ANIMACTlON
##########


ANIMACTlON is the first video craft of
its kind that enables you to create and animate
your own art like never before! ANIMACTION's
totally new concept lets you create any scene
using pre-drawn figures and shapes...and
then combine those with other figures, back-
grounds and scenery you draw yourself! Follow
the easy-to-read instructions in this manual
and animate your basic scene, watching your
creations come to life right in front of your
eyes! It's easy...fun...and ANIMACTION
brings a whole new dimension to your art!


Setting Up
==========
* Make sure the console power cord is plugged into a
  120 volt AC 60 cycle electrical outlet.

* Check to be sure the plug for the built-in control panel
  is firmly seated in the control panel outlet on the right.

* Plug the Vectrex Light Pen into the outlet marked, '2nd
  Player' (to the left of where the control panel is plugged
  in).

* MAKE SURE THE CONSOLE IS TURNED OFF
  BEFORE INSERTING THE CARTRIDGE. Insert the
  ANIMACTION cartridge into the cartridge slot with the
  label side up. Be sure it is firmly inserted to the guideline
  marked on the cartridge.

* Turn the OFF/ON/VOLUME CONTROL to the ON posi-
  tion (clockwise). You will see the Vectrex title for a few
  seconds, then the ANIMACTION title, followed by the
  Menu.

* Adjust the volume control to the desired listening level.

* IMPORTANT: Adjust the BRIGHTNESS CONTROL (on
  back of console) so that the white dot in the center of
  the screen just barely disappears. If the brightness is
  too dim, the Light Pen will not provide maximum
  performance.


BEFORE YOU BEGIN ...
--------------------
AnimAction's features make it one of the most amazing
video crafts available today so before we go into all the
details, here's a simple summary of the basic steps in-
volved in creating and animating art with AnimAction:

* Review the pre-drawn figures and shapes (called
  'sprites') in the AnimAction library and decide which
  ones you want to use in your basic scene. If you like, you
  can make your own figures and shapes and add them
  to the AnimAction library'.

* Select any of the sprites (both pre-drawn and your
  own) from the library and put them into your basic
  scene.

* Adjust the sprites in your basic scene... you can make
  them larger or smaller... turn them around... flip them
  inside-out... or make them brighter or dimmer.

* Add other details to your basic scene (called 'etching')
  backgrounds like mountains, a horizon, trees, houses,
  pastures, the ocean  anything that you want to remain
  stationary while your sprites are animating.

* Once your basic scene is composed in Frame 1, pro-
  ceed on to other frames where you can make changes
  to the sprites... move them around to different areas,
  enlarge or reduce them, turn them around! You can do
  something different in each frame!

* After you've animated all the frames you wish, you can
  'play' them back... watch them animate... forward,
  backward and at different speeds!

Now let's take these basic steps and explain them in
more detail...


CREATING THE BASIC SCENE
------------------------
Put your Light Pen in hand... and get ready for the most
mind-boggling art experience of your life! First you must
create a basic scene-and the possibilities are end-
less. Compose a country setting with trees, birds, wild
horses, the sun and a mountain backdrop. Create your
own faraway galaxy with stars, planets, comets, mete-
orites, spaceships! Draw your own racecourse with hot
Formula I cars, a pace clock, even the cheering crowd
After you've created your basic scene, you can then ani-
mate and watch your creation come to life!

Reviewing the Pre-Drawn Sprites
-------------------------------
AnimAction has been pre-programmed with 48 sprites
pre-drawn shapes and figures-which you can use in
your basic scene. It's a good idea to take a look at all of
these sprites in the 3 Sprite Libraries before you start
creating your scene so you can decide which ones
you'll want to use.
After the AnimAction title, you'll see this on the screen:

...

This is Frame 1 of your composition. It is where you'll
create your basic scene before moving on to Frames 2,
3 and beyond to animate your scene.

To review the first page of the sprite library aim the
Light Pen at the word, 'LIB' When the other words at the
bottom of the screen disappear press Button 3 on the
control panel. You will see:

...

Take a look at these sprites and make a mental note
of those you think you might want to use in your basic
design, Then aim the Light Pen at the word, 'NXT' and
press Button 3 to see the next page of sprites.

Again, pick out the sprites you might want to use,
Then aim the Light Pen at 'NXT' and press Button 3 to
see this last page of pre-drawn sprites:

...

Making Your Own Sprites
-----------------------
If you wish, you can now draw your own sprites and add
them to the library Point the Light Pen at the word,
'MAKE' and press Button 3, You will see this:

...

This is your 'sketch pad' The lines you see are simply
guidelines to help you sketch your own sprites, Remem-
ber that your sprite must be drawn within the outer box.
These guidelines will not show up in your finished sprite.

