Blake Stone
} William Scarboro Rise of the Triad
} Keith Schuler Paganitzu Realms of Chaos^
Dave Sharpless Jumpman Lives!
Mike Voss Hocus Pocus
Lindsay Whipp Mystic Towers
* - A 3D Realms game.
^ - Not yet released.
[4.3.2] Artists
Name Games
---- -----
Randy Abraham Duke Nukem II
Debra Berry Blake Stone
Allen H Blum III Dark Ages Major Stryker Duke Nukem I
George Broussard Pharaoh's Tomb Arctic Adventure Secret Agent
Crystal Caves Duke Nukem I
Adrian Carmack Keen: Vorticons Keen: Galaxy Keen: Aliens
Wolfenstein 3D
Jeff Dee Blake Stone
Manda Dee Monster Bash
Rich Fleider Raptor
Shaun Gadala Wacky Wheels
Dale Homburg Math Rescue
Jimmie Homburg Math Rescue
Stephen A Hornback Major Stryker Cosmo's Adventure Duke Nukem II
} Rise of the Triad Duke Nukem 3D*^
} Chuck Jones Rise of the Triad Duke Nukem 3D*^
} Jerry K Jones Blake Stone
Frank Maddin Crystal Caves
Lucinda Maddin Crystal Caves
} Tim Neveu Raptor Rise of the Triad
Jim Norwood Secret Agent Crystal Caves Duke Nukem I
} Bio Menace Shadow Warrior*^
Les Pardew Major Stryker
Bud Pembroke Word Rescue
Jennifer D Keitz Boppin
Todd J Replogle Monuments of Mars
} Keith Schuler Paganitzu Realms of Chaos^
} Susan Singer Rise of the Triad Realms of Chaos^ Duke Nukem 3D*^
Gary Sirois Major Stryker
} Steven Stamatiadis Alien Carnage Fumes^
* - A 3D Realms game.
^ - Not yet released.
[4.3.3] Musicians
Name Games
---- -----
} Steven Baker Alien Carnage Fumes^
} Lee Jackson Rise of the Triad
Mark Klem Wacky Wheels
Andrew J Lepisto Boppin
Matt Murphy Raptor
Bobby Prince Major Stryker Cosmo's Adventure Bio Menace
Wolfenstein 3D Duke Nukem II Blake Stone
} Rise of the Triad
Keith Schuler Dark Ages
} George Stamatiadis Alien Carnage Fumes^
Rob Wallace Monster Bash
* - A 3D Realms game.
^ - Not yet released.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[5] Obtaining the Games
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[5.1] The Shareware Episodes
[5.1.1] Software Creations BBS
Apogee's home BBS is the Software Creations BBS. There are over a hundred
lines. Apogee's games are released here first before anywhere else in
the world. The numbers are:
(508) 365-2359 2400 baud
(508) 368-7036 @ 9600-14.4k v.32bis
(508) 365-4035 @ 28.8k v.fc / v.34
[5.1.2] Anonymous FTP
The official FTP site for Apogee is ftp.uml.edu. uml has several mirror sites
which can be used in the event that uml is down or too crowded. Mirrors are
generally updated on a daily basis. A list of sites follows:
Site Name Directory Notes
--------- --------- -----
} ftp.uml.edu /msdos/games/apogee the official site
} ftp.ulowell.edu /msdos/games/apogee uml mirror
ftp.uwp.edu /pub/games/uml uml mirror
wuarchive.wustl.edu /systems/msdos/msdos-games uml mirror
ftp.uni-paderborn.de /pcsoft/msdos/games uml mirror
ftp.sun.ac.za /pub/msdos/uml uml mirror
nctuccca.edu.tw /Ulowell/msdos uml mirror
src.doc.ic.ac.uk /computing/systems/ibmpc/ uml mirror
msdos-games/Games
} swcbbs.com /pub/apogee Software Creations
ftp.cdrom.com /.3/games/Games/Apogee misc Apogee games
ftp.cdrom.com /.3/games/historic/msdos/* older games
ftp.cc.umanitoba.ca /wolf3d Keen/Wolf3D stuff
ftp.uwp.edu /pub/games/id Keen/Wolf3D stuff
} ftp.uml.edu /msdos/games/editors crippled Duke I editor
wuarchive.wustl.edu /pub/MSDOS_UPLOADS/games/Apogee user-supported
[5.1.3] CompuServe
Type "GO APOGEE" at a ! prompt. Remember that on CompuServe, the filenames
do not match those in the filenames list given previously; on CompuServe,
Apogee games have neither the leading episode number nor a version number
embedded in the filename.
[5.1.4] America On-Line
Use the keyword "APOGEE" to go to Apogee's forum.
[5.1.5] Fidonet
If you are a Fidonet SysOp, you can get Apogee's games on the Fido Filebone.
Talk to your local filebone hub about the four Apogee areas. See FILEBONE.NA
for more information. Send netmail to 1:124/9006 for more information on
these areas.
[5.2] The Registered Episodes
The registered versions of the software are the complete versions, and, as
they are not shareware, cannot legally exist on public BBS's or FTP sites.
The registered versions of the software must be purchased directly from
Apogee or from one of Apogee's dealers.
In many of Apogee's newer games, a DEALERS.EXE executable is archived with
the game. This is an executable readme containing a list of the foreign
dealers that sell Apogee's software.
[5.2.1] Ordering information
To order directly from Apogee, call 1-800-APOGEE1. The line is open 24 hours
a day. They'll need to know what disk size you desire, the best graphics
mode you are able to run (CGA, EGA, VGA, SVGA), and whether you have an XT,
286, 386, 486, or Pentium. Note that some games have minimum CPU and
graphics requirements. Also note that Apogee's VGA games come only on high
density disks.
Use the ORDER.FRM file, which comes with virtually all of Apogee's games, if
you want to send in an order by mail. Send it to:
Apogee Software, Ltd.
P.O. Box 496389,
Garland TX 75049-6389
Or, you can fax a copy of your order to (214) 278-4670. Please include a
return fax number if you make use of this facility.
[5.2.2] Software Creations BBS
}Very soon now, you will be able to download the full registered versions
of any Apogee game by using a credit card for payment. (Apogee will mail
you the game manual and catalog, which you will receive a few days later.)
See the previous Software Creations section for information on calling
Software Creations.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[6] Troubleshooting
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[6.1] Things to try first
If you have a program with an Apogee game not starting correctly, there are a
few things you can try. First, make sure your system meets the hardware
requirements of the game. If they don't, you probably can't run the game
without upgrading your hardware.
Second, make sure you have the most recent version of the game. Many older
versions of games have bugs that are fixed in the most recent versions.
Third, if there is a XXX-HELP.EXE file that came with the game, read it.
(Most registered Apogee games have such a file on the first game disk;
with shareware versions, you might find it there and possibly in the directory
the game was installed to as well.) This file will contain numerous common
technical problems with their solutions. There are plans underway to make
a file available on-line which will contain all the current versions of
the technical support files in them.
If the game is failing to start due to insufficient memory, you can try
removing TSRs, or booting "clean." With MS-DOS 6.0 or greater, you can do
this by holding down either the shift key or F5 while the system is booting.
This causes your autoexec.bat and config.sys files to be bypassed. If you
are running a memory manager, try removing the manager altogether; this
seems to fix most problems Apogee games have with EMS/XMS memory. Additional
suggestions on how to free up memory may be in the XXX-HELP.EXE file.
Also, you may want to check the cheats section of this FAQ, as, for some
games, it lists several technical support parameters you can pass to the
game. Sometimes this fixes problems with certain pieces of hardware.
If you problem is your Soundblaster card (or a Soundblaster emulating card),
then the problem may be the settings on the card or the BLASTER environment
variable. Check the section on that subject below.
With regard to drive compression, Apogee has tested their entire product
line with Stacker 3.1, Stacker 4.0, and MS-DOS 6.22's DriveSpace. The
products all worked fine, except for Monster Bash which suffered a slowdown
using DriveSpace.
If you've tried everything and still can't get an Apogee game to work
correctly, contact Apogee's technical support services. These are listed
under "Contacting Apogee."
[6.2] Setting the BLASTER environment variable
}This section may be useful if you are having problems with sound or music in
}an Apogee game.
}
}Apogee games that use Sound Blasters look at the BLASTER environment variable
}to figure out where to send its sound output. Check to make sure that you
}have the SET BLASTER line in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. This code is an example,
}and probably isn't exactly what you need to put in your system.
}
}NOTE: Some of these parameters (P, H, & E) are dependant on certain types of
} cards. For example, the E is only needed if you have an AWE32. The
} minimum requirements are to have the A, I, D, & T parameters. The other
} three may or may not be needed depending on what type of card you have.
} Please read this entire section to see if you need any of them. If you
} are using a clone card, or some card that's not a "true" Sound Blaster,
} then you will most likely only need A, I, D, & T.
}
}SET BLASTER=A220 I5 D1 T3 P330 H6 E620
} | | | | | | | | |
} | | | | | | | | |_______ AWE32 Only Parameter
} | | | | | | | |__________ "High" DMA Channel
} | | | | | | |_______________ MIDI Port
} | | | | | |__________________ Type of Card
} | | | | |_____________________ DMA Channel
} | | | |________________________ Interrupt
} | | |_____________________________ Port Address
} | |___________________________________ Environment Variable
} |________________________________________ DOS Command
}
}NOTE: There can be no spaces between the word BLASTER and the equal sign (=).
}If you have a space in there, your system will read the parameter incorrectly,
}and it will not be recognized by our games.
}
}Now, these may not (most likely not) be the same for your board, because the
}Port Address, Interrupt and DMA Channel can be set by adjusting "jumpers" on
}your sound board. Some newer cards have this information controlled by
}software, please consult your card's manual for more information on how to set
}these things. You should also check your manual if you are unclear as to how
}to tell what settings your card is set at. The information *IS* important, so
}it's recommended that you know precisely what the settings are. If you are
}using a card that "emulates" the Sound Blaster (such as the Gravis UltraSound
}through software, or the PAS16), you should check your card's manual on how to
}set the card for Sound Blaster emulation.
}
}For PORT ADDRESS, it's almost always 220. That seems to be the default for
}most sound cards out there, and unless you know you've switched it away from
}220, it's a safe bet it's still there.
}
}The INTERRUPT is something that varies from system to system. Mystic Towers
}and games prior to Raptor require that your IRQ be set at 7 or less. Apogee
}does not recommend using IRQ2, as it causes problems.
}
}The DMA CHANNEL sometimes causes problems if it isn't set to 1, which is the
}usual default. If it is not set to one, some Apogee games may lock up.
}
}The TYPE OF CARD should be 1 if you have an older Sound Blaster, or a Sound
}Blaster emulating card. Use 3 if you have a newer plain Sound Blaster. Use
}2 for an older Sound Blaster Pro. Use 4 for a newer Sound Blaster Pro.
}
}The MIDI PORT parameter will only be needed if you are using a card that has
}MIDI capabilites. If so, this is where you define what MIDI port you are
}using. 330 seems to be the default, so if you have a MIDI card, and you
}haven't changed anything from factory defaults, this is probably where it still
}is.
}
}The HIGH DMA CHANNEL is something that is used primarily on Sound Blaster 16
}cards. This is not the same as the standard DMA channel, this is a different
}one. This is only used if you're using a 16 bit sound card capable of playing
}16 bit Sound Blaster sounds. By default, this is usually 5, so unless you know
}that it's something else, it's probably still 5.
}
}The E620 parameter is something that is needed _only_ if you have a Creative
}Labs AWE32 sound card. If you have one of these, this parameter will have been
}set up properly assuming you've installed the software that came with the card.
}Check your AWE32 documentation for a more thorough explanation of what this
}parameter is used for.
}
}If you add or make changes to the SET BLASTER command in your AUTOEXEC.BAT,
}remember to reboot your computer, and delete the configuration file for the
}game (*.CFG) before running again.
[6.3] By game
This section contains some common problems, and their solutions, for specific
Apogee games. In addition to perusing this section, you might want to look
at the cheats section; technical support parameters are listed there also,
which may help to fix your problem. Again, please make sure you are running
the most recent version of the game, since older versions may contain bugs
that are fixed in newer versions.
[Raptor: Call of the Shadows]
Problem: I can't save or load games.
Solution: Increase the value "files" is set to in your config.sys. Note that
if you booted clean, this would have been bypassed.
Problem: My mouse will only go in a corner of the screen.
Solution: This is usually due to an old version of your mouse driver. Check
with the mouse manufacturer to see if a more recent version is
available.
[Duke Nukem II]
Problem: Certain levels lock on me.
Solution: There's no good solution for this yet. It's a sprite problem,
and Apogee isn't really sure how to fix it. You could try
rebooting and trying the level again. If the problem persists,
then playing on a lower difficulty level might help.
[Monster Bash]
Problem: In episode 3, I can take the broom and, in one place, fly off the
top of the screen. Then the game crashes.
Solution: Don't go up there; there's nothing of value there.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[7] Cheats
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[7.1] Overview
Apogee has almost always made a point of putting cheats in their games, both
documented and undocumented. In their later games, however, these cheats are
only available in the registered versions of the games. From 1987 to
around May 1993, Apogee games came with a hint sheet, which often contained
cheats in them. From May 1993 to December 1993, Apogee games were shipped
with a XXXXHINT.EXE file, which had the same text as the old hint sheets.
Beginning in 1994, the XXXXHINT.EXE files are done away with too; the
information is now contained in the actual game manuals.
The cheats listed in the complete cheat list are subdivided by category.
The customer cheats are the cheats listed in the hint sheet, hint file, or
game manual that comes with the game. Some of the games also have a debugging
mode, which is not generally documented. Their original purpose is to aid in
the beta testing of the game. Lots of times, however, the debugging mode is
left intact, available for the regular game-player to use. Finally, there are
technical support parameters, which are not really cheats, but are used to
correct some technical problems.
[7.2] What's that about cows and monkeys in Raptor?
Raptor was written by Cygnus, and it seems to be a birthday present to
themselves. Whenever Raptor is started when your system's clock matches the
birthday of one of the people at Cygnus (a list can be found in the complete
cheat list section), then Raptor behaves a little strangely. First, the
Apogee logo is displayed, but not with Apogee's trademark music. Instead,
you hear the Cygnus folks, sounding a little tipsy, humming the Apogee theme
music themselves. In addition, some of the Raptor levels contain enemies
that don't normally appear such as monkeys who throw coconuts at you, raptor
dinosaurs scurrying across he screen, and cows with machine guns concealed
beneath their hides. Most of these peculiar enemies appear on the first
mission of the game, and they are invariably difficult to kill.
Finally, when you exit the game, you get to hear the member of Cygnus whose
birthday it is give an impersonation of a monkey. This might consist of
hooting or screeching sounds, or simply an eloquent rendering of the word
"monkey."
