Helious ... is strange, delicate, sometimes maddening, and apparently, was dropped off by a UFO.

In this game, you're a small blue balloon filled with air. Your goal as this balloon is to collect blue crystals spread throughout a landscape of passageways and tunnels before heading to the exit. If you succeed, you get a symbol. Once you get all nine symbols, you win the game. The only catch is, if you run out of air while traversing a level, your balloon implodes.

Many things can make you run out of air; simply moving around uses up a small amount of your supply. Hitting sharp objects, like missiles, tends to take a sizable chunk out of you. Fortunately, there are also a couple of ways you can refill your balloon, such as air pumps, or certain crystals that fill you up to overflowing. Also on your side, you can collect various weapons to destroy missiles before they hit you, or to take out the various forms of guns.

For an old DOS game, Helious is surprisingly playable. While you won't catch me spending long hours of the night playing it, it's certainly not the sort of thing I'd immideately relegate to the "Recycle" folder. Just be warned; Helious is not for the heavy of hand. This thing gives new meaning to 'light touch.'
Strength: Intruiging puzzle elements and some nice visuals.

Weakness: Completely plotless, and maddeningly difficult at times

Rating:

URL: http://www.allabout.com/afs/software/games/helious.htm