I was skeptical at first when I heard that the game would use a format more common to action-adventures, because previous games have leaned more to the action side than the adventure side. But Frogwares has erred on the side of caution and come out with a game that can be enjoyed by both action gamers and traditional point & click enthusiasts like myself.

In order to accommodate the differing game styles, 80 Days allows for three different difficulty levels. First up was my preferred style of play, the Tourist. When playing at this level, days only pass when certain objectives are met, giving you the option to leisurely look around and take your time with objectives, more in line with a traditional adventure game. Oliver will also have more money to spend, and won't lose days when fainting or being caught by guards.

For greater challenge, you also have the option to play at the Globetrotter and Adventurer level. These are more suited to action gamers, as the money is tighter, and time never stands still. Of course, this also means that one too many mistakes could cost you the game.

This wouldn't normally be a problem if the save scheme was along the lines of a standard "save anywhere" PC game. However, Frogwares has opted for a console save system instead, and this is one issue that in a lesser game would have resulted in a CD coaster instead of an enjoyable gaming experience. The game will only save after specific challenges are completed. The problem is that this sometimes means a save after ten minutes of gameplay, and sometimes after thirty minutes of puzzle solving. This can be a real issue for those of us with limited time to play at any one sitting. I ended up replaying one long segment over and over just due to the fact that I didn't have the time to work my way through it all the way without being interrupted.

Navigation is fairly standard for third-person 3D games, using a combination of keyboard and mouse. Even with me not being an action gamer, it became intuitive very quickly, and I had no problem adjusting to the movement and keys. One notable omission was an "always run" option, which is something that is found in most action games today, and with environments this large, this feature would have been a welcome addition here.

The use of keyboard control rather than the traditional point & click route does lead to an issue more associated with adventure games than action games. Items that can be picked up or interacted with will outline in green for Oliver to see. But because you use the mouse for navigation and inventory rather than searching, at times items don't highlight because Oliver is not directly facing them or is not close enough to them.

Fortunately, the interface is a thing of beauty. On the top left side of the screen is an easily readable mini-map. This is a useful guide for the large environments that Oliver will be navigating, although it does lead to some rather easily solved puzzles when he is searching for someone. In the right hand corner is a constantly running clock with your current day next to it, which not only adds a great sense of tension on the harder difficulty levels, but is also necessary for some of the time-based puzzles that you'll face occasionally. You also have an option to track your progress against Phileas Phogg's original excursion, which is a nice touch.

Rather than a dedicated inventory window, all items are handled through a small window in the bottom middle of the screen, with items rotated by the mouse wheel, meaning that it can be accessed easily at any time, even while on the move. This also makes it easy to see at a glance how much money Oliver is carrying, or how many of a required item he's holding, without having to navigate a static inventory screen.

And finally, on the bottom left is Oliver's fatigue bar. Even on the easiest level, Oliver will need to eat and rest so that he doesn't faint during a challenge and have to start over from the beginning of a puzzle. This is not as much of an issue on the easy level where days don't pass automatically, but on the harder levels fainting could cost you precious time.

As I mentioned earlier, the cities in 80 Days are huge, and you'll never manage to make it through the game by walking it. One of the other great things Frogwares implemented was the use of vehicles. This in and of itself would have been great, but Oliver will find different vehicles in different locations, from camels and flying carpets (my personal favorite) to elephants and racecars. These are great for navigating around cities in Tourist mode, just seeing the sites, but are almost a necessity in the harder levels where every second and every bit of stamina count.

Puzzles move back and forth from logic to fetch quests, from finding specific people to light action sequences, and even some stealth gaming. But there's no need to worry that you're going to be playing an adventure game version of Splinter Cell. In Tourist mode, getting caught during stealth sequences just means bribing an officer or spending some time behind bars, but with the money you're given to play with, and the fact that days don't pass in real time this mode, it's not a big deal just to work around. And if you're playing on the other two difficulty levels, then you're probably used to that type of gameplay anyway.

With the steep system requirements, technical issues, and horrid save game scheme, 80 Days is not a game that I can recommend without reservation to all gamers. But in the end, its incredible graphics, wonderfully campy atmosphere, and gameplay that is easily adaptable to many different play styles, make this a flawed but ambitious, enjoyable game that's definitely worth looking into for players of all genres.