Sphinx is an ancient but not unathletic Egyptian hero with gangly arms and a lion's tail. Tut, short for Tutankhamen, is a goofy prince turned into a mummy before his time by an evil brother -- but being a mummy has certain advantages.

Since he is already dead, Tut doesn't worry about dying. Need to fit through a tight gap? Crush Tut and send his paper-thin corpse through the niche. Is there a wooden barricade blocking that next doorway? Torch Tut and he can burn that junk out of the way.

Electric eels in the waters around your town? Broken machinery that needs a charge to get going? Not only can Tut withstand the shock, he can conduct it. He can even be in three places at one time through the magic of amputation. He can even go up in smoke -- very handy for searching the world.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Mummies may not approve of "Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy," a new comic-adventure game scheduled for release this spring on GameCube and PlayStation 2 from THQ, but most gamers will be pleasantly surprised.

Not only does this game have the requisite 3D graphics and elaborate puzzles found in even the most average adventure games, it's got a well-swathed sense of humor.

An apprentice of the great priest Imhotep, Sphinx is on a mission to save the world from a growing evil. On his mission, Sphinx runs into Tut and vows to save the forlorn prince by finding a set of mystic vases that hold the pieces of his soul.

As the title suggests, mummy Tut gets some nice screen time in, but this is Sphinx's game and the sword-wielding, dart-blowing Sphinx is ready to star. He's tough, agile and carries the sword of Osiris. He travels about his Egyptian world by passing through mystical portals as he braves fights with some pretty large monsters.

You would not label any of these features as innovative or original, but they are well executed.

The look of "Sphinx" is impressive. The game obviously has a Mediterranean motif running throughout. The architecture and landscapes are not always Egyptian, but they are uniformly appropriate and interesting. The music sounds Mediterranean, too. Unfortunately, there is not enough of it, so you will hear some of the same tunes again and again.

Tut is especially fun to watch. A dolt to begin with, mummy Tut is more funny than fearsome. Tutankhamen's Mortimer Snerd facial expression shows right through his bandages, lending itself well to moments when he is scared or stunned.

"Sphinx" gets very low marks on audio because of its utter lack of voice acting, however. Even the dialogue in the animations is handled with text. I know, I know, "Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker" did not have voice acting, and neither did a lot of other superior games, but for some reason this deficiency seems more glaring on "Sphinx." I do not know why, but it was hugely distracting.

"Sphinx" scores well in the category that counts most, however. It is just plain fun.

Unfortunately, THQ's timing in publishing this game has conspired against it in the U.S. market. "Sphinx" was released at around the same time that Ubi Soft published "Prince of Persia: Sands of Time." Since both games are adventure games with a Middle Eastern setting, comparisons are unavoidable.

In truth, comparing "Sphinx" to "Prince of Persia" is a bit like comparing Arnold Schwarzenegger's role in "Terminator" to Haley Joel Osmith's role in "A.I." -- after all, both movies are about robots.

But "Sphinx" goes for laughs where "Prince" is all about thrills. "Prince" is the better game overall -- especially in the voice acting department -- but "Sphinx" provides some great laughs.

Tut may be a mummy in this game, but "Sphinx" will leave you in stitches.