Now the reason this section is in with the cheats is because there is a way,
beyond setting the system time to a particular birthday, of getting the
monkeys and raptors and cows to fight you. When the screen comes up where you
must choose a sector to fly, flip the switch at the bottom center of the
screen by clicking on it with the mouse. It should darken. This activates
the three lights to the right of this switch. In version 1.0 of Raptor, you
should turn on the first and third lights; in v1.1 and v1.2 of Raptor, you
should turn all three lights on. Then you can select a sector or "auto
pilot" and fly the level. You'll know the cheat worked if you hear a static-
like sound. All levels have some new enemy that appears by using this cheat,
though sometimes they are small and inconspicuous. Besides monkeys, cows,
and raptors, there are: the ship from 2001: A Space Odyssey, the ship from
Space 1999, pedestrians, a woman sunbathing on a roof, and other miscellaneous
things.
[7.3] Complete Cheat List
This section contains a variety of cheats from various Apogee games.
Actually, in the words of Joe Siegler, it's "the first comprehensive cheat
[list] ever published for all Apogee titles."
Note that while the customer cheat keys are officially supported by Apogee,
the debug keys are not. If you use the debug keys, Apogee cannot provide
any support, since this alters game performance to a state where their
standard support comments and issues might not apply. In short, neither
Apogee or I can be held responsible for damage caused by usage of the debug
keys. (Though, as a word of reassurance, I have never heard of such a thing
happening, save where expressly noted below.)
[Boppin]
+ Customer Cheat - The following cheats are available:
From the main menu, these are available in both the shareware and
registered versions of the game:
[ctrl] [V] - gives a slide show of all episodes (while the
show is playing, you can hit the left and right
arrow keys to go to the previous and next levels,
or esc to quit)
[ctrl] [T] - sound testing dialogue
During gameplay, the following are available in both the shareware and
registered versions of the game:
[ctrl] [B] - display the mystery spot
[ctrl] [L] - moves you to the next level, at the expense of
a life; will not work during the final battle
[shift] [ctrl] [L] - moves you back a level; this will not work on
either the first level of an episode, or the
final battle
During gameplay, the following are available provided the password
"TOYSS" is given to activate them. These work only in the registered
version:
[ctrl] [F] - go to the final battle for the episode
[alt] [H] - delivers one maximum hit during the final battle
[ctrl] [F5] - add one credit to player one (nine maximum)
[ctrl] [F8] - add one credit to player two (nine maximum)
[1] or [!] - set lives for player one to zero *
[2] or [@] - set lives for player two to zero *
* These two cheats may not work if the shift key is used for a button.
} Finally, in v1.1 of Boppin, the command line parameter "blood" may
} be used to access the violence mode from v1.0.
[Wacky Wheels]
+ Customer Cheat - The following command line parameters can be used in
both the shareware and registered versions of the game:
/2 Fast gameplay.
/3 Really fast gameplay.
/debug Create a ERR.LOG file as you play.
turbo Activate the turbo key [brake]+[fire].
jump Activate the jump key [brake]+[accelerate].
Additionally, you can specify ONE of the following three weapon parameters:
hog Get 99 hedgehogs.
ice Get 99 ice cubes.
fire Get 99 fireballs.
[Mystic Towers]
+ Customer Cheat - Cheats are activated by typing "BALDRIC" during a level.
Once actived, your score is reset to zero, and you can
press the following key combos to achieve what is listed:
[lshift] R xx - where xx is a number of a room to jump to (01-45)
[lshift] H - to get maximum health, also food and drink
[lshift] K - to get all keys except the end tower key
[lshift] W - to get full weapons
[lshift] C - to get ten coins
Only the health cheat works in the shareware version; the
rest require the registered version.
[Hocus Pocus]
+ Customer Cheat - Type these:
FEELGOOD - full health
BLAKE - both keys
BANANA - laser shots (registered version only)
QUARK - rapid fire (registered version only)
[Raptor: Call of the Shadows]
+ Customer Cheat - The backspace key will restore all your energy and give
you a death ray, at the cost of all your money. This
will only work in the registered version.
+ Debug mode - Set the environment variable "S_HOST" to the value "CASTLE"
at the DOS prompt by typing "SET S_HOST=CASTLE" (it must be
in caps). Then, when you play Raptor, you become completely
invincible, and have all the weapons at your disposal.
+ Warp - There is a level warp built into the game, so you can see any level
you want at any time. What you need to do is to get to the screen
where you see the level selection (Bravo Sector, etc...). The warp
combination is a 2 key entry. The keys are not to be pressed at the
same time. Note that you cannot use the level warp unless debug
mode (see above) is active.
Key 1 - Z, X, or Y (Z is Episode 1, X is Episode 2, and Y is Episode 3)
Key 2 - Any key between Q and O on the keyboard. Q is Level 1, and O is
Level 9.
This works in both the shareware and registered versions. Note that if you
try and warp to a registered episode from the shareware version, it will
crash the game.
+ Other notes - With a hex editor, change bytes 27h and 28h of a Raptor saved
game file (char????.fil) to the value FF. When you load this
saved game, you'll have a few million dollars to spend on
equipment. If you don't have a hex editor, there are some
programs available that do this for you. RapCheat is one;
RapCash is another. Both should be available at ftp.uwp.edu
under the directory /pub/msdos/games/romulus/cheats. Some
people have reported problems using RapCash; I don't know if
these problems have been fixed since or not.
+ Birthday Mode - As mentioned above, the "Birthday Mode" will automatically
put you into "Battle Cow" mode, and it will also play the
goofy Apogee theme song. To get it, change the system's
date to the birthday of one of the Cygnus programmers, given
below. Any year should be ok, as long as it's not in the
past:
March 12 Bobby Prince
May 16 Scott Host
August 28 Rich Fleider
October 2 Jim Molinets
Note that in v1.0 of Raptor, Bobby Prince's birthday wasn't
recognized, but that the birthday of Tim Neveu *was*.
You can also get "Battle Cow" mode by darkening the switch
on the "choose sector" screen, and turning on all three
lights on the right (for v1.0, don't turn on the middle
light). You don't get the goofy Apogee theme song if you do
it this way, however.
[Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold and Planet Strike]
+ Customer Cheat - [J] [A] [M] [Enter] - These keys are to be pressed one at a
time. When all are pressed, the message "Now you're
Jammin'" appears, and you will be given all keys, and you
will get 100% health. Your score will also be taken to 0.
This will only work on the registered version of the game.
+ Debug Mode - Command Line Parameters
POWERBALL - Enables debug keys. This also requires that you hold down the
left and right shift keys during the JAM Logo intro. Don't
hold them down until the white letters start to appear.
Once the PC-13 screen is loaded, you can let go. You will hear
a "ching" sound during the intro when debug mode has been
successfully enabled. The "ching" sound will only happen if
you have a sound card. If you have a PC speaker, you won't hear
this.
TICS - Display TIC INFO in score area.
MUSIC - Enable music test mode: [backspace] [arrows] changes music.
RADAR - Displays a rotating overhead view during gameplay. Please note
that this REALLY slows the game down, to the point of being
unplayable.
These cheat keys can be use during gameplay only if you invoked
the program with the "powerball" parameter:
[backspace] W - Warp to level ([shift] [W] loads the default map)
[backspace] D - Player invisible (dumb objects)
[backspace] G - God mode
[backspace] I - Item cheat
[backspace] M - Memory info
[backspace] P - Pause screen
[backspace] Q - Fast quit
[backspace] A - Add Actors to AutoMapper.
[backspace] U - Unlock all floors
[backspace] O - Show hidden walls on auto mapper
[backspace] E - Quick Win Mission
[backspace] B - Border color
[backspace] C - Count objects
[backspace] F - Facing spot
[backspace] H - Hurt self (only if not in God mode)
[backspace] S - Slow motion
[backspace] V - Extra VBLs (Vertical Blanking Signal -- this will do
nothing for most users)
[backspace] [home] - Dec sky color (if ceiling textures are OFF)
[backspace] [pgup] - Inc sky color (if ceiling textures are OFF)
[backspace] [end] - Dec ground color (if ground textures are OFF)
[backspace] [pgdn] - Inc ground color (if ground textures are OFF)
[backspace] + - Add shading depth (if textures are OFF)
[backspace] - - Dec shading depth (if textures are OFF)
[backspace] ] - Inc shading drop off (if textures are OFF)
[backspace] [ - Dec shading drop off (if textures are OFF)
[shift] [tab] - Show full automap containing all live actors.
These cheat keys can be used during gameplay:
[6] [7] - Collect all bonus items (gold, ammo, health, etc).
[7] [8] - Kill all actors.
[6] [8] - Collect all bonus items and kill all actors.
+ Tech Support Command Line Parameters - These aren't really debug codes, or
cheats, either. They're in here for Apogee's Tech Support to use in
assisting customers who might be having problems running the game.
VERSION - Display version information.
SYSTEM - Display system information.
HIDDENCARD - Disable checking for video card.
NOJOYS - Disable checking for joysticks.
NOMOUSE - Disable checking for mouse.
NOMAIN - Disable checking for main memory.
NOEMS - Disable checking for EMS memory.
NOXMS - Disable checking for XMS memory.
NOAL - Disable checking for Adlib.
NOSB - Disable checking for Sound Blaster.
NOPRO - Disable checking for Sound Blaster Pro.
NOSS - Disable checking for Sound Source.
SST - Disable checking for Tandy Sound Source.
SS1 - Disable checking for Sound Source on LPT1.
SS2 - Disable checking for Sound Source on LPT2.
SS3 - Disable checking for Sound Source on LPT3.
NO386 - Disable checking for 386.
ENABLEGP - Enables NoteBook GamePort checking. (This will do bad things if
you try it on an Acer.)
[Duke Nukem II]
+ Customer Cheat - For the registered version only, the following two codes
can be used during gameplay. Please note that all three
letters have to be pressed at the same time.
[E] [A] [T] - health is restored to maximum, but score is reset to zero
[N] [U] [K] - get a random weapon, plus all inventory required to finish
the current level
[Alien Carnage]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing [B] [I] [G] all at the same time will give you
full health and jetpack power.
+ Tech Parameter - Pressing these four keys at the same time will show you the
coordinates you are at on the level. This serves no real
function on its own, but it is used by Apogee's Game Hint
Line sometimes to locate a player in a level. The keys are
[ctrl] [alt] [rshift] [F12]
[Wolfenstein 3D / Spear of Destiny]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing [I] [L] [M] all at the same time, will give you
both keys, and will give you 100% health. It will also
take your score to zero. This cheat will work in both the
shareware and the registered version.
+ Debug mode -
The debug mode is activated with a different command line parameter
depending on what version of the game you have.
v1.0 -> -next
Once in the game, press [ctrl] [tab] [enter] to activate.
v1.1+ -> -goobers
Once in the game, press [lshift] [alt] [backspace] to activate.
Spear -> -debugmode
Once in the game, press [lshift] [alt] [backspace] to activate.
Once activated, these are the keys you can use.
[tab] [Q] - Quit
[tab] [W] - Warp to level xx
[tab] [E] - Exit to next level
[tab] [T] - Debug info in memory
[tab] [I] - Free items
[tab] [O] - Map of level (only works in beta versions of Wolf3D)
[tab] [S] - Slow motion
[tab] [F] - Position info
[tab] [G] - God mode (no damage)
[tab] [H] - Hurt yourself
[tab] [X] - Extra stuff (???)
[tab] [C] - Statistics
} [tab] [V] - Add extra VBLs (Vertical Blanking Signal -- this will do nothing
} for most users except maybe increase or decrease
} the game speed.)
[tab] [B] - Change border color
[tab] [M] - Memory map
[tab] [N] - No clipping (walk through walls)
(This works only in Wolf3D v1.0 shareware. This mode can cause
really bad things to happen to the game, including corrupting
itself, which is why it was taken out.)
+ Tech Support Command Line Parameters are the same as in Blake Stone, except
VERSION, SYSTEM, and ENABLEGP do nothing in Wolf3D.
+ Note 1: If you press [B] [A] [T] all at once, you'll get a message wondering
why you're trying to cheat, since this is the old Keen Galaxy cheat
code.
+ Note 2: For Spear only, if you do nothing in the game for 30 seconds, BJ
will either cross his eyes or stick his tongue out at you. It
happens quickly, so you have to watch carefully.
[Bio Menace]
+ Customer Cheat - [C] [A] [T] - During gameplay, you can press these three
letters at the same time, and you will receive the machine
gun, 99 ammo, & 99 grenades. This works only in the
registered version.
+ Tech Support Command Line Parameters -
COMP - Turn on SVGA compatibility
NOAL - Disable Adlib sound card detection
NOJOYS - Disable joystick detection
NOMOUSE - Disable mouse detection
HIDDENCARD - Disable video card detection
+ Other Notes - The following secret weapons are available in both the
shareware and registered versions:
Super Plasma Bolt - Hold the up arrow until you hear a charge sound,
then hit fire; this causes one hit point of damage.
Fireball Attack - Turn left and right 6 or 7 times in succession,
then hit fire.
Electron Shield - Turn left and right 6 or 7 times in succession,
then hit the jump key.
Invincibility Burst - Hold the up arrow until you hear a charge sound,
then hit the down arrow.
[Monster Bash]
+ Customer Cheat - In the registered version only, you can press the [Z] and
[F10] keys down simultaneously to receive five lives. Hold
down [Z] first; since the [F10] key, by itself, has meaning
in the game, the cheat won't work if you push both down at
the same time and the [F10] is the first to register.
[Commander Keen: Goodbye Galaxy! and Aliens Ate My Baby Sitter]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing the [B] [A] [T] keys all at once will give you 99
shots, an extra life, and all the gems. This does not work
on early versions of Aliens Ate My Babysitter.
+ Debug Mode - Pressing [A] [2] [enter] all at once will activate debug mode.
Once activated, these keys will perform the following
functions:
[F10] [G] God mode
[F10] [I] Free items
[F10] [J] Jump cheat (Note that you will not be able to jump
down while the jump cheat is activated)
[F10] [N] No clipping (Be careful. If you fall off the bottom
of the level, you'll die, even if you
are in God Mode.)
[F10] [Y] View hidden areas in the level.
[F10] [B] Set border color (1-15)
[F10] [C] Show number of active/inactive objects in the level
[F10] [D] Record a demo
[F10] [E] End the current level
[F10] [M] Display memory usage
[F10] [S] Slow motion
[F10] [T] Sprite test
[F10] [V] Add 0-8 VBLs (Vertical Blanking Signal -- this
will do nothing for most users)
[F10] [W] Warp to any level
[F10] [Y] Reveal hidden areas
[Commander Keen: Invasion of the Vorticons]
+ Customer Cheat - Either of these cheats will work with either the shareware
or registered versions of the game. The key combinations
need to be pressed at the same time.
[ctrl] [tab] [space] - Gives pogostick, all keycards, and full ammo.
[shift] [tab] - Pass through an unplayed level on world map.
+ Debug mode - [G] [O] [D] - pressing all three of these at the same time
will put you in god mode, and will give you a "jump cheat,"
which means when you press "jump," you fly.
[Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing [C] [0] [F10] down simultaneously will give you
a full health and bombs. This cheat only works once
per game.
