Enter the Realm

STORY / GAMEPLAY
Enter the Realm is a fast sideways scrolling action game and, according to the blurb in the manual, it was the first game for RISC-OS computers featuring true parallax scrolling. The objective in Enter the Realm is to reach the end of each level ( the game has many) and then leave through the exit. Along the way you will encounter many enemies both on the ground and in the air, all of which must be destroyed. There are also a number of obstacles including bombs, spikes and snowballs. Again these can be disposed of by shooting at them or you can even jump over. You can also avoid enemies by crouching and let them fly overhead. Some of the snowballs are quite tricky to destroy and it proves to be much easier to simply crouch and let them fly by over your head.

GRAPHICS / SOUND
The sound and graphics in Enter the Realm clearly put it in an other level compared to many other RISC OS games. A lot of time and effort has been taken to make this game look so gorgeous and the graphics really make this game stand out (as you can see from the screenshots below). Both the foregrounds and backgrounds look excellent and the real attention to detail is evident. There many different landscapes and each level has a whole new feel to it, through snowy landscapes, woodlands, caves and built up areas. At certain points along the levels you can enter buildings or doorways and entrances. These lead to other smaller sub-levels and also provide clues and help in completing your quest. Another great feature are the weather effects that include snowstorms, thunders and lightnings and rain. As for the sound effects, there is music on the title sequences and a tune that plays when describing the story behind the level you are about to start. This tune starts quietly and gets louder and louder and sounds so good. The in-game sound includes sampled speech as well!