DRAWING THE SPRITE
------------------
To draw your sprite, aim the Light Pen at your desired
starting point and press Button 1 to get a dot and  "+"  to
appear To create a line starting at this dot, aim the Light
Pen at another point where you want the line to end and
press Button 2. In creating your sprite, use Buttons 1
and 2 to define starting points and draw lines. To close a
figure, aim the Light Pen at a previously defined point.
When it is detected, a square will appear around the
point. Then press Button 2. You can also move the "+"
sign by aiming the Light Pen at your desired new start-
ing point and pressing Button 1 (Note: Your sprite can
contain up to 29 lines.)

Press Button 1 at desired
starting point

Press Button 2 to draw line
starting at first point

Press Button 2 again to
continue the drawing

To close figure, aim Light Pen
at existing point and press
Button 2.

MAKING ADJUSTMENTS
------------------
Before adding your sprite to the library you can make
any adjustments you feel necessary Just aim the Light
Pen at any point on your sprite. When the point is de-
tected, a square will appear around the point. Press But-
ton 3 and hold it while you move the point with the Light
Pen. This will also move the line or lines connected to
that point (like a 'rubber band' effect). Release Button 3
when that point is in the desired location. Continue to
adjust your figure until it is completed and looks just the
way you want it to look!
You can remove lines from your sprite one at a
time in the reverse order than you drew them. Each
time you press Button 4, a line will be erased. (Note:
you don't need to aim the Light Pen at the line being
erased.) You can also erase the entire sprite by aiming
the Light Pen at the word: 'ERA' and pressing Button 3.

Aim the Light Pen at
any point

Press Button 3 and
move point with the
Light Pen

To erase everything,
aim the Light Pen at
'ERA' and press
Button 3

ADDING YOUR SPRITE TO THE LIBRARY
---------------------------------
When your sprite is completed add it to the blank library
page by aiming the Light Pen at the word 'EXIT' and
pressing Button 3.

CREATING EVEN MORE SPRITES!
---------------------------
You can create up to 20 of your own sprites and enter
them on your library page. Just aim the Light Pen at the
word, 'MAKE' to get back to the 'sketch pad' mode and
then follow the same procedure for each sprite you want
to make.

DELETING SPRITES FROM YOUR LIBRARY
----------------------------------
Should you want to delete one or more of your sprites
from the library simply go to the library page and aim
the Light Pen at the sprite you want to delete. Then
press and hold Button 3 and press Button 4.

Selecting The First Four Sprites For The Basic Scene
----------------------------------------------------
You can select four sprites at a time from the entire
library of sprites and use them in your basic scene.
To select a sprite, first go to the library page on which
the sprite is located. Aim the Light Pen at the wordD 'LIB'
or 'NXT' and press Button 3 one or more times until you
find the right page. To select a sprite aim the Light Pen
at the sprite. When it gets brighter press Button 3. You'll
see the sprite you selected appear at the top of the
screen. Continue to select up to three more sprites in
this same manner.

Placing The First Four Sprites In The Basic Scene
After selecting the first four sprites, you can use them in
composing your basic scene. Point the Light Pen at the
word 'EXIT' on any library page and press Button 3. This
will take you to the main compose screen  Frame 1
which looks like this:

...

These are your four
selected sprites

To enter a sprite into the basic scene, aim the Light
Pen at that sprite at the top of the screen. (Note: be sure
to always aim the Light Pen at the dot in the center of
the sprite.) When the sprite gets brighter press and hold
Button 3 and use the Light Pen to move the sprite down
into the main part of the screen. Then release Button 3.
Don't worry about the exact positioning of the sprite
right now You'll be able to move it around, make it
bigger or smaller later.
You can use each sprite as many times as you wish in
your basic scene. Just go back up to the sprite Menu at
the top of the screen and move it down again into your
basic scene.

Aim the Light Pen at
the sprite

Press & hold Button 3
and move the sprite
down with the Light Pen

use any sprite as many
times as you wish

Adjusting The Sprites
---------------------
You can make many adjustments to any or all of your
sprites now Move them anywhere on the screen! Make
them larger or smaller, brighter or dimmer rotate them...
even flip them inside-out! Here's how:

* To Move a Sprite Around the Screen: Aim the Light
  Pen at the bright dot in the center of the sprite. Press
  and hold Button 3 and move the sprite with the Light
  Pen anywhere you want on the screen.

* To Make a Sprite Larger or Smaller. Aim the Light Pen
  at the dot in the sprite and push the joystick forward to
  make the sprite larger or backward to make it smaller.

* To Make a Sprite Brighter or Dimmer. Aim the Light
  Pen at the dot in the sprite. Press and hold Button 1 to
  make the sprite dimmer Or press and hold Button 2 to
  make the sprite brighter.

