From the back of the box:
Hampstead is an adventure game for would-be social climbers. Speed of reaction isn't so important. What matters is your ability to solve complex problems, which get harder the further you proceed in the game.
Hampstead is a quest, but not for gold. The aim of it is to reach the pinnacle of social status, and acquiring wealth is only one part of the problem. If you wish to go up in the world you also have to gain the admiration and respect of your fellow men, and there's more to that than a fat bank balance.
In Hampstead it helps to know something about art - or rather, to give the impression you do. You must wear the right clothes, be seen in the right places, live in the right house with the right partner and use the correct mode of transport.
At the start of the game you are a nobody whose aim is to become a somebody. So lie, cheat, steal and defraud. You know it makes sense.
User Summary
Hampstead is a game written by Trevor Lever and Peter Jones using the Quill adventure system. The game is a text adventure based around social climbing in the eponymous London borough, by any means possible.