What is Continuum?
Also known as Sniper or SubSpace, Continuum is a top-down view shooter game, similar to asteroids. It has several key differences from the old asteroids game, mainly in that continuum is centered around a built-in chat system the players use to chat with each other. In fact, Continuum is probably more of a social environment than it is a game. The actual game itself is far more in-depth than the old Asteroids game we all remember from years ago, and is highly customizable. Within the game, there are different sub-sections called Zones, that the players can try out to decide what kind of game they would like to play.
What does Continuum look like?
Here are some screenshots:
Screen1, Screen2, Screen3, Screen4
I can't connect to any of the zones! What's wrong?
You have to set it up to connect to the directory servers so you can download new zones. Look below in "Where do I get continuum?"
What zone should I play first?
This is all up to you. I would recommend getting good at SSCE Dueling/League before trying any other zone, mainly because once you learn to play in this zone, you can easily adapt and perform well in any other zone. However, the majority of the incoming players will go to SSCU Trench Wars first, because that is where the largest mass of players are. The upside of this zone is that it is very easy to play: one hit from your gun or bomb will kill any opponent, making it very easy for new players to score kills against even the veteran players. The downside of Trench Wars is that you will only be able to perform well in Trench Wars, and after you've been playing in it for any length of time, you won't be able to play any better in another zone. Playing in SSCE Dueling/League will not only teach you how to play, it will teach you to be good. Naturally, this is the hardest zone to master. There are also several other zones that I will not mention here, you'll have to find them for yourself.
How do I play?
First start by pressing f11 to get in your ship if you are in spectator mode (In spectator mode, you are watching another player and are unable to do anything other than chat)
The basic controls are simple: Use the left/right arrows to TURN your ship, use the up/down arrows to move your ship FORWARD or BACKWARD, press control to fire BULLETS, and tab to fire BOMBS. Press F1 for a more complete HELP list. Some zones do not offer a very helpful F1 menu, so try to make sure you know what you are doing before you jump in. You can press ESCAPE, followed by any of the below keys for the mentioned effect:
1-8: Will put you in the selected SHIP. There are 8 SHIPS, each number represents a different one.
s: Will put you into SPECTATOR MODE (Can be toggled by pressing f11)
a: Will bring up the Arena list. An ARENA is a sub-section of a ZONE.
q: Will QUIT the game.
Finally, pressing any of the letters a-z, numbers 0-9, or any of the special characters commonly used in typing (excluding the question mark) by itself will begin a line of text. You can continue typing until you have the desired message ready, and you can send it to the public by pressing ENTER once it is finished. Starting a message with / will send it privately to the selected person (indicated by a red arrow in the top-left menu, press f2 to open it. Private messages are indicated by green text), and starting the message with // or ' will send it to your current team (indicated by YELLOW text). Until you get familiar with the game, don't start a message with ; or " or = or # or * or %.
Where do I get Continuum?
Click "Get Continuum" on the bottom of the left sidebar to start downloading! Once downloaded, install the game and run it while connected to the internet. Select one of the ZONES from the zones menu (Preferrably SSCE Dueling/League=)) and click PLAY to start playing. If you don't see any zones, or all of the zones are red, your game isn't properly set up to connect to the servers. Click on the FIND ZONES button and click DOWNLOAD to download the new list of zones. The directory servers should have the following in it:
sscentral.subspace.inet.fi sscentral.subspacehq.com sscentral.subspace.net sscentral.ds98.com
If that line is not entered into your directory server address list, you won't be getting zones from anywhere. This should bring you up to date; click ok and then choose your zone.
OMG! I JUST HIT THAT GUY WITH A THOUSAND BULLETS AND HE DIDN'T DIE!
Relax, you probably just aren't understanding how the game works. Every ship has a starting energy level, a starting energy recharge rate, and a number of special items. Firing bullets or bombs will cost you energy, which also happens to be your life. If your life goes below 0, you will die. Usually, if you hit an opponent first and continue hitting him nonstop without missing until the end of the battle, you will win. The key is in your ability to dodge while still attacking. If you wait a long time in between hits, your opponent will have recharged his energy and all your effort will have gone to waste.
Is there anything else I should know?
You should know enough by now to play the game. If you still can't figure it out, ask one of the players inside the game and if you are nice, they will usually answer your questions.
