"Temple of Apshai" was the first computer role-playing game with room descriptions. Detailed descriptions of all the rooms in the game's manual complement the sparse graphics and provide vital information. Pen-and-paper games like "Dungeons & Dragons" frequently make use of verbal depictions given by dungeon masters to suggest to players what is of interest in a setting. Similarly, in "Temple of Apshai" the player matches an on-screen room number to its entry in the manual that accompanies the game. One sample entry reads: "The aroma of vanilla makes the senses reel and the floor of the room is covered with the shiny stuff previously observed. Bones lie scattered across the floor and the clicking sound grows fainter from within. Gems stud the south wall." A vanilla scent is used in the game to suggests the presence of Antmen, the dominant monster type in the temple.