King's Quest (Sierra On-Line, 1984, Apple //e) Roberta Williams' classic, this was originally meant to show the power of the PCjr, as requested by IBM itself at the time. Later, it was ported to various systems and started a whole new trend of animated, graphic adventure gaming. What made this title even more unique was its two different ways to defeat each villain; a less violent way led to more points. Coolest Added Touch : The original game box (shown here) was magnificent and eye-grabbing, with a collage of all the riches found in the game: far superior to most el cheapo cartoon fare found on game boxes these days.

The Legacy (Microprose, 1993, PC) One of the finest RPG-style haunted mansion games I ever played. You must discover your "legacy" and destroy the evil that lurks within your inherited mansion. Each floor of the house was completely unique; one level was even an insane asylum(!). Unique magic spells added to the fun. Coolest Added Touch : The final level is a bizarre alternate dimension.

The Legend of Kyrandia, Book 2 : The Hand of Fate (Westwood, 1993, PC) "Bewitched" reruns? "Sabrina the Teenage Witch"...? Nah; give me Kyrandia 2 every time. Xanthia is the youngest of the mystics, who needs to get to the  center of her mystical world to stop its destruction. The coolest part of the game was her "travel cauldron," at the bottom right of the screen; using various combinations of inventory items created a variety of potions. Coolest Added Touch : Xanthia changes her wardrobe with a magic "snap" of her fingers in each new area (shown here).

The Legend of Robin Hood :Conquests of the Longbow (Sierra On-line, 1991, PC) The best Robin Hood game I ever played, thanks to game designer Christy Marx, with hand-drawn artwork to enhance the "old story" look and feel. While it used Sierra's critically-flamed icon interface, its puzzles were surprisingly good. The evolving storyline, with multiple possible endings, enhanced a great game experience. Coolest Added Touch : You get to aim arrows yourself, with a first-person view...

Lexi-Cross (Interplay, 1991, PC) Peter Oliphant designed a brilliantly handled, imaginary game show. Click squares to unearth a crossword puzzle, then solve the crossword, "Wheel of Fortune" style. Coolest Added Touch : The game saves your player stats, and even comments if you've been gone for too long. A remake of this game would be totally cool!

The Lurking Horror (Infocom, 1987, Apple//e) This text adventure put you in a college where strange research is taking place. As always, it's up to you to save the day...and without any hope of extra credit, either. Coolest Added Touch : Initial creepiness happens in "The Tunnels"; the underground connections to class buildings in many real-life colleges. These are useful when a dorm room student must make it to a class during a major snow or thunder storm. They are also, at times, rather foreboding; dripping water, unkempt walls, chipping paint, and odd smells. Ingenious of the game designer(s) to work this into the game...

Mean Streets (Access, 1989, PC) While Sierra On-Line claims to have been the first-this and the first-that, they did not release the first 256 color adventure game; that honor goes to Mean Streets, the first in the Tex Murphy mystery series. With an entire city to explore --and your air car to fly you there-- this was one of those rare graphic adventures that lasted for several days. It even lead to additional Murphy mysteries; Martian Memorandum , Under a Killing Moon , Pandora Directive , and Overseer. An often overlooked classic! Sadly, Access was aquired by Microsoft, which seems more interested in the Links golf game series than ever releasing another Tex Murphy Mystery. Fan sites, like the one here, are still hopeful, however. Cross your fingers. Coolest Added Touch : All the classic film noir thrills; the mysterious beautiful female client, a hidden conspiracy, etc.

A Mind Forever Voyaging (Infocom, 1985, Apple //e) Steve Meretzky's best adventure storyline ever (IMHO) puts you in charge of Perry Simm. He just found out he's really PRISM, an AI program used to simulate humankind's future. You help him within a simulation of the future's economic "growth," and unearth an underhanded plot...then try to convince your "superior" human makers that you know what you're talking about, so the real world can be saved. Coolest Added Touch : The finale is, without debate, spectacular; an elaborate, moving, happy ending...

 Out of This World (Interplay, 1991, PC) "Burger Bill" Heineman created a unique, fully-animated story, without a single word needed to be spoken (which was good at the time, before CD-ROM became the norm). You control a scientist thrown into a bizarre parallel world, via a freak accident. Animation was revolutionary, as was the atmosphere; sort of like a colorful silent movie...and just as much of a classic! Coolest Added Touch : Swinging your suspended jail cage until it lands on your jailer...

Pirates! (Microprose, 1987/8, Apple//e & Macintosh) More fun than a whole week on Disneyland's "Pirate Ride." Buy ships and a crew, then plunder the seas. Get into cannon fights with enemy ships, then swordfight their captain. Dodge a fort's defenses then swordfight your way to the loot. Get really good, and you can even become semi-honest, win the hand of a Governor's daughter, become leader of small parts of land, and retire. Coolest Added Touch : Treasure maps are screen caps of actual areas you can sail to in the game; you must dig exactly where the "X" is...