TABLE OF CONTENTS

• STORY
• THE GAME SCREEN
• HOW TO PLAY
• MOVES & ABILITIES
• OTHER SYSTEMS
• MODES
• OPTIONS & SETTINGS
• REPLAYS
• TIPS & TRICKS
• CAST OF CHARACTERS

The year is 2156AD.
Modern science has revolutionized the criminal underworld.
Cyborgs, robots, mutants, biomonsters...
Criminals use outlawed technology to assert their power.
By the beginning of the 22nd century, the underworld was ruled by the criminal syndicate BUGS, an organisation with ruthless leadership and vast scientific resources.

Eventually, BUGS' sinister ambitions could not be contained.
Criminal cells all over the world enacted a simultaneous global assault against government and military facilities.
Peace was shattered and anarchy ensued as the world's major cities came under BUGS' control.

Amidst the chaos, a member of the military's secret corps receives an order:
"Infiltrate the BUGS stronghold, take out their leader and crush the insurgency!"

That man's name is Joe. He is a test subject for the supernatural experiments conducted by the government behind closed doors.
Their research has turned him into a "human weapon" with astounding extrasensory abilities.
His power...

Unstoppable punches infused with psionic energy: "PSI Knuckle!"
Every punch sends PSI energy coursing through his body.
PSI Trance, PSI Teleport... a vast array of phenomenal psychic powers, his to command.

Go, Psi Knuckle Joe! Bring justice to the world, one punch at a time!

Playing with a gamepad is the recommended option. The following descriptions have been written with the gamepad in mind.

BUTTON CONFIG

Left/right movement and crouching is performed with the d-pad
"Attack Button"
"Jump Button"
"Dash Button"
"Teleport Button"
"Pause Button"

All in all, this is a 5-button game.

Before playing the game, we recommend you configure the controls from the options menu.
The diagram to the left of this message displays the recommended controller configuration.

Note: the default keyboard config is as follows:

Left/right movement, crouching = arrow keys
"Attack Button" = Z
"Jump Button" = C
"Dash Button" = X
"Teleport Button" = left-Shift
"Pause Button" = space bar

Keyboard controls can also be configured from the options menu.

Additionally, pressing the F2 key during the game will return you to the title screen while in arcade mode, or to the area selection screen while in trial mode.
Pressing the ESC key will close the game.

• ATTACK
  Press the attack button to make Joe throw a punch.
  Tapping the button twice in quick succession will result in two weak jabs, but from the third press onward, Joe will throw powerful straight punches.
  A jab does 1 point of damage and a straight punch does 2 points of damage.
  Punching enemies or enemy bullets will add energy to Joe's PSI Gauge, up to a maximum 5 points of energy.
  
• JUMP
  Press the jump button to jump.
  You can adjust the height and duration of your jump by holding the button.
  
• DASH
  Press and hold the dash button to dash along the ground.
  The dash will end when you release the button, or after Joe dashes a certain distance.
  
• PSI TRANCE
  After punching an enemy or bullet, Joe's body will glow green and enter a "trance" state for 1/3 of a second (20 frames).
  Joe will not take damage while in this "trance" state.
  
• TRANCE JUMP
  Press the jump button during a trance state to perform a "trance-jump".
  You will remain invincible during the upward arc of your trance-jump, even if the total duration exceeds 20 frames.
  
• TRANCE DASH
  Press the dash button during a trance state to perform a "trance-dash".
  You will remain invincible for the length of the trance-dash, even if the total duration exceeds 20 frames.
  
• FLOATING
  If you enter a trance state while in midair, you will momentarily float in the air.
  This will allow you to his airborne enemies multiple times in quick succession.
  Additionally, you can trance-jump or trance-dash while floating in midair.
  
• PSI TELEPORT
  Pressing the teleport button during a trance state will teleport Joe next to the nearest enemy.
  This move requires a full PSI Gauge to perform and a successful teleport will fully drain the PSI Gauge.
  This move cannot be performed if the enemy is not on the screen.
  The precise position of your teleports is displayed as a "teleport marker" next to each enemy; the markers will gradually
  brighten as your PSI Gauge fills and will flash to let you know when teleportation is possible.
  After a successful teleport, Joe will immediately enter a trance state and a float.
  
• TOGETHER
  Punch enemies and enemy bullets to enter a trance state and gain an invincible jump or dash.
  Punch enemies and enemy bullets while airborne for the opportunity to air-jump or air-dash.
  Press the teleport button when your PSI Gauge is full to instantaneously appear next to the nearest enemy.
  

• HEART BLOCKS AND STAR BLOCKS
  
  

  HEART BLOCK	STAR BLOCK

  
  Destroy a Heart Block to restore 2 points of health.
  Destroying 10 Star Blocks will give Joe an extra life.
  


• BOSS BATTLES
  During boss battles, the boss' life gauge will be displayed on the bottom right of the screen.
  When the boss' life reaches zero, take him out with a powerful punch to clear the stage.
  

On the title screen, you'll be presented with three choices: ARCADE MODE, TRIAL MODE and OPTIONS.
Use the up and down buttons to select an option and press the attack or pause buttons to confirm your selection.

• ARCADE MODE
  This is the main mode of the game; your challenge is to clear all six stages in order.
  Each of the six stages is divided into four areas, with the 4th area containing a boss fight.
  Your game will end when you run out of lives, but you can continue up to 3 times.
  


