Anybody?.. All right, let's make it more interesting. The first person to name this game will receive a complete boxed copy of Zork: The Grand Inquisitor (PC CD version), I will pay for shipping anywhere in the world. If the winner does not want this particular game there will be a choice of a few more of a similar value.

Could it by one of Cyan's old pre-Myst games?
The Manhole
Cosmic Osmo
Spelunx and the Caves of Mr. Suedo

See http://www.fourfatchicks.com/Rants/Commentary … Myst/Myst.shtml .

No. The one I am trying to identify is much less impressive visually. I think the name was not a quirky kind, most likely short. Did not look like kids game either.

Oh, how about The Fool's Errand?

http://www.fools-errand.com

Getting closer but still not there. The Fool's Errand looks more like a puzzle game than adventure, the one I am looking for was definitely of an illustrated interactive fiction kind. For a while I suspected that it was one of Sierra High-Res Adventures but I never heard about any of those for Mac.

Are you sure it wasn't just a Hypercard stack? (There were tons of those.)

Positive.

How about Quarterstaff? Or Little Pythagoras? Or Theldrow?

Could it have been made with World Builder? Like one of these ?

Getting even closer. Not Quarterstaff or Theldrow, I would remember if it was RPG. Not Little Pythagoras although the graphics quality was in the same ballpark. I don't think it was World Builder game, it definitely looked like a standalone commercial (at least shareware) game, but I will have to download it and check.

EDIT: Finally got some time to check. Definitely not a World Builder game -- those seem to have distinctive look. The one I am looking for looked very differently, using the entire screen area.

I came across this post hoping to find an old Macintosh game myself.

In response to your question: Maybe if you could scan a rough sketch of the interface from memory and post it to Imageshack (or the like) we might be able to get a better idea.

Might this have been a *griffin* blocking your path as opposed to a bird? Do you have companions in this game? The name escapes me, but this all sounds familiar.

No companions and no griffin... I've attempted to draw something but failed miserably -- I am pretty sure I can recognize if I see it but I cannot draw anything that looks "that way." My drawing skills are quite poor which does not help either.
The strange thing is that I could not even find anything that fits the most basic description: illustrated (first person) text adventure, one- or two-words commands (Scott Adams style) selectable from very long menu, graphics in black and white, released no later than 1989.

I am going to look back a bit futher :-

http://www.lysator.liu.se/tolkien-games/entry/hobbit.html

It was orignally released on the Specturm about 1982 but was later released on other platforms including the Macintosh as The Hobbit Software Adventure

It appear to have most of the required features.

Interesting... I will try to find Mac screenshots. It definitely has some similarity but most likely it is not the one as I don't remember the very characteristic setting in the beginning of it. OTOH, I did not know that Hobbit was ported to Mac.

not adventure! is it? They do mention on wikipedia that some later versions had graphics.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colossal_Cave_Adventure

There is a version of it on the macintosh garden anyway.

I would recognize and remember THAT one! I think it was Level 9 that made the illustrated version. Part of Jewels of Darkness, IIRC.
EDIT: Silly me -- the screenshot on Wikipedia says that it is from Jewels of Darkness.