Every Lucasarts Adventure Game: Ranked Worst To Best

15. Labyrinth

In the spirit of the school-yard - "first the worst", and all that - Lucasarts' debut adventure, the 1986 adaptation of muppet-laden Bowie-fest Labyrinth, takes up the tight-trousered rear. (Although by that logic it'd follow that Maniac Mansion is the best. Spoiler: it's not.)

It may be bottom of the pile, but Labyrinth is by no means bad. Preceding the inspired SCUMM system of Ron Gilbert et al., the game - curiously, Lucasfilm's first based on an existing license - instead employed a fairly intuitive context-sensitive 'verb wheel', eliminating Sierra-style guesswork, and with it Sierra-style temper tantrums at instant death.

Unfortunately, despite the pull of Douglas Adams writing, and an accommodating interface, the movie tie-in is just that little bit basic, and that little bit boring. Adams could only work with that he had, and there isn't much room for excitement here.