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