Puzzles are almost all inventory-based, forsaking conundrums the game mocks as "boring" in favour of logical item application. Logical by the game's own standards, of course. Like all comic adventures to come before it, Ankh does feature some solutions that stretch the imagination beyond any degree of real world believability. Fortunately, the degree of abstraction is kept to a minimum, though there are a couple instances that will have you scratching (or pounding) your head. And you will still resort to pixel hunting and find yourself engaging in the brute force "try everything on everything" method on occasion. For the most part, though, the game's puzzles are fairly well clued and reasonably straightforward, and won't present much of an obstacle to what is otherwise a fun, fairly brisk, 8-10 hour experience. If I have any issue at all with the game's puzzles, it's that they're a little too basic with not enough variety. While I'm not a supporter of arbitrary puzzle padding, the rare times Ankh breaks free of its usual challenges come as a welcome change of pace. Most notable are the activities requiring both Assil and Thara, allowing you to switch between them to work in tandem. Regrettably, such flashes of creative inspiration are few and far between.

In other areas of Ankh, there seems to be one step back for every two steps forward. (For those a little weak in math, that still ends up on the positive side of the abacus, just not nearly as convincingly as it could have.) The game's audio, for example, is just such a mixed bag. Ankh features a very nice ethnic, instrumental soundtrack, albeit a little underused. Voicework is generally solid, including the key role of Assil, though there are a few over-acted misses to go with the hits. What bothered me while playing Ankh, however, was the sound editing. Too often the voiceovers seem unnaturally spliced together, with odd pacing and volume. On various occasions, Assil will interrupt NPCs having the same stilted, endlessly repeating conversation, only to have the two voices overlap in an unintelligible garble. Then there are the lines intended for Thara that are spoken in Assil's voice, while still others aren't voiced at all. And while the game does include helpful subtitles, the frequent typos don't afford much relief from the mounting audio oversights.

The visual cracks begin to show from prolonged exposure to Ankh's desert sun, as well. Generally speaking, the cinematic quality is quite impressive. The characters are surprisingly expressive, cameras move fluidly to follow Assil's movements, and since everything is rendered with the game's engine, there are plenty of seamless animations to maintain immersion in the story. But again, the implementation is frustratingly inconsistent. Some NPCs move about (though on a pre-scripted track which itself becomes hopelessly limited), while others remain permanently rooted to one spot the whole game. Picking up items, meanwhile, involves a half-hearted character effort completed by (adventure) magic retrieval. And while the animations work for shorter events, the game's longer cutscenes are sometimes interrupted by load screens until the next segment kicks in. So much for immersion. Adding to the feeling of disconnection, the most important dramatic sequences occur so quickly that I frequently replayed them to understand exactly what had happened. Ankh certainly isn't alone in making players passive spectators of the most interesting parts, but the cinematics here feel less like a reward than they should.

A few other quirky glitches and questionable design decisions also impact the experience somewhat, though it's likely you'll forgive some and not others. Pathfinding is a little sloppy on occasion, screen exits and scrollable areas can be difficult to locate, and the "to do" list is essentially useless. More troublesome is that many of the funnier dialogue options result in being forced to start the entire sequence again from the beginning, or being kicked out of the conversation completely. This is no way to encourage experimentation, and may cause you to wonder just how much you care to hear the next less-than-hilarious gag. And to cap off your experience, the entire end sequence is riddled with technical issues, and is solved purely by trial and error, leading to tedious repetition until guessing your way through. These are anything but deal-breakers, but they're the kinds of flaws that show how rough around the edges the game often is. Pardon the pun, but the game needed some additional sanding to smooth it all down.

I know that some will take exception to the game's length, but I stand by my ongoing assertion that any game is better served by working within its limitations. And while Ankh does feel a little confined at times, recycling a fairly small number of locations throughout, the pacing and relative ease ensure there's rarely a dull moment. And that has a value that's much harder to measure.

Like many good games that fall just short of greatness, it's easier to dwell on the negatives than celebrate its positives. But while the criticism is not unwarranted, make no mistake: Ankh is an endearing, enjoyable title that I liked better than more polished, serious games of recent years. In fact, given the scarcity of comic adventures, it's tempting now to overlook its flaws and rate the game higher than it truly deserves. But really it belongs somewhere in the middle. When all is said and done, Ankh is a lively, charming 3D cartoon romp that will remind you fondly of the comic adventure classics of old, yet fail to be quite funny or creatively diverse enough to stand among those elite. Still, given the dearth of lighthearted escapades in the genre these days, this game stands out like an oasis in the desert. If you're parched and thirsting for just such an experience, then grab your sandals and sunscreen and dig into Ankh.