Ankh: Curse of the Scarab King (2008). Play online

Summary

Ankh: Curse of the Scarab King brings the quirky German adventure to the DS, retaining the original's 3D rooms and dead‑pan humor that made the PC version a cult hit. Deck13, the studio behind the 2005 release, revived their 1998 Acorn Archimedes classic, stitching together cinematic camera moves that feel surprisingly slick for handheld hardware. The soundtrack, composed by Dynamedion, even snagged the “Best German Soundtrack 2005” award, adding a catchy Egyptian vibe to every puzzle. Critics were divided – GameStar gave it 78/100 while PC Games and 4Players both scored it 85/100, and the Metacritic rating settled into the “mixed or average” range. Still, it resonated with German players, moving 100,000 units locally and helping the Ankh series cross half a million worldwide sales by 2009.

Storyline

In Ankh: Curse of the Scarab King you travel through ancient Egypt as Assil, a bold young adventurer and self‑described party animal. One night he and two friends break into a pyramid to throw an all‑night celebration, only to smash a few urns and awaken a sleeping mummy. The mummy slaps Assil with a lethal death curse, giving him exactly 24 hours to find a remedy or become its next victim.

The game uses the DS stylus for classic point‑and‑click puzzles as Assil races against time, exploring tombs, deciphering hieroglyphs, and gathering the ingredients needed to break the curse. Along the way he encounters Thara, the Arabian ambassador’s daughter, who joins the quest and becomes a playable character.

All of this unfolds against a backdrop of sand‑covered ruins and Egyptian mythology, blending fast‑paced action with puzzle‑solving as Assil fights to survive the mummy’s wrath.