Alone In the Dark (Infogrames/I-motion, 1992/93, PC) Inspired by author H.P. Lovecraft, this haunted house put all others to shame.  It was also one of the first adventures to use well-created, full-color, 3D polygon characters, which it got away with on the slow CPUs at the time by using static backgrounds which changed at various camera angles. The storyline evolved via books and journals that you found around the house. Coolest added touch : stairway demons defeated only by their hideous reflection.

Amazon (Filmtrack/Telarium, 1982, Apple//e) Michael Crichton is a name well known in books and movies: The Andromeda Strain, Westworld, Coma, Jurassic Park, Lost World, Disclosure, and Rising Sun are just a few of his titles. He is also the creator and executive producer of NBC's "ER." This game was created in 1982 when he had his own software company under the name "Filmtrack." It was a graphic/text adventure about ancient treasure in the vast jungle. It was also was one of my favorite adventures in its day. Coolest Added Touch: Paco, the intelligent, talking parrot.

AutoDuel (Origin, 1985/88, Apple //e) Created by Chuck "Chuckles" Bueche(co-founder of Origin), this was based on the popular RPG board game, Car Wars. The game box even included a mock road map and driver's manual. You chose your own car (right down to the frame, weaponry, and engine) to travel to any of 16 cities, getting money either from salvaged parts found during road battles, or from transporting goods via dangerous highways. Within cities, sell used parts (or just buy a whole new car), fight for cash in arena car "contests," or hear rumors in the bar for possible jobs. In the end, help the FBI capture the highway's main villain, once and for all... Coolest added touch : The main gang leader "steals" your save game(!), making it a deadhead run to safety.

The Colony (Mindscape, 1988, Macintosh) Perhaps half a decade ahead of its time, this was a B&W 3D action/adventure, with polygonal characters and full 360 degree freedom of movement. It may not have had all the perks of modern 3D games (it was made long before texture mapping, 3D accelerators, and the like), though it was still fun to play. The story unfolds via still-active computer terminals, which you can use for important clues to discover what-went-wrong. Along the way, you must save the cyber-sleeping children of the now-long-gone colonists, by putting them in your ship's cargo hold before you escape; a nice additional puzzle. Coolest Added Touch : The alien queen, from a parallel dimension, is invincible; you have to grab the reactor core she protects, run like heck, install it into your ship, then blow up the colony from orbit. KABOOM!

 Crusader : No Remorse (Origin, 1995, PC CD-ROM) Once a guard for the "bad guys," Crusader soon found out he was on the wrong side. You help him join a rebellion and use cool weaponry to defeat a greedy empire. With a storyline similar to a cross between The Running Man and Commando --and often as violent-- Crusader is much like an interactive Schwarzenegger film...with you as Arnold! Coolest Added Touch : This is one of the most REAL action-oriented environments, ever, in any game (even to this day); glass shatters, computers catch fire, and generators explode (which are best to keep away from when on foot!). If only Quake and Unreal took this game's lead...

 Crystal Quest (Cascady/Greene, 1989, Macintosh) A classic to any 1980's Mac owner. A simple enough premise of grabbing all the crystals while shooting the bad guys is multiplied with a new enemy every other level. This continues for as many as 24 levels! Once you've seen enough, use the "Critter Editor" to create your own levels and enemies, complete with your own recorded sound effects. Coolest Added Touch: The Critter Editor allowed you to save your game changes to a ".mod"-type file, to share with other Crystal Quest owners...A concept years ahead of its time!

Dark Castle (Silicon Beach Software, 1987, Macintosh) One of the first truly cool, Macintosh-exclusive games, this put you within a castle with puzzles at every turn. The hi-res, B&W graphics of classic Macs made things even more fun, with excellent animation and digital sound, years before such technology was seen on PCs. Coolest Added Touch: Pull the right switch, and a Ten-Ton Weight falls on the jailor, so you can get the key.

Deadline (Infocom, 1982, Apple //e) When this murder mystery/ text adventure was first introduced, it came inside a dossier, not unlike an actual crime report. Inside were all the "police files" of the crime, including photos, fingerprint records, and even a sample of pills found at the crime scene (rumor has it that these were, in reality, sweet tarts candy). When modern gamers put this much care in their product's packaging, it was usually only for a "limited edition" sold at around $75 or more. These extras were free of charge, just for buying the game! To top it off, Deadline was quite frankly the best mystery ever put in adventure form. Ever. Coolest Added Touch : A mystery that was actually mysterious; a concept very rare these days, in games, TV, or even movies!

Defender of the Crown (Cinemaware, 1988, Macintosh) Rick S Levine made one of the first, best castle/conquest games.  Create an army, shoot down enemy strongholds with catapults, compete in jousting tournaments, and even enter a sword fight to save a damsel-in-distress. While this game was ported to several systems, the classic Macintosh version was the most fun, with intricate graphics, and top-notch background music. Coolest Added Touch : Attacking a castle via catapult (shown here) literally breaks it apart hole by hole...medieval "breakout"!

D/Generation (Mindscape, 1991, PC) Long before Diablo and the like, there was D/Generation; one of the first "isometric perspective" action games for the PC. Your jet-pack lands you on the roof of a building to rescue scientists whose DNA experiments have gone awry. This includes the A, B, and C-Generation Prototypes, which now run amuck in the building. Security systems have gone berserk as well, adding to the challenges. Save lives one by one --getting extra lives for yourself in the process-- all leading up to your confrontation with the D/Gen prototype itself... Coolest Added Touch : The "C Generation" prototypes are shape-shifters, who resemble innocent bystanders until you get too close...