Dragons, witches, trolls... No one can stop Anna. With her telekinesis, a knack for improvisation and the help of a shady fox. She communes with the dead, shuts off the local taverns beer supply and gets old ladies behind bars...

The first level has you exploring the room you're being held a prisoner in

Anna's Quest is a point and click adventure game which has a devilishly wicked sense of humour. This is a game that is perfect for all age groups. However, I'd say it's best suited to bring families together, with parents playing alongside their children. Why? Well, some of the puzzles will be quickly solved by children, leaving adults scratching their head at the childlike logic. And at other times it takes a grownup perspective to figure out what to do. Working together there's hours of fun to be had.

You start the game, as Anna, who lives with her grandpa on the edge of a forest. Grandpa constantly warns Anna about the dangers of the forest, and how she must never venture into it on her own. But when Grandpa becomes ill Anna is forced to set foot into a place she swore she never would, at which point a witch captures her and holds her hostage in an abandoned house.

The first level, which acts as the game's tutorial, has you exploring the room you're being held prisoner in. It doesn't feel too much like a tutorial, as your main quest is to simply escape the room. Before this, however, you discover that the witch is holding you prisoner in a bid to unlock your telekinetic abilities. And, once Anna discovers she has this ability, she can use her newfound powers to escape her prison.

Just why did the witch take you hostage? And why are you suddenly able to talk to the dead?

It's pretty much a case of examining every item and point of interest. There's a handy hint button that can be pressed which shows you all of the items in that room that you can interact with. As I mentioned previously, some of the logic is a little hit and miss, but on the whole it's a fairly engaging entry into the point and click genre.

A word of warning. Don't quit your game without saving as you'll be forced to start from the beginning when you reload. Saving is not as straightforward as it should be either. But that's my only real complaint.

The graphics are bright and bold and the hand-drawn animation is well realised. Likewise, the vocal acting, is perfect. The story twists and turns and is a little dark, but in the same way that traditional fairytales have always been.

A great family game that will keep everyone amused for a quite some time.

8

Nick Smithson