Tir Na Nog

The first of a trilogy of similarly-designed titles from Gargoyle Games, Tir Na Nog is a complex mix of arcade and adventure elements. The game is viewed from the side, and to change direction you must rotate the view.

You play Cuchulainn, and you must restore the Sidhe race to its former position of intelligence, enlightenment and civilization. This can be done by retrieving the four pieces of the Seal of Calum, which was shattered when the Great Enemy invaded.

Many puzzles are presented in the form of cryptic text messages (displayed in a neat pseudo-Celtic font), ranging form 'find my crown for a gift' to 'The backdoor key is me' - lateral thinking is required to interpret these messages.

The action side of things is challenging, especially before you have found a good sword or mace. When you die, you return to the start of the game, but the settings of objects are left exactly as they were - making it important to regularly save the game, as it's possible to lose weaponry in a situation so precarious that you have little chance of retrieving it without suffering more combat.