| The Ship Guide
Tutorial Mode
Welcomes you on board the Ship and the Ship’s announcer will take you
through the basic controls and the principles of the game.
Story Mode
Once you’re happy with controlling your character and the basic principles of
playing the game, play the single player story mode to find out about Mr X,
The Hunt and the story behind The Ship.
Will you be hunted down before you can escape? Can you raise the funds you
need to get off the Ship? Who is Mr X anyway and what is he up to? What will
happen to you and the other people on board if you don’t escape?
Arcade Mode
Offline, single player arcade mode allows players to play the online game
modes against AI and hone their skills for the multiplayer arena.
Join a Cruise
To access an online game, join a cruise. To join a game on the Internet choose from the list of Internet servers. If you are playing on a LAN and you or someone else on your LAN has set up a Ship server on the network, you will be able to see this server on the LAN list.
Engine Room
You can set up your controls for the game to your own liking by accessing the
engine room. You can also give yourself a name for online play.
Multiplayer Game Modes
Multiplayer modes are set by the server and offer support for 8 - 32 players.
Hunt Mode – the game is divided into rounds, once anyone kills their quarry the other hunters have a limited time to kill their quarries before everyone is assigned a new quarry and the next round begins. The winner is the one with the most in their bank account at the end of the game. Hunt mode is a good introduction for new players.
Elimination Mode – you are knocked out of the kill loop and become a
regular passenger if you are killed by your hunter. If you kill your quarry you
get a new quarry. The winner is the last one left alive.
Duel Mode – you can challenge another hunter to a duel, without the
interference of other players.
Deathmatch Mode – offers traditional Deathmatch play, but using the
weapons of the Ship, and with the additions of the ‘Money For Kills’ table,
needs and security.
Basic Game Concepts
Identity
You will see your own name at the top left of your screen. Your Quarry’s name is displayed at the bottom right. Everyone on board the Ship has a name but the most interesting person to you is your Quarry. You can find out the name of anyone you meet by left mouse clicking on them. If they are too far away, use ‘Z’ to zoom in and then left mouse click. Once you know someone their name is displayed each time you encounter them. If they change outfit, you will not recognize them and therefore not know their name.
If you have not yet met your Quarry; their image will display as a silhouette. If you have met them; their portrait will appear in the outfit you last saw them wearing. If they change their outfit; their picture will not update until
you meet them again.
The Hunt
The rules of the Hunt are simple. Each player is given the name of one of the
other contestants on board, and you must Hunt them down and kill them with
any weapon you can find on board. Depending on the game mode, either the
last hunter left alive is the winner or the one with the most money in their bank account wins. As well as having someone to Hunt, you have another player hunting you, so keep looking over your shoulder if you want to stay alive. If you find yourself being followed, lose your hunter in the corridors and
rooms of the Ship, or use the security guards and cameras to protect you, or
alternatively lure them into a quiet corner and kill them before they kill you…
Attack is the best form of defense after all. To find your Quarry, try talking to people or examining them to find out their names. Once you’ve found your Quarry follow them stealthily or lure them into a location where you can murder them. Mr X will give you the last known location of your Quarry every now and again. If they are arrested or are taken to sick bay you will be instantly notified. If you were wondering, you can’t simply kill everyone just in case they are your hunter or quarry… Mr. X takes a dim view of such behavior, and will fine you for random acts of murder, called ‘innocent kills’. You can kill your hunter without suffering any fine however. The Hunt is the primary multiplayer game and can also be played offline in arcade mode. The main character in story mode is also forced to play the Hunt.
Security
There is security on board in the form of guards and cameras, who protect the unsuspecting passengers who share the Ship with Hunters. The security team enforces the ships laws, the primary law being no murder, so don’t get spotted! Security status is indicated by icons on your HUD (Heads Up Display). A big green eye indicates no security. If this eye turns red, icons will appear above the eye to indicate the type of security. A small ‘camera’ icon indicates a camera is watching you. You should also be able to see this camera in the game world. Be careful because cameras rotate and will sweep away from you, causing the eye to turn green, and seconds later will sweep back. Always have a good look around you before assuming that you are safe to undertake criminal activity. A ‘guard’ icon indicates a guard is watching you. You can bribe the guard to look the other way and ignore seeing you by interacting with him. This will give you a small window of opportunity during which you can perform a murder. This time limit is indicated by a circle with a timer. A colored band will gradually empty indicating your bribery time ticking down. You interact with the guard via the CSI. Right Mouse Click on the guard and you will see a range of possible actions, including bribery. Bribing guards will also stop reports of you being seen on camera, allowing you to commit crimes in all types of security zones.
The Brig
You will be arrested or fined for crimes including murder, attempted murder, possession of a deadly weapon, theft, and trespassing (you don’t have free reign over the ship, you will have to be sneaky if you want access to crew areas). If you are arrested you will find yourself frozen on the spot for a few moments before you are transported to a holding cell. Judgment is passed on you in the Ship’s court followed by a spell in prison commensurate with your crime. The more weapons you possess the heavier your fine will be and you’ll also suffer depending on the gravity of the crime you are spotted committing.
Witnesses
Anyone on board can act as a witness to your crimes and if you are witnessed doing anything criminal from using the wrong sex toilet to committing a murder, you will be fined or arrested, depending on the severity of your crime. Witnesses are indicated by the small, ‘silver eye’ symbol which appears whenever someone is looking at you, regardless of security status. Witnesses cannot be bribed but dependent on server settings and the number of witnesses you will have a very short period of time, perhaps 1 second, during which you can potentially commit a crime. If you are in danger of arrest the large green eye will turn red.
