The Trials of Guilder Lite for Windows

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Editors’ Review

Download.com staffNovember 8, 2008

This cute, free game evokes the days when text adventures ruled the gaming world. The Trials of Guilder Lite has no graphics, only occasional sound cues, and its own little DOS window. You read a brief description of your surroundings, examine objects, talk to people, and start fights, all by typing commands, such as kill thief or eat fountain (once you've determined the fountain is made of pudding). The chapel heals you if you pray, and teaches you skills if you type learn. You can attract a traveling companion named Faldor who will help you fight. The download includes the Basic source code so you can edit the game. Within the context of a text adventure we only had two interface complaints. One is that when you're establishing a new character, you're asked to choose a class but are not presented with a list of options. The other is that when you use the wrong verb, the program tells you to check your noun. Once we got used to the way the program operates, though, we found it quite absorbing. If you want to exercise your imagination, examine The Trials of Guilder Lite.