* To Rotate a Sprite: Aim the Light Pen at the dot in the
  sprite and push the joystick to the right for clockwise
  rotation or to the left for counter-clockwise rotation.
  To Flip a Sprite in Three Directions: Aim the Light Pen
  at the dot in the sprite and press and hold down Button
  3. Then press Button 2 one or more times. Each time
  you press Button 2, you will get one of three different
  mirror images of the sprite.

* To Erase a Sprite: If you decide that you don't want to
  use a sprite in your scene, simply aim the Light Pen at
  the sprite. Press and hold Button 3 and then press But-
  ton 4 and the sprite will vanish from your scene. Al-
  though you have erased this sprite at this time, it is
  available for use again later if you wish.

 Selecting and Using Additional Sprites
 For The Basic Scene
 After using the first four sprites you selected, you can go
 back to the library and select more sprites  up to four
 at a time. Simply follow the same procedure described
 above. (Note: you can use up to 32 sprites in the basic
 scene,)

Adding Other Details To The Basic Scene
---------------------------------------
When you've finished selecting and placing sprites into
your basic scene, you can add other details. This pro-
cess is called 'etching'. For example, you can draw a
mountain backdrop, a horizon line, trees, houses-
anything that you want to remain stationary while your
sprites are animating.
To enter the 'ETCH' mode, aim the Light Pen at the
word, 'SPR' at the top left side of the main compose
screen, Then press Button 3, When you release the but-
ton and move the Light Pen away from the screen, you
will be in the 'ETCH' mode and you will see the cursor
("+") in the center of the screen.

'Free-Hand' Etching:
To start etching, aim the Light
Pen at the "+" and use the Light Pen to move the "+" to
your desired starting position, To draw free-hand lines,
press and hold Button 1 on the control panel while you
move the "+" around the screen with the Light Pen, The
slower you draw the easier it will be to create curved
lines. To draw another figure or part of the background
on the screen, release Button 1 and move the "+" with
your Light Pen to another starting position, Then press
and hold Button 1 again as you draw more lines. (Note:
you can etch up to approximately 80 free-hand lines)

'Straight-line' Etching:
To draw straight lines in the
'ETCH' mode, move the "+" with the Light Pen anywhere
on the screen, This will be your starting point, Then
press and hold Button 2 and move the Light Pen around
the screen... watch your line stretch and pull to all direc-
tions, just like a rubber band! Release Button 2 when
your straight line is at the desired location and the de-
sired length. (Note: you can etch up to approximately 40
straight lines.)

Erasing:
You can erase your entire etching or just one
line at a time, To erase the entire etching, aim the Light
Pen at the word, 'ERA' and press Button 3, To erase one
line at a time-in the reverse order that you drew them
- press Button 4 once for each line you wish to erase.
(Note: you don't need to aim the Light Pen at the line
being erased)

When you have finished etching, you must go back to
the 'sprite' mode before you start to animate, Aim the
Light Pen at the word 'ETCH' at the top left side of the
screen and press Button 3, When you release the button
and move the Light Pen away from the screen, you will
be back in the 'sprite' mode and ready to animate .,

ANIMATING YOUR SCENE
--------------------
When your basic scene is completed in Frame 1 of the
'sprite' mode, you can start to animate it!

Advancing to New Frames & Adjusting Sprites
To advance to Frame 2 and begin animating your scene,
aim the Light Pen at the word, 'NXT' at the bottom of the
screen and press Button 3.
Once you're in Frame 2, you can adjust your sprites in
any way using the same methods described earlier in
'Adjusting The Sprites' If you wish to see a 'shadow' of
the previous frame's figures, press Button 4 twice.
(Pressing Button 4 once will remove the words from the
bottom of the screen which will also reduce any 'flicker'
in your drawing) Pressing Button 4 a third time will re-
move the previous frame's 'shadow' and will cause the
words at the bottom to reappear.

After making all adjustments in Frame 2, you can
advance to Frame 3 and beyond by using the same
procedure. The total number of frames available for ani-
mation depends on the number of sprites you used in
your basic scene:

Number of Sprites Number of Frames in Scene Available for Animation
3 sprites or less 28 frames
4-16 sprites 14 frames
17-32 sprites 7 frames

You don't need to use all of the frames available for
your animation... you can animate as few as two frames.

'Playing' Your Animation
------------------------
To watch your creation come to life, aim the Light Pen at
the word, 'PLY' at the bottom of the screen and press
Button 3. This animation shows your scene in a continu-
ous forward and reverse motion. You'll see your scene
beginning in Frame 1, progressing frame-by-frame
through the last frame you completed. It then pro-
gresses frame-by-frame in reverse back to Frame 1. This
animation will continue until you press Button 1 to stop it.
For example, if you completed seven frames, it would
'play' this way.

Frame: 1234567654321234567 etc.

There are two other play options for your animation. If
you press Button 2 once while your scene is animating,
it will move in a forward direction only, smoothly looping
from the last frame back to the first frame. For example,
in a seven-frame animation, it would 'play' like this:

Frame: 123456712345671234567 etc.

