Torin's Passage

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

Torin's Passage is a somewhat obscure Adventure Game released by Sierra Online in 1995 and created by Al Lowe, who is best known as the creator of the Leisure Suit Larry series of adult games. Lowe wanted to create a more family-friendly game, and thus Torin's Passage was born.

The plot centers around Torin, the son of farmers living on the planet of Strata, which is comprised of different nested worlds, each one below the other. Torin lives on the surface of Strata, but when his parents are kidnapped by the sorceress Lycentia, Torin must journey to the "Lands Below" in order to rescue them.

Torin's quest takes him deeper and deeper into Strata, through a series of bizarre worlds, until he uncovers the truth about his family and about his story.

Tropes used in Torin's Passage include:
  • Anti-Villain: Lycentia, once you find out her story, which is gradually revealed through cutscenes.
  • Break the Cutie: Lycentia, in the flashbacks.
  • Easter Egg: In the last area, use the bagpipe instead of the magic book on Lycentia. Instead of having the death message read to you, the director will tell you how amazingly stupid it was of you to do that.
  • Evil Prince: Pecand, Torin's uncle.
  • Evil Sorcerer: Pecand again, the one who's really behind everything.
  • Evil Uncle: Yes, Pecand again.
  • Freudian Excuse: Lycentia.
  • Getting Crap Past the Radar: This game has it. Quite a bit of it, actually.
    • Considering Al Lowe worked on this game, it's not altogether surprising.
  • Guide Dang It: There's an in-game hint system, but the hints aren't always that useful.
    • When you have to find that damn wrench, the in-game hint mentions that there's a gleaming object somewhere on the screen. That's it. No suggestion as to where on the screen, naturally. Oh, and the "screen" in question is, in fact, multiple screens... but only one in-game area. You know, in case you weren't confused enough already.
  • Have a Nice Death: It's Sierra, it's to be expected.
  • Heel Face Turn: Lycentia.
  • Laugh Track: In the Bitternuts' house.
  • Layered World: The entire planet of Strata is a series of Russian-doll like worlds.
  • Light and Mirrors Puzzle: To open the portal out of Asthenia.
  • Lilliputians: The inhabitants of the third layer down of Strata.
  • Magically-Binding Contract: Lycentia cannot return to the Lands Above, or the magical collar around her neck will choke her to death.
  • Manipulative Editing: Third to last puzzle in the game. Luckily, the recording in question is broken up for you, so you don't need to think too hard about what you can make with it.
  • Miscarriage of Justice: Lycentia was trying to save Torin from Pecand, and is wrongfully accused of murder and banished to the Lands Below before the story begins.
  • Moses in the Bulrushes: Torin is oblivious that the farmers who raised him aren't his real parents.
  • Non-Human Sidekick: Boogle.
  • Pixel Hunt: There's one screen on which you have to find a wrench in order to solve a puzzle. The wrench is invisible, except for a gleam every several seconds that's only a few pixels in size.

See that wrench? Neither did we. For three hours.

    • In a later puzzle, you have to climb a slippery slope by clicking on the safe spots. The grass tells you if you're hovering over the right spot, but it's still very easy to miss the safe area is so small. The worst part would be the audio clues. Apparently, grass can't play Hot and Cold, so it just says "yes" or "no". No, wait, that would be an improvement over the reality, in which it says "YAY" "NO WAY" "NUH-UH" and other such things that you have about a fifty-fifty shot of mistaking for meaning the exact opposite of what they really are.
  • Rule of Funny: Apparently one of Boogle's abilities.

Torin: Boogle! You mean this whole time you could've walked right out on that bog!?!
Boogle: Bwark!
Torin: "Only when it's funny" huh? I'll "only when it's funny" YOU!

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