THE SPECTRUM GAMES DATABASE

ZENJI

PUBLISHER
Activision

AUTHOR
Unknown, Designed by Matt Hubbard

YEAR
1984

CATEGORY
Puzzle

DESCRIPTION
Puzzle game where you must rearrange a maze to turn it all
yellow.

CONTROLS
Keyboard, Kempston, Sinclair, Cursor

INSTRUCTIONS
See Inlay Card Text, below.

INLAY CARD TEXT
Zenji is like life. The object is to collect all elements of
the maze, creating an unbroken yellow path to the pulsating
Source. Complete connection is called "Zenji". Avoid desires
and illusions, and don't run out of time.


BASICS

1. Load Zenji into your system (see instructions
on reverse)

2. When loading is complete, the menu will
appear. Select desired controller by
pressing its corresponding numerical key.
Instruction `prompts' will now appear,
one at a time. Each prompt will pause
until you press key C to move to the next
one.

3. Whilst the prompts are on-screen, select
your game level. There are eight variations:
Levels 1,3,5 and 7 are for one player; 2,
4,6 and 8 are for two. The higher the number,
the greater the challenge. Select game by
pressing the corresponding numerical key.

4. The keyboard function screen will now appear,
displaying all controls.

5. Begin the action by pressing ENTER on the
keyboard.

6. You are represented by the rotating head. It
follows your joystick movements. When using
the keyboard, the O key is left, P is right,
2 is up and W is down.

To turn the element, bring the head to its
center. Now, press the joystick button while
moving the central stick left or right. On
the keyboard, hold down key Z while pressing
O or P.

7. The timer continually counts down at the
bottom of the screen.

8. To reset the game you have just played, press
CAPS SHIFT and ENTER. To reset back to
controller menus, press SYMBOL SHIFT and ENTER.

9. When the game ends, the score table will appear.
Enter the initials beside your final score
using the letters on the keyboard.


WORDS TO THE WISE

In Zenji, as in life, you'll turn about with your
head spinning, trying to put all the pieces together.
Furthur complications come in the form of Flames of
Desire. Later on, these desires create equally fatal
illusions. The sting of desire of illusion will
surely cause you to lose your head and leave the
maze...unconnected.

If you have departed from an unconnected maze, you
will be doomed to repeat it...hopefully having learned
something. You begin with one active head and four
reincarnations on reserve. The experience ends when you
have ceased to be reborn.


MATERIAL REWARDS

For those of you still attached to such things, here
is an explanation of the scoring system.

Points are awarded whenever complete connection (Zenji)
is achieved. The less time you've taken, the more
points you'll receive.

Whenever contact is made with a number square, you'll
receive a bonus of (100 points x the number)

A bonus life is awarded with every other increase of
10,000 points (i.e. 10,000...30,000...50,000)


TIPS FROM MATT HUBBARD
Designer of Zenji

"Zenji creates a unique interaction between player and
game. It is a new kind of experience, whose strategy
lies not in sharp-shooting or elaborate game plans but
in sensing the right move and trusting your initiative."

"The object of Zenji is to connect all Elements to the
Source. But, in playing the game, it becomes clear that
the approach required is a kind of `letting go', rather
than planning ahead, wherin connections simply happen.
Players can `feel' their way through the maze and use
tactics that combine intuition with technical skill."

"As an old Master once said `There is no conquest. There
is no planning. Use the mind differently'."

"And go in peace."


CHEATS
None Known.

SEQUELS/PREQUELS
None.

SCORES RECEIVED
Unknown, but I don't think it was very well received.

URL
ftp://ftp.nvg.unit.no/pub/sinclair/snaps/games/puzzle/zenji.zip

GENERAL FACTS
This game is a standard puzzle affair where you rearrange a maze
to connect all parts of it to a power source, effectively turning
all the paths yellow. The instructions, however, make it sound
like some kind of meditation/way of life/religion!

NOTES
Not a very good game, it's quite difficult and not very
addictive. Standard UDG graphics don't help much, either! Pretty
much like the rest of Activision's early stuff.