Riddle of the Sphinx

These are dark times. Death's long shadow rests across the Valley of the Kings. Anubis, jackal-headed god of the dead, has cast his curse over all of Pharaoh's kingdom. A plague of scorpions and hordes of thieves lie thick upon the land. O hear the thin whine of despair!

Sing of Pharaoh's Son, all hail the Prince of Egypt! Deliver us from this curse! Brave the dangers of the desert. Seek the answer to the Riddle of the Sphinx. Pay Anubis' ransom with your treasures, O cunning Prince of Wiles. Reach the Temple of Ra, source of light and life. Pharaoh's heir--be wise, be wily--and beware!

Riddle of the Sphinx was one of the best adventure games available for the Atari 2600. The object of the game is to collect as many inner strength points as possible, find all the treasures, and make it to the temple of Ra. You must watch out for your thirst, and make sure your wounds do not become to grevious, or else you will never make it to your goal.

This is a very large and complex game. It was held back a bit by the limitations of the system. This title would have been a true classic if it had been released on the more powerful Nintendo Entertainment System. The Atari 2600 just didn't have the horsepower and graphical capabilities to truly handle a game of this scope.

This Imagic adventure game is memorable because of a contest run by the makers of the game. You could win $1000 by being the first person to finish the game. The contest ended on January 31, 1983. It is unknown if anyone ever collected the prize. (Finishing an Atari game is harder than you think since there is no save feature).

This game is valued at around $3 USD. Games with boxes and manuals are worth more. The box to this game was the standard "shiny" Imagic box, and it bore a picture of the Sphinx at Giza. The picture of the Sphinx is obviosuly supposed to show what the Sphinx once looked like, as it is in perfect condition, and even the nose is still intact. But it appears that the artist did not do his homework, as it is missing the ritual beard that the Sphynx once had.

and the answer is man.

As a baby, man crawls on all-fours.
As an adult, man walks on two legs.
And as an elderly person, man uses a cane (a third leg).