About the Universal Hint System

The Universal Hint System gives you only the hints that you need to solve hundreds of computer games. Unlike traditional walkthroughs, the UHS lets you select questions and view only as much information as you want -- from subtle nudges to full answers -- so that you can finish solving the game on your own.

Jason Strautman created the UHS in 1988 and has maintained it with the help of many others, including Bob Norton. In its present incarnation, the UHS format supports sounds, graphics that progressively reveal themselves in a hint-like fashion, and hypertext linking of hints. Not all UHS files use these features, especially since many older files were written before the UHS format supported its present features.

The UHS was created with the intent of designing a common format that allowed gamers on all platforms to exchange and read each other's files. (That's why we call ourselves "Universal".) We provide hint readers for DOS, Windows, and Macintosh users. In early 1998, we made most of our hints freely available via our website, via an advertising-supported service formerly called "UHSWeb."