Return of the Fungi (2021)
Starting a Game
The program begins with a Title Sequence. To start a game, push the Joystick in any direction, while the title music ("Fungus Fanfare") is playing.
Game Structure
A game of Return of the Fungi consists of 20 Waves. Each wave consists of 2 Phases. If you survive all 20 waves you will Beat the Game!
Screen Layout
The Header
The top row of the header displays the current High Score, Dan's Extra Lives, and Your Score. The bottom row of the header displays an Energy Bar on the left (indicating how much energy Dan has remaining), and Dan's Arsenal of available Proximity Mines (or Time-Bombs) on the right.
The Left Sidebar
At the top of the left sidebar is Brian's Cave, underneath which is an indication of Brian's remaining Ammo (Toadstool count). At the bottom of the sidebar is the current Wave Number.
The Right Sidebar
The right sidebar features the Spore Gauge indicating how many Spores have been released by the Toadstools.
The Arena
The main "arena" is surrounded by a Forcefield. While this prevents Brian from gaining access, he is still able to lob Toadstool Seedlings into the arena. At the center is the Great Diamond surrounded by a protective energy Shield.
Phase I Gameplay
Brian the Blob
During Phase I, Brian the Blob traverses the perimeter of the arena, tossing Toadstool Seedlings over the force field. The seedlings quickly sprout into fully-grown Toadstools. The number of Toadstools that Brian has at his disposal (his Ammo supply) is shown in the left sidebar.
Toadstools
The Toadstools will advance towards Dan and/or the shielded Great Diamond. After a while the Toadstools will transform, releasing one or more Spores which embed into the ground. Toadstools will instantly kill Dan, should they touch him!
Spores
Toadstools left for too long will release Spores. The Spore Gauge (in the right sidebar) indicates how many spores have been released. The spores are not harmful to Dan during this phase.
Digger Dan
At the start of each phase, Digger Dan begins in a "dematerialized" state. While in this form, Dan is impervious to anything in the arena. Use the Joystick to move Dan to a safe location, then press the Joystick Button to materialize him.
Energy
At the start of each phase, Digger Dan begins with 100% Energy. The Energy Bar keeps track of how much energy Dan has remaining. Note that energy is required to place Proximity Mines.
Proximity Mines
In Phase I, Dan has Proximity Mines at his disposal (indicated by the icons in the Arsenal). As long as mines are available, Dan is able to place one at his current location (press the Joystick Button). It costs 2% energy to place a proximity mine. When a Toadstool moves adjacent to a proximity mine, the mine will explode.
Explosions
An exploding Proximity Mine will destroy any Toadstools (and seedlings) in its blast radius. Other mines within the blast radius will themselves be triggered (you can set up chain reactions like this). If Dan is caught in an explosion he will lose 20% energy if totally within the blast radius, or 10% energy if just partially within the blast. Once the explosion has completed, a new Proximity Mine is added back into the Arsenal.
Detonator
Since Proximity Mines remain in place until they are triggered, there can be times when you run out of mines. For such emergencies, press the Space Bar to cause all mines to detonate simultaneously, thus replenishing your Arsenal.
End of Phase I
The phase ends when the Spore Gauge is completely full, or when all Toadstools have either released spores or been destroyed by explosions. Points will be scored for any remaining Energy, and all dormant spores will transform into active Fungus. (Note: if no spores were released, Phase II will be skipped).
Phase II Gameplay
Fungus
During Phase II the Fungus will begin to spread. Fungus is not as deadly to Dan as the Toadstools are, but touching it will cause Dan to lose energy. If the Fungus completely surrounds the Shield protecting the Great Diamond, the Game is Lost!.
Energy
At the beginning of the phase, Digger Dan's Energy is refilled to 100%.
Time Bombs
In Phase II, Dan has Time Bombs at his disposal (indicated by the icons in the Arsenal). As long as bombs are available, Dan is able to place one at his current location (press the Joystick Button). It costs 4% energy to place a time bomb. Time bombs automatically explode after a short pause!
Explosions
An exploding Time Bomb will destroy all Fungus in its blast radius. Remember that if Dan is caught in an explosion he will lose energy. Once the explosion has completed, a new Time Bomb is added back into the Arsenal.
End of Phase II
The phase ends either when all Fungus has been eradicated, or when Dan has 0% Energy remaining. Points are scored for any remaining Energy, or, if there are still patches of Fungus, points are subtracted from your score!
End of Game
Victory
The game ends in Victory if Dan survives all 20 Waves of Brian's Toadstool attacks.
Defeat
The game ends in Defeat if the Fungus is able to completely surround the Shield, causing it to fail.
Game Over
If Digger Dan loses all 4 lives, it's Game Over.
Scoring
Click on a box to toggle details ...
Phase I Scoring
where W is the Wave number, T is the count of Toadstools caught in the blast, and A is the count of mines remaining in the Arsenal.
For example, during Wave 5 Phase I, an explosion destroys 3 Toadstools while 4 mines remain in the arsenal...
10 * 5 * (3 * 3 + 4)
= 50 * 13
= 650 pts
Note that if the mine was detonated (space bar), the initial 10 multiplier is NOT applied. In this case, the above example would score just 65 points.
End of Phase I Scoring
where W is the Wave number, and E is the remaining Energy.
For example, at the end of Wave 5 Phase I, Dan has 22% Energy left...
5 * 22
= 110 pts
where W is the Wave number, and T is the number of Toadstools still in the arena.
For example, at the end of Wave 6 Phase I, there were 2 excess Toadstools...
10 * 6 * 2
= 120 pts (negative)
Phase II Scoring
where W is the Wave number, and Fp is the count of Fungus pixels caught in the blast.
For example, during Wave 5 Phase II, an explosion wipes out 42 pixels of Fungus...
5 * 42
= 210 pts
End of Phase II Scoring
where W is the Wave number, and E is the remaining Energy.
For example, at the end of Wave 7 Phase II, Dan has 48% Energy left...
7 * 48
= 336 pts
where W is the Wave number, and Fp is the number of Fungus pixels remaining in the arena.
For example, at the end of Wave 10 Phase II, there were 37 Fungus pixels remaining ...
10 * 37
= 370 pts (negative)
End Game Scoring Bonus
If the game ends in Victory, a bonus of 5,000 pts per remaining life is awarded!
Hints on Playing
Brian will "telegraph" when he's about to throw another seedling over the forcefield, with a slight pause in movement. Have Dan keep pace with where Brian is, and place a Proximity Mine close to where the seedling will grow.
Note that seedlings won't kill Dan, but remember that they don't remain seedlings for long.
While the Toadstool behavior might seem quite random at first, with practice you can anticipate their patterns of movement, especially when they are grouped tightly together.
Phase I scoring is structured to reward catching multiple toadstools in a single blast, in addition to placing as few mines as possible at a time.
Phase II scoring is structured to reward repeatedly allowing the Fungus to grow before partially wiping it out. Just don't let it get out of control!
Good Luck!