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Summary: Riven--Something to Experience!
Review: There is one simple reason why Riven requires a high-end machine--Just look at the game! Vast beauty surrounds the user in every frame, not only in the immensely detailed still images, but also in the video, the audio, the soundtrack. This game is so immersive its scary! Hours will pass by unnoticed! And is it worth it? Well, I'm about ten hours into it and I can definitely say "YES!" If you're looking for something to help you escape from the run-amuck-doing-meaningless-things-for-your -clueless-boss world that we live in, this is the most relaxing, entertaining, and beautiful way to do it.
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Summary: Myst was terrific, to be sure. But this is even better.
Review: 1. Much less frustrating. Myst required the player to solve a series of very complex puzzles, one after the other, in order to proceed. Riven's universe is at your mouse-tip, for the most part, from the very beginning. And, some of the puzzles in Riven are easier to understand and solve. 2. More amazing. The overlay of photographic images over the art work gives a very realistic look to the completely fantastic. The seamless integration of full-screen video with the still images help you immerse yourself in this weird, wonderful world. 3. More beautiful. Myst had some truly beautiful images, yes. But Riven expands on the base created for Myst -- and animates many of the images, as well. I'll be enjoying Riven again and again, for a long time to come.
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Summary: Riven - Addiction may be a factor
Review: I have on occassions dabbled with friends copies of various shoot-em-up style games but always left the keyboard unsatisfied. I took the plunge with Riven and purchased my first 'game' for home use, I have owned it for a total of 48 Hours and my wife is already threatening to lock me out of my own study. THIS is the benchmark for all games in the future, kudos is due to the development team for the excellent graphics and more importantly the playability factor which is so often absent from graphically intense games. This is not for the blow em away crowd, it takes careful observation and concise logic to make your way through this world.
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Summary: Don't get hung up on the "minimum" configs...
Review: I'm not more than ten or so hours into it, but I have no problem running this on my clunky, old, slow (once top-of-the-heap) 6100/60 PowerMac. Sure, I wait a few seconds for transitions, but this isn't a game you're rushing through anyway! You're supposed to take your time, and spend it thinking and observing...
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Summary: Great Sequel
Review: This is a great game. A true test of the new hardware out there. For those without the newest and greatest, UPGRADE. This will be the defacto standard much like Myst before it!!
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Summary: An Immersive Experience - A Work of Art
Review: If I could rate higher than a ten I would. This is truly what I believe computer gaming should be like, the integration of beautiful (hand drawn) artwork that immerses you completely into a self-paced surreal world, the world of Riven These graphics! The good people at Cyan are not just game designers, they are accomplished artists. The box says that 100mhz with 4x cd-rom is required, but the artwork involved in every scene is very intricate (read: realistic) so have patience at those speeds. I played this at work (instead of lunch) on a 100mhz/8x cd, and I was waiting for some time for each scene to appear. Certainly not to say that it isn't still worth it (it is), but at home on my 200 machine the flow was instantaneous. Lots of games for computers involve killing. I don't like them for personal reasons. Other games involve thinking, and these are the ones that I play. This is the best game I have ever interacted with, a true masterpiece.
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Summary: "Riven" generally lives up to its billing
Review: I don't think it is necessary for me to wax poetic about the beautifully rendered graphics that appears in "Riven". Those who have seen Myst will expect them, and "Riven" doesn't disappoint. The live action sequences, especially the haunting scenes of natives relatively early in the game, are well done, and serve to draw you into Riven even more than Myst. (It is interesting to see the remarkable progression of the quality of the graphics from "Spelunx" to "Myst" to "Riven") The puzzles in "Riven" are more difficult than in "Myst" largely because they require you to move between the islands (and are reminiscent of those in a similar game, "The Dig"). However, since the puzzles are built along the same principles as in "Myst", those who solved "Myst" should be able to solve these, too.
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Summary: Riven - or Driven by Microsoft?
Review: Fewer than 1 in 3 modern Windows computers are running Windows 95. How about the rest of us who aren't inclined to be pushed into another operating system? It's too bad. But I won't be buying a copy of this one, even though I thoroughly enjoyed Myst.
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Summary: Engulfed in Wonder
Review: If you are brave enough to buy the game, do the following: buy an answering machine, cancel your appointments, call in sick, lock the door, warm up some tea of coffee, install the game and hang on. Riven's wonder surrounds you in a matter of seconds. The detail, the music and the story keeps you breathless. But have no doubt that puzzles are challenging. If it becomes frustrating, just do this: relax, point and click at everything and look around. There is always another puzzle to solve besides the one you are on. No, don't screen your calls, and don't answer the door. Just get up to freshen your coffee and grab a quick snack. Enjoy this game, don't ask people for hints, because this game is too precious to solve quickly; you wouldn't run through a museum would you?
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Summary: Disappointment !!!
Review: Unfortunately Riven is available only to those privilidged few who have the newest and the fastest hardware on the market. Maybe a future release will be more sensitive to the less wealthy and privilidged. I'm disappointed!
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