Publisher: Electronics Arts
Developer: Electronic Arts
Size: 8 Megs
No. of players: 1
Official Ad: Yes
Got it for: Christmas! Wow, nothing like hardcore violence on Christmas day!
The wizard Mordamir, your old master, has recently disappeared. Tracing his last known location has led you to the ancient city of Erinoch where you embark on your quest to save him.

What's it all about?
It's an adventure game set in two basic parts: The 3/4's view dungeon crawling scenes and the one on one fight scenes. You basically make your way around the dungeon, picking up items and solving puzzles, then fighting any enemies you may encounter. The fights consist of you dodging and countering enemy attacks as both you and your opponent's life and "stamina" meters are drained throughout the fight. At the end the fight, your character treats you to a horrible, horrible finishing move that he'll perform on the poor enemy...
Graphics - Excellent. Everything has exquisite detail and looks just like you would imagine a dark dungeon would. The characters are large, and well detailed during the fights scenes, and that same attention to detail carries over to the unbelivably graphic death sequences.
Sound - The music is very medieval-like(think Renaissance Fair), and the sound effects they have used go great with those enemy deaths. The noises that come out of this game when you cut a goblin/troll in half will gross you out, no doubt.
Control - As it's in a 3/4 view mode during the gameplay, it takes a little getting used to, but it's not bad at all. The fight scenes are easily controlled with your dodging, sword swipes and stabbings coming off quickly and easily.
AI - There's not really a whole lot of it. You show up, the goblins/trolls attack you...and that's about it.
Replay value - Moderate. This is one of these games that, when you've beaten it, you've really beaten it. It's worth going through a few more times, just for the sheer thrill of the fights and to see if you can actually get through the game in a single life....but after that...
Tips for better gaming experiences:
Get a FAQ, you will need it at some point. Remember, this game is all about the death trap: If a question like "There's something wet moving under the bones, do you want to uncover it for a closer look?" happens to come up, don't be a moron.
Game Genie:
Genie doesn't fear the Reaper, just take his hand...

My rating: 85(out of 100) - A great, learn-as-you-go game with spectacular graphics, sound and some of the goriest death scenes you will ever encounter. The bland AI and and lack of replay value knock this one down a bit, but it's still one bloodbath you don't want to miss.
GamePro gave it: 5.0(graphics), 4.0(sound), 4.0(control), 5.0(funfactor), 5.0(challenge)(out of 5)
(
Cat's review: Bleeeeehhhhhh, man this game is sick! You upper mammals and your appetite for gore. Aside from its blatant violence, it's an alright game that, for the most part, you'll be content with playing through once and putting it up for a good, long while.

I wouldn't read the ruins on that medallion if I were you...
The things you can do, my God! After the head explodes, you can actually make out the eyes and part of the brain on the floor.
An audience with the Goblin King...
Even after tearing these guys apart, you can see their remains in the normal gameplay screen. Notice the brain smear from the top of that goblin's skull. Nasty!

Gotta be quick:
When it was first released, the game came with a card that you could use to order the official hint book with. More than just a hint book, it's an actual story, told by Mordamir as he made his was through the dungeon. It's a very well written short story and, sadly, now out of print(without a doubt); most people will never have the chance to read it. I got a copy shortly after I received the game on Christmas and I've yet to run into another person who has one. For a quick picture of the hint book, click here.

Thanks to our unknown, but much appreciated "Henry" who has HTML-ized not only The Immortal's manual, but also the "Codex of the Serpent" cluebook I was talking about above. To download it, click here.