It Came from the Desert - Cinemaware Information compiled by John R. Barnsley GENERAL TIPS Save the game after anything significant happens (finding evidence, killing an ant, winning a battle, etc). Playing Chicken: Accelerate steadily; when the oncoming car is visible, steer straight at it. Don't completely enter the left lane. Hospital: Wheelchairs are in the Northwest corners of both levels. Your female live-in: If you give in to her advances when she asks for more than conversation, you'll do time in the hospital (depending on your priorities, it might be worth it!). Battle strategy: Don't worry about how many troops or how much property you lose. The important thing is to have enough military left to provide tank assistance when you defend the mines. Knife Fight: Forget defence - let your man come in close enough, then slash and stab. DAY ONE After answering your doorbell and getting the samples, call everyone and go to the Bar. (Don't open the samples, or you'll set the place on fire and wind up in the Hospital). Buy the Old-Timer a drink to learn the location of the meteorite. (You can set up an interview with the Reporter at his office for the following day at the Quarry, but this isn't necessary. It's also good to stop at O'Riordan's frequently for tips; also visit the Fortune Teller on Day One or Two, and visit Neptune Hall one night before midnight). DAY TWO Answer the doorbell at around 8am and let the girl in. She'll take you to her car to investigate the area. Shoot the ant's antennae off. Get the fluid sample. Drop it off at the Lab. (If you let the girl stay at your place, you'll lose your girlfriend but add to the plot). DAY THREE Visit the Ore Base, then go to the M-1 Mine. If you stop in at home during the day, a neighbour should leave a tissue sample, which you can take to the Lab. DAY FOUR (or after) Take a plane to the Airport and fly South of the M-1 Mine. The recorder will automatically record when you are over the ants. Fly around the spot where they are emerging, which is their secret nest. Spray some of the ants at this site in order to mark the spot. (On very hot days, the ants won't be active, so you won't find any). Return to the airstrip and take the sample of the recording to the Lab. DAY FIVE Go to Beverly's Drive-In to watch Rocket Ranger and the knife fight - fight with Ice. DAY SEVEN OR EIGHT You should be able to obtain a casting at one of the farms to the South of the town. Take it to the Lab. DAY NINE Locate the Professor at the Stud Farm and kill another ant. DAY TEN Return to the Lab, either turning in your last piece of evidence or getting the last results back. (There are some other places in the game where you can get the same kind of evidence). DAY ELEVEN (or sooner if you have all the evidence results) Go to the Mayor's Office. Show him the evidence, then go to the Military Base. Kill the ant and defend the Base. Go to the Police Stations and set up the simulation map. Concentrate your forces on the Southwest sites, particularly the Mines. If a farm or two gets destroyed, don't worry about it. Be sure to place at least two army troops at the places you want to attack personally, or you'll arrive without the aid of tanks and will quickly die. The first attack site is the Quarry. DAY TWELVE or THIRTEEN When the mines come under attack, place all your forces at the Ore Base and the M-2 Mine. Don't worry about M-1 (Use your lighter resistance there). After clearing the Ore Base, return to the Simulation Map to make sure you still have at least two army troops at the M-2 Mine before proceeding there. After clearing M-2, go to M-1. Go South by foot or tank to the place where you found the entrance to the Nest. Enter it. THE NEST LEVEL ONE Head around the perimeter of the nest, moving in a Southerly direction, then West, North, East until you find the Green Pool. (It's not necessary to map this area, since you only need to retrace your steps on Level Two). LEVEL TWO Head Northwest. You'll know you are on the right path when you start seeing lots of pupa around you. Lead the ants to the entrances of tunnels you've tried and use their dead bodies as markers to retrace your steps. You'll go far West, then North, to find the Queen Ant, and you must walk around behind her in order to start the bomb. Retrace your steps and return to Level One as fast as possible.