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I should have known it was going to be one of those days when the paint fell on me and the walls of the corridor squashed me flat.

It all began when Philosopher's Quest from Acornsoft materialised in my trusty micro and I foolishly stepped inside. This quest has had bands of adventures throughout the country scratching their heads. The game is a standard text adventure type with no sound or graphics and the object is to find all the treasures scattered throughout the game.

The game comes with a postcard which can be used to obtain a clue if you admit you are beaten. It is a testament to the deviousness of the game that this has had to be abandoned in favour of a booklet of clues obtainable from Acornsoft.

Three large mazes dominate the game, one of them being a series of slides in which I have lost the seat of my trousers and my good humour. A nice touch is that certain traps operate in a different manner when visited for the second time. This is a good idea to incorporate when writing you own games, as with a little extra code you obtain two traps for the price of one.

The game accepts abbreviations of commands, and this can lead to disaster. I found BREATHE AQUALUNG was interpreted as BREAK AQUALUNG! It's not a nice feeling to see your life-support turning to fragments when you are 60 feet down and grappling with an octopus!

The final mixture of magic, solicitors and aqualungs may feel uncomfortable to some purists and I wish the few references to philosophers had been continued. Instead, the game forgets its title and becomes standard advneture, albeit full of different themes and trap types. It is certain absorbing and provided I can get out of the whale's stomach before my right leg dissolves I'll try again to solve the mystery of the coloured stars. Then I'll hang up my sword.

Andy Mitchell