This platform game teaches spelling by giving the hero, who can be a boy or a girl, a series of tasks to perform. Boxes will spell a word, and the hero has to find a picture of that object. If the hero hits the wrong picture, a Gruzzle drops down and can take away the hero's health. Once the hero has collected all of the items, he or she gets a key that opens the door to the next level. Each level has a special word, and the letters are scattered throughout the level. Collecting the letters in order scores 100 points. There is also a 500 point bonus for collecting all of the books in the level. The hero can be killed by falling down pits or harmed by Gruzzles. The hero can pour paint on Gruzzles, and can collect paint refills. Apogee continues to distribute v2.0, while Redwood Games distributes v3.0, which has a Win32 installer but is still a DOS game. The most obvious difference is that the title screen lists the game as a Redwood Games production rather than a Karen Crowther and Bud Pembroke production. There are 3 episodes in this game, with only the first episode playable in the shareware version.
Episode 1 - Visit Gruzzleville and the Castle
Episode 2 - Explore GruzzleBad Caverns
Episode 3 - See the spooky Haunted House
Added by DOSGuy
Screenshots
320×200×16c
Downloads
Complete version history:
| Word Rescue v3.0 Shareware Episode (370,720 bytes) | 1995-07-29 | DOS | |
| Word Rescue v2.0 Shareware Episode (420,441 bytes) | 1993-08-01 | DOS | Play online  |
| Word Rescue v1.0 Shareware Episode (355,290 bytes) | xxxx | DOS |
Availability
Apogee still sells the registered version 2.0 for $5.99 by download. Redwood Games still sells the registered version of this game for $12 by download.
Cheat Codes
Customer Cheat
These will work with either the shareware or registered versions of the game.
[L] [Z] - Warp. When you type this, the screen will freeze. Enter the level number you want to go to. You will not be able to see the number when you are typing it.
[P] [S] - Gives you slime.
[Escape] - Will skip the finish of the key sequence.