Being the first Atari ST adventures I had encountered, I was full of glee when asked to review The Lost Kingdom Of Zkul and West.

They are both text adventures and are produced by Talent Software, better known for their contributions to the Sinclair QL range.

The first thing that struck me was their size. Zkul weighs in at 73K but West is a smaller 49K. Talent tell me that West is purely an introduction to adventuring. Be that as it may, it is really very small compared to what it could have been on the ST.

Both games have loading screens. To say they are spectacular is an understatement. They have to be seen to be believed, leaving 8-bit screens way behind.

They are both colourful and detailed, staying on the screen until you press a key, at which point the main game loads.

Let's look at West first. The vocabulary is reasonably large but mostly I found it limited to two word entry.

The plot involves tracking down bank robbers and duly killing them, before taking the money they stole back to the bank. During this time, you will find yourself being promoted to sheriff.

The game plays fairly well as far as it goes - it really is for beginners. The biggest problem is that it is in real time. Nice idea, but if you cannot type quickly then you can find yourself dead as the robbers shoot quite fast and don't wait for you.

Anyone who has played adventures before might get bored with West. The idea of a western adventure is quite a good one but the plot didn't quite gel for me as there didn't seem to be an objective.

However, if you have never played a Talent adventure before, then it's a good idea to play West just to get used to their system.

Zkul, on the other hand, is quite different. The idea is to find as much treasure as possible and return with it to a hut in the great forest where your friend Eldomir waits for you.

The scenario goes thus: Long ago there was a battle between humans and dwarves. The latter won but took heavy losses and so lately there have been very few of the little chaps around.

The battle has lapsed into legend but it is said that, in the domed city, there is lots of loot. So you have been sent by your friend to find both city and loot.

When you do see dwarves they don't wait around long. They can be useful, but it's up to you to find out how.

So far I have mapped about half of the game and believe me, it's a very big adventure to play.

If you get stuck, just wait a bit and sometimes the computer will ofer you a clue. However, it takes points off your score in payment.

There is the standard help and a health command which, when entered, tells you the condition of your character - very neat.

Zkul is quite complex but not so much that it is impossible to continue without solving a problem. Be wary of trap rooms, but quick thinking can usually produce a way out of them.

If you get stuck in a room with shrinking walls, a bit of mathematic progression on a certain word might help you out of it.

A strange map appears occasionally and takes all your treasure. To get it back you have to find his lair.

A strange thing about this adventure is that it does not give you directions in certain places, which makes mazes a real headache. This does add a touch of reality, for you lose your sense of direction in real mazes too.

There are plenty of locations to wander about and problems to be solved, which combine to make a pleasant adventure that takes a fair while to crack.

Zkul is not for the novice, but West is. The combination makes a good starter pack for novice adventurers. It's quite a fair package for the average ST owner and is worth buying just for Zkul. With West included, at £24.95 it makes an attractive buy to anyone.