+ Debug mode - Pressing [tab] [del] [F12] at once activates debug mode. The
debug keys are:
[F10] [G] - God mode
[F10] [W] - Warp
[Duke Nukem I]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing [backspace] [pgdn] at the same time will give you
all keys and full gun power. This can be used in either
the shareware or registered version of the game.
+ Debug mode - To activate, you must enter "asp" on the command line, and it
must be in lower case. Once activated, you can press these
key combinations inside the game. All must be pressed
simultaneously.
[G] [O] [D] - Full health & all items
[G] [O] [W] - Level Warp. This isn't a real warp; it will
just take you to the next level. You need to
keep on using it to progress through the levels.
[Major Stryker]
+ Customer Cheat - The cheats here are a bit more complicated than in other
games. There is a two step procedure to active the cheat
mode. (This cheat mode only works in the registered
version. It does nothing in the shareware version.)
Step 1 - Type [C] [H] [E] [A] [T] at the Main Title Screen.
All keys need to be pressed one at a time. When
you get it, you'll see the message that says
"Cheat Active" (it really isn't yet).
Step 2 - During the game, hold down the [backspace] key,
and then press the [H] & [S] keys at the same
time. When you are successful, you'll see a
message that says "Cheat Mode On" (it is now).
You can hit these three keys again to turn the
cheat mode off.
Once activated, you can press these keys to activate various
options. Please note that you must hold down the [tab] key
first before pressing the others, or it won't work.
[tab] [O] - Fire Options
[tab] [R] - Rapid Fire
[tab] [S] - Shield Options
[Crystal Caves]
+ Customer Cheat - All keys need to be pressed at the same time:
[X] [T] [R] [A] - Gives you max ammo.
[N] [E] [X] [T] - Lets you warp to any level.
+ Debug mode - Pressing [Z] [E] [U] [S] at the same time will put you into
God mode and will let you activate the other debug mode key,
which is [G]. Pressing that will reverse the gravity in the
game.
[Secret Agent]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing these key combinations at the same time will
activate the functions listed. This will work with either
the shareware or registered versions of the game.
[U] [V] [K] - Gives you 25 ammo.
[Z] [G] [I] - Gives you the disk and dynamite.
+ Debug Mode - Pressing these key combinations at the same time will activate
the functions listed. This will work with either the shareware
or registered versions of the game.
[P] [J] [X] - God Mode
[B] [O] [N] [D] - Warp
[Math Rescue]
+ Customer Cheat - These cheats will work in either the shareware or the
registered versions of the game. Key combinations have to
be pressed at the same time.
[E] [L] [M] - Gives you lids and slime.
[P] [A] [M] - Level warp. When you hit this combination,
the game will freeze. Press a number here,
and you will be taken to that level. You
will not be able to see the number when you
are typing it.
+ Tech Parameter - Pressing the [+] or [-] keys will speed up or slow down the
game appropriately.
[Word Rescue]
+ Customer Cheat - These will work with either the shareware or registered
versions of the game.
[L] [Z] - Warp. When you type this, the screen will
freeze. Enter the level number you want to go
to. You will not be able to see the number
when you are typing it.
[P] [S] - Gives you slime.
[Escape] - Will skip the finish of the key sequence.
[Dark Ages]
+ Customer Cheat - Press [F10] to activate the cheat mode in either the
shareware or registered versions of the game. This
activates the following cheats:
[backspace] - Reduce extra health requirement to 5 coins.
[+] - Rapid fire.
[Paganitzu]
+ Customer Cheat - To active the cheat mode, you need to be at the game menu
screen. When you are there, press these three keys at the
same time [ctrl] [A] [L], and you will be taken to another
screen where you can enter a number. The numbers you can
enter and their functions are listed below, and they will
work with either the shareware or registered versions of
the game.
325 - Gives you 99 lives.
589 - Goes to the end-game sequence.
822 - Double point value.
7xx - Level warp where xx is the level to warp to.
642 - Turn god mode on.
643 - Turn god mode off.
[Arctic Adventure]
+ Customer Cheat - [M] [F] [X] - Pressing all three of these keys at the same
time will give you all the keys, the boat, infinite ammo,
and infinite pick axes. This will work with either the
shareware or registered version of the game.
[Pharaoh's Tomb]
+ Customer Cheat - When the scroll lock is on, the grey plus key will advance
you through the levels. This will work on both the
shareware and registered versions of the game.
[Monuments of Mars]
+ Customer Cheat - To activate the cheat mode, you need to press [capslock],
and then press the combination of [shift] [.]. Once
you've done that, you can press [pgdn] to advance a level.
This will work in either the shareware or registered
versions of the game.
[The Kroz Series]
+ Customer Cheat - To activate the cheat mode, you need to press either [!]
or [X]. This depends on which version you're playing, so
you will need to try both to see which works on what you
have. Once activated, you can use these cheats:
[shift] [9], then [rightarrow] - go to the next level
[shift] [0] - free items
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[8] Contacting Apogee
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[8.1] By phone
Apogee's technical support line is (214) 278-5655. It is open from 8am-6pm
Central Time on Mondays through Friday. It is also closed for major national
holidays and on the weekends.
You can contact George Broussard at (214) 278-7828.
[8.2] By fax
Apogee's fax number is (214) 278-4670. Include a return fax number.
[8.3] By snail mail
Send mail to:
Apogee Software, Ltd.
POB 496389
Garland, TX 75049-6389
United States of America
[8.4] Through networks
You can contact an Apogee representative from the computer networks
listed below by using one of the given addresses.
Internet / joe.siegler@swcbbs.com (preferred)
apogee@metronet.com
apogee@aol.com
CompuServe / 74200,553
AOL / APOGEE
GEnie / APOGEE
Prodigy / CXVP94A
Fidonet / 1:124/9006
Rime / ->APOGEE
->1674
You can contact George Broussard on CompuServe at 73121,2743.
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[9] Credits
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In no particular order, thanks to:
- To Scott Symes <symes@lfs.loral.com> for forwarding information about
the relationship between Apogee and id.
- To QUAKE <decerman@ouray.denver.colorado.edu> for writing said
information.
- To Mike Vasconcellos <mikev@netcom.com> for Apogee game lists.
- To Audry A. DeLisle <rad@crl.com> for information regarding MS-DOS 6.22's
DriveSpace program, Apogee's recommended system configuration for it,
Apogee games lists, and combination deal offers.
- To Bill Amon <wamon@mbunix.mitre.org> for Keen cheats and the Keen FAQ.
- To Rylan Hilman <hilman@ichips.intel.com> for more Keen cheats and the
Rise of the Triad FAQ.
- To Stanley Stasiak <stasiak@tartarus.uwa.edu.au> for the Wolf3D FAQ.
- To Diane Winters <diane@netcom.com> for several cheats.
- To Robert Wade <rewade@aol.com> for the Raptor birthday mode dates.
- To Warren Buss <wbuss@primenet.com> for Wolf3D and Blake Stone
information.
- To Donna Wong <donna@omc.lan.mcgill.ca> for noticing important details.
- To Joe Siegler <joe.siegler@swcbbs.com> for a whole lotta stuff.
Apologies if I missed anyone.
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[10] Dopefish and Friends
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
"YYAAAAAAAAAAAA...HA...HA...HA...HOOOOEEYY!!" -- Goofy
"Yabba dabba doo!!" -- Fred Flintstone
"Habba, habba, ha-hhhhhaaaaa...." -- Jackie Gleason
"Ahweehrwyyhwhryrhwwehrwehrwrhwherr...." -- Dick Van Dyke, "Mary Poppins"
"Yerhudurdhrrdrhudrtdhtudhrtduhtddhrtur...." -- Sebastian, "Little Mermaid"
"Belch." -- Dopefish, "Siegler's Sig"
--------------------------------
| _|\_ |
| \ / \ Pisces Swimeatus |
| |>< |> OO The Dopefish |
| / \___/UU |
--------------------------------
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T h e ___ " O f f i c i a l "
/ _ \ _ __ ___ __ _ ___ ___
| |_| | '_ \ / _ \ / _` |/ _ \/ _ \
| _ | |_) | (_) | (_| | __/ __/
|_| |_| .__/ \___/ \__, |\___|\___| F A Q
|_| |___/ Version 2.3
Current as of December 21, 1994
(changes and additions since v2.2 are denoted by leading '}' marks)
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Contents:
[1] Introduction
[1.1] A word from me
[1.2] About this FAQ
[1.2.1] Obtaining the latest version of the FAQ
} [1.2.2] Revision history
} [1.3] Obtaining other Apogee-related FAQs
[1.4] What is Apogee?
[1.5] What does "Apogee" mean?
[1.6] How Apogee markets its games
[1.7] Getting the latest information
} [1.7.1] Electronic news
[1.7.2] Apogee's internet mailing list
} [1.7.3] Finger files
[1.8] Apogee's staff
[2] Historical Information
[2.1] What is Apogee's relationship with 3D Realms?
[2.2] What is Apogee's relationship with id?
[2.3] What awards has Apogee won?
[2.4] History of specific games
[2.4.1] Commander Keen
[2.4.2] Wolfenstein 3D and Spear of Destiny
[2.4.3] Halloween Harry and Alien Carnage
[3] Games Lists
} [3.1] What games are currently available from Apogee?
} [3.2] The games are too big to download! Are there "split" versions?
[3.3] What combination deals does Apogee offer?
} [3.4] What upgrade patches are currently available?
[3.5] What slide shows are currently available from Apogee?
[3.6] What are upcoming releases from Apogee?
[3.7] What Apogee games are no longer supported?
[3.8] Which of Apogee's games are good?
[4] The Almanac
[4.1] Release dates
} [4.1.1] Games
[4.1.2] Slide shows
[4.2] Cast of characters
[4.2.1] Heroes
[4.2.2] Villains
[4.2.3] Cameos
[4.3] Behind the scenes
} [4.3.1] Programmers
} [4.3.2] Artists
} [4.3.3] Musicians
[5] Obtaining the Games
[5.1] The Shareware Episodes
[5.1.1] Software Creations BBS
} [5.1.2] Anonymous FTP
[5.1.3] CompuServe
[5.1.4] America On-Line
[5.1.5] Fidonet
[5.2] The Registered Episodes
[5.2.1] Ordering information
} [5.2.2] Software Creations BBS
[6] Troubleshooting
[6.1] Things to try first
} [6.2] Setting the BLASTER environment variable
[6.3] By game
[7] Cheats
[7.1] Overview
[7.2] What's that about cows and monkeys in Raptor?
} [7.3] Complete Cheat List
[8] Contacting Apogee
[8.1] By phone
[8.2] By fax
[8.3] By snail mail
[8.4] Through networks
[9] Credits
[10] Dopefish and Friends
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Legal Quagmire: This FAQ is copyright (c) 1994 by Samuel Stoddard. No part
of this FAQ may be distributed unless it remains intact, with all credits,
attributions, and other miscellaneous praises to myself preserved. You may
keep as many copies of this FAQ as you like, on whatever and however many
different mediums that you like, and you can even read more than one copy
at one time. There's a whole lot of trademarks in here that are acknowledged
implicitly even if they aren't acknowledged explicitly in the following
statement: I hereby explicitly acknowledge the following trademarks: Apogee,
id, 3D Realms, FormGen, Softdisk, GT, Cygnus, Argo Games, Microsoft, Stacker,
all game titles, operating system titles, and other software titles, and all
the other trademarks in here. All the trademarks that are not explicitly
explicitly acknowledged are implicitly acknowledged as explicitly acknowledged
trademarks. All trademarks (including, but not limited to, those that are
explicitly acknowledged, those that are implicitly acknowledged as explicitly
acknowledged, and those that are explicitly implicitly acknowledged) are also
implicitly acknowledged here to boot. Also, he header for this FAQ was done
with the aid of "Figlet." Finally, I take no responsibility whatsoever for
anything that happens as a result of this FAQ's existence. Except for the
good things.
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[1] Introduction
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[1.1] A word from me
Who am I? I'm just another Apogee fan, the primary difference between you and
me being that I'm the one flaunting my vast sea of Apogee knowledge. I don't
guarantee that all or even any of the facts in this FAQ are true, but I try to
make this as informative and truthful a document as I humanly can without
playing hookey from work or school. (I do have priorities, after all.) If
you have some tidbits of information, or, heck, a whole flood of information
tidbits, let me know and I'll put it in the FAQ along with your name in the
credits. The best way to reach me is through the internet. Try these
addresses in this order: rink@unh.edu, ss1@christa.unh.edu,
stoddard@ctron.com.
[1.2] About this FAQ
This FAQ is copyrighted (see above) by Samuel Stoddard. While it is
authorized and "officialized" by Apogee, it is not the property nor the
work of Apogee. However, Apogee has contributed generously to its
creation and growth; for that, I offer my sincere thanks.
[1.2.1] Obtaining the latest version of the FAQ
There are a few ways to get the latest copy:
- Via anonymous FTP: a latest version of the Apogee FAQ can be found
in the following places:
} - ftp.uml.edu /msdos/games/apogee/faq/apogee.faq
- wcl-l.bham.ac.uk /pub/djh/faq/Apogee.faq
- ftp.wustl.edu /pub/MSDOS_UPLOADS/game_faq/apogeeXX.faq
- ftp.wustl.edu /pub/MSDOS_UPLOADS/games/Apogee/apogeeXX.faq
"XX" is the version number. Note that since I upload to ftp.wustl.edu
directly, this site will receive new versions more quickly than the
other two sites.
- Through Usenet: I will try to post it in alt.games.apogee once every two
weeks, and in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.misc and comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action
once a month. New versions will be posted to all three newsgroups
immediately.
- Email: write me at ss1@kepler.unh.edu or stoddard@ctron.com.
[1.2.2] Revision history
The revision history of this FAQ is as follows:
} Version 2.3 - Revision of the "blaster environment variable" section.
} Updated "behind the scenes." Other updates.
Version 2.2 - Behind the scenes sections added. Other minor updates.
Version 2.1 - Minor updates.
Version 2.0 - The almanac added. Game release dates added. Tech
support addresses added. Other major changes,
additions, and revisions.
Version 1.1 - Minor updates and additions to several sections.
Version 1.0 - Cheats section completed. Many major additions.
Version 0.4 - Formatting and typo fixes. Minor additions. Not
publicly released.
Version 0.3 - First public release. The first batch of Joe Siegler's
additional information incorporated.
Version 0.2 - Minor changes made before Joe Siegler's response.
Version 0.1 - Sent to Joe Siegler for suggestions and corrections.
[1.3] Obtaining other Apogee-related FAQs
Several FAQs about individual Apogee games are available. A list,
with instructions for obtaining the latest versions, follows:
Game Maintainer How To Get It
---- ---------- -------------
Rise of the Triad Rylan Hilman FTP to ftp.uml.edu, and download
} /msdos/games/apogee/faq/rott.faq, or
send mail to rhilman@oasis.rain.com.
Wolfenstein 3D Stanley Stasiak FTP to wcl-l.bham.ac.uk and download
/pub/djh/faqs/Wolfenstein-3D.faq.
