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Following is a Frequently Asked Questions for Hell Cab gameplay.
Q: I've exited the airport after visiting the ATM and listening to Raul. Now
I'm facing a cab and the computer seems frozen--I can't go back inside the
airport, and I can't proceed. What to do?
A: If you still have mouse control, you most likely haven't frozen. Make sure
you're as close to the cab as you can be. Click once on the door very
deliberately. Wait a second or two. You should move closer. Then move the
mouse slowly *and precisely* over the handle of the rear door. You should see
the cursor turn into a pointing finger. When it does, click the mouse and
watch the door open. Enter the cab and then turn to face the driver.
Hell Cab uses a number of different cursors to move you through the game.
Though you'll usually be presented with the broad north-south-east-west
variety, occasionally you will see this pointing hand.
Q: How do I get out of the Empire State Building?
A: You must enter the Empire State Building in order to start the adventure.
Once inside, you can either exit immediately or cruise the bottom floor,
elevators and observation deck. There's lots to see. But the key is to
(eventually) get *out* of there and back into the cab. That's where all the
hell-cabbing starts. First you'll travel to the Roman Coliseum. If you
survive that scenario, you'll wind up in the WWI trenches, after which you'll
get into Jurassic Park. Moving from scene to scene depends on whether you
live and how much soul/money you have.
Q: How do I get out of the Roman Coliseum?
A:
To get out of the arena (Roman Coliseum), you must first approach Caesar.
After speaking briefly to you, he will send you to jail. Once in jail,
soldiers and others will talk to you, after which you will be led back to the
arena to either fight a gladiator or run the gauntlet. On the way, you will
see a trident and a sword. Take either one.
Q: How do I kill the gladiator?
A: The gladiator is a tough kill unless you have a quick mouse finger and a
good eye. A few tips: When you face him, begin clicking the mouse rapidly.
He'll fight back. Start moving slowly to one side. As you do, you'll notice
that he follows you. Take that opportunity to feint back to the other side
while continuing to stab (click). If you are quick enough, you'll see the
sword draw "blood." Seven of those and he's down, and you're on the way to
the next adventure. With the trident, however, you have two tricks: When he
prepares to lunge (as he draws his arm back), you can knock his sword away if
you strike quickly at it. If you accomplish this, you win. Otherwise, try
stabbing him just to the right of the center of his chest. If you hit *just*
the right spot, you can put him down.
At all times when fighting the gladiator, it is crucial that you *keep*
clicking constantly. Even when he pokes you and the screen turns red, *keep
clicking fiercely and don't stop*. You may notice that you can stab him just
after he's nailed you.
Q: How do I defeat the gauntlet?
A: The gauntlet is very hard to beat, even if you play against it many times.
That is partly because it doesn't behave the same way twice. But if you want
to try, here's a tip: The cursor is your key to survival. You'll notice that
it changes from the forward-pointing cursor to the standard black arrow for
a second and then back. *During* the second or so of that black arrow
(cursor), you should begin clicking madly. If you are successful, you will
progress to the next point in the gauntlet, and so on. You *might* have
better luck fighting the gladiator.
Q: How do I get out of WWI alive?
A: There are four ways out of the WWI trenches. Of those, two do not require
that anyone be "killed," thus allowing you to keep the Soul-O-Meter at a high
reading.
To avoid attack from enemy soldiers, you can turn to face the wall *before*
you see one of them. Or, you can avoid them by clicking very rapidly on the
mouse as you proceed through the trench. This requires a careful touch, since
clicking too far ahead can get you into trouble.
The real key to survival is to find the Command Bunker, located just past the
second pillbox along the main trench (on the left). You'll know you're there
when you see a wooden "X" across the top of the trench. Go inside and face
the table located on the right. Stand still in front of it. Move as close to
the table as you can. If no items appear on the table, move the cursor until
it is on top of the table. Click on it. When you see certain desirable items
appear (no Twinkies, sorry), just click on them to obtain them. Follow the
dialog boxes. There's other interesting stuff in the room too... look around.
Now that you have them, you can put these items to good use: the gas mask
allows you to exit WWI via the hospital (back down the trench and on the
opposite side of the pillboxes), where you will be subjected to (guess what?)
a gas attack which would otherwise have killed you. The gun (which fires by
using the space bar) allows you to kill folks who don't like you. And so on.
There are two completely harmless ways out of WWI. One involves going back
the way you came, only this time go *all* the way past the soldier who
originally greeted you into the bunker at the end of the trench. Try giving
the bum some paper money and see what happens. The other way is at the
opposite end of the trench. On the way you have to stop at the machine gun
nest past the command bunker and shoot down 10 planes. Once you've gotten
past the planes, take the left fork of the trench. A certain soldier lying
there has a letter which you can "mail" for him at a location not far to
*his* left.
Q: How can I shoot down the planes?
A: The key to knocking down all of the planes is to understand that you
only have 12 bursts and 10 planes to kill. A "burst" consists of one quick
tap on the spacebar. If you hold down the spacebar for more than a fraction
of a second, you'll shoot all your bullets and the planes will kill you
instead.
To shoot them, simply wait for each *red* plane (the black ones can't get
you) to fly straight over your gunsights, which you've been patiently holding
steady at 12 o'clock. Just before he reaches your crosshairs, smack the
spacebar quickly and watch him fall out of the sky. Ten of those and you
shouldn't see any more red planes. The planes that seem to be flying at you
are easier to hit than the ones that zip directly across the screen. Turn
around and head back into the trenches, safe from future air attacks.
