Home :: Software :: Macintosh :: Games  

Business & Office
Business & Office Management Software
Children's Software
Communication
Education & How-To
Games

Graphics
Home & Hobbies
Networking
Operating Systems & Utilities
Programming
Video & Music
Web Development
Myst 3: Exile - Collector's Edition

Myst 3: Exile - Collector's Edition

List Price:
Your Price:
Product Info Reviews

<< 1 2 3 4 >>

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Myst III lives up to its heritage
Review: Myst III is truly an amazing extension to personal computer games. Its 3D views and smooth game play are incredible. Coupled with immersive sound effects and great music, you have the best ever computer game of its genre!

Make sure you have the hardware required and you will be rewarded.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Unworldly
Review: Myst was revolutionary, Riven follewed, mastering the idea of Myst using new technology. Exile, the third in the series, has once again taken adventure/puzzle games to a new level. This game is awesome. You get so englufed by it, that you won't be able to stop playing until you beat it. If you want to play it without the cheat-book though, be prepared to think.

This game holds on to your attention, and does not let go. Even when you stop playing, you'll still be thinking about it. The day I got the game, a friend and I started playing. We played for 5 days, only stopping for classes, food, and sleep. Even while not playing, I could not stop thinking about the current puzzle at hand. We would often take breaks while playing the game, just to sit down and think about a puzzle, and brainstorm.

The most wonderful thing about this game, is that it is an exploration. You are stunned just as much by the creativity of the worlds you are looking at, as by the puzzles you are trying to solve.

I hope they keep making games like this.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Trouble in Tomahna
Review: On a recent visit to the store I discovered a new computer game whose packaging may hold the record for size. The game was "Myst 3: The Exile." Being an old Myst fan I snapped it up, despite its high price. Once home I found that this is a limited numbered edition (70500 copies) which contains the four CD's of the game itself, the Prima Strategy Guide, a CD of the game soundtrack, and a CD of the making of the game. Last, but not least is a pewter miniature of a 'Squee.' There seems to be enough to sooth almost anyone's collecting greed.

The basic premise of the game is quite straightforward (if you are familiar with Myst). Atrus has invited you to come over to talk about Releeshahn, the new world he has created. He has gathered together the surviving D'ni so that they might move to this new world to start their civilization over. Just as he's about to show you the book that acts as the transfer station to Releeshahn a strange character with a severe case of bad hair appears out of nowhere, snatches the book and vanishes after setting Atrus' study on fire. All he leaves behind is a transfer book to J'nanin, the training world built for Atrus' two insane sons. Being a natural hero, you grab the book and hare out after the thief.

In short order you discover that Saavedro, the thief, is seeking revenge for the destruction of his world by Sirrus and Achenar, Atrus's sons and the villains of the original "Myst." A tragic figure who has lost his home, his family and a good bit of his sanity, Saavedro is bent on vengeance. Unable to track down the sons, he has focused on the father, and turned J'nanin into a huge trap. Travelling though the worlds of this game, it is up to you to solve the mysteries and find a resolution for this grim tale of horror and revenge.

Typical of all the "Myst" games, the plot is pretty minimal. It serves primary to provide the player with continuity while solving the many ingenious puzzles. As always, the puzzles are of a Rube Goldberg nature, made up of strange contraptions and countless smaller puzzles. "The Exile" exercises some restraint, so most of these challenges can be solved by a great deal of wandering around, careful observation and some good guesses.

To make up for what is essential a very calm, non-violent game, the designers have outdone themselves in creating the five worlds of "Myst 3." The artwork and scale are magnificent. The animation is equally incredible. This is the first time that I felt my 19-inch monitor was just too small. Hopefully they will make some game posters. I was continually being astonished by the imagination used in creating these worlds and their workings. This is the best pure puzzle game I've seen in a long time and is well worth purchasing.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Myst III is the BEST YET!!!
Review: The dramatic sequel to Myst and Riven is a sure-winner with all REAL gamers. Incredible soundtrack created by Jack Wall, amazing sound affects, and, of course, graphics. I love the 360 degree movement system, allowing gamers to look all around in very realistic worlds. The story is fantastic, introducing Saavedro, a bitter exile, who has been awaiting his chance to gain revenge against Atrus for twenty years, waiting on the Age of J'nanin, the "Lesson Age" that Atrus once meant to use to teach his sons the Art of writing links to other worlds through books. Works great with Win ME. With the collector's edition, you get the amazing soundtrack on CD, Prima's strategy guide, a little "Squee" figure, the making of Exile, plus two desktop themes, the game trailer, the TV commercial trailer, and the theatre trailer.

Gamers have been waiting for Myst III for years. They will not be disappointed. Thank you, Presto Studios!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: After the Book of D'ni comes Exile
Review: The game is good. Not as good as Myst and Riven, but very good on its own merits. There's a shelf for Myst and Riven, then there's a shelf for Exile and then about 30 shelves down are the rest of the computer games.