Commander Keen Bill Amon FTP to wcl-l.bham.ac.uk and download
/pub/djh/faqs/commander.keen.faq, or
send mail to wamon@mbunix.mitre.org.
Note that you could probably get copies of any or all of these by simply
posting a request to alt.games.apogee or comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action.
However, to keep requests posts to a minimum, please do not do this, unless
you are unable to obtain it via the other means listed here.
[1.4] What is Apogee?
Apogee is a games distributor for PC games of many sorts. It is a diverse
gaming company, contributing to several different genres of games. While
much of what Apogee publishes are games written primarily by other companies,
such as Cygnus or Argo Games, Apogee writes their own games as well. Apogee's
staff includes an array of talented programmers, artists, and musicians. For
many years now, Apogee has been among the leading shareware games companies
for the PC and compatible market.
[1.5] What does "Apogee" mean?
According to the American Heritage dictionary, "apogee" means: "the point
in the orbit of the moon or of an artificial satellite most distant from
the earth." Or, more generally, "the farthest or highest point; apex."
Related words are the Greek "apogaion," the neuter form of "apogaios"
which means "away from the earth." There is also the New Latin word
"apogaeum," which is derived from the Greek word. There is a French word
"Apogee" (with an accent over the first 'e'). In English, there is the
related word "apogean" and the antonym "perigee."
All this is academic, however, for according to the Apogee slogan, "Apogee
means action." :-)
[1.6] How Apogee markets its games
In 1987, Apogee came up with a unique method of marketing their games. Since
then, other shareware companies have adopted their strategy. Their scheme is
this: each game they produce is divided into three to four, sometimes even
six, episodes. The first episode is free. It can be downloaded from
CompuServe, BBS's, or the Internet, or bought in a store that distributes
shareware games for disk copying charges. You can distribute the shareware
episode to your friends yourself, if you like, provided you leave all the
original files intact.
If you like the shareware episode of a game, Apogee requires that you register
it. This is the normal rule regarding shareware. Upon registration, you will
receive the complete game. Apogee uses this marketing scheme so that people
can have a good idea about the game they are buying before they put their cash
on the line.
[1.7] Getting the latest information
There are a few ways to get the latest information about Apogee, even if you
want it more quickly than keeping up with the latest revisions of this FAQ
would do. These methods are mentioned briefly in the following sections:
[1.7.1] Electronic news
On Usenet, the newsgroups alt.games.apogee, comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.misc.action,
and comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.misc, and alt.games.apogee all carry discussion
}about Apogee's latest. Apogee monitors these, plus the gaming, shareware, and
}Apogee support conferences on Fidonet, Rime, Intelec, ILink, U'NI-Net, and
}Smartnet.
[1.7.2] Apogee's internet mailing list
Apogee has an Internet mailing list. Whenever new games or slide shows are
released (or other important information), Apogee sends the information out in
a mailing. If you would like to be on this mailing list, contact Joe Siegler
(joe.siegler@swcbbs.com or apogee@metronet.com). It is free of charge.
[1.7.3] Finger files
}On the internet, you can finger apogee@fohnix.metronet.com, and receive all
the latest information about Apogee. Usually this entails both recent and
}upcoming releases, among other things. If apogee@fohnix.metronet.com does
}not work, try apogee@metronet.com.
[1.8] Apogee's staff
Scott Miller - President, Co-owner
George Broussard - Executive VP, Co-owner
Steven Blackburn - VP Operations
Tom Hall - Creative Director
Greg Malone - Creative Director
Dennis Scarff - Vice President, World Operations
Joe Siegler - On-Line Support Manager & Technical Support
Kevin Green - Customer Support Supervisor & Technical Support
Dan Linton - SysOp/Owner of Software Creations BBS
Lee Jackson - Technical Support
Steve Quarrella - Technical Support
Joe Selinske - Technical Support
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[2] Historical Information
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[2.1] What is Apogee's relationship with 3D Realms?
Apogee and 3D Realms are sister companies, both divisions of Action
Entertainment, Inc. Originally, Action Entertainment's next-generation
of 3D games were going to be published under the Apogee name. However,
in late August of 1994, 3D Realms was born, and the four next-generation
3D games that Action had under production are now under 3D Realms.
[2.2] What is Apogee's relationship with id?
Apogee Software and id Software are completely different companies. I believe
most of the id guys are former employees of Softdisk, who decided to do their
own thing. They wrote the legendary Commander Keen series and Wolfenstein
3-D, which were *distributed* by Apogee. So if you play these games, you will
see both Apogee's and id's labels.
Then, id wrote Doom. They decided to publish this (and all future id
releases) themselves, instead of going through Apogee, FormGen, or others.
According to Joe Siegler, there was no "divorce" between id and Apogee. They
just parted ways peacefully, and employees of both get together regularly.
Some people still falsely believe that Doom is an Apogee game. It's not!
It's by id and only id. Apogee has nothing to do with it. Nowhere in DOOM
will you find any reference to Apogee.
Also, Apogee is significantly bigger than id. They work on twenty-some games
at a time, including those it distributes for other companies. id consists of
a relatively small crew of programmers, and, for the most part, work on a
single game at a time.
Keen: Aliens and Spear of Destiny were written by id and distributed through
FormGen. Apogee resells these games and will provide tech support for them if
you bought them through Apogee. As for Doom, Apogee does not even resell this,
and thus, will not provide tech support for it.
As a final note of confusion, Apogee and id are both situated in Texas, just
down the road from each other.
[2.3] What awards has Apogee won?
Apogee has won over a hundred national and international awards -- far too
many to list here -- but here are some of the highlights:
Commander Keen - Best Entertainment Software - 1992
Commander Keen - Best Overall - 1992
Math Rescue - Best Education Software - 1993
Wolfenstein 3D - Best Entertainment Software - 1993
Wolfenstein 3D - Best New Home, Hobby, Entertainment - 1993
Wolfenstein 3D - Best Overall, People's Choice - 1993
[2.4] History of specific games
[2.4.1] Commander Keen
Joe Siegler's explanation of the history of the Keen series:
Here's a short history of the Commander Keen games. First, I'll list
all the games and their titles. All of them were written by id
Software.
1) Marooned on Mars ---\
2) The Earth Explodes | ---> Invasion of the Vorticons
3) Keen Must Die ---/
3.5) Keen Dreams
4) Secret of the Oracle --\__ Goodbye Galaxy
5) The Armageddon Machine --/
6) Aliens Ate My Babysitter
Episodes 1-3 are collectively called "Invasion of the Vorticons,"
and are published by Apogee Software. This series of Commander Keen
was released on December 14th, 1990, according to Tom Hall, Apogee's
Creative Director, and at the time, Creative Director of id Software.
Episodes 4 & 5 are collectively called "Goodbye Galaxy," and are also
published by Apogee Software. This series of Commander Keen was
released somewhere around June of 1991. There was also a special CGA
edition of Keens 4-5 made. The game is functionally exactly the same
as the standard EGA version of the game, but the graphics are in CGA.
Episode 6 is a "stand alone" game, and is entitled "Aliens Ate my
Babysitter." This episode of Keen is distributed by FormGen. It is
commercial software, and is available at your local software store
(such as CompUSA). This is also sold by Apogee, but Apogee only
resells this product, we don't actually distribute it. FormGen also
decided to put off-disk copy protection on the full version of this
game. Furthermore, FormGen also has a playable 3 level commercial
demo available for perusal before purchase. Apogee Software sells a
version of Keen 6 in CGA. I do not know if FormGen sells the CGA
version of Keen 6 in the stores; it may only be available from Apogee
Software. Check with FormGen for more details.
Keen Dreams has kind of an interesting story. This is referred to as
the "Lost Episode" of Commander Keen. I like to think of it as "Keen
Episode 3.5." The reason for that is that Keen Dreams falls in between
Vorticons and Galaxy, both in terms of technology and story line.
Before the id guys actually formed id, the majority of them worked at
Softdisk, a computer software publisher in Shreveport, LA. The
founding members of id Software left Softdisk to do the Vorticons
series of Keen for Apogee Software. However, they were contractually
obligated to deliver another game to Softdisk, and since development
had started on the Galaxy series, they threw together a Keen game for
Softdisk, and Keen Dreams was born. This game is not sold by Apogee
Software, nor does Apogee have anything at all to do with it. You'd
need to contact Softdisk for any further information regarding Keen
Dreams.
Episodes 1, 3.5, 4, and the 3 level demo for Episode 6 are
the only ones that you are legally allowed to upload and download
anywhere. Episodes 2, 3, 5, and the full version of Episode 6 are
commercial software, and should not appear on any BBS, online service,
or should otherwise be sold except for authorized sellers of the
games.
Here are the BBS filenames as currently available from Apogee for the
various Keen games from Apogee.
Keen 1 -> #1KEEN.ZIP
Keen 4 -> #4KEEN.ZIP
Keen 4 -> #4KEENC.ZIP (Special CGA Version)
I've seen the 3 level Aliens Demo available with the filename
#6K-DEMO.ZIP. I've seen Keen Dreams available with the filename
KDREAMS.ZIP. However, neither of these are Apogee products, and I
cannot vouch for the files' names.
If you played Keen 5, there was a screen that said something to the
effect of "Join us in December 1992 for the greatest Keen adventure
yet." There was a picture of Keen smiling, with a Santa Claus hat on.
At the time, id Software was intending to do a third series of
Commander Keen, tentatively entitled "Commander Keen: The Universe is
Toast." However, other projects came up (Wolfenstein 3D, Spear of
Destiny, and later, Doom). At this time, there is no development
going on in the Commander Keen department. There will eventually be
more Commander Keen games by Apogee Software. However, even if the
work were to commence on the game TODAY, it would still take about 12
months to see the light of day. The earliest development could start
on this game would be early in 1995, so I would not look for any new
Commander Keen games before the Spring of 1996.
[2.4.2] Wolfenstein 3D and Spear of Destiny
Joe Siegler's explanation of the history of the Wolfenstein series:
On May 5, 1992, Apogee Software released the shareware episode of
Wolfenstein 3D, and has been distributing it in the shareware market
since then. Apogee is the official distributor of Wolfenstein 3D's
original six episodes in the shareware market.
Somewhere around September of 1992, FormGen Corp released Spear of
Destiny. This is a retail sequel to Wolfenstein 3D. This game
consisted of one episode with 20 levels. It has some new wall
art, a couple of new objects, and new boss creatures. This game
is essentially the same as Wolf3D generally, but is completely
new in the level design aspect. It is available in stores like
CompUSA. Apogee also resells this product, but is not responsible
for the distribution of it. Apogee has to buy it from FormGen
like any other store would. There is a six level playable demo
floating around for Spear of Destiny. It's the same first two levels
that appear in the full version of the game. This is not shareware.
Commercial demos are for the most part non-interactive. This one *is*
interactive, and since it bears a close resemblance to Wolfenstein 3D,
which is shareware, the SOD demo is frequently mistaken for being
shareware, which it is not.
There have been numerous editors and extra levels appear for both
Wolfenstein 3D and Spear of Destiny. In regards to Wolf3D, Apogee
respectfully requests that you not make or distribute any editor/extra
level/add on that will modify the shareware episode. If you choose to
do this, please make these items for the registered version only; and
be aware that Apogee cannot support user-created items.
Somewhere in mid/late 1993, id Software decided that they were going
to publish these same six original episodes in the retail market.
These are the same six episodes that Apogee had been selling since May
of 1992. Since Apogee was at that time not set up for retail
distribution, id Software went with another company, and that company
is GT Software. This package is available in CompUSA and contains
the same six episodes that Apogee is the distributor of. Apogee has
absolutely nothing at all to do with this product. The GT Software
version of Wolfenstein 3D is totally a GT deal. Apogee has no control
over the packaging, the quality control, or the price.
In May of 1994, FormGen Corporation released an update to Spear of
Destiny. It was two new episodes, and are available in the stores.
The collective name of the product is "Spear of Destiny Mission Add-On
Packs". The new epsiodes each have their own individual titles,
these being "Mission 2: Return to Danger", and "Mission 3: Ultimate
Challenge." These are add-ons to Spear of Destiny and have some new
level graphics, some differently colored actors, but is essentially
more levels for Spear of Destiny. These extra versions do require
that you have the first Spear of Destiny game (the original six Apogee
Wolf3D episodes are not required). Apogee Software has absolutely
nothing to do with this product. We do not sell it, and we do not
support it. This is a FormGen deal completely. I might also add that
id Software didn't have anything to do with these either. This was
completely a FormGen program.
id Software has also either written or released versions of
Wolfenstein 3D for other platforms over time. All of these versions
are ones that Apogee has nothing to do with. id Software holds the
copyright to Wolfenstein 3D and can license it to others for other
platforms or can do whatever they want with it. These versions are
listed for completeness' sake only.
The Super Nintendo version was released around Jan/Feb of 1994.
This was published through a company called "Imagineer." Due to
Nintendo restrictions, some of the cooler elements had to be removed.
These were, 1) all Nazi references, 2) the dogs (replaced with rats),
and 3) blood (replaced with sweat). This is still a cool game,
considering what it's programmed for. There was a version released
for the Atari Jaguar around August of 1994, and this version is
probably the graphically best of any version published. When you
go up right against walls and the like, they do not become blocky or
chunky. They're actually quite good. They're still blocky somewhat,
but they are very good when viewed close up as compared to previous
versions of Wolfenstein 3D. This version was published by Atari. id
also licensed Wolf3D so that it could be published on the Macintosh
computer. This version is out as of October 1994 and is being
distributed by Interplay (I think). WolfMac is a shareware title,
and there is a shareware version of it out. When you register, you
get something like 30 levels. Again, Apogee has nothing to do with
these versions of Wolfenstein 3D; you would need to contact the
various companies or id Software directly for more information on them.
The premiere issue of Game Developer's Magazine stated that Apogee
Software was working on a game called "Wolfenstein 3D: Part II," which
was to be a totally new game, with completely new actors, and totally
new everything; the only thing the same being the title Wolfenstein 3D.
This information is incorrect; there is no such title under production
at either Apogee or id Software.
[2.4.3] Halloween Harry and Alien Carnage
Halloween Harry was written by Sub-Zero software, located in Australia.
Apogee is the game's distributor. In October of 1993, Apogee released
v1.1 of Halloween Harry in the United States. As with both Mystic Towers
and Wacky Wheels, the first American version was 1.1, not 1.0. The reason
for this is that an incomplete version of the game was released overseas
and referred to as v1.0. Please note, however, that these are not complete,
finished versions of the games.
A month later, v1.2 of the game was released. A year after that, Apogee
suggested a title change to "Alien Carnage." Sub-Zero agreed. Thus, in
early November of 1994, "Halloween Harry" was dropped from Apogee's
distribution, and "Alien Carnage" added. Alien Carnage v1.0 is essentially
Halloween Harry v1.2 with a name change, price change, and episode
reorganization. The shareware version of Alien Carnage (its first episode)
is Halloween Harry's episode three. With the exception of this
reorganization, Alien Carnage consists of the same episodes as Halloween
Harry. The shareware version of Halloween Harry is still legal to
distribute; however, Apogee prefers you distribute the shareware version of
Alien Carnage only, as this version has the new pricing information
screens.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[3] Games Lists
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Please note that this information is constantly changing, especially when new
games are added to the list of Apogee products. Please note that some of the
information given here could become out of date rather quickly.
