As he was dying, the nobleman placed an amulet in your hands, telling you to get it to a poet named Tlatli in the great city of Tlatelolco. Then the soldiers came. You hide in the forest surrounding your village, emerging after they have gone and finding your way back home. But when they couldn’t find you, the soldiers arrested your parents, charged them as sorcerers and imprisoned them.

An old man in the village, the healer Quilaztli, tells you that he knows where they are and will help you find them. But first, you are entrusted with another task. An evil plague is decimating the Aztec people, and you - with the amulet - may hold the key to finding the source or the cure.

What will you do ‘Little Serpent,’ save your people or only concern yourself with saving your parents?

The juxtaposition of The Sacred Amulet is what gives the DreamCatcher Interactive, along with Cryo Interactive, program its sense of urgency. Of course, you are being pursued by Mountain Head and the soldiers - one intent on killing you, the others not above that but perhaps more focused on your capture. And while some gamers would simply wish to whip out that blowpipe and put Mountain Head where he can’t hurt anyone anymore, that is not an option in this program. The blowpipe will have a purpose, but using it to eliminate obstacles early in the game is not an option. You will have to reason your way through it. In fact, violence doesn’t seem to be much of an option at all in this program.

Utilizing richly rendered graphics - some of which look like photographs - and interactive, 360-degree panoramic landscapes, The Sacred Amulet is more than just an adventure game. This is a lesson in history. Certain hot spots will allow you access to the encyclopedia which in turn gives more detailed information about the Aztec people and their way of life. You see a steam bath, and a click later are treated to a screen full of information about what it was for and how it worked.

There are some drawbacks to the game, though, in both the graphics and game play. Graphically, the scenery that lies beyond your current location can sometimes seem a little pixilated. Though the colors are rich and bright, that is a mild deterrent to the believability of the program. In the game play, the paths you have to choose from are very well defined. You cannot stop midway through the village and explore the buildings around you. There are only certain areas where you can go. And when Quilaztli tells you to find him at the house with the yellow pillars, that is a sort of a tough call. Pillars aren’t columns like in Roman or Greek times. In this instance, the pillars are the framing pieces on the door. And Quilaztli’s house has the sun behind it, meaning his ‘pillars’ are in shadow and won’t appear yellow. The game is a little on the dark side and the options do not allow you to adjust for that.

Controls are easy to comprehend and master. And the game has an auto-save feature which will keep your place should you decide to exit at any given time within the game.

The sound quality is quite good, but - after the intro - the only time you will hear Little Serpent’s voice (his name translates to Little Serpent) is when he is telling you is or is not possible. You can’t go through the guards, so he will tell you that there must be a way around them. The puzzle is to find that way.

The Sacred Amulet may not have the depth of DreamCatcher’s other current release, Beyond Atlantis, but it does sport a good storyline set in a historical time. This program is rated for everyone, and does not support multiplayer gaming.

Install: Easy. This program runs primarily off the ROM and the minimum install is only eight megs, while the maximum install is 60 megs.

Gameplay: 7. As in Beyond Atlantis, there are pauses as the ROM accesses the next portion of the path. However, you are not penalized for that momentary stall.

Graphics: 8. The scenery is so well rendered that it looks like a photograph at times. The character animations are a little stiff, but the 3D figures do add a nice touch.

Sound: 7. The music is very nice, but the game founders with lack of two-way conversation. Characters will respond to you vocally, but your replies are relegated to subtitles along the bottom of the monitor.

Difficulty: 8. Interactive screens, and a large map enables the player the opportunity to explore while working to solve the mystery of the program.

Concept: 8.5. What is really nice about this adventure game is the reference material. While caught up in the game, you can access an encyclopedia to get more detailed information about the characters, structures and lifestyles of the Aztecs.

Overall: 7.5. This is a multi-faceted adventure game that relies primarily on exercising the game player’s mental resources. The graphics are pretty good and the sound is above average. There is intrigue and exploration that is suitable for the whole family.