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Defender II - Atari - Atari 2600    Manual Scan icon HTML Manual   

Defender II
DEFENDER II
   by Williams Electronics


Alien marauders are attacking your planet, kidnapping the defensless
Humanoids and turning them into dangerous Mutants.  You've got to stop
them!

You begin with three ships, three Smartbombs -- capable of wiping out
everything in sight -- and Inviso, a mysterious cloaking compound.
But your most powerful defense is the Stellar Gateway, which instantly
transports you across the planet to rescue Humanoids.

Pilot your ship along the planet surface, blasting away at the evil
aliens while rescuing Humanoids.  But watch out -- the slightest
contact with an alien can be disastrous!  Only you, with the help of
the Stellar Gateway, can save your planet's beleaguered Humanoids from
attack and maybe -- just maybe -- wipe out the aliens forever!

GETTING STARTED

1.  Inser the Defender II cartridge into your Atari 2600 or 7800
console.  Plug the two joysticks into the two controller jacks.

2.  Turn on your TV, then press [Power] to turn on your system.

3.  Press [Reset] or the left joystick fire button to start the game.

PLAYING THE GAME

Your objective is to rescue the Humanoids and eliminate all aliens.
You begin the game with three ships, three Smartbombs, about six
seconds' worth of Inviso, and enough energy to hyperspace temporarily
out of danger.  The number of ships and Smartbombs and the amount of
Inviso you have left are shown at the top of the screen.  You have an
unlimited amount of regular ammunition.

Use the left joystick's handle and fire button to maneuver your ship
and fire regular ammunition.  Press the right joystick's fire button
to drop Smartbombs.  Push the right joystick's handle forward to
activate Inviso; pull it back to jump into hyperspace.  When you run
out of Smartbombs, pressing the right joystick's fire button activates
Inviso.  Once your Inviso is gone, pressing the right joystick's fire
button will send you into hyperspace.

Defender II has up to 100 attack waves.  As soon as you clear the
planet of aliens in one wave, the next wave begins.  You score points
whenever you destron an alien.  For ever 10,000 points you score, you
earn another ship, another Smartbomb, and more Inviso.

When you lose a ship, a new one appears until all your ships are lost.
Action resumes when you move the joystick handle.

The game ends when you lose all your ships.  Press [Reset] or the left
joystick fire button to begin a new game.

THE DEFENDER

XXX XXXXX      SMARTBOMBS destroy all aliens on screen.  They are most
 XXXXXXXXXX    effective when aliens surround you.
XXX XXXXX

INVISO makes you invisible for about two seconds.  Aliens can't hurt
you while you are invisible, although you can still fire and anything
you pass through is automatically destroyed.

HYPERSPACE sends you into space warp.  You never know where you'll
reappear, so use it only as a last resot!  You could easily end up on
or near an enemy, which will destroy you immediately.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX   The STELLAR GATEWAY warps you to a part of the planet 
XXXXXXXXXXXXX   where a Humanoid is in danger.  If all the Humanoids 
XXX       XXX   are temporarily safe.  The Gateway transports you to
XXXXXXX   XXX   the opposite side of the planet.
XXX       XXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX


XXXXX           HUMANOIDS are defenseless.  The alien Landers snatch them
X   X           off the planet's surface and carry them up through the
XXXXXXXX        atmosphere to turn them into Mutants.  When shooting
XXXXXXXX        Landers, be careful not to shoot the Humanoid by mistake.
XXXXX           Once freed, Humanoids start drifting down.  Catch them before
XXXXX           they reach the planet's surface, then gently guide your ship 
XXXXX           down.  The Humanoid automatically beams to the nearest
                Humanoid Space Station  You receive extra points for every
                Humanoid safely deposted on the planet.

You can keep rescued Humanoids on your ship.  In waves 1 through 9,
passing through the Stellar Gateway while transporting four or more
Humanoids on your ship will advance you three waves.  However,
carrying Humanoids makes you a larger and easier target for the
aliens.  If you lose your ship, the Humanoids will escape safely to
the planet's surface.


