Madblox! User Guide

PC version 1.0 -- Copyright © 2004, Witchspire.



Introduction

Madblox is a falling-blocks game in which you manipulate falling shapes to fill rows on a grid.  Each time a row is filled, you score points.  Beware the madblox, however - they occasionally hide within the falling shapes, and create havoc whenever they come to rest on the fallen blocks.


The Main Menu

When you first start the game, you'll find yourself at the main menu:



The main menu contains the following selections:

Start Game Begins a new game of Madblox!
Options Allows you to change various aspects of the game.  For more information about the options available, see the "Options" section below.
High Scores Shows the current high scores screen.
About Shows information about the game, and where to go for further information or support.
Register Will only appear on unregistered installations of the game.  Allows you to register your copy after purchasing it.

You can select from one of these choices by using the left mouse-button when your pointer is over the menu button, or you can use the up/down arrow keys to change the currently highlighted button and hit [Enter] to make your selection.


Playing the Game

When you choose "Start Game" from the main menu, you'll be shown a screen that looks vaguely like this:



The screen is divided into two sections:  The play area on the left, and the status area on the right.  The play area is where all the action happens.

As you can see, there's a falling shape in the play area, and in the status area you can see what the next shape will be.  Also shown is the current level of difficulty, your current score, and the number of flares you have remaining.


Controls:

You can manipulate the falling block in the following ways by using the cooresponding keys on your keyboard.  They are:

Control key(s)
Effect
[up-arrow key] w
Rotate the falling block counter-clockwise by 90°.
[left/right-arrow keys]
a/d
Move the block one space to the left or right, respectively.
[down-arrow key] s
Move the shape toward the bottom at a faster rate.  The effect of this button can be changed by modifying the game options.  See the Options section for more information.
[del]

Destroy the currently-falling madblox.  You need to have at least one flare charge to use this ability.
[spacebar]
Pause the game.
[esc]
Quit the game and return to the main menu.

If you exit the game using the application shutdown icon on the title-bar, the current progress will be saved and you can return to your game as you left it.


Scoring:

Score is accumulated by completely filling a row on the board.  When this happens, the row will dissapear and you'll notice your score increase a bit.

You get a greater score per row by completing more rows at once.  Try to destroy many rows at once to maximize your score!!


The Madblox:

Occasionally, you'll see a shape that has a strange-looking block embedded within it.  These are the madblox, and there are 4 types - earth, ice, fire and lightning.

These blocks will behave like normal blocks until a row is completed that contains one or more of the blocks.  Once this happens, the madblox will unleash their effect upon the board, from left to right.  The effect is different for each block.  You'll just need to play to find out what the madblox do, and whether their effects help or hinders your quest for the top score!

You can switch on and off the madblox from the Options screen.  When switched off, they won't appear at all -- but then, your game will be missing the uniquely fresh experience that is... Madblox!


Flares:

Those madblox can be pesky.  Sometimes, I'm sure you'll wish you could just eliminate a particularly bad-timed lightning or earth block.  Your wish has already been granted!

Every level you achieve provides you with a flare charge.  These can be used by pressing the [del] key when the undesired block is descending from the top of the screen.  Zip-zap!, the bad block is gone.

Remember, however, that you'll need to have at least one flare-charge remaining in order to use this ability.  If you press the [del] key when you have no flare-charges remaining, or when the descending shape has no madblox within it, nothing will happen.


Game Options:

You can change the following options to modify the way the game is played.  All options remain in effect until changed again from the options screen.
  1. Use random colors for shapes.

    If selected, colors for the falling shapes will be randomly chosen from among the available shape colors.
    If unselected, the colors of the falling shapes will be based on the shape type.

  2. Allow madblox in shapes.

    This option will allow you to turn on or off the madblox.  Leaving the madblox on allows for a more exciting game, however...

  3. Uncontrolled drop when down button is pressed.

    This changes the way the down-button behaves.  If this option is selected, pressing the down-button will cause the shape to fall quickly to the bottom of its current column.  While it's dropping, you'll have no control over it's descent.  Use of this option increases your score, however.

    If this option is unselected, the down button will push the shape down at a faster rate, but releasing the button will return the shape to its normal rate of descent.  You retain the ability to control the shape after using this method of movement.

Registration

By using the "Register" button from the main menu, you can register your copy of Madblox! once you've bought the license.

When you buy the license, you'll receive a confirmation e-mail consisting of your registered name and a special registration code.

The registration screen will first ask for you to enter your registered name.  Please enter it exactly as provided on the confirmation e-mail, including punctuation and spacing.

Once you've entered your name, hit the "OK" button, and you'll then be asked to enter the registration code.  Again, enter it exactly as given in the confirmation e-mail, and hit the "OK" button again.

If you've entered both correctly, your copy of Madblox! Should be registered, and you'll get a confirmation dialog thanking you.  Once you've successfully registered, the "Register" button will dissapear from the main menu, and you'll be able to check your registration information on the "About" screen.

Don't lose your registration code!  If you need to re-install madblox for any reason, you'll likely need to re-enter it.  Additionally, any support requests will require a registration code as well, so keep it safe.

If you didn't enter one of the codes correctly, you can try again from the main menu.

If you believe your registration code doesn't work.  Please contact Witchspire for help, or a new code.  Contact information is available at the end of this user guide.


Contacting Witchspire

If you've found a problem with the game that you believe needs fixing, are having trouble registering your copy, want to brag about your high scores, or just want to congratulate me for being such a dweeb, feel free to contact me at:

games@witchspire.com

Also, feel free to visit the Witchspire web site.  Point your web-browser at:

http://www.witchspire.com

The website is your source for updated versions of Madblox, as well as other Witchspire games, user forums, and whatever else I decide to put up there.  Check it out once in a while...


Thanks for playing Madblox!!


Credits

Design, Art, & Programming:

Eron Hennessey

Special Thanks To:

Alexey Pajitnov, Dmitry Pavlovsky and Vadim Garasimov for developing Tetris, the original falling-blocks game!

My wife & kids!  They truly, truly rock.  I love 'em!

Vancort Richards from Slave To The Needle Tattoo.  If you ever feel like you're not colorful enough, he can hook you up.