GOON NIGHTS

Goon Nights

Shoot goons in their natural element - shooting at you!  

1. Shoot goons using your sights, a cross controlled via joystick.
2. Goons Remaining is left score, Current Level is right score.
3. Goons Remaining increases by 1 infrequently with time spent on any level, a kind of irritation. Because all goons love being irritating.
4. Goons Remaining will start out at the next level’s value. Level 1, 1 goon to get, Level 10, 10 goons to get. Plus that irritation thing.
5. Score Strip changes color to reflect the player’s health. Sequence : Gray->Yellow->Amber->Reddened Amber->Red (with final shots fired by a goon the bullet that takes you out).
6. Gunfire affects your health when a goon has the drop on you, meaning a goon is firing at you when your sights are above the hedge. If a goon has targeted you, and you’ve scampered back to the safety of the hedge, and if already on the receiving end of gunfire, this will decrease, along with lessened negative health effects. You will know all this from the sounds of gunfire and red skies indicating a certain pain.
7. The sights move from left-to-right depending the window chosen. A window is auto-height adjusted for the player, meaning that if a goon is on the upper floor the sights will be in that band. The player must just choose left or right with the joystick for either window. Choosing nothing returns you back to the hedge. Pushing up gets you the center window where you may experience The Refreshing Goon. To attack a goon, once you’ve judged your sights over, use the joystick button; this will freeze sight movement. Keep button held for rapid bullet action. The goon will flash, indicating hits.
8. The Refreshing Goon is a special event. Whichever one appears at the center window, (and this curiously shaped as a health-cross), happens to be your brief opportunity to not only reduce Goons Remaining but completely restore your health. To select this window, press up with your joystick (centers when using Up from the resting hedge position, resets proximal when taken from another focused window).
9. Release trigger to allow for re-aim animation, or choose a new window moving the joystick left or right. Release all to take cover at the hedge. You may need to re-aim during a goon swap at same window.
10. There are three types of goon. Your standard goon with hat, a mustachioed biker goon with bandanna, and Stewpy, the stubborn dunce goon who wants to know what all the commotion is about. Stewpy doesn’t know any better than to just stand there and take it. After enough abuse, this will energize any next shot by a goon to avenge with blood rage, which means you losing a healthy color on contact. Goon code - don’t pick on the defenseless. (NB., hitting Stewpy nonetheless decreases the Goon Remaining count which may tip you into the next level and cleaner health. So much for a code your side.) 
11. A goon can be in three stages of presentation : Standing there, very goonish, looking pleased with himself (or vacant looking - Stewpy); Aiming his weapon and not firing - you’ll soon know how to get the drop on a goon here; Or, aiming his weapon and actually firing on you - an unpleasant situation. A goon, in sequence, may stand, take fire, then return fire. Alternatively a goon may be aiming but is unable to return fire. Sometimes it really doesn’t matter as you’re just too busy taking care of business and betting on that Refreshing Goon to show since blasting Stewpy so much.
12. Levels transition when Goons Remaining are 1 and you take out the last goon. This rotates the background sky through bright colors and alerts a sound. It’s unmistakable really. During this time hits against health are briefly suspended. 
13. Leveling recoups some of your health. This is shown in the improved coloring of the Score Strip, until improvable no further : gray.
14. The game ends when either you’ve run out of health or Goons Remaining have gone beyond 99. In either instance a red Score Strip is presented and play is over. If you get over level 99 I have no idea. I’ve never been able to get that far.
15. To play again, use the console’s Reset Switch. 

Goon Nights for the Atari 2600 by Glenn Main