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* Ball - Game & Watch Simulator	      *	
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* Version 1.5 (Beta) - August 18,1999 *
* by Steve Ellenoff		      *
* Email: sellenoff@hotmail.com	      *
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Intro:
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"Ball" was the very first "Game & Watch" handheld game ever made by 
Nintendo on April 28,1980. It was part of the "Silver" series, which later spawned the
popular "Gold" series.
 
I have fond memories of playing this game in school (not during class of course!) when I 
was eight years old! To this day, I have not seen one since. This is my tribute to this
ridiculously simple, but addicting game!! Enjoy, I hope it serves as a fun distraction! 
How many points can YOU get?


Installation:
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To install, simply unzip the files to any folder, and double click "BALL.EXE" to begin!

If you get any error messages, you may need to obtain the appropriate
Microsoft Visual Basic 5.0 Run Time Files which are readily available on the internet
(please do not email me asking for them). If there is a need for it, I will release a zip file 
with the run time files included, but it will make the zip file much much bigger, and therefore
much slower to download!

Keyboard:
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"ESC" Key - Exit the Game
"F1"  Key - Presses "GAME A" Button!
"F2"  Key - Presses "GAME B" Button!
"F3"  Key - Presses Time Button!
"A"   Key - Presses LEFT Button! 	(Moves the Juggler's arms to the Left!)
"L"   Key - Presses RIGHT Button!	(Moves the Juggler's arms to the Right!)

*You can also use the mouse to click any of these buttons but I wouldn't recommend it! 

How To Play:
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Press either the GAME A button, or the GAME B button to begin.

It's a very simple concept: Move the juggler's arms left or right so that the balls never 
hit the ground!

When you are tired of dropping balls, hit the ESC to exit or use the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON to
bring up a menu which, among other things, allows you to exit!


Help Me Out!!
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If you *OWN* this game, or know anyone that does, please, please, please email me about
it so that I can make this game as accurate as possible!!

Information Still Needed:
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The following information is not 100% confirmed...

1) When the game is first turned on/reset, what is displayed?
2) When the game shows the time, what else does it show?
3) Is there a demo mode? If so, when does it start?
4) Is the ball speed accurate?
5) Does the game make a sound when the ball is caught (as it does in the Gameboy Version?)
6) Are the high scores supposed to be shown while holding down game "A" or "B"?
7) The ball presumably draws double at a certain speed, when does that occur?
8) When the speed resets, does it always reset back to the same pace, or does each reset
   revert to a slighlty faster speed than the previous?
9) Are there drop shadows for the crash, and arms? How noticeable are they? Do you see them
   when the game is off?

Frequently Asked Questiosn (FAQ)
--------------------------------
Q) How do I exit the game?
A) Hit the ESC key OR Click the Right Mouse Button, and choose "Exit" from the Popup Menu!

Q) I'm not getting any sound?
A) Make sure that "Tick.wav" and "Crush.wav" are in your folder with the "Ball.exe"
A) Make sure that "Sound" is checked from the Right Mouse Button Popup Menu!
A) If still doesn't work, check your volume, and soundcard stuff...

Q) I get strange errors when trying to run the game, what's wrong?
A) You probably need the Microsoft Visual Basic 5.00 run time DLLs. (See Installation Notes)
A) If you have them properly installed, then it must be a bug, please report it to me, thanks!

Q) What's that # that displays when the game first loads up?
A) It's the current time of your computer. It looks strange because there's no colon between
   the hours and minutes. This was how the original was designed.

Q) What does the Time button do?
A) It toggles between displaying the Game & Watch's current time, and the score of the last
   game that was just played.

Q) How do I see my high scores?
A) If you hold down either Game "A" button, or Game "B" button, your high score for that
   game mode will be displayed, until you let go of the button.

Q) I would like more information on Game & Watches, where can I go?
A) http://www.gameandwatch.com/ is an excellent source on the actual games themselves..
A) For Simulators, check out:
	1) http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Lot/6166/gwsim.htm
	2) http://www.davesvgc.com/handheld.html

Q) Did you know that <whatever> is not correct in your sim?
A) No, please let me know what needs to be corrected, I really need info on this game!

Q) I suck, is there anyway to get any better?
A) Keep practicing...maybe I'll eventually make the game easier if I find out what the real
   game plays like!

Q) What did you program this in, and how long did it take?
A) Microsoft Visual Basic 5, and about 1 week of free time after work (thanks largely to
   the source code I was able to look at for Pheeraphat's Octopus Simulator). Version 1.5
   changes took about 2 weeks of free time.

Q) Don't you have anything better to do with your free time?
A) Yes, I probably do... :)


Find a Bug?
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Please send me an email at sellenoff@hotmail.com to let me know and I will fix it thanks!


Special Thanks:
---------------

Thanks goes out to Pheeraphat Sawangphian (http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Lot/6166/)
for his outstanding work on what I believe was one of the first Game & Watch Simulators ever
made for the PC, Octopus! Even more importantly, his source code for that project helped me
to understand how to make my own, and was the basis for this simulator! Thanks Pheeraphat!!

Thanks goes out to Mike Kozlowski for answering my many numerous questions about how "Ball"
actually works since he owns the real game and was nice enough to clear up any questions I
had!

Thanks goes out to the following people: 
Paul Jensen, Thomas Weber, Jon Co, Kurt Woloch, Eldad, and last but not least "TheFreak".
Each one provided me with very helpful information regarding Ball Game Play issues, and
generally helped to improve the accuracy of the simulation.


Legal Stuff:
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"Ball", "Game & Watch" are copyrighted by Nintendo Co., Ltd (I'm guessing)

"Ball - Game and Watch Simulator" is freeware and can be distributed freely. You may not
charge anyone for this software under any circumstance!! Yes, that means you!

When you use this software you do so at your own risk. The author is not responsible for any 
loss or damage resulting from the use or misuse of this software. I never said type "Format C:" in the
DOS box! :)

If you do not agree with these terms delete this software now!!!


Other:
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WOW! You made it down this far? I am impressed! :)