[3.1] What games are currently available from Apogee?
A list of Apogee games follows. The filename given is the file -- on
CompuServe, BBS's, and the Internet -- which contains the first episode of
each game. Note that on the Internet, the filenames do not contain the
leading '#' mark. On CompuServe, there are no numbers or punctuation in
the filenames at all.
The price given is the cost of the *complete* game with all episodes. The "Ep"
field contains the number of episodes in the complete version. The "Ver"
field contains the latest version number of the game. "Gph" is the best
graphics mode that the game utilizes.
Name Genre Filename Price Ep Ver Gph
---- ----- ------------ ------ -- --- ---
}Rise of the Triad 3D Action #1rott.zip $29.95 5 1.0 VGA*~
}Boppin Puzzle #1bop11.zip $29.95 4 1.1 VGA*~
Wacky Wheels Auto Racing #1wacky.zip $34.95 6 1.1 VGA*
Mystic Towers 3D Puzzle #1mystic.zip $24.95 6 1.1 VGA
Hocus Pocus Platform #1hp11.zip $24.95 4 1.1 VGA
Raptor: Call of the Shadows Shooter #1rap12.zip $34.95 3 1.2 VGA
Blake Stone: Planet Strike 3D Action <none> $24.95 1 1.01 VGA+~
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold 3D Action #1bs30.zip $29.95 6 3.0 VGA~
Duke Nukem II Platform #4duke.zip $34.95 4 1.0 VGA
Alien Carnage Platform #1ac.zip $19.95 4 1.0 VGA^
Wolfenstein 3D 3D Action #1wolf14.zip $49.95 6 1.4 VGA~
Bio Menace Platform #1bio11.zip $29.95 3 1.1 EGA~
Monster Bash Platform #1bash21.zip $34.95 3 2.1 EGA*~
Commander Keen: Galaxy Platform #4keen.zip $34.95 2 1.4 EGA*^
Commander Keen: Vorticons Platform #1keen.zip $29.95 3 1.31 EGA^
Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure Platform #1cosmo.zip $34.95 3 1.2 EGA
Duke Nukem I Platform #1duke.zip $29.95 3 2.0 EGA
Major Stryker Shooter #1majr14.zip $29.95 3 1.4 EGA
Crystal Caves Platform #1crystl.zip $29.95 3 1.0 EGA
Secret Agent Platform #1agent.zip $29.95 3 1.0 EGA
Math Rescue Edu-Game #1math.zip $29.95 3 2.0 EGA
Word Rescue Edu-Game #1rescue.zip $29.95 3 2.0 EGA
Dark Ages Platform #1dark.zip $29.95 3 1.0 EGA
Paganitzu Puzzle #1paga.zip $29.95 3 1.02 EGA*~
Arctic Adventure Platform #1arctic.zip $24.95 4 2.0 CGA
Pharaoh's Tomb Platform #1ptomb.zip $24.95 4 3.0 CGA
Monuments of Mars Platform #1mars.zip $24.95 4 1.0 CGA
The Kroz Series Puzzle #1kroz.zip $24.95 7 1.0 TEXT
Spear of Destiny 3D Action $34.95 1 1.4 VGA+~
Commander Keen: Aliens Ate My BabySitter Platform $34.95 1 1.4 EGA+*
+ - Spear of Destiny and Aliens Ate My Babysitter are commercial pieces of
software by FormGen Corporation. id Software wrote both of them, and
FormGen distributes them. Apogee only resells these titles. There are
demos available from FormGen for these games, but they are not Apogee
titles, and Apogee does not distribute the demos for these games.
Blake Stone: Planet Strike is also distributed by FormGen, but written
by Apogee. There is no demo or shareware version of the game.
* - There is an optional CGA mode in Paganitzu.
There are CGA versions of Keen: Galaxy and Keen: Aliens.
There is a "Monster Bash Lite" version of this game, which contains the
first three levels of the shareware episode. Apogee does not
distribute this version anymore, but it is still legal to pass
around. If it still exists on an FTP site or BBS, its filename
will probably be "1mblite.zip".
There is a smaller registered version of Wacky Wheels, which contains
only the first three sets of tracks, available for $24.95.
} There is a smaller registered version of Boppin called Basic Boppin which
contains only the first two episodes of the game, is available for
$19.95. This version does not contain the level editor, nor the
} ability to play user-created levels. The $29.95 version is
} called Super Boppin, and contains the complete game and level
} editor.
} There are several versions of Rise of the Triad available. The regular
} registered is $29.95, and contains 32 regular levels and 30
} comm-bat zones. The power pack add-on contains 10 extra comm-bat
} zones, a random level generator, and BMP and WAV files from the
} game. Super Triad is for CD only, costs $34.95, and contains
} everything in the regular registered, plus the power pack, plus
} more BMP and WAV files, plus some extra Apogee shareware games.
} The Site License version is also for CD only, costs $89.95,
} includes 10 more comm-bat zones, a signed site license agreement,
} and eleven command cards. The shareware episode is not included
} in the regular registered version; the shareware levels can be
} considered add-on levels in the registered version. For people
} to play a networked game using the registered version, each
} member must have either their own registered versions, or a
} site license version owned between them.
^ - The full titles of the Keen games are "Commander Keen: Goodbye Galaxy!"
and "Commander Keen: Invasion of the Vorticons." Alien Carnage used
to be known as "Halloween Harry."
~ - These games contain some measure of graphic violence, and may be
unsuitable for young game players.
} Of these, Rise of the Triad, Blake Stone, and Wolfenstein 3D have
} official notices about violent content.
} Boppin v1.0 has an option to minimize the violence somewhat. Boppin v1.1
} does not have violent content unless a command line parameter is
} given. (See the cheats section.)
} Rise of the Triad has adjustable violence levels.
[3.2] The games are too big to download! Are there "split" versions?
Most of the larger games have split versions available from Software
Creations, the Internet, etc. Again, the filenames have a leading '#'
mark except on the Internet.
Game Split Filenames
---- ---------------
}Rise of the Triad 1rott-a.zip 1rott-b.zip 1rott-c.zip 1rott-d.zip 1rott-e.zip
}Boppin 1bop11a.zip 1bopp11.zip 1bopp11.zip
Wacky Wheels 1ww-a.zip 1ww-b.zip 1ww-c.zip 1ww-d.zip
Mystic Towers 1mt-a.zip 1mt-b.zip 1mt-c.zip
Hocus Pocus 1hp11-a.zip 1hp11-b.zip 1hp11-c.zip
Raptor 1rap12a.zip 1rap12b.zip 1rap12c.zip 1rap12d.zip 1rap12e.zip
Blake Stone 1bs30-a.zip 1bs30-b.zip 1bs30-c.zip 1bs30-d.zip
Duke Nukem II 4duke-a.zip 4duke-b.zip 4duke-c.zip
Alien Carnage 1ac-a.zip 1ac-b.zip 1ac-c.zip 1ac-d.zip
Wolfenstein 3D 1wolf-a.zip 1wolf-b.zip
Monster Bash 1bash2a.zip 1bash2b.zip 1bash2c.zip
[3.3] What combination deals does Apogee offer?
Combo Name Games in Combo Price Save
---------- -------------- ------ ----
Blast'em Raptor, Major Stryker $49.95 $15
Duke Duke Nukem I, Duke Nukem II $39.95 $25
Duke/Cosmo Duke Nukem I, Duke Nukem II, Cosmo $59.95 $35
Kid Word Rescue, Math Rescue $39.95 $20
Keen Galaxy/Aliens Keen: Galaxy, Aliens $59.95 $10
Keen Vort/Galaxy Keen: Vorticons, Galaxy $49.95 $15
Keen Fun Pack Keen: Vorticons, Galaxy, Aliens $69.95 $30
[3.4] What upgrade patches are currently available?
These are the upgrades that are available on BBS's and networks only; if
you need an upgrade that isn't listed, call Apogee. The "S/R" field says
whether the patch is for the shareware or registered version of the game.
Filename Game S/R From To
-------- ---- --- ---- ---
} bops11pt.zip Super Boppin Reg 1.0 1.1
} bopb11pt.zip Basic Boppin Reg 1.0 1.1
hppat-r.zip Hocus Pocus Reg 1.0 1.1
rpat_12r.zip Raptor Reg 1.1 1.2
rpat_12s.zip Raptor SW 1.1 1.2
rappat-r.zip Raptor Reg 1.0 1.1
rappat-s.zip Raptor SW 1.0 1.1
bs30pat6.zip Blake Stone Reg 2.1 3.0
bs21pat6.zip Blake Stone Reg 2.0 2.1
bspatch6.zip Blake Stone Reg 1.0 2.0
[3.5] What slide shows are currently available?
Filename Gph Game
-------- --- ----
#1xp-pix.zip VGA XenoPhage: Alien Bloodsport
#1rotpx2.zip VGA Rise of the Triad
#1rotpix.zip VGA Rise of the Triad
#1boppix.zip VGA Boppin
#1ww-pix.zip VGA Wacky Wheels
#1mt-pix.zip VGA Mystic Towers (includes Triad and Ruins shots)*
#1hp-pix.zip VGA Hocus Pocus (includes Shadow Warrior shots)*
#1rappix.zip VGA Raptor: Call of the Shadows
#1bspix3.zip VGA Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold
#4dn-pix.zip VGA Duke Nukem II
#1hhpix2.zip VGA Halloween Harry
#1bm-pix.zip EGA Bio Menace
#1mb-pix.zip EGA Monster Bash
* - "Ruins: Return of the Gods" and "Shadow Warrior" are upcoming games from
3D Realms, Apogee's sister company. Rise of the Triad will be released
under the Apogee name.
[3.6] What are Apogee's upcoming releases?
Game Genre Release Date
---- ----- ------------
Stargunner Shooter 1st Quarter 1995
Realms of Chaos Platform 1st Quarter 1995
Monster Bash VGA Platform Spring 1995
XenoPhage: Alien Bloodsport Fighting 2nd/3rd Quarter 1995
Crazy Baby Platform 2nd/3rd Quarter 1995
Fumes Auto Racing 2nd/3rd Quarter 1995
Crystal Carnage ?? 2nd/3rd Quarter 1995
And from 3D Realms:
Blood 3D Action 1st Quarter 1995
Duke Nukem 3D 3D Action 1st Quarter 1995
Ruins: Return of the Gods 3D Action 1st Quarter 1995
Shadow Warrior 3D Action 1st Quarter 1995
Velocity Brawl 3D Shooter 2nd Quarter 1995
[3.7] What Apogee games are no longer supported?
Apogee no longer takes orders, technical calls, or any other form of support
for the following games: The Thor Trilogy, SuperNova, Beyond the Titanic,
Word Whiz, and Trivia Whiz. Apogee retains the copyright on these games, but
not much else.
There are three games that Apogee does not distribute, sell, or register
any more. These three are Jumpman Lives!, Star Trek Trivia, and Star Trek:TNG
Trivia. Apogee retains no copyright on these and requests that the shareware
episodes (if they exist) on any Apogee site be removed from distribution.
[3.8] Which of Apogee's games are good?
What follows is my own personal evaluation of each game. Ratings are given
in several different categories. I try to make the ratings fairly objective,
compensating as best I can for any personal bias. Ratings are given on a
scale of 1-5. 2.5 is a mediocre rating. Anything less is substandard.
A 3 rating would only impress fans of the genre (or games in general). 4 is
excellent. 5 does not mean perfect (in the computer gaming world, perfection
is never achieved, for somebody always comes out with something one step
better), but it does mean you're nuts if you don't love it. :-)
For the "graphics" field, the letter indicates (T)ext, (C)GA, (E)GA, (V)GA,
or (S)VGA. The rating rates how artistically the graphics are used. The
"sound" field rates the sound. The "enemies" field rates how unique and
interesting the enemies are. The "level" field rates the design of the
levels. The "gameplay" field rates how well the game "works." The "overall"
field is not an average, but rather how lastingly enjoyable the game is to
play. "Gameplay" as a strong influence on this rating. Blank fields mean
that I don't (yet) feel qualified enough to give an opinion.
One final note: in Joe Siegler's words, "Ultimately, you, the reader, are
the only person who can make up your own mind about whether a game is good.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and so is the enjoyment factor of
computer games. Only you can decide whether you'll like our games or not."
Name Graphics Sound Enemies Level Gameplay Overall
---- -------- ----- ------- ----- -------- -------
Spear of Destiny V 4 4 4 4.5 5 5
Wolfenstein 3D V 4 4 4 4 5 5
Raptor: Call of the Shadows V 5 5 2.5 3.5 4 5
Duke Nukem I E 2.5 1.5 4.5 5 4.5 4.5
Duke Nukem II V 5 4.5 5 4 4 4.5
Alien Carnage V 4.5 4 3 4 3.5 4
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold V 4 3.5 4 3.5 4 4
Bio Menace E 2.5 2 4.5 4 3.5 3.5
Crystal Caves E 2 1.5 3.5 4.5 4 3.5
Secret Agent E 2 1.5 3 4 3.5 3.5
Commander Keen: Aliens E 3.5 3 3 3.5 3.5 3.5
Commander Keen: Galaxy E 3.5 3 3 3.5 3.5 3.5
Monster Bash E 2.5 3 4.5 3.5 3.5 3.5
Major Stryker E 3 3.5 3 3.5 3.5 3.5
Wacky Wheels V 3.5 3.5 N/A 3 3.5 3
Mystic Towers V 3.5 4 2 3 3 3
Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure E 3 2 3 4 3 3
Commander Keen: Vorticons E 1.5 1.5 2 2.5 3 3
Word Rescue E 1.5 3 3 3 3 3
Math Rescue E 1.5 3 3 3 2.5 3
Paganitzu E 1 2.5 N/A 3 3 3
Hocus Pocus V 5 3.5 2 1.5 2 2.5
Arctic Adventure C 1 1 1.5 3 3 2.5
Dark Ages E 1.5 2 2 2 2.5 2
The Kroz Series T 1 1 1 3 3 2
Monuments of Mars C 1 1 1.5 2.5 2.5 2
Pharaoh's Tomb C 1 1 1.5 2.5 2.5 2
Boppin V 2.5 1 N/A 2.5 1.5 1.5
Blake Stone: Planet Strike V
Rise of the Triad V
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[4] The Almanac
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[4.1] Release dates
What follows are lists of games and slide shows and the dates they
were released. The lists are not complete. Asterisks indicate the
first US release of a game or slide show.
