Kirel

The player controls Kirel, an alien creature in a world made of blocks and inhabited by monsters. Bombs have been set in each level and Kirel must reach and defuse them before they explode.

Kirel can pick up blocks and drop them. He cannot jump higher than one block so must build staircases to reach high places. He cannot descend heights greater than one block, however if he picks up the block or item on which he stands, he will safely fall to the lower level regardless of drop.

Kirel was written by German programmer Siegfried Kurtz. Addictive Games founder Kevin Toms flew to Germany to meet Kurtz and sign him up after receiving the game as a submission. Toms told Retro Gamer that Kurtz programmed using assembly language but never actually used an assembler, opting instead to enter the code directly into hexadecimal from memory. Kurtz later achieved a PhD in mathematics.

"This is a game you'll either love or hate. You'll find it absolutely infuriating or totally addictive. I played it for hours. Give it a try.

It could just be one of the cleverest games of the year." - Your Sinclair.