"Images used with permission from Caravel Games."

If you are not familiar with this outstanding PC computer game I highly recommend that you go to http://www.caravelgames.com and read about the game. While there you can download and try their demo version that has three levels. The full version has 25 levels. Each level can get progressively harder. Well, maybe not really harder, as experiences you learn in one level most certainly will apply in future levels. But, certainly, each new level will cause you to stop and think carefully how to solve each level's puzzles.

Let me explain a bit about this game. It definitely is not a "shoot-um up"! You don't need lightening fast reactions to solve this game. You need that gray matter under you hair. You can take all the time you wish before you make any move in the game. You move the game's main character, Beethro Budkin, through the rooms of each level. The totality of levels is a Hold. Moving Beethro is quite easy and you only have to make one move at a time. There is no time limit between moves.

You character is Beethro and you have a top-down view in which he looks like this:

He can face if 8 different positions of the a compass: N, S, E, W, NE, NW, SE, and SW. You move Beethro around the screen using the keyboard commands. The two most important keyboard strokes are swinging his sword clockwise or counter-clockwise. But the author were kinds to the players by including an UNDO LAST MOVE! If you move wrong or swing your sword in the wrong direction you can quickly hit the backspace key to undo your error.

To learn how to move Beethro around the rooms please see Keyboard Commands.

As Beethro moves he can swing his sword to kill monsters that infest all levels. Some of the monsters are:

• Roaches - the #1 monster in the game
• Roach Queens - produces the #1 monsters
• Wubbas - cute little creatures that follow you around
• Rock Golems - when killed they turn to rock
• Tar and Tar Mothers - this is nasty stuff and there is only one way to "cut it".
• Mud and Mud Mothers - easier than tar to get rid of but needs to be cut a different way
• wraithwings - have unique movement patterns
• spiders - almost invisible at times
• brain - controls all monsters, roach, etc. so their movement are not normal
• red serpent - strike their tails!
• blue serpent - there is only one way to kill them and it is not their tail!
• evil eye - if you get in their "line of sight" they will attack
• guard - if you make it to the end you will meet the guard who will attack with his sword

All of these monsters have a unique way of moving around the screen with the intent of kill Beethro. Some are fairly easy to kill, others can be very difficult. Perhaps the worst are the Tar and Mud Mothers. You can read about the monsters from the main menu.

One very important character in the game is Halph . He can help you is some cases, e.g. where you cannot open a barrier but he can reach the controlling orb if you "ask him".

Another important aspect of the game is the orb that, when struck with your sword, will open various barriers . The barriers can block a single passageway or it can be very wide and even form a right angle.

You have a "top-down" view of the playing surface which generally has a grid pattern of squares, about 38 squares wide by 32 squares high. Not all squares can be moved to, e.g. there are walls that you cannot go through. An example of a level room that you have to maneuver Beethro through is shown below.

You may think that the game is not that hard, that each room in a level has a trick to it that you have to solve. And you are correct. The problem is figuring out what the "trick" is - and I can assure you that there are rooms that literally defies logic and is impossible to solve. Yet, each room does have a solution. However, there are some that will drive you crazy.

Oh, yes. The authors provide a "Check Point" in may room (obvious the really hard room) so that, once you reach this point if you are killed later on you can re-start the room from this point.

There is one sure way to solve some of the rooms - ask someone who has already solved it! Yes, there is a forum, http://forum.caravelgames.com/ where you can go and see how others have solved the various rooms. About 90% of the help there is in the form of "hints" that should get your brain going to think in the right direction. But, no matter the hints, you still will have to use your wits to complete the room.

Click Here to see a sample room in Level 1-5, use the menu at the top left to see sample levels for any of the 25 levels, or use the links at the bottom of this page see the next/previous sample room for a level.

I highly recommend this game to all. You can order it (and download it) online. The cost is $19.95, an excellent prices for the hours of fun you will will have ... tearing your hair out trying to solve some rooms in some of the rooms.

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