Truckin'

Description: This is my favorite Intellivision game, bar none. Ever wanted to experience life on the road, fast and free? Well, now you can. You're driving a truck around america, on actual interstates! You buy goods, sell goods, get gas, pass your friend on the highway, and travel from coast to coast. The best way to play this game is with a friend, and a big US atlas spread out in front of you, preferably one with all the interstates on it.

Manufacturer: Imagic, 1982.

Instructions: I'd like to include a list of the towns, but that'd be nearly impossible. there's a lot of ground to cover, and I'm not even sure what all of the 2 letter abbreviations stand for. The keypad:

1- returns you to front forward view.
2- Nothing?
3- Shows what you have in your truck.
4- When in a town, brings up load/unload menu.
5- Unloads selected item, when in load/unload menu.
6- Loads selected item, when in load/unload menu.
7- Shows Items at selected town.
8- Fills up with gas.
9- Pull over to repair damage to your truck.
clear- allows you to see the list of towns with goods to trade, and select one- use in conjunction with 7.
0- honks horn- does this have any use?
Enter- brings up game statistics.

Ok, You're in the front of the semi. You've hit 8 to refuel, and 1 to look forward. Now push the top button, and accelerate. Push the bottom button to break. On the strip in the middle of the screen, you see what Interstate you're on, what direction you're going, and what town you're in or approaching. If the letters are yellow, you're in that town, and may slow down to zero, and refuel or load/unload. If the letters are black, that's the next town on the interstate. To steer effectively, put one finger on the dial, and treat it as if it were a steering wheel- just dial your finger around the rim, and you'll be great. To stop any undesired side to side motion, just tap straight up. Traffic is the hardest part of the game to get the hang of- but there's a pattern. If you're passing an oncoming truck that starts in the left lane or middle, and flickers to the left or right for a second, get in the left lane. If you're passing an oncoming truck that starts in the left lane, and stays steady, stay in the right. If he starts in the middle, stay left. If you're passing a trailer that starts in the right and flickers left, get on the right. If you're passing a trailer that starts on the left, and flickers right, stay right.

If you get hit by a trailer, your maximum speed will go down. Hit 9, and camp out for awhile to fix your truck- The number in the upper left will tell you how many more hours you have to wait to fix your truck. Don't forget to watch the gas gauge! Keep on truckin.