DISCWORLD II: MORTALITY BYTES!
(Psygnosis)
System: PC

   If you’re torn between watching cartoons on Saturday morning and playing computer games, Psygnosis has just the answer: Discworld II: Mortality Bytes! In this fully animated CD-ROM adventure game, players assume the role of Rincewind, a hopelessly inept wizard chosen by the Archchancellor to replace the character of Death. It seems Death has shirked his duties of killing people properly (they’re dying, but their souls aren’t being taken away), and instead has become a beer-guzzling beach bum. But Rincewind would much rather find Death and give him his job back than do any actual work--and this is where the game begins.
   As Rincewind, you can explore the many different areas of the Discworld, converse with all of its inhabitants, solve puzzles, store and use items in your inventory and search for clues as to Death’s whereabouts. Actions are performed using both a mouse and keyboard and a simple point-and-click interface. Some incredibly impressive hand-drawn animation (over 25,000 cells were used) brings Discworld's irreverent humor and sharp, witty dialogue to life. And don’t let the fact that we’re dealing with cartoon art here fool you into thinking this game is easy.  It isn’t. In fact, it can be quite challenging and requires a great deal of patience and memorization in order to make any real headway in this double-disc, 100-hour monster.--Jeff Kitts