Share The Tain "tt'a always Eunny until aotneone gets hurt— »and then it’s absolutely Eriggin* hysterical!” Linux version Published by Linux Game Publishing LTD 17 Rossington Road Nottingham NG2 4HX England www.hnuxgamepubhshing.com Windows version by Running with Scissors Inc. 3333 N. Campbell Suite 1 Tuscon, AZ, 85719 USA www.runningwithscissors.com ©2003-2004 Running With Scissors Inc., Linux version ©2004 Linux Game Publishing LTD. All rights reserved. The Running with Scissors Logo, is a trademark of Running with Scissors Inc. Linux Game Publishing is a trademark of Linux Game Publishing LTD. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. All other trademarks and trade names are properties of their respective owners. Ah rights reserved. Printed in the UK. 1 CONtjNtSf Installation.3 Introduction.4 Default Controls.4 Main Menu.7 Playing the Game.7 Your Goal.7 Getting Started.8 Using the Map.8 It’s Not Always About You.9 Police. 9 The Wanted Meter 9 Getting Arrested.8 Hiding Your Weapon. 10 Hearing Radio Chatter.10 Hiding From Cops. 10 Picking Up and Selecting Items.. Weapons. Hand-to-Hand C ombat Weapons Throwing Weapons.12 Firearms.12 Other Weapons.14 Inventory.14 Special Items.14 Errand Items.16 Other Player Actions.18 Health 19 Heart 19 Kevlar and Body Armour.19 Damage.19 Aquirmg More Health.20 Bass Snilter Fish Finder.21 Saving and Loading.21 Hints and Tips.22 Improving Performance.23 Help and Technical Support.23 Credits.24 End User License Agreement.26 2 INSrt'AI-I-At'JON Insert the CD, mount it and run the setup.sh script on the mounted CD. This is accomplished with the following commands, mount /mnt/cdrom sh /mnt/cdrom/setup.sh You will then be prompted for install options. If you have not yet installed the LGP Update tool, the installer for this will nm before the initial game installation. This will automate the process of finding and applying patches. You may wish to use it periodically to check for patches and add-ons for Postal 2. Uninstalling To uninstall Postal 2, simply select the LGP Uninstall tool from your Program Menu, or type lgp_uninstall from the command line. Startup Hints If you would prefer to run Postal 2 in a window instead of full-screen, simply use -w on the command line. For example: postal2 -w . If you wish to switch between windowed and full-screen during the game use Alt-Enter. When windowed, Ctrl-G will keep your pointer within the window, so you can play Postal 2 more easily. To release your pointer, press Ctrl-G again. 3 tNThjFS^OOkUCThJON Welcome to Paradise. Life goes on day by day. People go about their jobs with little attention to those that pass by them. Welcome to your daily life. You are The Postal Dude, just your average Joe trying to survive in the harsh environment that is modem day society. No one pays much attention to you as you go about your daily errands. What happens to you depends on your choices. What can you do to not only survive, but also enjoy your time here? Will you remain a random passer-by? Or will you make a name for yourself? This is a game of life. How will you play it? DEFVtUI.t, CONtj«H,S Below are the default controls. The first column is called Recommended for a reason. If you choose to ignore the industry-standard "WADS" layout convention and attempt to do something silly like use the arrow keys for navigation, don't blame us when the game is really hard to play. Tmst us, you'll like the fact that the keys for "Kick" and "Put Weapon Away" are right next to the navigation keys. But hey, if you want to hunt all over the keyboard for irii^ and irpin be our guest, those will work too. The Outdated column indicates the silly layout arrow-key aficionados will suffer with. Don't say we didn't warn you. Note: You may alter the default controls at any time through the Options menus, should you be so bold. Movement Recommended Ontdated Move Forward m 0 Strafe Left m 0 Strafe Right M 0 Move Backward 0 0 Walk When Moving 4 Actions Recommended Outdated Put away/Take out Weapon m red Duck m NumPad 0 Jump Kick 0 m Zip/Unzip Pants 0 H Urinate Mouse Button 1 Suicide m Yell "Get Down" m Weapons Fire (Primary) Mouse Button 1 Fire (Secondary) Mouse Button 2 Shovel/Baton/Shocker m Pistol m Shotgun m Machine Gun m Gasoline/Matches m Grenade/Molotov/Scissors 0 Cow Flead 0 Flimting Rifle 0 Rocket Launcher 0 Napalm Launcher 0 Previous Weapon Mouse Wheel Next Weapon Mouse Wheel 0 Sniper Scope Zoom Mouse Wheel Drop Weapon 0 0 5 Inventory Recommended Outdated Previous Item m Next Item m Use Item sm Drop Item m O Show Map m NumPad 2 Quick Health Misc. m NumPad 1 Pause iriscl or tPAUSEi Skip Cinematic s orS Game Over Restart l|sP*eE| Toggle Console [HM] Easy Save 0 Easy Load 0 Take Screen Shot 0 Talk (Say) m Team Talk (Team Say) m Scoreboard Display 0 Gamma 0 Brightness H More HUD m Less HUD 0 Toggle Hints 0 6 :»»AtN rNtENW New Game Click on New Game to start a new game. Load Game Clicking Load Game will load a previously saved game. Multiplayer Clicking Multiplayer will enter the Multiplayer portion of Postal 2. This option allows you to "Share the Pain" with players around the world. Options Clicking on Options will let you change all sorts of settings including controls, performance, display, audio, and more. (See Improving Performance to speed up the game, lower load times, etc.) Exit Clicking Exit will exit Postal 2 and return you to your desktop. >LAYlNa iSAVtV. Your Goal The goal of the game is to get through five days of tedious errands. Each day a set of errands will be shown on the map. You must do all the day's errands to complete each day and advance to the next. At any time you may check errands and locations on the map by pressing 0 Once you've completed all the errands on your list, you'll need to go back home to complete the day. A special short-cut feature lets you go through the nearest Load Zone to be taken directly back to your trailer home. This shortcut does not work for Load Zones that go inside buildings. These signs are used to mark passageways where a different section of the city will be loaded from your hard drive. Some load time is inevitable, but there are steps you can take to reduce it. See Improving Performance. 7 Getting Started When you start your first game, there are several things to keep in mind. To advance in the game, The Postal Dude must complete his errands, but there are other things you might be able to do if you are creative. However, many of these "optional activities" may result in negative consequences, such as opposition from the public and the police, so choose wisely. Usually, you will want to stray from your required task to look for interesting areas, activities, or items. This is generally a good idea, as, most often, the best items in the game are not lying right in your path. Thus, you may want to explore your environment - or not, if you enjoy getting your ass kicked. This is a real world environment, so keep the following in mind: people may not like it when you barge into their homes. Should you decide to invade someone's property (nobody is twisting your arm, but it's possible) it's a good idea to try to avoid being seen or they may run off and find a cop. Also, if somebody does catch you sneaking around where you're not supposed to be, and you do find yourself dodging bullets, keep in mind that you can hide behind things and use them as cover. If you're REALLY clever, you might even be able to elude your attackers entirely by hiding. You'd be surprised how many people forget about that simple concept. Perhaps more money needs to be pumped into the educa¬ tional system. Using The Map Apparently designed by lunatics. Paradise is a large and complicated town and can be confusing to navigate. To ease the burden on your attention deficit, you can always call up a map of the town by pressing 0. Note that the day's errands are clearly listed on it. Be aware that some of the indications are only a general suggestion and some further searching may be required to locate the specific errand location. Also note that some areas may be more faintly rendered than others. This indicates areas that are not open yet. Be sure to check the map each day to see what new areas have become available. 8 It’s Not Always About You Paradise has some problems. As you walk around the city, you may notice some odd happenings... dogs chasing people, cops chasing after dogs chasing after people, people gunning down each other in the street. Be careful. People are out living their lives just like you, and they won't put up with your crap. If you cut in line then the cashier will tell you go to the back of the line. Other people may cut in front of you, and start a general uproar. So you have two choices: wait in line just like in real life, or gun everyone down (not that we're advocating that angle). This doesn't mean that everyone you start shooting at will be a super soldier and hunt you down. Some people may have guns but after the first hint of pain they'll run screaming for their lives. Some people are real cowards, and others don't know when to stop attacking. As you progress through the week, the city of Paradise will become more and more unhinged resulting in an Apocalyptic Friday. Just keep in mind that the city is alive, and everyone is a little tense. Because you may choose to act in illegal ways (again, nobody's twisting your arm, but hey, it's a free country), you will most likely encounter opposition from the police. Whenever you do something illegal or crazy, like draw a gun in public, blow something up, or kill someone, the police will want to arrest you even more. The Wanted Meter The Wanted Meter can be foimd on the right side of your screen. It appears when you, the Postal Dude, upset the police. The more you do to upset them, the more it will rise. This results in more aggressive action from the police. The Wanted Meter will lower with time. Note: When you return home and begin a new day, the Wanted meter will reset. 