2B - Thursday, November 20, 2008 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com 28 - Thursday, November 20, 2008 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom * 0l 'THE LEGEND OF KYRANDIA 2: THE HAND OF FATE'(1993) DOS CAL RADNEL The Daily Arts guide to upcoming events in Ann Arbor and the surrounding area. Today 11.20.08 Amy Hempel Fiction Reading 5 p.m. At the RC Auditorium Free "Freedom Is the Crime Which Con- tains All Crimes": Penny Stamps Lec- ture by L.A. Artist Daniel Martinez 5 p.m. At the Micjhigan Theater Free Tomorrow 11.21.08 "Falling into Place": School of Music, Theatre & Dance Department B.F.A. Concert 8 p.m. At the UM Dance Building's Betty Pease Studio (1310 N. University Court) $5 UCon: 20th Annual Gaming Conven- tion 10 a.m. to Midnight At the Michigan Union $25 Saturday 11.22.08 "Speech and Debate" Performance by UM Basement Arts 7 p.m. At Walgreen Drama Center Studio Free "Parade" Performance Presented by MUSKET 8 p.m. At the Power Center $13, $7 with student ID Sunday 11.23.08 Reiki: Japanese Healing Technique Presentation 3 p.m. At Body-Mind-Spirit Wellness Center Studio B(2007 S. State) Free; donations accepted Please send all press releases and event information to arts@michigandaily.com. 1 i i An adventure of the absurd By JAMIE BLOCK contest, in which the mystic hero- Daily Arts Writer ine must participate, the game has something to make even the most The world of Kyrandia is disap- level-headed player gawk in bewil- pearing, and the only way to save it dered wonder. is a trip to the center of the world. The puzzles can inspire ques- And what journey to the molten tions nearly as odd as the game's core would be complete without plot. Prime examples include: purple dragons, sandwich potions, "What am I supposed to do with musical fireflies and mustard-lov- this bottled ghost?" "Why won't ing cannibals? All this weirdness this pirate let me take his tooth?" and more can be found in "The "How do I make sweet and sour Legend of Kyrandia 2: The Hand sauce?" And, perhaps most com- of Fate," which can be downloaded monly, "What am I even supposed along with a DOS emulator from to be doing?" Abandonia (www.abandonia.com). In case of the latter, the best The game follows one of the solution is often clicking on every- royal mystics, Zanthia, on her quest thing and anything in sight until to collect an anchor stone that will something happens. This may seem stop the entire planet from slowly like the makings of a boring game, vanishing. With the help of her but it's just the opposite. Not only is pseudo-lover, Marko, and his assis- "Hand ofFate"extremely enjoyable, tant, a giant white glove, she makes it's also a lesson in persistence. 0 her way through six different zones packed with brain-melting, non- - sensical puzzles. Ga "Kyrandia 2" could function as a text-based game - the only "con- trol" is clicking on different objects - but the colorful visuals lend the game much of its quirky charm. With fantasy worlds ranging from The cl marshes to farms, volcanoes to is that,a floating islands and ski resorts to lievablyd log cabins, there's a lot to see in pride the Kyrandia. The game stretches DOS lem-solvi to its limits, providing much pret- themselv tier graphics than nearly all of its than once peers. sive not j But the game's beauty doesn't challengi stop there. What makes "Kyran- only mou dia 2" so supremely enjoyable is its incredibl absurdity. From the plotto the puz- "The L zles, the whole game is just plain Hand of weird. When a giant hand instructs name, at a woman to go to the center of the game rev world, there's clearly some strange niche. Ga shit going down. But "Kyrandia 2" both thei takes everything to the next level need look of oddball. Whether it's the Abomi- appearin nable Snowman who claims Zan- those w. thia as his lover, the dinosaur who game bef chases a teddy bear through under- universe world caverns or the pirate poetry of Fate." ming of the irdest kind. lincher for "Kyrandia 2" above all else, it's unbe- difficult. Even those who emselves on their prob- ng skills are likely to find es at a loss for ideas more e. "Kyrandia 2" is impres- ust for being engaging and ng, but also for requiring se clicks. It's simple, yet y complex. .egend of Kyrandia 2: The F Fate" is no household nd it shouldn't be. The els in its quirky, obscure amers looking to exercise r brains and index finger k no further than the dis- g world of Kyrandia. Even ho have never played a ore can enjoy the puzzling controlled by the "Hand