Exile takes place roughly a year and a half after the events in the Book of D'ni. Rand Miller (co-creator of the Myst series) continues his role as Atrus (with acting close to that of Riven and Myst, much better than what he did for realMYST), now the father of a new daughter named (in the epilogue of Book of D'ni) Yeesha. As you arrive on Tohmahna (it's unfortuneately not explained how) you're greeted by Catherine, Atrus' wife whom you saved in Riven, and told to wait in Atrus' study... he should arrive shortly. While waiting you spot a note on his desk concerning security issues. When he arrives, he talks of a trip to the new D'ni, Reeleeshan, when a mysterious man links in and sets the study ablaze and links out. You follow through 5 other incredible Ages (I'll say one thing about this game, Presto may have put the greatest scale into it's Ages of any title in the saga... they're awe-aspiring to visit, especially "Veggie" and "Canyon".) to track down the villian and retrieve the Reeleeshan book. The story is the simpliest and most straightforward yet, which is why I took off a star, but don't get me wrong, it's more than worth purchasing.

The Collector's Edition features the Prima guide, a soundtrack audio CD, a "making of" CD, and a small pewter "Squee" toy. The soundtrack CD is worth the extra cost alone, as it's the only thing this new installment is deeper and more sutle with. Composer/Conductor Jack Wall plays with Robyn Miller's iconic themes and introduces a choir and orchestra to the mix. The game is the perfect difficulty for me, though those expecting the challenge Riven presented may be disappointed.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Game is great - BUT
Review: The game is wonderful if you enjoyed Myst and Riven. Their are problems with some hardware setups and DirectX 8a. I would recomend that you DON'T install DX8a that comes with the game, but you need to upgrade to DX 7 at least. The game does lock up and freeze - "patch is coming" per Ubi-Soft. If you can wait - I would, until they figure out why there is so many problems.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Simply Amazing
Review: THE GAME- This game has a satisfaction level like no other game out there; I think that this is the best thing ever to come out of the imagination of Rand Miller. The graphics are amazing, Right down to the Photo-Realistic textures, so in graphics this game definitely gets a 100%. In my personal opinion, I think that this is the best (And I mean best) value for the amount of interactivity and this game offers. They really put together an awesome game, and the story line is amazing.

THE EXTRAS- I would really buy the "collectors edition" because it has all the neat little things in it that just make this game more spectacular, I think that the sound track is composed very well, ant it's neat to have it incase you have a song stuck in your head. I also think that the strategy guide is good for the one's out there that are pulling your hair out over the puzzles in this game.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Beautiful and fun
Review: The installation and running on my iMac DV was fine, and the program operates well with no errors. I recommend the full install, which takes up nearly 3 gig of space. The full install is not automatic and requires dragging of info from CDs to the HD.

I've been a fan of Cyan and the Myst series since its inception. I think Exile carries on the tradition of engrossing, beautifully crafted places and intriging puzzles. These puzzles are a bit easier than Riven, although I'm only partway through the game. Who knows what's in store.

The environment is wonderful, with the ability to look around you in real-time motion, not static frames. The environment moves and continues to move as you change your view. Movies where things are operated or occur are integrated nearly seamlessly.

The story, thus far, is a bit one-track, and only seems somewhat tertiary to the puzzles. In Riven and Myst, understanding the underlying story was crucial to solving a good number of the puzzles. So far, in Exile, I'm only vaguely aware of the storyline but have still managed to get through 3 levels.

A good sound sytem is crucial to the full experience. There is lots of environmental sounds and the sound track, while not as good in my opinion as Riven's, is still quite good.

Turn down the lights, turn up the sound and be prepared for new and amazing sights.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: It isn't Miller time...
Review: The Millers are sorely missed (in case you didnt know- the creative masterminds behind Myst and Riven).The game is shorter than Riven and much easier- with the possible exception of that infuriating fan room in the Voltaire Age. (It took me 15 minutes to get the knob to work in the 3 different directions) The puzzles seem seperate from the story line- bummer.The 360 rendering is way cool and the graphics are excellent but not nearly as ethereal as Rivens. I never had that true feeling of awe and fantasy I had in Riven. In Exile, the high points for me where riding in the air balloon and riding through the completed maze on Amateria. The ending lacks climax. The Edana age is needlessly tedious. There are far less, creatures and modes of transportaion than in the previous games.Saavedro, played by Brad Dourif, is mis- directed- his acting is so over the top- you just want to laugh at him instead of fear him. On a much much more admittedly shallow note- Katherine ( who we meet in Riven) and arguably the most gorgeous woman I have ever seen in computer game has been replaced by a average looking woman whose character is now boring. It isn't my attention to scare anyone away from playing this game-for if Exile is the first of this series you play you will have a great time. I highly recomend installing the enitre game to your hard rive as to not be bogged down with swapping disks. More importantly, it's essential you hook this up to your stereo or other high end audio system- the music and sound are superb and adds to the whole "experience"

I did encounter a problem with Exile screwing up my desktop every time I quit the game.(G4-500- 9.1) While applaud the Presto team for such an incredible and ambitous effort ( the hard work really shows) it simply doesn't have the enigmatic captivating magic Riven and Myst had.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Appealing Gift
Review: This edition would make the perfect gift for any die-hard fan of the game. The bits and pieces that you get in this package are worth the money. You get he offical strategy guide, journal of Atrus, and a cdrom containing trailers for the game and footage for the making of the game. This is a must have and the price isnt that bad considering what you get. ( I'll be buying this for a friend for his birthday)


<< 1 2 3 4 >>

© 2004, ReviewFocus or its affiliates