9 Getting Arrested You can get arrested. If a cop confronts you, you can drop your weapon by pressing g and let the cop arrest you and take you to jail. You will be stripped of your weapons, but all your health will be replenished. Once locked in jail you must find a way to get out (don't let the cops see you escaping or they'll arrest you again) in order to continue with your errands. Hiding Your Weapon Keep in mind, however, that you can put away your weapons by pressing ^ to avoid attracting attention from the police or bystanders. Not all weapons will attract attention. For example, nobody will mind if you walk aroimd with a shovel or gas can. However, once you start using the gas to light things on fire, you will notice their attitudes will change. Hiding your weapon when a cop tells you to drop it will not work. They watched you put the weapon away, they know you still have it and they will command you to drop it before they try to arrest you. The cops will only notice the weapon they last saw. If you have other weapons while they are trying to arrest you, they won't know about them imtil they take you to jail. Hearing Radio Chatter When you hear radio chatter in the background (i.e. static-filled police chatter), this is a sign that there is a cop in the vicinity. You will only hear this soimd if you are wanted by the police. Hiding From Cops If a cop is running after you, you may be able to hide from him behind or under structures. If you choose to move, remember to WALK (by holding llsiiinl down while moving) otherwise the officer may hear your footsteps. But hiding isn't magical and a cop may have seen or heard where you went, or even find you by searching the last place he saw you. So always have a "plan B", which may involve running like a scared, little girl. 10 ^ICKINCJ i;? & SELECtjNa ItE»S Weapons Along your journeys you will find many weapons. To pick them up, you simply need to walk over them. -1 Located on the right side of your screen, this shows the weapon you cmrently have equipped. The number indicates the remaining ammo/gasoline/fuel for that weapon. You can drop weapons by pressing g|. You can press the number keys or use the mouse wheel to select your weapon of choice. You can change the weapon controls from the Options menu (Main Menu / Options / Controls / Weapons). Hand-to-Hand Combat Weapons Note: All three of these weapons are found rmder the same weapon hotkey. The Shovel, though usually regarded as a tool for labor, is handy in combat as well. The primary fire key will cause The Postal Dude to swing the shovel. You can also press the secondary fire key to thrust the shovel. When used on a target repeatedly, this weapon can do severe damage. I The Baton is useful in close combat. The damage dealt will be low, so you may find several strokes necessary when utilizing this weapon. Bash things with the secondary fire. The Shocker is another enjoyable melee combat weapon. It has the effect of administering a small (but effective) amount of electricity to the target, temporarily stunning it. The longer the fire key is held down, the more severe will be the effects. Keep in mind that after a target goes down, they can still get back up after a short time has passed and will probably immediately go find a cop. Some stronger people will not go down from the Shocker and will simply shake off its effects. The shocker recharges slowly, so if you've run out, simply wait a few seconds before using it again. 11 Throwing Weapons The Scissors can be thrown at enemies who are in relatively close range. To be sure they have an effect, make sure to aim carefully, 'cause they're really small. You can also use the secondary fire option with this weapon, causing them to ricochet off of walls. This weapon is especially handy because the scissors can be retrieved if they stick in a wall. Be careful not to poke out your eye. The Molotov Cocktail will ignite its target upon impact. The longer you hold down the fire key before releasing it, the further the Molotov will be thrown. This is a medium to long range weapon, so be sure to move out of the way after tossing it. It also has a secondary fire option, allowing you to place it down safely, which gives you time to run for cover before it ignites. You'll want to run fast, however, for if you catch on fire, it will take time for you to burn out - unless you can think of another way to douse the flames... The Grenade can be used to create small explosions. The longer you hold down the fire key before releasing it, the further the Grenade will be thrown. This weapon also has a secondary fire option, allowing you to place them down safely without triggering the fuse. Then, you may fire at them with the pistol or other weapons from a safe distance to detonate them. Walk back over them to simply pick them back up. For other people around you though, the unarmed grenade will act like an anti¬ personnel mine and detonate on contact. This is great for setting up traps! Not that this is recommended or encouraged, but hey, they call it "free will" for a reason. Firearms The Pistol is your standard firearm. It does a moderate amoimt of damage but is very accurate. 