Gateway is a breath of fresh air after so many games filled with sorcerers and trolls, taking place as it does in an interesting science fiction environment. Based on the work of Frederik Pohl of the same name (1977) - the reading of which is not required - it has a rich background, making the story and the room descriptions that much more interesting.
Like other Legend games (Spellcasting 101, Eric the Unready), Gateway has static graphics that accompany the text. Sometimes, the graphics show (larger) objects than can be manipulated and are then removed from the image. There are also occasionally unobtrusive animation, like flashing lights. Every turn you take advances the game by five minutes, allowing the story to present time-based events: a certain actor appears in a certain place only around midnight, for example.
Gateway was released in 1992. As such, if offers much more text than adventure games released a few years earlier, but still suffers from a terrible puzzle or two (there is a maze). Other puzzles are more interesting, and they can all be understood after you've solved them.