If you get caught in the line of fire, you're toast. Several different bomb configurations let you blow up different configurations of blocks - and monks, should they be in the way.

The 3D world also paves the way for a wide variety of bombs. This combination makes for more fun in eluding the hooded pests and makes you smarter in your strategy to defeat them. Black monks constantly chase you no matter where you go - and are very difficult to outsmart. Purple monks are unpredictable these most resemble the monks of the original. The only way to be killed by one is to step directly in its path. Blue monks are blind and follow a set pattern of movement. Early Runner fans will remember that you could often outsmart the monks by trapping them or getting them to follow you in certain patterns. The monks have stepped up a rung or two on the evolutionary ladder. The Mona world has a tan theme, and lighter color runner suits don't show up as well. This might seem silly, but different colors show up better in certain worlds. This time around, you can choose whether you want to be a male or female runner and what color suit he or she wears. The eyeball-plants on the jungle world are the best, but look for the lava lamps in the wacky world for a chuckle. All the worlds have animations as well, like water in the Mona and jungle worlds and steam and fire in the gear and industrial world. Each has its own feel for example, my favorite, wacky, uses slices of lemons, limes, and oranges as stepping stones. There are five different worlds to play in: jungle, Mona (as in Lisa), gear, wacky, and industrial. This game has beautiful backgrounds and tons of details in the playing area. There's even a handy set of tutorial levels that familiarize yourself with the power-ups, bombs, and maneuvers you'll need. Instead of moving linearly through the 144 levels of Lode Runner Returns, occasionally pausing to watch the movies, acquire new power-ups, and change backgrounds, Lode Runner 2 lets you choose which world you want to start and any level therein. Lode Runner 2 is a welcome change from all those card and board game ports - not that I don't love a good board-game port, I just like a little action with my puzzle solving.

A combination of skillful digging, dodging, and collecting opens an escape portal to the next level. This talent is extremely useful in dodging monks (you can run over one if you get it to step into the hole) or temporarily killing them (they always regenerate, so this tactic is helpful, but won't rid you of your pesky robed enemies). Your default tool is a hydraulic pack that lets you temporarily dig away the block of ground in front of you. You run around each level collecting all the gold and try to avoid being killed by wandering monks. In fact, I'm not ashamed to admit that I still occasionally fire up my mom's old Apple II to play the original. I lived, breathed, ate, and drank Lode Runner Returns during stolen moments between playing Myst and SimCity 2000 and actually doing my job. When you've been a prisoner of the Macintosh for ten years, the release of a 3D Lode Runner game comes as welcome news.

Lode runner 2