Introduction

Has anybody seen a ghost? Matter of fact, yes they have! At this very moment hundreds of ghosts are making their way to the infamous Spook Central.

Only you can save the world from a disaster of biblical proportions. So go and show 'em how you do it downtown!

The Franchise

To begin your Ghostbusters franchise, you will need to go through a series of screens, selecting the equipment for the franchise. When you leave the Ghostbusters logo screen by pressing ENTER, you will enter the first franchise selection screen. The computer will print out a message in English. When it first stops, you should enter your name, last name first, and press ENTER. The computer will then ask you in English if you have an account.

If you have an account: Enter the letter Y and press ENTER. At this point, the computer will ask you what you account number is, and you should enter that number. The computer will then go on to the vehicle selection screen, and the amount you have in your account will be displayed in white numbers on the screen.

If you do not have an account: Enter the letter N and press ENTER. At this point the computer gives you $10,000 as a start-up account, and you proceed to the vehicle selection screen.

Vehicle Selection

You are now presented with the options of four different vehicles to use during the game. You may view either of the cars by pressing the Space Bar, pressing the number of the car you wish to view, and pressing ENTER; or you may purchase any of the cars simply by pressing the number of the car you choose, and pressing ENTER.

The four cars which are available are as follows:

1. The Compact, with a cost of $2,000. Carries five items of cargo and has a top speed of 75 miles per hour.
2. The 1963 Hearse, costs $4,800. Carries 11 items of cargo and has a top speed of 90 miles per hour.
3. The Station Wagon, costs $6,000. Carries 11 items of cargo and has a top speed of 110 miles per hour.
4. The High Performance car, costs $15,000. Carries seven items of cargo, and has a top speed of 160 miles per hour.

When you have decided which car you want, and have purchased it, you will move on to the equipment selection screens.

Equipment Selection Screens

Screen 1: Monitoring Equipment

In this screen, you can purchase the PK energy detector, image intensifier, and marshmallow sensor. The amount of money you have remaining, after purchasing your car, is displayed in the upper right corner of the screen in white numbers. Each of the items on this screen has a cost displayed in the right hand column; as you purchase items, the cost of these items will be deducted from the amount of money you had remaining.

Use the joystick to control the forklift and place the items you want in your car. To move onto the next equipment screen, type the number 2.

Screen 2: Capture Equipment

The items which can be purchased from this screen are Ghost Bait, Traps, and the Ghost Vacuum. Note that traps are required, so you must purchase at least one trap. The procedure for purchasing items from this screen is the same as for the monitoring equipment screen. To move on to the final equipment screen, type the number 3.

Screen 3: Storage Equipment

On this screen, you can purchase the portable laser confinement system at a cost of $8,000. (Be sure you have enough cash remaining in order to buy it!)

When you have purchased all the items you want for your franchise, type E and you will go to the city map portion on the game.

Building A Franchise

Follow instructions on the screen to buy and outfit your vehicle; to pick up and release supplies with the forklift, press the joystick button. Keep an eye on credit available (upper right corner).

1. PK Energy Detector. Warns of an approaching ghost, called a "Slimer", by turning a building pink when you pass it.
2. Image Intensifier. Makes Slimers easier to see when you are trying to catch them.
3. Marshmallow Sensor. Warns you of the impending approach of the dreaded Marshmallow Man by turning a building white when you're by it.
4. Ghost Vacuum. Sucks up itinerant ghouls (called "Roamers") as you travel the streets of the city.
5. Ghost Traps. Are what you use to catch and store Slimers. Each trap holds one Slimer. Without them you cannot earn money.
6. Ghost Bait. Attracts Roamers, which periodically gather to form the Marshmallow Man. Without Bait, you cannot stop him. (See Important Safety Tips below). You get five dollops of bait when purchased.
7. Portable Laser Confinement System. Stores ten Slimers in your vehicle. Saves travel time back to GHQ for more traps.

Map Screen

A map of the city appears, with Zuul's horrible temple in the centre and GHQ at the bottom. Red flashing buildings indicate the presence of a Slimer.

Guide your vehicle to red flashing buildings, leaving as short a trail as possible to reach them. As you do this, freeze and Roamers that are moving to Zuul by touching them.

To position yourself at buildings directly above the street, push the button. To position yourself at buildings below the street, pull back joystick and push the button.

The Streets

Steer the vehicle at passing Roamers (if you have frozen any) and push the button to vacuum them up. This keeps them from getting to the Temple of Zuul. The city's PK energy reading jumps 100 for each Roamer that gets to Zuul.

Busting Ghosts

When you arrive at the site of the disturbance, take the following steps with the joystick:

1. Direct the first Ghostbuster towards the centre of the building and push the button to deposit the trap. Then move him to the far left of the screen, turn him towards the trap, and push the button again.
2. The second Ghostbuster appears. Direct him to the far right of the screen, turn him towards the trap, and push the button. Both Ghostbusters will power on their negative ionizer backpacks.
3. Move your Ghostbusters inward to trap the Slimer between the streams. But do not - repeat, do not - cross the streams.
4. When you have the Slimer over the trap, push the button. The trap will pull him in. (Be precise. If you miss, you know what will happen!)
5. Every trapped Slimer increases your credit rating. The amount earned depends on how quickly you respond. Your accumulated credits are shown on the screen at all times.

Important Safety Tips

1. Hit the SPACE bar during the gme for a status report.
2. Every escaped Slimer adds 300 to the city's PK energy level.
3. Beware that monolith of marshmallow monstrosity... When a Marshmallow Alert flashes at the bottom of the screen, the Roamers will quickly run to form him. You must immediately hit the "B" key on the keyboard to drop a dollop of bait before he stomps any buildings.

End Of Game: Temple Of Zuul

The game ends in one of three ways:

1. The Gatekeeper and Keymaster join forces at the Temple of Zuul and you have *not* earned more money than you originally started with.
2. Once the Gatekeeper and Keymaster have joined forces at Zuul, and you do have sufficient credit, you are not able to sneak two of your three Ghostbusters into the entrance of Zuul.
3. You successfully reach the top of the Temple of Zuul by sneaking two Ghostbusters into its entrance.

Game Controls

Normal joystick movements apply. SPACE - Status Report, B - Drop Bait
H - Pause, ENTER - Resume
SHIFT-ESCAPE - Reset Game
ESCAPE - Return to vehicle selection

Loading

1. Press PLAY on the tape recorder.
2. Hold down the START and OPTION keys on your Atari computer while turning on your machine.
3. Wait for the "beep".
4. Press RETURN.

After several seconds, the program title will appear. After a minute or so, a full title screen will appear. Wait around four more minutes for the game to load.

Press ENTER to go to the introduction screen.

Game Credits

Ghostbusters is a trademark of Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc.
Ghostbusters logo (C) 1984 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All rights reserved.