12 The Shotgun is a useful firearm in that it does more damage to the opponent than the pistol. It takes more time to fire, however. It is also much less effective in long-range situations. The Machine Gun is the basic rapid-fire gun. Holding down the fire key will cause The Postal Dude to fire repeatedly. Yee-hah. The Hunting Rifle does a MUCH larger amount of damage than the pistol, but takes longer to fire. It is useful in hunting targets at long distances. You may find that it's less accurate when fired "from the hip". To maximize the rifle's effectiveness, you need to use the secondary fire key to bring up the scope. Once the scope is up, you can use the mouse wheel to zoom in and out, then use the fire key as normal to shoot. You will find that this will greatly increase the rifle's precision. The Napalm Launcher need not hit the target directly since it results in massive amounts of apocalyptic flames and all. It can fire relatively long distances, and is not recommended inside closed spaces unless you happen to be a Tibetan monk. Primary fire will cause a canister to be launched straight ahead, leaking napalm all the way. The canister will explode on first contact and ignite any napalm behind it. Secondary fire will cause a canister to be launched that will bounce around wildly, spewing out napalm after the first bounce. The canister will explode after coming to rest, igniting the trail of napalm it just laid. The Rocket Launcher is another weapon that need not hit the target directly to have an effect - it imparts a considerable amount of damage when the rocket I explodes. Keep in mind that this weapon requires time to fuel before firing. The longer you fuel the rocket (by holding down primary fire) the farther it will be able to travel. If a rocket runs out of fuel during flight, it will fall to the ground and detonate on impact. If you fuel a rocket completely, as indicated by the fuel meter, you will hear a confirmation that "seeking mode" is engaged. The rocket will "lock on" to whatever target the crosshairs are over when the fire key is released and will tirelessly attempt to hunt down that target. Secondary fire is similar to primary fire except it allows you to fully fuel a rocket without engaging seeking mode. Such a rocket will travel extremely far before running out of fuel. 13 other Weapons By itself, the Gasoline is almost harmless. By holding down the fire key, you can pour it out and create a giant puddle. And you can pour it while moving to create a trail. And you can get it to drip off edges and K run down hills. All of which leads to the secondary fire key, which ■.. strikes a match and tosses it. You have an infinite supply of matches, ■ so toss as many as you want. But work quickly as gasoline tends to evaporate overtime... The rotting, festering Cow Head can be tossed using the primary fire key or laid down gently on the ground using the secondary fire key. How does it work and what does it do? You figure it out, Sherlock. INVEN+iDRY To pick up an item, you need to walk over it, as you would for a weapon. On the right side of your screen, this area shows he currently selected inventory item. If you have more than one of a particular item, a number will appear to show how many you have. When you acquire an item, it will often give you hints about how to use it. Most of the time you need simply press to use an inventory item. You can also drop inventory items by pressing gj. Special Items You will start out with Money but don't spend it all in one place, because it is needed to buy many of the items in the game. This is the Map. The Postal Dude always has the map and can use it at any time to bring up the map screen. Or you can press gj to do the same. 14 Today's Newspaper is useful in providing hints as to what will . 1 happen that day. You can take it out and read it anytime, in case ' M you need to check the headlines while standing in some horribly slow line at the bank. Cats can be found around the city. You can drop them by pressing 0 or □, or you can attach them to your firearm and use them as a silencer. They can only stand a few shots, however. Make sure you sneak up on them (walk instead of running) to pick them up or they'll just run away. The Cat Nip can be used to lure in and befriend nearby cats. This makes them easier to pick up. This odd item may also have other uses. The Doggie Treats can be used to lure and befriend nearby dogs. This prevents them from attacking you, unless they're really mad, then they'll happily eat the treat before resuming their mindless attack. Kevlar Vests are great for stopping bullets. You'll still be taking a beating when you're getting shot, it just doesn't hurt quite as much. Deluxe SiC Body Armour. This is Silicon-Carbide ceramic body armour. For when Kevlar just isn't enough...which in Paradise is most of the time. 15 O The BassSniffer fish finder is a tracking device that you can display in the bottom comer of your screen. It seems to detect more than just fish... B The Piranha BassSniffer plug-in is a device that can enhance your Fish Finder's capabilities. The Largemouth Bass BassSniffer plug-in is another device that can further enhance your Fish Finder. Errand Items The Paycheck is one of the items you need to acquire to complete your daily errands. H The Carton of Milk not only does a body good, but also needs to be picked up to complete an errand. This item requires money. The Steaks need to be bought at the local store. Like many other items, you will need money to purchase this item. Gary Coleman’s Autobiography can be signed by Gary Coleman himself! Who would miss out on this amazing oppor¬ tunity? I hear these go for big bucks online... 