Tetrad7 Documentation: Tetrad7 is a Tetris-like game written for the Atari Porfolio that allows you to choose the keys used to control the pieces, and also the direction the pieces fall. (towards the left or right edge) If you start Tetrad7 without any 'command line arguments', the game begins with the pieces falling to the left end of the screen, and the following key assignments for moving the pieces: Left - "W" or "7", Right - "Z" or "9", Spin - "S" or "8", and Drop - "A" or the spacebar. Almost all the keys on the keyboard can be reassigned for these four functions, with the exception of 'Esc', 'Lock', '/|\' (the 'Atari Key'), 'Fn', 'Ctrl', 'Alt', and the shift keys. EXAMPLE: If you want to use the 'E', 'D', and 'C' keys for left, spin, and right, and the '1' key for drop, you would enter: tetrad7 e d c 1 followed by a carriage return. The symbols for the keys assigned then appear on the game display. Please note that the key order on the command line is 'left, spin, right, and drop', that there is a space between each letter, that letters can be entered in either upper- or lower-case, and that all four keys must be reassigned at the same time. To clarify the last point, if you want to use '2' for Left, and leave 'S', 'Z' and 'A' as they are, you would still have to enter: tetrad7 2 s z a To get Tetrad7 to drop the pieces to the right end, you add the letter 'r' after the 4 key reassignments. For example, if you want to use '.', 'L', 'O' and 'D', and have the pieces fall to the right, you would enter tetrad7 . l o d r The added 'r' (either upper- or lower-case) would cause the pieces to fall to the right. Some keys, such as the spacebar and arrow keys, can be assigned by entering their assigned symbol. Tetrad7 will list the keys and symbols if you enter tetrad7 and any single letter on the command line. The available keys and their symbols are: Backspace : '{' (left curly bracket) Del Key : '#' Enter Key : '!' Spacebar : '_' (underbar) Quote Key : '`' (accent symbol) Tab Key : '+' Up Arrow : '^' Down Arrow: '|' (vertical bar) Left Arrow: '(' (left paren) Right Arrow: ')'(right paren) For example, if you want to use the left and right arrow keys for left and right, the up key for spin, the down key for drop, and the pieces falling to the left end, you would enter tetrad7 ( ^ ) | Once you have found your ideal combination of control keys and drop direction, you can create a batch file with that command line in it, so that you won't have to retype the line every time. Playing Tetrad7 Tetrad7 is very similar to the game Tetris in the way it is played. After starting Tetrad7, you are prompted for a starting level. Level 0 is impossibly slow, while level 9 is equally impossibly fast. After selecting a level, the screen will clear to the game area. At the 'top' (opposite the drop direction) the score, key assignments, and a preview box is displayed. The rest of the screen consists of a well or pit into which one of seven types of four-block figures (tetrads) will fall. The game won't actually start until you press a key, to give you time to position your fingers. Pieces fall from the top toward the bottom of the pit, The object is to position the pieces so that they create solid rows, which will then disappear. As you continue to complete rows, the level of play will increase, which increases the value of the falling pieces, as well as the speed with which they fall. The game is over when no more pieces can be dropped from the top because of being blocked. At the top of the screen is a preview box which will display the next piece that will be dropped. You can cause the game to pause by pressing the Esc key. To resume, press any other key. If you wish to end the game press Esc again. There is a rudimentary sound feature. If you have the game paused and press the letter 's', the computer will beep every time a level is completed. If after turning the sound on you decide you don't want it, pause the game again and press 's' again to toggle the sound off. Screen Mode: For best results, the external screen mode should be set to 'normal'. The program will function correctly in 'static' mode (not 'tracked'), but the end of the game won't redisplay the DOS prompt. About Tetrad7 Tetrad7 was written in C for the Atari Portfolio computer. The source code was compiled using the Datalight Optimum-C compiler, then compressed using the public domain utility Lzexe. Tetrad7 is released to the public domain for private non-commercial use and enjoyment. Tetrad7 (c) 1990 James Casstevens Atari and Portfolio are trademarks of Atari Corporation Tetris is a trademark of Academy Soft-ELORG. Lzexe (c) Fabrice Bellard Optimum-C is a trademark of Datalight Thanks to Frank and Natalie for beta-testing.