3 In Three (1989)

In this metapuzzle game, created by puzzle designer Cliff Johnson, the player is the letter 3, which, during a power surge, has been zapped from a spreadsheet report into the bowels of the computer. 3 needs to repair the system, avoiding a virus detector and outwitting the taunting pi symbol, and ultimately get back home. There's over 80 puzzles including: Geometric lift puzzles – 3 needs get from one side to the other by walking on lifts moving up and down in certain patterns. Mesh puzzles – a mesh (of 3x3 to 9x9 sizes) must be changed to match the pattern shown. Missing vowels – missing vowels must be added to common proverbs or homophones. Trapdoor puzzles – 3 must open or close doors, which will in turn trigger other doors, in order to get the whole set of doors in the same state. Reordered word puzzles – 3 rearranges a word by clicking three letters which will each time switch two letters and form another word. Logic puzzles – a grid of items needs to be rearranged in a specific order to match a certain rule. As puzzles are solved, letters are filled in the master word until all are in place. Then a logic puzzle must be solved to properly order them. Finally, in the end game, hints found in previous puzzles must be used to finish the metapuzzle and complete the game.

Storyline

One day in Corporate America, a freak power surge zaps the number 3 off her cozy spreadsheet home and into the heart of the computer where numbers don’t count and the letters spell disaster.