If you press Button 2 a second time, your scene will
then animate in a forward direction only  without a
smooth loop from the last frame back to the first. For ex-
ample, in a seven-frame animation, it would 'play' as
follows:

Frame: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
1234567
1234567
etc

If you press Button 2 a third time, you will return to the
original forward and reverse animation sequence.
You can also control the speed of the animation while
it's in motion in any of the 'play' options. While the ani-
mation is 'playing' you can speed it up by pressing But-
ton 4 one or more times... or slow it down by pressing
Button 3 one or more times.
You can always stop the animation at any time by
pressing Button 1 which will return you to the last frame
you were in before 'play'.

Editing Your Animation
----------------------
You can go back to any frame and make adjustments to
your sprites. You can also go to additional frames (if
they are available) and continue your animation. First
press Button 1 to stop the 'play' mode. Go backward or
forward to any frame to re-edit, that frame by aiming the
Light Pen at 'LAS' or 'NXT' and pressing Button 3 one or
more times. To erase all frames, simply aim the Light
Pen at the word, 'ERA' and press Button 3. You can then
start over again and create a whole new scene.

There's No Limit To What Animaction Can Do!

Make her run, walk
send her out on a
shopping spree! Draw
your own background
and send her camping
sailing climbing
dancing!

Speed him up slow
him down send him
through tunnels across
bridges into a dan-
gerous jungle!

Create your own star
wars! The enemy fleet
attacks! Dive bomb!
Soar through the gal-
axy/Fire your secret
weapons!

He's your own personal
robot-with special
powers! Make him spin
his arms, his eyes grow
brighter then make
him disappear! Send
him flying through
space... you're in con-
trol of all his actions!

Example 1
---------
Create this basic scene using
the first set of sprites on the
screen.

In Frame 2 move the eyes
around

In Frame 3 make more
adjustments

Fine-tune your animation
before you go into the 'play'
mode

Example 2
---------
Go to 'ETCH' mode and draw
your own design.

Go to 'SPRITE' mode and
select these sprites from the
third library page

Assemble all the pieces
making whatever adjustment
necessary in Frame 1

In Frame 2 bring the horse's
body and head forward and
place legs in running position

Raise the horse's head and
body and place his legs in
jumping position

Position his legs so that they
are fully extended over the
hurdle

Lower his head and body and
place his legs on the ground

Lower the horse's head
to graze

Example 3
---------
Then make the explosion
'invisible' by using Button 1

In Frame 2, lower hammer to
top of nail

In Frame 3, bring up the
intensity of the explosion by
pressing Button 2

In Frame 4 lower nail into
table and move hammer to
top of nail Then make the
explosion 'invisible' by using
Button 1.
Play sequence by pointing
Light Pen at 'PLY`.

90 Day Limited Warranty
-----------------------
This Video Game Cartridge is warranted by General Consumer Elec-
tronics, Inc. to the original consumer purchaser in the U.S A for a pe-
riod of 90 days from the original purchase date under normal use and
service against defective workmanship and materials ANY IMPLIED
WARRANTIES ARE ALSO LIMITED IN DURATION TO THE NINETY (90)
DAY PERIOD FROM THE ORIGINAL PURCHASE DATE SOME STATES
DO NOT ALLOW LIMITATIONS ON HOW LONG AN IMPLIED WAR-
RANTY LASTS SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU

This warranty is void if the GCE Video Game Cartridge has been
damaged by accident, unreasonable use, neglect, misuse, abuse, im-
proper service, modification, subject to commercial use or other
causes not arising out of defects in workmanship or materials and is
limited to electronic and mechanical parts contained in the cartridge.

GENERAL CONSUMER ELECTRONICS, INC SHALL NOT BE LIA-
BLE FOR LOSS OF USE OF THE VIDEO GAME CARTRIDGE OR
OTHER INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL COSTS EXPENSES OR
DAMAGES INCURRED BY THE PURCHASER RESULTING FROM
BREACH OF ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES ON THE
VIDEO GAME CARTRIDGE SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EX-
CLUSION OR LIMITATION OF INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL
DAMAGES. SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSIION MAY NOT
APPLY TO YOU.

During the warranty period, if found to be defective due to work-
manship or materials, the GCE Video Game Cartridge will at the option
of General Consumer Electronics. Inc be repaired or replaced with a
new or reconditioned GCE Video Game Cartridge without charge for
parts or labor when returned by Purchaser with proof of purchase
date, shipped prepaid to General Consumer Electronics, Inc. at the fol-
lowing address:

 General Consumer Electronics Inc.
 233 Wilshire Boulevard
 Santa Monica, California 90401

In the event that your GCE Video Game Cartridge is replaced, the
warranty on the replacement will be ninety (90) days from the date of
its return to you.
