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What on earth is Koboyashi Naru? Well, to be specific it is the final trial for those who wish to be like Keith and become an immortal.

It all starts off when you are sent by the Overlord Of All to the Closed Chamber on the world of Igor. In this chamber there are four doors. One is at present closed, and the other three are the doors to tasks.

The doors are labelled Knowledge, Wisdom and Understanding, and by entering one of them you enter the task. So with only your wits to help you (a distinct disadvantage to some of us) you start the adventure.

The game is played using the joystick or cursor keys, with no input from the keyboard. Entries are made by selecting one of 23 verb icons, and the text description window at the bottom of the screen. In the middle of the screen is the picture frame.

For example, if you want to jump a pit, you first move the joystick to highlight the JUMP icon, and press the button. The verb has now been selected, and the noun is chosen by joystick, in the same way, from the text at the bottom. On pressing the button, the action is carried out.

This all sounds a bit difficult, but in fact it's very easy to master, and you soon find yourself in total control.

Koboyashi Naru is quite interesting as a game. As a concept it's not totally different from Mastertronic's Zzzz. The storyline seems a bit thin at first, and although the game is difficult to start with, it is worth persevering. At first, when you enter a new location, your eye moves to the text description window, but this means you often miss information scrolling in the message window at the top of the screen.

The graphics are extremely basic, and add little to the atmosphere, but they are drawn instantly. For £1.99 this is certainly worth looking at. Perhaps it is the future of adventure games. Personally I hope not.