16 The Overdue Library Book must be returned to the library, and the exorbitant overdue fee must be paid, so you'll need money to finish this one. The Christmas Tree is another item that The Postal Dude will need to pick up to complete his daily errands. It's never too early to introduce major fire hazards info the home, so hurry up and get into the holiday spirit. The Car Alternator is an item you must pick up to complete one of your daily errands. Though in Paradise everyone seems to prefer walking. I heard a rumor it's because all the cars are apparently filled with highly volatile aviation fuel, but who knows? Penicillin is required later in the game when The Postal Dude acquires a... umm...well, let's just say he needs it. The Krotchy Doll is an amusing item for all ages to play with. Use him and he will respond to your advances. The Traffic Citation is yet another reason to not only save money, but to show no mercy to the policemen as well. The man is keeping you down. Holmes! The Gift For Uncle Dave is another item needed to complete the daily errands. Remember, giving is better than receiving, not only when it comes to the receiving end of your pistol. Ac:'t'i«>NrSf Urinating Press 0 to unzip your pants. Press it again to zip your pants back up. When you unzip your pants, both hands will be... occupied, so you can't hold a weapon with your pants unzipped. Press MOUSE BUTTON 1 to urinate. If the ammo number listed by the picture of the zipper is 0, you're out of urine. Wait a few moments, and the Postal Dude will muster up some more liquids. Walking around with your pants down in public will cause police to arrest you and general bystanders to mock you. Kicking Even if you're only armed with your matches you can still kick! Press 0 to kick in front of you. Kick people out of the way, or cops trying to arrest you. Be careful when kicking people for the fun of it. If cops actually see you kick someone, they'll arrest you. While you're at it, try kicking doors open as you approach them for a faster way to open them if you're in a hurry. Concealing Your Weapon Press ^ to alternate between your last weapon and your bare hands. In other words, if you're holding a weapon then it will be put away, and if you aren't holding a weapon then you'll take out the last one you used. After engaging in a firefight, it's always good to hide your weapon during your escape to lessen the resistance from the public. The Clipboard On Tuesday you will start the day with a Clipboard in your hands. Walk up to people and press fire to ask them to sign your petition. Be persistent! Some people may not sign it at first but may change their minds if you ask again. And again. Other people (even cops!) may attack you if you bother them too much! 18 The Clipboard is always in your hands until you get enough names to complete the errand, at which point it is automatically put away. You cannot drop the clipboard and you will not lose it if you get sent to jail. When you press ^ to put away your weapons, you will end up holding the clipboard. Suicide Press 0 to end it all. This puts you in an irrevocable situation. Once this sequence starts, it's time to think about all the good times you had (think quick) and say goodbye to all your friends (yeah, right). Once in this mode, you won't be able to move, but you can use the mouse wheel to zoom the camera in and out to check out the situation. Don't worry about ammo - you've always got a secret grenade saved up just for this occasion. Press Fire when you've had enough. On the right side of the screen, this area shows your health and any body armor you are wearing. Heart The beating heart represents your health. Watch for irregularities that may result from certain actions. The number tells you exactly how much health you have remaining. To prevent The Postal Dude from losing health in the first place, you can always avoid acting like a violent, psychotic jackass. Kevlar and Body Armor An additional number will appear when you are wearing body armor. This number goes down as it absorbs damage, until it reaches 0, when you're back to just your thick skin to protect you. Damage You will notice The Postal Dude grunting in pain if he takes a hit. You will also see the edges of your screen light up red. This will indicate the direction from which the attack is coming. (You can turn red flashes off in the Options menu.) 19 Acquiring more health There are a number of ways to regain lost