For the uninitiated, the Wizardry series began in 1978 with the release of Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord, and that game, along with the six sequels that followed, is included in this collection. All of the games are presented in their original format, meaning the first four use simple text and stick figures to represent the entire gaming universe. Dungeons in the first few games consist of straight white lines bounding pure black walls.

Only purists and game collectors will appreciate the first five titles in the series, but nearly anyone who enjoys crawling through dungeons hacking up monsters should like Bane of the Cosmic Forge and Crusaders of the Dark Savant (along with its enhanced version, Wizardry Gold). The graphics in these games are vastly improved over those in their predecessors (though of course surpassed by modern games), and the keyboard interface of the older games was exchanged for an easy-to-use mouse interface. Just looking at the evolution of the series is a treat, as it shows how much computers and games have changed in 10 years, but the real pleasure comes from the addictive hack-and-slash gameplay this series has been delivering for over two decades. --T. Byrl Baker

Pros:

• A great way to see just how far game technology has come
• Wizardry fans can finally fill all the gaps in their collections
• Will provide hundreds of hours of entertainment--if you can take the graphics and interfaces of the older titles

• Older DOS-based games won't appeal to the average gamer
• Some of these titles don't run well on modern systems