• TRIAL MODE
  This mode allows you to practice individual areas from each stage.
  In order to unlock an area for trial play, you must first clear that area in arcade mode.
  When playing in trial mode, your current time will be displayed in the upper right corner of the screen.
  After clearing an area, you will receive a C, B, A or S ranking.
  In order to achieve an S rank, you must clear the stage at a high speed without taking damage.
  In addition to aiming for ranks, you can also use trial mode to hone your skills for arcade mode.
  


• OPTIONS
  Please refer to the OPTIONs & SETTINGS section for more info.
  

Selecting OPTIONS on the title screen will bring you to the options menu.
Here, you can configure your controls and other preferences. Your settings will be automatically saved and will automatically load the next time you start the game.

After a play session, you can save a replay of your last run by pressing F4 on either the title screen or trial menu.
Your replay data will be saved to the same folder as psiknuckle.exe.
Arcade replays will be saved as "arcade.rep" and trial replays will be saved as individual files for each stage ("t1-1.rep", "t1-2.rep", etc).
In order to watch your replay, drag and drop your replay data onto the psiknuckle.exe file.

A single replay file can not exceed 1 hour (216,000 frames) in length.
Replay files can be renamed, but they must be located in the same folder as psiknuckle.exe in order to correctly function.
We cannot guarantee that your replays will function correctly outside of the environment suggested above.
Please consider this a simple feature.

• Most enemy bullets can be cancelled with a punch, but electricity, flames and lasers should not be touched.
• Punching an enemy will briefly stun them, allowing you to punch them consecutively. Additionally, enemies will be briefly stunned immediately after a teleport. (These rules may not apply to bosses, however.)
• Teleport markers will generally appear next to enemies with the closest horizontal proximity to Joe.
  In other words, Joe's teleport will usually prioritize enemies directly above or below him.
  The teleport marker will disappear from enemies standing directly next to Joe. Additionally, teleport markers should not appear inside walls or other solid surfaces.
• Progress-critical enemies will eventually respawn after death, so you should never find yourself in a position where progress is impossible.
  If you do find yourself trapped with no way to progress, please contact the author so he can address these issues.
• After beating arcade mode and watching the ending, you'll be taken to a results screen that shows your clear time and the amount of damage received.
  From then on, your fastest clear time will be displayed on the title screen.
• Upon starting the game for the first time, a record.dat file will be created to store your trial mode times and other data.
  Manually delete this file to clear your save data.

• THE HERO
  

  PSI KNUCKLE JOE
  	The hero of the game. Joe's "PSI Knuckle" powers are the result of a clandestine government program that seeks to artificially imbue its subjects with extrasensory abilities. Psionic energy bolsters every punch in Joe's quest to destroy evil.。

  
  
• THE BOSSES
  

  COMMANDO MIKE
  	A former commando with a taste for senseless violence, Mike was imprisoned after deserting his post and shooting up a downtown district. Mike took advantage of the chaos caused by BUGS' assault to stage a jailbreak and with his favourite machine gun back in hand, he returned to the city to spread havoc.

  
  

  MAD DOCTOR FRED
  	A brilliant scientist whose dangerous experiments made him an outcast. Bitter towards the world that rejected him, Dr. Fred devoted himself to developing weapons and cyborgs for BUGS in order to exact his revenge. His flying chair is self-made and self-propelled and comes equipped with a laser weapon and small missiles.

  
  

  FISHMAN SAM
  	A BUGS soldier who volunteered for DNA modification and was reborn as a fishlike mutant. He is extremely proud of his new form and his loyalty to BUGS is absolute. Hellishly strong and agile, he leads a school of mutant fish in the fight against Joe.

  
  

  PYROBORG ALEX
  	A man who gained pyrokinectic abilities though the same government program that birthed Psi Knuckle Joe. Overwhelmed and intoxicated by his newfound power, he eventually betrayed the government to BUGS in exchange for powerful cybernetic augmentations, becoming the "Pyroborg". He bides his time at BUGS' stronghold, awaiting the chance to test his strength against his old rival.

  
  

  DARK NINJA KEN
  	The leader of a ninja militia, summoned by BUGS from the distant land of Japan. Ken's clan chose to ally themselves with BUGS in order to initiate armageddon and purge the world of mankind's corruption. He will utilise a vast array of techniques to defeat Joe, including the "Bunshin no Jutsu" and the unpredictable "Madou Shuriken".

  
  

  BUGS MASTER ERIC
  ?	The leader of the criminal syndicate BUGS. Under his leadership, BUGS has grown to dominate the criminal underworld. He has initiated a worldwide insurgency in order to achieve his ambition of world domination. Orders are delivered by his subordinates; he spends his time in hiding and few have seen him with their own eyes.

  
  
• ENEMY CHARACTERS
  

  	[ SOLDIER BORG ] A cyborg soldier designed for close-quarters combat.		[ GUNNER BORG ] A cyborg soldier with a gun.
  	[ BOMBER BORG ] A cyborg soldier that hurls bombs.		[ HOVER POD ] A surveillance drone with no offensive weaponry. Destroyed Hover Pods will respawn after a short wait.
  	[ FIRE MAN ] A mutant with the ability to self-ignite. Releases a pillar of flame when defeated.		[ TRI-SHOT ] A fixed turret that shoots bullets in three directions. Yellow Tri-Shots will respawn after being destroyed.
  	[ MUTANT FISH ] A mutated fish that leaps out of the water to attack.		[ BOOMERANG BORG ] A cyborg that attacks with a boomerang. Back off as the boomerang approaches and then rush in while it retreats.

  
  ...and many, many more!