Swabbing the decks of the S.P.S. Feinstein is routine work. (When you joined the Stellar Patrol, you knew you'd have to clean up your act!) The bane of your existence, Ensign Blather, is breathing down your neck as usual... but the next thing you know, you're the sole survivor of a shipwreck in space, hurtling toward an unknown planet in a tiny escape pod.

That's the opening sequence of Planetfall. Infocom's science fiction text adventure is energized by a definite sense of humor, and its packaging lives up to Infocom's excellent reputation. The game comes complete with a plastic Stellar Patrol I.D. badge, three interplanetary post cards, an incomplete letter to the folks at home, and a witty, easy-to-read instruction manual entitled "Today's Stellar Patrol: Boldly going where angels fear to tread."

As in all of Infocom's text adventures, the computer understands a wide vocabulary of complex commands instead of the usual two-word entry. For example, instead of typing in "Go door," players can try "Examine the door, then give the book to Floyd" and be understood.

The game begins with a routine day aboard the S.P.S. Feinstein, progressing automatically to the inevitable blow-up. Figuring out how to escape the disaster is easy enough - it practically hits the player over the head. However, because the escape pod is fully automated, there isn't an awful lot to do for a number of turns, and it would have been nice if all that wonderful description of the scenery in space ran without offering so many prompts.

Once on the planet, the gamer must face a number of challenges. The most pressing is to explore the deserted city for food, water, and a safe place to bed down for the night (a new concept in adventure gaming). Eventually, the shipwrecked spacefarer meets Floyd, a playful, childlike robot with a sensitive soul. Together, they have to devise a way to save the planet from certain doom - and signal for help to win the game.

This tongue-in-cheek brain-teaser is one more excellent addition to Infocom's terrific product line. Be warned that there are a few challenges that seem nearly impossible - like figuring out a number between zero and 1000 that opens a locked door - but with patience, players are likely to stumble on the answer (no, you don't have to dial each and every number).

Planetfall is difficult, but not impossible, taxing but not too frustrating, and Floyd has a way of growing on you.