Finally, it had a system of unidentified items whose powers you must discover for yourself. Rogue also had ‘permanent death’: you have only one life and must choose wisely lest you have to start again. They stem from a game called Rogue that was written before computers had graphics and instead used symbols on the screen to represent a dungeon filled with monsters and treasure, that was randomly generated each time you played. Sil comes from a tradition of role-playing games known as roguelikes. The magic of the world is subtle yet powerful: there are songs of fear and of binding, rather than spells of fireball and teleportation. Instead, it is the Norse Saga inspired world that Tolkien imagined, with warriors clad in shining mail, singing songs of rage or sorrow as they slay. There are no wizards or priests, no platemail or magical scrolls. Carefully researched, it dispenses with many generic fantasy tropes and reveals a different world. It is also one of very few games that stays true to the writings of Tolkien. You will also have the chance to retreat back into shadowy corridors to take the enemy one by one, or to stealthily creep up to your opponent and take him unawares.

It has a simple but rich combat system which allows for a great variety of choice: should you wear heavy armour that makes you easier to hit but reduces the damage you take? should you wield heavier weapons to overcome your opponents’ armour, or wield lighter weapons for more accuracy and a greater chance of critical hits? It depends on the situation and the type of character you become. Sil is a computer role-playing game with a strong emphasis on discovery and tactical combat. Wrest a shining Silmaril from Morgoth’s iron crown. When the world still rang with elven song

Skills angband