[4.1.1] Games
Game Version Date Released
---- ------- -------------
} Rise of the Triad 1.0 12/21/94 *
} Boppin 1.1 12/09/94
Boppin 1.0 11/15/94 *
Alien Carnage 1.0 11/01/94 *
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold 3.0 11/01/94
Wacky Wheels 1.1 10/17/94 *
Blake Stone: Planet Strike 1.01 10/94
Blake Stone: Planet Strike 1.0 10/94 *
Hocus Pocus 1.1 10/04/94
Raptor: Call of the Shadows 1.2 09/26/94
Mystic Towers 1.1 07/15/94 *
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold 2.1 07/08/94
Hocus Pocus 1.0 06/01/94 *
Raptor: Call of the Shadows 1.1 06/01/94
Raptor: Call of the Shadows 1.0 04/01/94 *
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold 2.0 02/11/94
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold 1.0 12/02/93 *
Duke Nukem II 1.0 12/02/93 *
Halloween Harry 1.2 11/07/93
Halloween Harry 1.1 10/10/93
Bio Menace 1.1 08/24/93
Math Rescue 2.0 08/01/93
Word Rescue 2.0 08/01/93
Monster Bash Lite 2.1 07/27/93
Monster Bash 2.1 05/23/93
Monster Bash 1.1 04/26/93
Monster Bash 1.02 04/12/93
Monster Bash 1.01 04/10/93
Monster Bash 1.0 04/09/93 *
Major Stryker 1.4? 01/93
Wolfenstein 3D 1.4 01/01/93
Math Rescue 1.0 10/92
Wolfenstein 3D 1.0 05/05/92 *
Word Rescue 1.0 Spring 92 *
Cosmic Cosmo 1.2 04/15/92
Cosmic Cosmo 1.0 03/92 *
Secret Agent 1.0 02/92 *
Commander Keen: Goodbye Galaxy! 1.4 02/01/92
Paganitzu 1.02 12/01/91
Duke Nukem 2.0 11/01/91
Crystal Caves 1.0 10/23/91 *
Commander Keen: Goodbye Galaxy! 1.0 06/91 *
Dark Ages 1.0 02/01/91 *
Commander Keen: Vorticons 1.31 01/23/91
Commander Keen: Vorticons 1.0 12/14/90 *
[4.1.2] Slide shows
Game Date Released
---- -------------
Boppin 10/18/94 *
Rise of the Triad #2 10/12/94
Wacky Wheels 08/30/94 *
XenoPhage: Alien Bloodsport 08/15/94 *
Rise of the Triad 07/15/94 *
Mystic Towers 07/01/94 *
Hocus Pocus 05/16/94 *
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold #3 02/11/94
Raptor: Call of the Shadows 01/27/94 *
Duke Nukem II 11/18/93 *
Halloween Harry #2 10/06/93
Monster Bash 06/11/93 *
Bio Menace 05/23/93 *
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold #1 03/25/93 *
[4.2] Cast of characters
[4.2.1] Heroes
Game Name Comments
---- ---- --------
Boppin Yeet
Boppin Boik
Mystic Towers Baron Baldric First appeared in "Baron
Baldric," by Manaccom.
Hocus Pocus Hocus Pocus
Blake Stone Robert Wills Stone III Alias Blake Stone.
Duke Nukem II Duke Nukem
Duke Nukem I Duke Nukem
Alien Carnage Halloween Harry
Spear of Destiny B. J. Blazkowicz
Wolfenstein 3D B. J. Blazkowicz
Bio Menace Snake Logan
Monster Bash Johnny Dash
Commander Keen: Aliens Billy Blaze
Commander Keen: Galaxy Billy Blaze
Commander Keen: Vorticons Billy Blaze
Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure Cosmo
Major Stryker Harrison Stryker Related to Duke Nukem.
Crystal Caves Mylo Steamwitz
Secret Agent Agent 006 1/2 A short Duke Nukem?
Paganitzu Alabama Smith Related to Nevada?
Arctic Adventure Nevada Smith His second adventure.
Pharaoh's Tomb Nevada Smith His first adventure.
[4.2.2] Villains
Game Villains
---- --------
Boppin Hunnybunz
Hocus Pocus Trolodon (Terexin isn't really a villain)
Blake Stone: Planet Strike Dr. Pyrus W. Goldfire
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold Dr. Pyrus W. Goldfire
Duke Nukem II The Rigelatins
Duke Nukem I Dr. Proton
Spear of Destiny Trans Grosse, Barnacle Wilheim, UberMutant,
Death Knight, Angel of Death
Wolfenstein 3D Hans, Dr. Schabbs, Hitler, Otto Giftmacher,
Greta Grosse, General Fettgesicht
Bio Menace Dr. Mangle, Master Cain
Monster Bash Count Chuck
Commander Keen 4-5 The Shikadi
Commander Keen 1-3 The Vorticons
Major Stryker The Kretons
Secret Agent Dr. No Body, DVS terrorist leader
Math Rescue The Gruzzles
Word Rescue The Gruzzles
Dark Ages Garth
[4.2.3] Cameos
Frequently, the star of one Apogee game will make a cameo appearance in
another. Or, sometimes, someone from the real world shows up. A list of
such cameos follows. Appearances of Apogee characters in the default
scoreboards of games are not mentioned here, however, since there would be
too many to list.
WARNING: much of the fun of these games is running across these
things during play. Do not read this section if you want to be
surprised!
Game Description
---- -----------
Bio Menace Commander Keen as one of the hostages in episode 2.
Bio Menace Scott Miller, George Broussard, and Jim Norwood, in
episode 2; also artifacts from other Apogee games
including Keen and Duke. Yorp aliens from Keen
are there, among other things, as is a portrait
of Duke Nukem on the wall.
Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure Duke Nukem, in episode 2, level 7.
Duke Nukem I Commander Keen, mentioned by Dr. Proton in the
first episode.
Secret Agent Commander Keen, mentioned in the instructions.
Paganitzu Yorp from Keen: Vorticons; also Keen's helmet.
[4.3] Behind the scenes
[4.3.1] Programmers
Name Games
---- -----
Darren Baker Mystic Towers
Steve Baker Mystic Towers
} Jason Blochowiak Keen: Galaxy Keen: Aliens XenoPhage^
George Broussard Pharaoh's Tomb Arctic Adventure
} Allen H Blum III Major Stryker Duke Nukem 3D*^
John Carmack Keen: Vorticons Keen: Galaxy Keen: Aliens
Wolfenstein 3D
} Robert Crane Alien Carnage Fumes^
Karen Crowther Word Rescue Math Rescue
} Mark Dochtermann Rise of the Triad
} Jim Dose Rise of the Triad
Andrew Edwardson Wacky Wheels
Scott Host Raptor
Steve Hovelroud Mystic Towers
Stephen P Lepisto Boppin
Peder Jungck Secret Agent
Frank Maddin Crystal Caves Monster Bash Shadow Warrior*^
} Nolan Martin Rise of the Triad
Michael Maynard Blake Stone
Scott Miller Word Whiz Trivia Whiz Beyond the Titanic
SuperNova The Kroz Series
} Jim Norwood Bio Menace Shadow Warrior*^
Todd J Replogle The Thor Trilogy Monuments of Mars Dark Ages
Duke Nukem I Cosmo's Adventure Duke Nukem II
Duke Nukem 3D*^
John Romero Keen: Vorticons Keen: Galaxy Keen: Aliens
Wolfenstein 3D
James T Row Blake Stone
} William Scarboro Rise of the Triad
} Keith Schuler Paganitzu Realms of Chaos^
Dave Sharpless Jumpman Lives!
Mike Voss Hocus Pocus
Lindsay Whipp Mystic Towers
* - A 3D Realms game.
^ - Not yet released.
[4.3.2] Artists
Name Games
---- -----
Randy Abraham Duke Nukem II
Debra Berry Blake Stone
Allen H Blum III Dark Ages Major Stryker Duke Nukem I
George Broussard Pharaoh's Tomb Arctic Adventure Secret Agent
Crystal Caves Duke Nukem I
Adrian Carmack Keen: Vorticons Keen: Galaxy Keen: Aliens
Wolfenstein 3D
Jeff Dee Blake Stone
Manda Dee Monster Bash
Rich Fleider Raptor
Shaun Gadala Wacky Wheels
Dale Homburg Math Rescue
Jimmie Homburg Math Rescue
Stephen A Hornback Major Stryker Cosmo's Adventure Duke Nukem II
} Rise of the Triad Duke Nukem 3D*^
} Chuck Jones Rise of the Triad Duke Nukem 3D*^
} Jerry K Jones Blake Stone
Frank Maddin Crystal Caves
Lucinda Maddin Crystal Caves
} Tim Neveu Raptor Rise of the Triad
Jim Norwood Secret Agent Crystal Caves Duke Nukem I
} Bio Menace Shadow Warrior*^
Les Pardew Major Stryker
Bud Pembroke Word Rescue
Jennifer D Keitz Boppin
Todd J Replogle Monuments of Mars
} Keith Schuler Paganitzu Realms of Chaos^
} Susan Singer Rise of the Triad Realms of Chaos^ Duke Nukem 3D*^
Gary Sirois Major Stryker
} Steven Stamatiadis Alien Carnage Fumes^
* - A 3D Realms game.
^ - Not yet released.
[4.3.3] Musicians
Name Games
---- -----
} Steven Baker Alien Carnage Fumes^
} Lee Jackson Rise of the Triad
Mark Klem Wacky Wheels
Andrew J Lepisto Boppin
Matt Murphy Raptor
Bobby Prince Major Stryker Cosmo's Adventure Bio Menace
Wolfenstein 3D Duke Nukem II Blake Stone
} Rise of the Triad
Keith Schuler Dark Ages
} George Stamatiadis Alien Carnage Fumes^
Rob Wallace Monster Bash
* - A 3D Realms game.
^ - Not yet released.
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[5] Obtaining the Games
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[5.1] The Shareware Episodes
[5.1.1] Software Creations BBS
Apogee's home BBS is the Software Creations BBS. There are over a hundred
lines. Apogee's games are released here first before anywhere else in
the world. The numbers are:
(508) 365-2359 2400 baud
(508) 368-7036 @ 9600-14.4k v.32bis
(508) 365-4035 @ 28.8k v.fc / v.34
[5.1.2] Anonymous FTP
The official FTP site for Apogee is ftp.uml.edu. uml has several mirror sites
which can be used in the event that uml is down or too crowded. Mirrors are
generally updated on a daily basis. A list of sites follows:
Site Name Directory Notes
--------- --------- -----
} ftp.uml.edu /msdos/games/apogee the official site
} ftp.ulowell.edu /msdos/games/apogee uml mirror
ftp.uwp.edu /pub/games/uml uml mirror
wuarchive.wustl.edu /systems/msdos/msdos-games uml mirror
ftp.uni-paderborn.de /pcsoft/msdos/games uml mirror
ftp.sun.ac.za /pub/msdos/uml uml mirror
nctuccca.edu.tw /Ulowell/msdos uml mirror
src.doc.ic.ac.uk /computing/systems/ibmpc/ uml mirror
msdos-games/Games
} swcbbs.com /pub/apogee Software Creations
ftp.cdrom.com /.3/games/Games/Apogee misc Apogee games
ftp.cdrom.com /.3/games/historic/msdos/* older games
ftp.cc.umanitoba.ca /wolf3d Keen/Wolf3D stuff
ftp.uwp.edu /pub/games/id Keen/Wolf3D stuff
} ftp.uml.edu /msdos/games/editors crippled Duke I editor
wuarchive.wustl.edu /pub/MSDOS_UPLOADS/games/Apogee user-supported
[5.1.3] CompuServe
Type "GO APOGEE" at a ! prompt. Remember that on CompuServe, the filenames
do not match those in the filenames list given previously; on CompuServe,
Apogee games have neither the leading episode number nor a version number
embedded in the filename.
[5.1.4] America On-Line
Use the keyword "APOGEE" to go to Apogee's forum.
[5.1.5] Fidonet
If you are a Fidonet SysOp, you can get Apogee's games on the Fido Filebone.
Talk to your local filebone hub about the four Apogee areas. See FILEBONE.NA
for more information. Send netmail to 1:124/9006 for more information on
these areas.
[5.2] The Registered Episodes
The registered versions of the software are the complete versions, and, as
they are not shareware, cannot legally exist on public BBS's or FTP sites.
The registered versions of the software must be purchased directly from
Apogee or from one of Apogee's dealers.
In many of Apogee's newer games, a DEALERS.EXE executable is archived with
the game. This is an executable readme containing a list of the foreign
dealers that sell Apogee's software.
[5.2.1] Ordering information
To order directly from Apogee, call 1-800-APOGEE1. The line is open 24 hours
a day. They'll need to know what disk size you desire, the best graphics
mode you are able to run (CGA, EGA, VGA, SVGA), and whether you have an XT,
286, 386, 486, or Pentium. Note that some games have minimum CPU and
graphics requirements. Also note that Apogee's VGA games come only on high
density disks.
Use the ORDER.FRM file, which comes with virtually all of Apogee's games, if
you want to send in an order by mail. Send it to:
Apogee Software, Ltd.
P.O. Box 496389,
Garland TX 75049-6389
Or, you can fax a copy of your order to (214) 278-4670. Please include a
return fax number if you make use of this facility.
[5.2.2] Software Creations BBS
}Very soon now, you will be able to download the full registered versions
of any Apogee game by using a credit card for payment. (Apogee will mail
you the game manual and catalog, which you will receive a few days later.)
See the previous Software Creations section for information on calling
Software Creations.
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[6] Troubleshooting
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[6.1] Things to try first
If you have a program with an Apogee game not starting correctly, there are a
few things you can try. First, make sure your system meets the hardware
requirements of the game. If they don't, you probably can't run the game
without upgrading your hardware.
Second, make sure you have the most recent version of the game. Many older
versions of games have bugs that are fixed in the most recent versions.
Third, if there is a XXX-HELP.EXE file that came with the game, read it.
(Most registered Apogee games have such a file on the first game disk;
with shareware versions, you might find it there and possibly in the directory
the game was installed to as well.) This file will contain numerous common
technical problems with their solutions. There are plans underway to make
a file available on-line which will contain all the current versions of
the technical support files in them.
If the game is failing to start due to insufficient memory, you can try
removing TSRs, or booting "clean." With MS-DOS 6.0 or greater, you can do
this by holding down either the shift key or F5 while the system is booting.
This causes your autoexec.bat and config.sys files to be bypassed. If you
are running a memory manager, try removing the manager altogether; this
seems to fix most problems Apogee games have with EMS/XMS memory. Additional
suggestions on how to free up memory may be in the XXX-HELP.EXE file.
Also, you may want to check the cheats section of this FAQ, as, for some
games, it lists several technical support parameters you can pass to the
game. Sometimes this fixes problems with certain pieces of hardware.
If you problem is your Soundblaster card (or a Soundblaster emulating card),
then the problem may be the settings on the card or the BLASTER environment
variable. Check the section on that subject below.
With regard to drive compression, Apogee has tested their entire product
line with Stacker 3.1, Stacker 4.0, and MS-DOS 6.22's DriveSpace. The
products all worked fine, except for Monster Bash which suffered a slowdown
using DriveSpace.
