| Riven:
The Sequel to Myst For: pc, playstation Genre: adventure Reviewed by: Escee (Brandon) Developer: Cyan Publisher: RedOrb Released:9.30.97 Riven is the sequel to the world-renowned adventure game Myst that had captivated the masses. Developed by Cyan, a small company with amazing graphical creation, Riven was highly anticipated by all who had played Myst. Cyan said that Riven would be bigger than Myst. And it is. You'd better believe it is. While Myst only used 1 CD, Riven uses 5, count 'em, 5 CDs. Its world is amazingly captivating and, unlike Myst, all its areas are connected and you must travel between the different areas (islands in Riven) many times to beat the game. Riven is difficult, in the Myst fashion. But if you don't own Myst or Riven, you should. Not because it is insanely fun, but instead because it is a title that should be found in every gamer's library. And it won so many awards... ;P Graphics The graphics in Riven, when you first see them, are incredibly life-like and attention-grabbing. Riven is eye candy in the realistic sense. But then again, it is not a realtime game. You can only be in the spots that have rendered frames. Riven and Myst both play in the sense that you are in one spot (with a great rendered scene), you click forward, and you then skip to the next frame. Like Myst, it contains many Quicktime animations that are prefectly and seamlessly integrated into the still shots. And while Myst's being like this was fine, I expected Riven, the sequel, to advance to realtime. Of course, due to the fact that even without realtime Riven still uses 5 CDs, I am not complaining. But, as I write this review, Cyan is supposedly working on a realtime version of the original Myst (complete with extra Age). So soon the amazing graphical power of Cyan will take the next step: realtime. But in Riven you will not get realtime gameplay. Hardcore gamers might not even give this game a try when they realize there is no realtime action. But I must tell you that the way Riven plays means it doesn't need realtime action. It is a strictly puzzle-based exploration adventure game. When it makes the jump to realtime, this will just be to attract more players (read: hardcore action/adventure gamers) to the series, not to actually enhance the gameplay. And the graphics are incredible. 5 CDs full of still images! I wonder how many CDs it would take to make a realtime version of Riven. ;P Sound The background music is outstanding orignal compositions by Cyan's team. The environmental music and sound effects were created so that they fit in perfectly. Cyan is a team of perfectionists, and it shows. Riven was a massive project and it created massive results. You might not even notice the great sound, but that is the purpose. It fits in perfectly with the game to pull you more into the world. Riven is one of the most realistic games ever. Except that it's not in realtime ;P Gameplay Riven is an incredible world. You must travel from island to island collecting new clues, and then find a different way back to those islands, traversing between islands (and swapping CDs) throughout the game. The whole world is interlinked. There is not one thing in Riven that does not have a purpose, or a meaning. The way Riven was set up was to pull you into the game, and it is that realistic. I await the realtime Myst. Control The controls are extremely simple, and they need to be for a game like Riven. Sometimes the hotspots arent perfect, but for the post part, if you click somewhere you will go there. The controls serve their purpose. Lastability Well, there is none. I mean, the game will take you a long long time to beat without a walkthrough, but onece you have beat it, you will know the solution to all the puzzles and playing the game again is just pointless. Ratings
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10.8.00
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