health. However, some have pros and cons, and should not be taken lightly. One method of restoring health is by using the Health Pipe. These are indigenous to Paradise and the actual contents are a closely guarded secret. Smoking it not only returns some life, but it also will temporarily strengthen The Postal Dude beyond his normal capacity. Because the Health Pipe has addictive qualities the Postal Dude will need to smoke again soon or he will take some damage after coming down from his high. After a few minutes he will begin to complain about feeling bad from smoking. As he continues to mention this you can see that the Dude's heart (in the HUD) will be beating faster and more erratically. Eventually if he doesn't smoke another health pipe, he'll take some damage from the addiction and then return to normal (completely losing his craving). Another way to refill your health is buying food. The following foods can be purchased and eaten: Doughnuts are slightly effective for regaining health. They are not as effective as the other foods, so don't over depend on them. Tip: Visit the 7th Heaven to find the doughnut jackpot. Pizza can be used to cure light wounds. Apparently, the local cheese has unique properties... Fast Food is the most effective food item for restoring lost life, but may result in increased risk of heart disease later in life. 20 The best way to regain health, however, is using the First Aid Kits that can be found around the city. Apparently the townsfolk of Paradise are very accident-prone. The BassSniffer Fish Finder will show the locations of people in your vicinity as well as their potential aggressiveness towards you. When you pick up a BassSniffer it is added to your inventory. The small number next to it indicates the remaining battery life. You can increase it by picking up additional BassS- niffers. Press to turn on the BassSniffer. It will appear in the bottom right comer of the screen. Press again to turn it off whenever you don't need it to conserve the batteries. You can find special plug-in modules that give the BassSniffer added function¬ ality. These modules are added to your inventory when you pick them up. Press to plug them in and |[i^ again to unplug them. This only works when the BassS¬ niffer is turned on. STAVtNa AN|3f I.OABitNa To save your current game, press in^ to bring up the menu then click on Save and choose a slot. This will save your current progress, so in the future you can load from that slot and resume playing from that point in the game. Reminder. Saving over a slot will result in overwriting the game in that slot You can also save and load at any time by pressing 0 for "easy save" or 0 for "easy load". These shortcut keys make it easier to save or load your progress during a game. 21 ano • USE m TO PUT YOUR WEAPON AWAY. Really, life will be much easier if every damn cop and psycho vigilante in town isn't attacking you on sight because you're parading aroimd town with your damn rocket laimcher out. Moron. • People have long memories in Paradise. While completing some of your errands you'll invariably anger specific groups of people. Once these groups start hating you, all their look-alike-buddies will attack you on sight, even after the day you first pissed them off. If your attention span is completely toasted, you can always look at the map to see what groups are currently unhappy with you. • Listen carefully! Policemen usually warn you before coming after you. Hearing what people say can help clarify what's going on. The Postal Dude says lots of important stuff. Or just turn off the soimd and use the force, Mr. Miyagi, it's all up to you. • Know your weapons: you can easily damage yourself if you choose your weapon poorly. Tip: Using napalm indoors = bad. • Conserve weapons with greater damage potential for the really crazy situa¬ tions. There's nothing more embarrassing than finding yourself facing the Seventh Division armed only with scissors because you wasted all your napalm on the local marching band. • Go directly to jail! Sure it's filled with cops, but it's filled with lots of good¬ ies, too. If you're low on health and in a jam, you could try surrendering to the police to enjoy a little R and R. • Look around! Often the most enjoyable items and weapons will be hiding around in uncommon places, so be sure to explore your world. You'll be sur¬ prised where some things can be hidden. • Utilize your character's mobility: The Postal Dude can strafe and duck, which comes in handy when engaging in return fire against an armed oppo¬ nent - Or just stand there and die. See if we care. • RWS employees will back you up in a firefight! They also try to help you out if the Law Man is keeping you down. If you're out picking fights and being generally mischievous, you can run and hide behind them when the mobs come after you. Sure you just got fired, but there are no hard feelings between you and Vince. • Try things! Be creative! If you think of it, maybe we did, too. You wouldn't believe all the fun things you can do in Paradise. 22 tK»^R€>VtN