Transmitted: 94-10-03 16:10:14 EDT
Q: I've exited the airport after visiting the ATM and listening to Raul. Now
I'm facing a cab and the computer seems frozen--I can't go back inside the
airport, and I can't proceed. What to do?
A: If you still have mouse control, you most likely haven't frozen. Make sure
you're as close to the cab as you can be. Click once on the door very
deliberately. Wait a second or two. You should move closer. Then move the
mouse slowly *and precisely* over the handle of the rear door. You should see
the cursor turn into a pointing finger. When it does, click the mouse and
watch the door open. Enter the cab and then turn to face the driver.
Hell Cab uses a number of different cursors to move you through the game.
Though you'll usually be presented with the broad north-south-east-west
variety, occasionally you will see this pointing hand.
Q: How do I get out of the Empire State Building?
A: You must enter the Empire State Building in order to start the adventure.
Once inside, you can either exit immediately or cruise the bottom floor,
elevators and observation deck. There's lots to see. But the key is to
(eventually) get *out* of there and back into the cab. That's where all the
hell-cabbing starts. First you'll travel to the Roman Coliseum. If you
survive that scenario, you'll wind up in the WWI trenches, after which you'll
get into Jurassic Park. Moving from scene to scene depends on whether you
live and how much soul/money you have.
Q: How do I get out of the Roman Coliseum?
A:
To get out of the arena (Roman Coliseum), you must first approach Caesar.
After speaking briefly to you, he will send you to jail. Once in jail,
soldiers and others will talk to you, after which you will be led back to the
arena to either fight a gladiator or run the gauntlet. On the way, you will
see a trident and a sword. Take either one.
Q: How do I kill the gladiator?
A: The gladiator is a tough kill unless you have a quick mouse finger and a
good eye. A few tips: When you face him, begin clicking the mouse rapidly.
He'll fight back. Start moving slowly to one side. As you do, you'll notice
that he follows you. Take that opportunity to feint back to the other side
while continuing to stab (click). If you are quick enough, you'll see the
sword draw "blood." Seven of those and he's down, and you're on the way to
the next adventure. With the trident, however, you have two tricks: When he
prepares to lunge (as he draws his arm back), you can knock his sword away if
you strike quickly at it. If you accomplish this, you win. Otherwise, try
stabbing him just to the right of the center of his chest. If you hit *just*
the right spot, you can put him down.
At all times when fighting the gladiator, it is crucial that you *keep*
clicking constantly. Even when he pokes you and the screen turns red, *keep
clicking fiercely and don't stop*. You may notice that you can stab him just
after he's nailed you.
Q: How do I defeat the gauntlet?
A: The gauntlet is very hard to beat, even if you play against it many times.
That is partly because it doesn't behave the same way twice. But if you want
to try, here's a tip: The cursor is your key to survival. You'll notice that
it changes from the forward-pointing cursor to the standard black arrow for
a second and then back. *During* the second or so of that black arrow
(cursor), you should begin clicking madly. If you are successful, you will
progress to the next point in the gauntlet, and so on. You *might* have
better luck fighting the gladiator.
Q: How do I get out of WWI alive?
A: There are four ways out of the WWI trenches. Of those, two do not require
that anyone be "killed," thus allowing you to keep the Soul-O-Meter at a high
reading.
To avoid attack from enemy soldiers, you can turn to face the wall *before*
you see one of them. Or, you can avoid them by clicking very rapidly on the
mouse as you proceed through the trench. This requires a careful touch, since
clicking too far ahead can get you into trouble.
The real key to survival is to find the Command Bunker, located just past the
second pillbox along the main trench (on the left). You'll know you're there
when you see a wooden "X" across the top of the trench. Go inside and face
the table located on the right. Stand still in front of it. Move as close to
the table as you can. If no items appear on the table, move the cursor until
it is on top of the table. Click on it. When you see certain desirable items
appear (no Twinkies, sorry), just click on them to obtain them. Follow the
dialog boxes. There's other interesting stuff in the room too... look around.
Now that you have them, you can put these items to good use: the gas mask
allows you to exit WWI via the hospital (back down the trench and on the
opposite side of the pillboxes), where you will be subjected to (guess what?)
a gas attack which would otherwise have killed you. The gun (which fires by
using the space bar) allows you to kill folks who don't like you. And so on.
There are two completely harmless ways out of WWI. One involves going back
the way you came, only this time go *all* the way past the soldier who
originally greeted you into the bunker at the end of the trench. Try giving
the bum some paper money and see what happens. The other way is at the
opposite end of the trench. On the way you have to stop at the machine gun
nest past the command bunker and shoot down 10 planes. Once you've gotten
past the planes, take the left fork of the trench. A certain soldier lying
there has a letter which you can "mail" for him at a location not far to
*his* left.
Q: How can I shoot down the planes?
A: The key to knocking down all of the planes is to understand that you
only have 12 bursts and 10 planes to kill. A "burst" consists of one quick
tap on the spacebar. If you hold down the spacebar for more than a fraction
of a second, you'll shoot all your bullets and the planes will kill you
instead.
To shoot them, simply wait for each *red* plane (the black ones can't get
you) to fly straight over your gunsights, which you've been patiently holding
steady at 12 o'clock. Just before he reaches your crosshairs, smack the
spacebar quickly and watch him fall out of the sky. Ten of those and you
shouldn't see any more red planes. The planes that seem to be flying at you
are easier to hit than the ones that zip directly across the screen. Turn
around and head back into the trenches, safe from future air attacks.
Transmitted: 94-10-03 16:10:14 EDT