THE ENEMY

  XXX           LANDERS are the most dangerous aliens.  They swoop down
 OOOOO          and kidnap the Humanoids, turning them into dangerous
X XX  X         Mutants when they reach the top of the screen.  They
XXXXXXX         can't follow you, but if you are nearby they will fire
  XXX           lethal charges in your direction.
 O X O
X  X  X

  OOO           MUTANTS move fast, their heads spinning and flashing with
 OOOOO          bright colors.  They can sense your presence and will
X  XX X         track you down if you don't keep moving.  Mutants also
XXXXXXX         fire lethal charges at you when making their assault.
  XXX
 O O O
X  X  X

  OOOOO         YLLABIAN SPACE GUPPIES are mindelss, but they'll home in
OOOOOOOOO       quickly and destroy you if you're not careful.
  XXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
  XXXXX
XXXXXXXXX
  XXXXX

  OOOOO         FIREBOMBERS are treacherous.  Blast them out of your way
OOOOOOOOO       early on.
  OOOOO
  XXXXX
XXXXXXXXX
  XXXXX

 X  X  X        PODS bob around like bouncing balls.  Don't get too close
  XXXXX         to one -- once you destroy it, you still have to worry 
XXXXXXXXX       the three swarmers that will be released.
  XXXXX
 X  X  X

   XXX          SWARMERS fly straight at you when their Pod is destroyed.
 XXXXXXX        Three quick shots should take care of them.
   XXX

    OO          DYNAMOS are cubic creatures that swirl around above the
  OOOOXX        planet's surface.  They are oblivious to everything and
XXOOOO          always fly in the same diagonal path across the sky.
  OO            Stay out of their way!

    XXXXXXXX      BAITERS come out when you take too long to finish off
XXXXXX    XXXXXX  a wave.  They know right where you are and close in on
  XXXXXXXXXXXX    you quickly.  Destroy them right away.

XXXXXXXX        PHREDS are no fun.  They have excellent vision and zoom 
XXX             straight at you, exploding on contact and disintegrating
XXX             both of you.
XXX
XXXXXXXX

XXXXXXX         MUNCHIES are looters looking for the spoils of war.  They
XXXXXXX         are small, fast, and can sniff out your ship when it's
XXX             in a vulnerable position.
XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX


STRATEGY

The scanner at the top of your screen shows you areas on the planet
where Humanoids are in danger.  Keep an eye on your scanner -- it will
alert you to any emergencies in another part of the sky.  Rush to a
Stellar Gateway for immediate transport to that sector.

Your planet will be destroyed if all the Humanoids are turned into
Mutants -- but you must still defend yourself!  If you're a good
fighter, your planet will be restored in wave 6, or in every fifth
wave after that.

In wave 5 and every 10th wave following, you'll encounter the Yllabian
Dog Fight.  The only aliens that appear on the screen are Yllabian
Space Guppies, Pods, and Dynamos.  It takes skill and practice to make
it through this wave.

In every tenth wave, you'll find yourself in the middle of a
Firebomber showdown.  Firebombers are everywhere.  Keep a sharp eye
and a nimble firing finger.

Along with the powers of your super spaceship, you've been blessed with supersonic hearing.  You can hear the Humanoids scream as they're being accosted by Landers.  On your side of the planet, this comes as a faint yelp.  The sound of explosions means that a Humanoid and Lander have just been transformed into a Mutant.

SCORING

Pods                      1000 points
Firebombers                250 points
Dynamos                    200 points
Baiters                    200 points
Phreds                     200 points
Yllabian Space Guppies     200 points
Mutants                    150 points
Landers                    150 points
Swarmers                   150 points
Munchies                    50 points

At the end of waves 1 through 5, you receive 100, 200, 300, 400, and
500 points, respectively, for every Humanoid left on the planet.
Beginning with wave 6, you receive 500 points for every Humanoid
remaining.

In waves 1 through 9, if you pass through the Stellar Gateway while
transporting four or more Humanoids on your ship, you'll automatically
advance three waves in the game.  You'll also receive 1,000 points for
every Humanoid left on the planet.

--------------------
Atari Corporation is unable to guarantee the accuracy of printed
material after the date of publication disclaims liability for
changes, errors, or omissions.  Reproduction of this document or any
portion of its contents is not allowed without the specific written
permission of Atari Corporation.

Atari, the Atari logo, 2600 and 7800 are trademarks or registered
trademarks of Atari Corporation.  Defender II is a trademark and (C)
1981 of Williams Electronics, manufactured under license from Williams
Electronics, Inc.

Copyright (C) 1987, Atari Corporation, Sunnyvale, CA  94086
All rights reserved.

Printed in Hong Kong  C300016-120 Rev. A

---------------------




This document obtained from the History of Home Video Games Homepage, �1997-1998 by Greg Chance