If you've tried everything and still can't get an Apogee game to work
correctly, contact Apogee's technical support services. These are listed
under "Contacting Apogee."
[6.2] Setting the BLASTER environment variable
}This section may be useful if you are having problems with sound or music in
}an Apogee game.
}
}Apogee games that use Sound Blasters look at the BLASTER environment variable
}to figure out where to send its sound output. Check to make sure that you
}have the SET BLASTER line in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. This code is an example,
}and probably isn't exactly what you need to put in your system.
}
}NOTE: Some of these parameters (P, H, & E) are dependant on certain types of
} cards. For example, the E is only needed if you have an AWE32. The
} minimum requirements are to have the A, I, D, & T parameters. The other
} three may or may not be needed depending on what type of card you have.
} Please read this entire section to see if you need any of them. If you
} are using a clone card, or some card that's not a "true" Sound Blaster,
} then you will most likely only need A, I, D, & T.
}
}SET BLASTER=A220 I5 D1 T3 P330 H6 E620
} | | | | | | | | |
} | | | | | | | | |_______ AWE32 Only Parameter
} | | | | | | | |__________ "High" DMA Channel
} | | | | | | |_______________ MIDI Port
} | | | | | |__________________ Type of Card
} | | | | |_____________________ DMA Channel
} | | | |________________________ Interrupt
} | | |_____________________________ Port Address
} | |___________________________________ Environment Variable
} |________________________________________ DOS Command
}
}NOTE: There can be no spaces between the word BLASTER and the equal sign (=).
}If you have a space in there, your system will read the parameter incorrectly,
}and it will not be recognized by our games.
}
}Now, these may not (most likely not) be the same for your board, because the
}Port Address, Interrupt and DMA Channel can be set by adjusting "jumpers" on
}your sound board. Some newer cards have this information controlled by
}software, please consult your card's manual for more information on how to set
}these things. You should also check your manual if you are unclear as to how
}to tell what settings your card is set at. The information *IS* important, so
}it's recommended that you know precisely what the settings are. If you are
}using a card that "emulates" the Sound Blaster (such as the Gravis UltraSound
}through software, or the PAS16), you should check your card's manual on how to
}set the card for Sound Blaster emulation.
}
}For PORT ADDRESS, it's almost always 220. That seems to be the default for
}most sound cards out there, and unless you know you've switched it away from
}220, it's a safe bet it's still there.
}
}The INTERRUPT is something that varies from system to system. Mystic Towers
}and games prior to Raptor require that your IRQ be set at 7 or less. Apogee
}does not recommend using IRQ2, as it causes problems.
}
}The DMA CHANNEL sometimes causes problems if it isn't set to 1, which is the
}usual default. If it is not set to one, some Apogee games may lock up.
}
}The TYPE OF CARD should be 1 if you have an older Sound Blaster, or a Sound
}Blaster emulating card. Use 3 if you have a newer plain Sound Blaster. Use
}2 for an older Sound Blaster Pro. Use 4 for a newer Sound Blaster Pro.
}
}The MIDI PORT parameter will only be needed if you are using a card that has
}MIDI capabilites. If so, this is where you define what MIDI port you are
}using. 330 seems to be the default, so if you have a MIDI card, and you
}haven't changed anything from factory defaults, this is probably where it still
}is.
}
}The HIGH DMA CHANNEL is something that is used primarily on Sound Blaster 16
}cards. This is not the same as the standard DMA channel, this is a different
}one. This is only used if you're using a 16 bit sound card capable of playing
}16 bit Sound Blaster sounds. By default, this is usually 5, so unless you know
}that it's something else, it's probably still 5.
}
}The E620 parameter is something that is needed _only_ if you have a Creative
}Labs AWE32 sound card. If you have one of these, this parameter will have been
}set up properly assuming you've installed the software that came with the card.
}Check your AWE32 documentation for a more thorough explanation of what this
}parameter is used for.
}
}If you add or make changes to the SET BLASTER command in your AUTOEXEC.BAT,
}remember to reboot your computer, and delete the configuration file for the
}game (*.CFG) before running again.
[6.3] By game
This section contains some common problems, and their solutions, for specific
Apogee games. In addition to perusing this section, you might want to look
at the cheats section; technical support parameters are listed there also,
which may help to fix your problem. Again, please make sure you are running
the most recent version of the game, since older versions may contain bugs
that are fixed in newer versions.
[Raptor: Call of the Shadows]
Problem: I can't save or load games.
Solution: Increase the value "files" is set to in your config.sys. Note that
if you booted clean, this would have been bypassed.
Problem: My mouse will only go in a corner of the screen.
Solution: This is usually due to an old version of your mouse driver. Check
with the mouse manufacturer to see if a more recent version is
available.
[Duke Nukem II]
Problem: Certain levels lock on me.
Solution: There's no good solution for this yet. It's a sprite problem,
and Apogee isn't really sure how to fix it. You could try
rebooting and trying the level again. If the problem persists,
then playing on a lower difficulty level might help.
[Monster Bash]
Problem: In episode 3, I can take the broom and, in one place, fly off the
top of the screen. Then the game crashes.
Solution: Don't go up there; there's nothing of value there.
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[7] Cheats
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[7.1] Overview
Apogee has almost always made a point of putting cheats in their games, both
documented and undocumented. In their later games, however, these cheats are
only available in the registered versions of the games. From 1987 to
around May 1993, Apogee games came with a hint sheet, which often contained
cheats in them. From May 1993 to December 1993, Apogee games were shipped
with a XXXXHINT.EXE file, which had the same text as the old hint sheets.
Beginning in 1994, the XXXXHINT.EXE files are done away with too; the
information is now contained in the actual game manuals.
The cheats listed in the complete cheat list are subdivided by category.
The customer cheats are the cheats listed in the hint sheet, hint file, or
game manual that comes with the game. Some of the games also have a debugging
mode, which is not generally documented. Their original purpose is to aid in
the beta testing of the game. Lots of times, however, the debugging mode is
left intact, available for the regular game-player to use. Finally, there are
technical support parameters, which are not really cheats, but are used to
correct some technical problems.
[7.2] What's that about cows and monkeys in Raptor?
Raptor was written by Cygnus, and it seems to be a birthday present to
themselves. Whenever Raptor is started when your system's clock matches the
birthday of one of the people at Cygnus (a list can be found in the complete
cheat list section), then Raptor behaves a little strangely. First, the
Apogee logo is displayed, but not with Apogee's trademark music. Instead,
you hear the Cygnus folks, sounding a little tipsy, humming the Apogee theme
music themselves. In addition, some of the Raptor levels contain enemies
that don't normally appear such as monkeys who throw coconuts at you, raptor
dinosaurs scurrying across he screen, and cows with machine guns concealed
beneath their hides. Most of these peculiar enemies appear on the first
mission of the game, and they are invariably difficult to kill.
Finally, when you exit the game, you get to hear the member of Cygnus whose
birthday it is give an impersonation of a monkey. This might consist of
hooting or screeching sounds, or simply an eloquent rendering of the word
"monkey."
Now the reason this section is in with the cheats is because there is a way,
beyond setting the system time to a particular birthday, of getting the
monkeys and raptors and cows to fight you. When the screen comes up where you
must choose a sector to fly, flip the switch at the bottom center of the
screen by clicking on it with the mouse. It should darken. This activates
the three lights to the right of this switch. In version 1.0 of Raptor, you
should turn on the first and third lights; in v1.1 and v1.2 of Raptor, you
should turn all three lights on. Then you can select a sector or "auto
pilot" and fly the level. You'll know the cheat worked if you hear a static-
like sound. All levels have some new enemy that appears by using this cheat,
though sometimes they are small and inconspicuous. Besides monkeys, cows,
and raptors, there are: the ship from 2001: A Space Odyssey, the ship from
Space 1999, pedestrians, a woman sunbathing on a roof, and other miscellaneous
things.
[7.3] Complete Cheat List
This section contains a variety of cheats from various Apogee games.
Actually, in the words of Joe Siegler, it's "the first comprehensive cheat
[list] ever published for all Apogee titles."
Note that while the customer cheat keys are officially supported by Apogee,
the debug keys are not. If you use the debug keys, Apogee cannot provide
any support, since this alters game performance to a state where their
standard support comments and issues might not apply. In short, neither
Apogee or I can be held responsible for damage caused by usage of the debug
keys. (Though, as a word of reassurance, I have never heard of such a thing
happening, save where expressly noted below.)
[Boppin]
+ Customer Cheat - The following cheats are available:
From the main menu, these are available in both the shareware and
registered versions of the game:
[ctrl] [V] - gives a slide show of all episodes (while the
show is playing, you can hit the left and right
arrow keys to go to the previous and next levels,
or esc to quit)
[ctrl] [T] - sound testing dialogue
During gameplay, the following are available in both the shareware and
registered versions of the game:
[ctrl] [B] - display the mystery spot
[ctrl] [L] - moves you to the next level, at the expense of
a life; will not work during the final battle
[shift] [ctrl] [L] - moves you back a level; this will not work on
either the first level of an episode, or the
final battle
During gameplay, the following are available provided the password
"TOYSS" is given to activate them. These work only in the registered
version:
[ctrl] [F] - go to the final battle for the episode
[alt] [H] - delivers one maximum hit during the final battle
[ctrl] [F5] - add one credit to player one (nine maximum)
[ctrl] [F8] - add one credit to player two (nine maximum)
[1] or [!] - set lives for player one to zero *
[2] or [@] - set lives for player two to zero *
* These two cheats may not work if the shift key is used for a button.
} Finally, in v1.1 of Boppin, the command line parameter "blood" may
} be used to access the violence mode from v1.0.
[Wacky Wheels]
+ Customer Cheat - The following command line parameters can be used in
both the shareware and registered versions of the game:
/2 Fast gameplay.
/3 Really fast gameplay.
/debug Create a ERR.LOG file as you play.
turbo Activate the turbo key [brake]+[fire].
jump Activate the jump key [brake]+[accelerate].
Additionally, you can specify ONE of the following three weapon parameters:
hog Get 99 hedgehogs.
ice Get 99 ice cubes.
fire Get 99 fireballs.
[Mystic Towers]
+ Customer Cheat - Cheats are activated by typing "BALDRIC" during a level.
Once actived, your score is reset to zero, and you can
press the following key combos to achieve what is listed:
[lshift] R xx - where xx is a number of a room to jump to (01-45)
[lshift] H - to get maximum health, also food and drink
[lshift] K - to get all keys except the end tower key
[lshift] W - to get full weapons
[lshift] C - to get ten coins
Only the health cheat works in the shareware version; the
rest require the registered version.
[Hocus Pocus]
+ Customer Cheat - Type these:
FEELGOOD - full health
BLAKE - both keys
BANANA - laser shots (registered version only)
QUARK - rapid fire (registered version only)
[Raptor: Call of the Shadows]
+ Customer Cheat - The backspace key will restore all your energy and give
you a death ray, at the cost of all your money. This
will only work in the registered version.
+ Debug mode - Set the environment variable "S_HOST" to the value "CASTLE"
at the DOS prompt by typing "SET S_HOST=CASTLE" (it must be
in caps). Then, when you play Raptor, you become completely
invincible, and have all the weapons at your disposal.
+ Warp - There is a level warp built into the game, so you can see any level
you want at any time. What you need to do is to get to the screen
where you see the level selection (Bravo Sector, etc...). The warp
combination is a 2 key entry. The keys are not to be pressed at the
same time. Note that you cannot use the level warp unless debug
mode (see above) is active.
Key 1 - Z, X, or Y (Z is Episode 1, X is Episode 2, and Y is Episode 3)
Key 2 - Any key between Q and O on the keyboard. Q is Level 1, and O is
Level 9.
This works in both the shareware and registered versions. Note that if you
try and warp to a registered episode from the shareware version, it will
crash the game.
+ Other notes - With a hex editor, change bytes 27h and 28h of a Raptor saved
game file (char????.fil) to the value FF. When you load this
saved game, you'll have a few million dollars to spend on
equipment. If you don't have a hex editor, there are some
programs available that do this for you. RapCheat is one;
RapCash is another. Both should be available at ftp.uwp.edu
under the directory /pub/msdos/games/romulus/cheats. Some
people have reported problems using RapCash; I don't know if
these problems have been fixed since or not.
+ Birthday Mode - As mentioned above, the "Birthday Mode" will automatically
put you into "Battle Cow" mode, and it will also play the
goofy Apogee theme song. To get it, change the system's
date to the birthday of one of the Cygnus programmers, given
below. Any year should be ok, as long as it's not in the
past:
March 12 Bobby Prince
May 16 Scott Host
August 28 Rich Fleider
October 2 Jim Molinets
Note that in v1.0 of Raptor, Bobby Prince's birthday wasn't
recognized, but that the birthday of Tim Neveu *was*.
You can also get "Battle Cow" mode by darkening the switch
on the "choose sector" screen, and turning on all three
lights on the right (for v1.0, don't turn on the middle
light). You don't get the goofy Apogee theme song if you do
it this way, however.
[Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold and Planet Strike]
+ Customer Cheat - [J] [A] [M] [Enter] - These keys are to be pressed one at a
time. When all are pressed, the message "Now you're
Jammin'" appears, and you will be given all keys, and you
will get 100% health. Your score will also be taken to 0.
This will only work on the registered version of the game.
+ Debug Mode - Command Line Parameters
POWERBALL - Enables debug keys. This also requires that you hold down the
left and right shift keys during the JAM Logo intro. Don't
hold them down until the white letters start to appear.
Once the PC-13 screen is loaded, you can let go. You will hear
a "ching" sound during the intro when debug mode has been
successfully enabled. The "ching" sound will only happen if
you have a sound card. If you have a PC speaker, you won't hear
this.
TICS - Display TIC INFO in score area.
MUSIC - Enable music test mode: [backspace] [arrows] changes music.
RADAR - Displays a rotating overhead view during gameplay. Please note
that this REALLY slows the game down, to the point of being
unplayable.
These cheat keys can be use during gameplay only if you invoked
the program with the "powerball" parameter:
[backspace] W - Warp to level ([shift] [W] loads the default map)
[backspace] D - Player invisible (dumb objects)
[backspace] G - God mode
[backspace] I - Item cheat
[backspace] M - Memory info
[backspace] P - Pause screen
[backspace] Q - Fast quit
[backspace] A - Add Actors to AutoMapper.
[backspace] U - Unlock all floors
[backspace] O - Show hidden walls on auto mapper
[backspace] E - Quick Win Mission
[backspace] B - Border color
[backspace] C - Count objects
[backspace] F - Facing spot
[backspace] H - Hurt self (only if not in God mode)
[backspace] S - Slow motion
[backspace] V - Extra VBLs (Vertical Blanking Signal -- this will do
nothing for most users)
[backspace] [home] - Dec sky color (if ceiling textures are OFF)
[backspace] [pgup] - Inc sky color (if ceiling textures are OFF)
[backspace] [end] - Dec ground color (if ground textures are OFF)
[backspace] [pgdn] - Inc ground color (if ground textures are OFF)
[backspace] + - Add shading depth (if textures are OFF)
[backspace] - - Dec shading depth (if textures are OFF)
[backspace] ] - Inc shading drop off (if textures are OFF)
[backspace] [ - Dec shading drop off (if textures are OFF)
[shift] [tab] - Show full automap containing all live actors.
