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Prepare yourself for one of the most original and exciting games you're ever likely to experience. Gargoyle's Heavy On The Magick is a real step forward in gameplay. It's an interactive adventure with big cartoon-style graphics, beautiful animation and 255 locations packed with weird and wonderful monsters, including Wyverns, goblins, trolls and the enigmatic Apex the Ogre.

The adventure stars Axil the Able - who has been cast into a dank dungeon network beneath a dreary castle called Collodon's Pile by Master Therion - the cleverest wizard in all Graumerphy. Axil should really have known better - practising his favourite pastime of wizard baiting in The Golden Thurible of all places. Still what was done was done - and now his job was to get out!

Once the neat loading screen has disappeared - it gives you sneak previews of the screens from the game - you get a screen which gives you a few general tips - shame you can't get back to this once you've entered the game - and then the option screen appears.

When the option screen is displayed, you may notice that the program has already generated values for Stamina, Skill and Luck. While you can't alter the values themselves, you can re-allocate them - select option 6 and the values will be realigned. It depends on whether you think Skill counts for more than Stamina, or perhaps you just feel lucky!

When Saving or Restoring a game, you will be asked for a version letter - this is to ensure that the right game is restored, so keep a note of version letters.

Communicating with the program is all done though the middle window. Here you see all the commands you input.

Your Stamina, Skill and Luck are a reflection of your current abilities. If you run out of Stamina, you die. Your Stamina and Skill together affect the outcome of conflicts: your Luck will influence all your actions.

Combat will reduce your Stamina a lot, most other actions will reduce it a little, but taking food or drink may well increase it. Other special objects will enhance your Skill and Luck.

As you progress through the adventure you will gain in experience, this will not only enhance your status characteristics, but, exceptionally, advance your Magical grade, which will allow you access to items and knowledge not available to the lower grades.

All combat is Magical - physical encounters with other creatures are often fatal. If you decide to engage in a macho bout of blasting, check your own and the monster's status before each round - it may be capable of hurting you more than you can hurt it!

Blasting is not the only way out of a tight situation. Some monsters, and all demons, may have information on objects which may prove useful, and often the status of a creature will give you a clue of how to deal with it.

Sometimes you come across locked doors. Most locks that you encounter are magical and therefore are opened magically by magical keys! Naturally, they might not immediately be recognised as keys but they need only be dropped by a lock to be effective. Other locks can be opened by magical passwords. Remember, you have to "drop" objects for them to be effective with doors. Just having them in your pouch isn't good enough.

One of the most exciting things about the game, apart from the depth of the thing, is the command system which allows one key inputs together with more traditional text instructions.

All the inhabitants of the dungeon speak Merphish, a language similar to English but more compact, if not terse. All commands take the form of a keyword followed by a Return/Enter.

Keywords are entered as just the first letter. The name of both animate and inanimate objects must be entered in full. Unrecognised keywords are queried.

Commands can also be entered as a string, with each command separated by a comma, and the final command followed by a Return - like the system used in Lord Of The Rings.

Apex the Ogre will help you out if you talk to him nicely. Remember to enter your conversation like so. "Apex, (object). The first quote mark and the comma are crucial if old Apex is to understand what you want help with. He may look fierce but he's nice really.

You don't need a joystick to control Axil - he moves at your command. Tell him to go north by hitting the N key and our hero moves to the nearest northern exit and moves into the next location. You can move him about within a location by using the left/right commands. This is used to get him near objects you want him to examine or pick up.

Always remember to pick up the Grimoire - or book of spells - you'll find in your starting location. If you don't, you won't be armed with the useful array of magic you'll need to combat creatures in the dungeon.

You can blast them, freeze them or invoke a demon - but all this requires stamina. Don't try it if your stamina rating is low or you'll die a slow, painful death.

Gargoyle say that they'll be bringing out add-on modules for the game. You'll be able to transfer your saved character into new scenarios - like Collondon's Pile, the castle above the dungeons, the Tombs of Taro and the mysterious Paradise reglossed!

Heavy On The Magick is a brilliant game - but it will appeal to arcade adventurers and D&D freaks alike. And, just maybe, it will introduce arcade adventure addicts to a whole new area of games-playing. Miss this at your peril.