The Fool's Errand
| Filename | the_fools_errand_original.sit |
|---|---|
| Size | 878.9 KB (900000 bytes) |
| Year | 1987 |
| Mac OS | System 7 |
| Architecture | 68K |
| Downloads | 11 |
Cliff Johnson's 1987 puzzle classic casts you as the Fool wandering a Tarot-themed kingdom, weaving short story chapters together with dozens of inset puzzles. Solving acrostics, jigsaws, and cryptograms gradually reveals a hidden meta-puzzle, the Book of Thoth, that ties the whole narrative together.
Story and structure
The game unfolds as a five-part storybook. Each chapter introduces new locations from the Major Arcana and unlocks puzzles called enchantments that, once solved, advance the Fool's journey toward the Sun.
Puzzles within puzzles
Beyond the dozens of standalone challenges, hidden phrases scattered across the entire narrative feed into the Book of Thoth meta-puzzle, which can only be assembled after the rest of the game has been completed.
Reception
The Fool's Errand was named Best Brain-Teasing game in the 1987 Macworld Game Hall of Fame and Best Computer Strategy Game of 1988 by VideoGames and Computer Entertainment, selling around 100,000 copies by the end of 1989.
Platform notes
Originally released for the 68k Macintosh and later ported to MS-DOS, Amiga, and Atari ST. Runs on classic Mac OS through 8.1 and is well supported under Mini vMac, Basilisk II, and SheepShaver.
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