These cheat keys can be used during gameplay:
[6] [7] - Collect all bonus items (gold, ammo, health, etc).
[7] [8] - Kill all actors.
[6] [8] - Collect all bonus items and kill all actors.
+ Tech Support Command Line Parameters - These aren't really debug codes, or
cheats, either. They're in here for Apogee's Tech Support to use in
assisting customers who might be having problems running the game.
VERSION - Display version information.
SYSTEM - Display system information.
HIDDENCARD - Disable checking for video card.
NOJOYS - Disable checking for joysticks.
NOMOUSE - Disable checking for mouse.
NOMAIN - Disable checking for main memory.
NOEMS - Disable checking for EMS memory.
NOXMS - Disable checking for XMS memory.
NOAL - Disable checking for Adlib.
NOSB - Disable checking for Sound Blaster.
NOPRO - Disable checking for Sound Blaster Pro.
NOSS - Disable checking for Sound Source.
SST - Disable checking for Tandy Sound Source.
SS1 - Disable checking for Sound Source on LPT1.
SS2 - Disable checking for Sound Source on LPT2.
SS3 - Disable checking for Sound Source on LPT3.
NO386 - Disable checking for 386.
ENABLEGP - Enables NoteBook GamePort checking. (This will do bad things if
you try it on an Acer.)
[Duke Nukem II]
+ Customer Cheat - For the registered version only, the following two codes
can be used during gameplay. Please note that all three
letters have to be pressed at the same time.
[E] [A] [T] - health is restored to maximum, but score is reset to zero
[N] [U] [K] - get a random weapon, plus all inventory required to finish
the current level
[Alien Carnage]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing [B] [I] [G] all at the same time will give you
full health and jetpack power.
+ Tech Parameter - Pressing these four keys at the same time will show you the
coordinates you are at on the level. This serves no real
function on its own, but it is used by Apogee's Game Hint
Line sometimes to locate a player in a level. The keys are
[ctrl] [alt] [rshift] [F12]
[Wolfenstein 3D / Spear of Destiny]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing [I] [L] [M] all at the same time, will give you
both keys, and will give you 100% health. It will also
take your score to zero. This cheat will work in both the
shareware and the registered version.
+ Debug mode -
The debug mode is activated with a different command line parameter
depending on what version of the game you have.
v1.0 -> -next
Once in the game, press [ctrl] [tab] [enter] to activate.
v1.1+ -> -goobers
Once in the game, press [lshift] [alt] [backspace] to activate.
Spear -> -debugmode
Once in the game, press [lshift] [alt] [backspace] to activate.
Once activated, these are the keys you can use.
[tab] [Q] - Quit
[tab] [W] - Warp to level xx
[tab] [E] - Exit to next level
[tab] [T] - Debug info in memory
[tab] [I] - Free items
[tab] [O] - Map of level (only works in beta versions of Wolf3D)
[tab] [S] - Slow motion
[tab] [F] - Position info
[tab] [G] - God mode (no damage)
[tab] [H] - Hurt yourself
[tab] [X] - Extra stuff (???)
[tab] [C] - Statistics
} [tab] [V] - Add extra VBLs (Vertical Blanking Signal -- this will do nothing
} for most users except maybe increase or decrease
} the game speed.)
[tab] [B] - Change border color
[tab] [M] - Memory map
[tab] [N] - No clipping (walk through walls)
(This works only in Wolf3D v1.0 shareware. This mode can cause
really bad things to happen to the game, including corrupting
itself, which is why it was taken out.)
+ Tech Support Command Line Parameters are the same as in Blake Stone, except
VERSION, SYSTEM, and ENABLEGP do nothing in Wolf3D.
+ Note 1: If you press [B] [A] [T] all at once, you'll get a message wondering
why you're trying to cheat, since this is the old Keen Galaxy cheat
code.
+ Note 2: For Spear only, if you do nothing in the game for 30 seconds, BJ
will either cross his eyes or stick his tongue out at you. It
happens quickly, so you have to watch carefully.
[Bio Menace]
+ Customer Cheat - [C] [A] [T] - During gameplay, you can press these three
letters at the same time, and you will receive the machine
gun, 99 ammo, & 99 grenades. This works only in the
registered version.
+ Tech Support Command Line Parameters -
COMP - Turn on SVGA compatibility
NOAL - Disable Adlib sound card detection
NOJOYS - Disable joystick detection
NOMOUSE - Disable mouse detection
HIDDENCARD - Disable video card detection
+ Other Notes - The following secret weapons are available in both the
shareware and registered versions:
Super Plasma Bolt - Hold the up arrow until you hear a charge sound,
then hit fire; this causes one hit point of damage.
Fireball Attack - Turn left and right 6 or 7 times in succession,
then hit fire.
Electron Shield - Turn left and right 6 or 7 times in succession,
then hit the jump key.
Invincibility Burst - Hold the up arrow until you hear a charge sound,
then hit the down arrow.
[Monster Bash]
+ Customer Cheat - In the registered version only, you can press the [Z] and
[F10] keys down simultaneously to receive five lives. Hold
down [Z] first; since the [F10] key, by itself, has meaning
in the game, the cheat won't work if you push both down at
the same time and the [F10] is the first to register.
[Commander Keen: Goodbye Galaxy! and Aliens Ate My Baby Sitter]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing the [B] [A] [T] keys all at once will give you 99
shots, an extra life, and all the gems. This does not work
on early versions of Aliens Ate My Babysitter.
+ Debug Mode - Pressing [A] [2] [enter] all at once will activate debug mode.
Once activated, these keys will perform the following
functions:
[F10] [G] God mode
[F10] [I] Free items
[F10] [J] Jump cheat (Note that you will not be able to jump
down while the jump cheat is activated)
[F10] [N] No clipping (Be careful. If you fall off the bottom
of the level, you'll die, even if you
are in God Mode.)
[F10] [Y] View hidden areas in the level.
[F10] [B] Set border color (1-15)
[F10] [C] Show number of active/inactive objects in the level
[F10] [D] Record a demo
[F10] [E] End the current level
[F10] [M] Display memory usage
[F10] [S] Slow motion
[F10] [T] Sprite test
[F10] [V] Add 0-8 VBLs (Vertical Blanking Signal -- this
will do nothing for most users)
[F10] [W] Warp to any level
[F10] [Y] Reveal hidden areas
[Commander Keen: Invasion of the Vorticons]
+ Customer Cheat - Either of these cheats will work with either the shareware
or registered versions of the game. The key combinations
need to be pressed at the same time.
[ctrl] [tab] [space] - Gives pogostick, all keycards, and full ammo.
[shift] [tab] - Pass through an unplayed level on world map.
+ Debug mode - [G] [O] [D] - pressing all three of these at the same time
will put you in god mode, and will give you a "jump cheat,"
which means when you press "jump," you fly.
[Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing [C] [0] [F10] down simultaneously will give you
a full health and bombs. This cheat only works once
per game.
+ Debug mode - Pressing [tab] [del] [F12] at once activates debug mode. The
debug keys are:
[F10] [G] - God mode
[F10] [W] - Warp
[Duke Nukem I]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing [backspace] [pgdn] at the same time will give you
all keys and full gun power. This can be used in either
the shareware or registered version of the game.
+ Debug mode - To activate, you must enter "asp" on the command line, and it
must be in lower case. Once activated, you can press these
key combinations inside the game. All must be pressed
simultaneously.
[G] [O] [D] - Full health & all items
[G] [O] [W] - Level Warp. This isn't a real warp; it will
just take you to the next level. You need to
keep on using it to progress through the levels.
[Major Stryker]
+ Customer Cheat - The cheats here are a bit more complicated than in other
games. There is a two step procedure to active the cheat
mode. (This cheat mode only works in the registered
version. It does nothing in the shareware version.)
Step 1 - Type [C] [H] [E] [A] [T] at the Main Title Screen.
All keys need to be pressed one at a time. When
you get it, you'll see the message that says
"Cheat Active" (it really isn't yet).
Step 2 - During the game, hold down the [backspace] key,
and then press the [H] & [S] keys at the same
time. When you are successful, you'll see a
message that says "Cheat Mode On" (it is now).
You can hit these three keys again to turn the
cheat mode off.
Once activated, you can press these keys to activate various
options. Please note that you must hold down the [tab] key
first before pressing the others, or it won't work.
[tab] [O] - Fire Options
[tab] [R] - Rapid Fire
[tab] [S] - Shield Options
[Crystal Caves]
+ Customer Cheat - All keys need to be pressed at the same time:
[X] [T] [R] [A] - Gives you max ammo.
[N] [E] [X] [T] - Lets you warp to any level.
+ Debug mode - Pressing [Z] [E] [U] [S] at the same time will put you into
God mode and will let you activate the other debug mode key,
which is [G]. Pressing that will reverse the gravity in the
game.
[Secret Agent]
+ Customer Cheat - Pressing these key combinations at the same time will
activate the functions listed. This will work with either
the shareware or registered versions of the game.
[U] [V] [K] - Gives you 25 ammo.
[Z] [G] [I] - Gives you the disk and dynamite.
+ Debug Mode - Pressing these key combinations at the same time will activate
the functions listed. This will work with either the shareware
or registered versions of the game.
[P] [J] [X] - God Mode
[B] [O] [N] [D] - Warp
[Math Rescue]
+ Customer Cheat - These cheats will work in either the shareware or the
registered versions of the game. Key combinations have to
be pressed at the same time.
[E] [L] [M] - Gives you lids and slime.
[P] [A] [M] - Level warp. When you hit this combination,
the game will freeze. Press a number here,
and you will be taken to that level. You
will not be able to see the number when you
are typing it.
+ Tech Parameter - Pressing the [+] or [-] keys will speed up or slow down the
game appropriately.
[Word Rescue]
+ Customer Cheat - These will work with either the shareware or registered
versions of the game.
[L] [Z] - Warp. When you type this, the screen will
freeze. Enter the level number you want to go
to. You will not be able to see the number
when you are typing it.
[P] [S] - Gives you slime.
[Escape] - Will skip the finish of the key sequence.
[Dark Ages]
+ Customer Cheat - Press [F10] to activate the cheat mode in either the
shareware or registered versions of the game. This
activates the following cheats:
[backspace] - Reduce extra health requirement to 5 coins.
[+] - Rapid fire.
[Paganitzu]
+ Customer Cheat - To active the cheat mode, you need to be at the game menu
screen. When you are there, press these three keys at the
same time [ctrl] [A] [L], and you will be taken to another
screen where you can enter a number. The numbers you can
enter and their functions are listed below, and they will
work with either the shareware or registered versions of
the game.
325 - Gives you 99 lives.
589 - Goes to the end-game sequence.
822 - Double point value.
7xx - Level warp where xx is the level to warp to.
642 - Turn god mode on.
643 - Turn god mode off.
[Arctic Adventure]
+ Customer Cheat - [M] [F] [X] - Pressing all three of these keys at the same
time will give you all the keys, the boat, infinite ammo,
and infinite pick axes. This will work with either the
shareware or registered version of the game.
[Pharaoh's Tomb]
+ Customer Cheat - When the scroll lock is on, the grey plus key will advance
you through the levels. This will work on both the
shareware and registered versions of the game.
[Monuments of Mars]
+ Customer Cheat - To activate the cheat mode, you need to press [capslock],
and then press the combination of [shift] [.]. Once
you've done that, you can press [pgdn] to advance a level.
This will work in either the shareware or registered
versions of the game.
[The Kroz Series]
+ Customer Cheat - To activate the cheat mode, you need to press either [!]
or [X]. This depends on which version you're playing, so
you will need to try both to see which works on what you
have. Once activated, you can use these cheats:
[shift] [9], then [rightarrow] - go to the next level
[shift] [0] - free items
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[8] Contacting Apogee
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[8.1] By phone
Apogee's technical support line is (214) 278-5655. It is open from 8am-6pm
Central Time on Mondays through Friday. It is also closed for major national
holidays and on the weekends.
You can contact George Broussard at (214) 278-7828.
[8.2] By fax
Apogee's fax number is (214) 278-4670. Include a return fax number.
[8.3] By snail mail
Send mail to:
Apogee Software, Ltd.
POB 496389
Garland, TX 75049-6389
United States of America
[8.4] Through networks
You can contact an Apogee representative from the computer networks
listed below by using one of the given addresses.
Internet / joe.siegler@swcbbs.com (preferred)
apogee@metronet.com
apogee@aol.com
CompuServe / 74200,553
AOL / APOGEE
GEnie / APOGEE
Prodigy / CXVP94A
Fidonet / 1:124/9006
Rime / ->APOGEE
->1674
You can contact George Broussard on CompuServe at 73121,2743.
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[9] Credits
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In no particular order, thanks to:
- To Scott Symes <symes@lfs.loral.com> for forwarding information about
the relationship between Apogee and id.
- To QUAKE <decerman@ouray.denver.colorado.edu> for writing said
information.
- To Mike Vasconcellos <mikev@netcom.com> for Apogee game lists.
- To Audry A. DeLisle <rad@crl.com> for information regarding MS-DOS 6.22's
DriveSpace program, Apogee's recommended system configuration for it,
Apogee games lists, and combination deal offers.
- To Bill Amon <wamon@mbunix.mitre.org> for Keen cheats and the Keen FAQ.
- To Rylan Hilman <hilman@ichips.intel.com> for more Keen cheats and the
Rise of the Triad FAQ.
- To Stanley Stasiak <stasiak@tartarus.uwa.edu.au> for the Wolf3D FAQ.
- To Diane Winters <diane@netcom.com> for several cheats.
- To Robert Wade <rewade@aol.com> for the Raptor birthday mode dates.
- To Warren Buss <wbuss@primenet.com> for Wolf3D and Blake Stone
information.
- To Donna Wong <donna@omc.lan.mcgill.ca> for noticing important details.
- To Joe Siegler <joe.siegler@swcbbs.com> for a whole lotta stuff.
Apologies if I missed anyone.
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[10] Dopefish and Friends
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"YYAAAAAAAAAAAA...HA...HA...HA...HOOOOEEYY!!" -- Goofy
"Yabba dabba doo!!" -- Fred Flintstone
"Habba, habba, ha-hhhhhaaaaa...." -- Jackie Gleason
"Ahweehrwyyhwhryrhwwehrwehrwrhwherr...." -- Dick Van Dyke, "Mary Poppins"
"Yerhudurdhrrdrhudrtdhtudhrtduhtddhrtur...." -- Sebastian, "Little Mermaid"
"Belch." -- Dopefish, "Siegler's Sig"
--------------------------------
| _|\_ |
| \ / \ Pisces Swimeatus |
| |>< |> OO The Dopefish |
| / \___/UU |
--------------------------------
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