Needs
On board the Ship you have needs, just like in real life and you neglect them
at your peril. Keep an eye on your needs icons. These are displayed on your HUD as a particular need becomes pressing and change color from green through to red as a need becomes more urgent. Once a need turns purple you must deal with it as soon as possible or suffer the consequences. You can satisfy your needs at locations all over the Ship. You can see where you can satisfy a particular need by bringing up your deck plan (press ‘P’) and clicking on the icon for the need you wish to satisfy. Locations on the deck where this need can be satisfied will be indicated on the plan.
Your Needs are: Eat, Drink, Sleep, Socialize, Entertainment, Hygiene, Pee and Poo.
Eating and Drinking needs can be satisfied at bars, restaurants, vending machines, and drinking fountains. Simply scroll across objects you would like to interact with to bring up the CSI. Right Mouse Click to show all possible options with that object or Left Mouse Click to perform the default action, indicated by an icon.
Sleeping can be accomplished most safely in a cabin but you can also take catnaps on chairs and sofas. Sleeping will cause your screen to turn black and you will be unable to move until you have slept for the full amount of time you need so be very careful where you choose to sleep. Talking to other passengers will satisfy your need for social interaction. Just left mouse click to chat. Playing a game of pool, reading a book or playing one of the other games on offer on board the Ship will keep you entertained. Scroll across items you would like to interact with to activate the CSI. Visit the bathroom to satisfy your pee & poo needs or take a bath or shower to stay clean and hygienic. Scroll across objects to activate the CSI.
Outfits
The Ship offers a great deal of opportunity for players to customize their
character. You can change your outfit and accessories via your inventory. New outfits can be found in containers and purchased at boutiques all over the Ship. Not only can you make sure you always look your best but changing your clothes will also prevent your hunter from recognizing you. A useful outfit to own is a crew outfit which allows access to crew areas without being fined for trespass.
Accessories
A number of accessories from hats to sunglasses can be found in containers and purchased from shops and outfitters. Take a look around and see what you can find. A cunning disguise will prevent your hunter from recognizing you.
Exploration
To be successful in the Hunt you need to know your way around the Ships in
Mr X’s fleet. Each Ship has its own secrets including hidden rooms, passages
and tunnels, extra weapons in special locations, environmental traps and
triggers and extra special ways of murdering your quarry. To win, you need
to explore thoroughly and use your imagination to find the hidden extras on
board each Ship.
Characters
Characters on board the Ship are either male or female. Your Identity (name
& image) tells you your own sex. Your Quarry’s name tells you their sex.
There are three types of characters on board the Ship:
• Crew – the crew consist of security guards, bar and restaurant staff, health
center staff, sailors and engine crew.
• Passengers – innocent cruise passengers enjoying their holiday.
• Hunters – like you, Hunters are part of Mr X’s Hunt and must find and murder
their quarry whilst avoiding their hunter.
• Quarries – every hunter is also someone else’s Quarry so keep looking over
your shoulder!
Cabins
When you first arrive on board The Ship you will find yourself in your cabin. The Ship has a range of cabins from third class to first class and it’s the luck of the draw which cabin you end up in. Third class cabins are a bit basic in terms of decor. First class cabins are luxurious and have the added advantage of private bathrooms and a sea view.
Money & Banks
You will arrive on board the Ship with a generous $2,500 holiday allowance in
your bank account and $250 cash in your pocket. You will need cash to pay
for food, drink, clothing, items from shops and to bribe security staff so it’s a
good idea to keep some cash on you. However, if you are murdered successfully by your Hunter, you will lose all the cash you have in your pocket. A wallet containing your cash will appear on the ground next to your corpse and can be picked up by another player. Money in your bank account is safe, even if you are murdered so it’s a good idea to bank any cash you find. Banks and cash machines can be found all over the Ship and you can use both to withdraw and deposit money. Mr X will give you an overdraft of up to $2,000 if you run out of money. In many game modes the Hunter with the most money in their bank account at the end of the game is the winner. You can see who is in the lead at any time by pressing the ‘TAB’ key and bringing up the score table.
Weapons
Weapons on board the Ship are many and varied. If you can pick up an object, you can probably also use it as a weapon. Use your intuition here, for example a knife is obviously a good weapon whereas a top hat is probably not. All weapons have a ‘damage rating’ shown in stars: a 1 star weapon is less effective than a 5 star weapon. Low rating weapons damage your quarry
less than high rated weapons.
Bludgeoning – There are a number of bludgeoning weapons on board
ranging from hammers to artificial arms and axes.
Stabbing – Take a look around for knives, swords and other stabbing weapons.
Firearms – Guns are harder to find but some of the crew and passengers do have firearms on board. Firearms show how much ammunition you possess for each gun. Once you have run out of ammunition, you cannot
fire the gun unless you find some more. The flare gun on deck will set your
quarry on fire. They have a limited amount of time to put themselves out
before they die.
Poison – You can poison your Quarry if you can find a syringe full of poison. Once your quarry has been injected they will start to vomit and have a limited amount of time during which they can heal themselves.
Throwing weapons – You can throw any type of weapon you are holding by right clicking with your mouse. Some weapons are more effective than others when thrown.
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Linear Mode
