After spending an enjoyable 2 weeks holiday leave relaxing at the Jaro Motor Inn, Sergeant Henry Getz was on his way back to Radion Space Station. He has no idea that Radion Station has been attacked by the evil Ayatolians, or that the entire crew has been captured. Luckily, one of the crew (Nia) has managed to send him a message, informing him of what has happened., as well as telling him that the crew is being taken to a planet called Isagor. Devastated at this drastic turn of events, Sergeant Getz changes course, and heads for Isagor, determined to rescue his friends. But of course, even after reaching Isagor, things are not so straight forward, and Getz faces many perils as he searches for his friends. He has to rely on his wits and his quick thinking if he is to survive. After all, the fate of the Radion Space Station crew rests in his hands...

Cosmos Quest III: The Mines Of Isagor is the third game in the Cosmos Quest series. The player character has switched from Apo Lanski (from the first two games) to Sergeant Henry Getz, and events are now seen through his eyes. It is brilliant how this game is connected to the previous two, and makes reference to past events, but at the same time, you don't have to play the previous games to enjoy this one. The game has the same kind of spelling and grammar mistakes as the previous games, but this really doesn't spoil your enjoyment in the slightest.

A user bar at top of screen (just move your mouse up there) allows you to control Getz, and interact with his world, using actions such as 'Look', Pick Up', 'Talk', and more. You can gain access to your inventory by clicking on the suitcase icon. You can also Save, Load, or Quit the game at any time. Double-clicking on a 'Go' sign quickly transports you to the next screen, which was a nice touch, I thought.

Puzzles in this game are clever, and well thought out. It's not just a case of 'Use Item X on Object Y'. I did find it a bit strange that Henry Getz is revealed to have an oil allergy half-way through the game, since it was never mentioned before. But on the other hand, it provides an excellent puzzle (one of my favourites, in fact) as Getz attempts to cure his allergy. Another excellent puzzle is the fingerprint scanner puzzle - that one really appealed to me. The start of the game, in Getz's spaceship, is slightly frustaring. This is a timed sequence, but there is no warning that your time is limited, and before you know it... BAM! Game Over! Luckily, this is right at the beginning, so it's not a problem to restart the game. Also, the chef on Zigobi was a real pain. His appearance was randomized, and he kept appearing when you didn't want him to, and vice versa. But don't let this put you off. This is one excellent game, and leaves you on such tenterhooks!

Graphics for Cosmos Quest 3 are just superb! Backgrounds are pre-rendered, and have so much detail and texture in them. Things like the metal walls in Getz's spacecraft, snow and hills on Isagor, cold steel in the mines, and rich luxury of the restaurant can't fail to impress. One bit that sticks in my mind, is when Getz tries to open the cabinet inside Isagor's complex - he's having a hard time opening it, so he puts his foot up on the cabinet to give himself more support. Beautiful! Getz's uniform is quite funny, as it looks just like an American footballer's uniform with giant shoulder pads, hehe. Isagor is especially impressive. The planet surface looks so cold and lonely, but the sky is a vast array of colour, and looks beautiful. However, exits on the planet can be quite tricky to spot, so you have to search carefully. Speech is shown as text placed above whoever is talking, so it's easy to follow conversations. Inventory items are shown as small icons, which is nice to see.

Cosmos Quest 3 has loads of lovely sound effects. Everything from the 'Beep Beep Beep' inside Getz's ship, to the crows cawing on Isagor, to the footsteps on various surfaces, to the wonderful sneezes that come from Getz when his allergy kicks in, is a simply a joy to hear. You can also hear a noise to indicate when you earn more points. Some digitized speech has been used, which I loved. Zigobi restaurant even has some soft jazz music playing in the background.

Cosmos Quest III: The Mines Of Isagor is a wonderful adventure game that I thoroughly enjoyed. The shift in main character, and seeing events through his eyes, is brilliant. Referring to past events help connect this game to the previous ones, yet you don't need to have played the previous games in order to enjoy this one. The story of Sergeant Henry Getz trying to rescue his friends has me on tenterhooks, and cliff-hanger at the end has me desperate to find out what will happen next. Timed sequence at the start, and Zigobi chef at the end are frustrating, but not enough to put you off the game. Exits on Isagor can be tricky to find, so you need to look carefully. Graphics are beautiful, especially the backgrounds. And Getz's uniform makes me giggle, cos if the giant shoulder pads, heehee. Plenty of sound effects help bring the game to life, including those sneezes! Despite its flaws, this is a classic game that traditional adventure gamers will appreciate. I highly recommend it.