Rating: 
Summary: Riven
Review: This is a very good game. After playing all three games it all makes a lot of sense. Riven has great visual effects, and a very good story line. Though you have to change the disks everytime you go to the next island. It is still very graphic and involves more characters then the first and third games. I recommend you play this game after the first if you not already. It is great and is very important to understand Exile.
Rating:
Summary: More challenging than Myst or Myst3 Exile
Review: I enjoyed Riven more than any computer game I have ever played, even more than Myst, RealMyst, and Myst3 Exile. The puzzles in Riven were more challenging to me and the entire experience was an exercise in mental endurance, because playing it without a hint book requires patience, persistence, and thoroughness. Upon completion I felt a tremendous amount of satisfaction! I believe games like this, that require you to use deductive reasoning, common sense, and powers of observation, hone one's mind into a sharper tool. Plus, the graphics were most enjoyable. Some of the other reviews I read mentioned boredom and loneliness, which goes to show you that the saying, "different strokes for different folks" is so true. I was NEVER bored or lonely. The very detailed and beautifully rendered scenes inspired in me both peacefulness and euphoria at the same time, and were incredibly enjoyable. And no, I was neither smoking nor drinking anything to feel this way! I recommend this game to all who enjoy being tested and have the mental stamina to stick with problems until they are solved!
Rating: 
Summary: TOO EASY, but gorgeous.
Review: Technically, it's better than Myst, but every little thing in the game was relevant to the plot, which made it too easy to figure out. There ware extra toys in Myst and you never knew if you were playing with a toy that had nothing to do with the plot except as charecterization of one of the brothers, or if you were manipulating critial machinery. In Riven, almost every object is a clue. Also, every lever that is up or down should be pressed exactly once, except for one at the end of the game that should be left alone, but you figure that out fast. Would be harder if some of the levers were pointing in the right direction to start with, then you'd get really confused figuring out which ones needed to be pressed. I only had to cheet twice (UHS Reader, which is online), and then it was laziness because i didn't want to replace the CD's to go to the right island and look it up myself. Without cheeting it would have taken me 5 days, as it was it took 4, to beat, and I think for what I paid for this game it should last longer. Myst was much harder and more fun. I had to cheet like 20 times with Myst because I truly couldn't figure something out, and that game lasted me a month. Wish Riven put less time in the beautiful graphics and more time making interesting distractions, like putting a few animals around that _didn't_ have anything to do with the animal-puzzle, so I'd have to really solve it instead of thinking "hmm, what other animals I saw around here?" and putting those down.
Rating: 
Summary: breathtaking but a bit lonely
Review: This game for sure has some of the most amazing graphics out there. If you want a frequent "WOW" experience, this one is a must. However I didn't finish the game; not because it's a hard nut to crack, but I lost the energy because there is nowhere real interactive encounters with a single living soul. It is one to fly through an unequaled beautiful world, but life in the game appears to be vital, at least to keep my attention. All in all a true must to have experienced!!
Rating:
Summary: RIVEN Rules too!
Review: It doesn't get much better than this! Riven is amazing! Graphics and game play that go far beyond Myst, plus teriffic sound and lots of real video, you can really get into this game! Solving puzzles can get very tricky at times, so you might need the RIVEN players guide, since there is no virtual guide to give you a hand when you may need it. You must travel to five islands on Riven, plus a few other places. There you must pay close attention to every detail and keep track of every bit of info (A notebook may be helpfull) and finally use that info to conquer the game of Riven. And, as they say, "Be sure to use a good pair of headphones or speakers!"
Rating:
Summary: Dysfunctional family as backdrop for greatest game ever
Review: Players of Myst very likely felt a bit disappointed by the end of that first chapter as many unanswered questions loomed: What is D'ni, and why can't I explore it? Where is the camera-shy Catherine? Who is this great foe that Atrus speaks of? Why can't Atrus take the time to get his nose out of the tome he's writing in and offer his savior a bit more than mere access to the places I've already been? How did I supposedly stumble across the book that delivered me to Myst in the first place? What's with the guy falling through the stars in the beginning? WHAT JUST HAPPENED?True, the ending of Myst is a bit disappointing. Nothing is resolved, other than the freeing of a man whom you didn't otherwise know was trapped (I presumed him dead), and the subsequent removal of his sons' opportunity for liberation. We feel cheated, like the whole experience was nothing but a shill to divert our attention and whet our appetites for the main course. Ladies and gentlemen, the main course: The title itself has a variety of meanings: On the surface, it is the name of the age in which you will spend much of your journey. But the age itself consists of a land that is literally riven - between two separate cultures (i.e. the D'ni and the Rivenese), within those cultures (e.g. the Rivenese and the Moiety), cosmically, politically, geologically and even seismically. This as an example of the game's many layers barely scratches the surface - we've only mentioned the title here, folks. Riven picks up exactly where Myst left off. Still toiling with his nose in that mysterious book (pun intended), Atrus speaks to you in that same ruin-riddled D'ni cavern. He says very little, but alludes to the basic component of your mission - free the previously unseen Catherine, trap the aforementioned greater foe, Gehn. Immediately it is established that Riven is not as insular an experience as its predecessor and the game wastes no time in immersing you with a sense of danger as you make enemies and arouse suspicion in your only friends immediately upon your arrival. As you travel through the environs of Riven (which seem, and are, far more vast than any you've encountered in Myst), there are constant reminders that you are not alone and that, in fact, you're very likely being watched. By whom? By Atrus' arch-nemesis, of course, Gehn (players of Myst who may also by chance be fans of Greek mythology will appreciate the not-so-subtle allusions to the house of Atreus, putting to rest any questions pertaining to our protagonist's name as phonetically similar to our infamous Theban friend). It should be mentioned here that actor John Keston does a fantastic job rounding out the shrewd character of Gehn. A far cry from the impotence of our nemeses on Myst (marked in part by their imprisonment but also by their tendency to come unhinged), the unflappable Gehn seems (and in many ways is) omnipotent. The design is such that his presence pervades the game even when not present, which makes the long wait in actually meeting the man all the more anticipated. The most impressive achievement of Riven is the design of the game, which can perhaps best be described as putting the player into the role of archeologist. Advancing in the game requires much more than a random array of unrelated logic tests. Rather, every puzzle in the game serves as a piece of a larger puzzle - the story and the world it takes place in - which, in turn, is quite necessary to debunk in order to crack the two rather daunting puzzles in this game. The game's creators have done much more than create a game here - they've created an entire culture (two of them, actually). They've layered into it history and politics in such a way that makes for a very convicing artifice. Anyone remotely familiar with non-Western cultures will, I think, be baffled by the creators' ability to structure these fictitious cultures so convincingly (the creators' use of the number five as an integral part of the D'ni was brilliant as this tends to serve as a 'magic' number carrying a multitude of meanings cross-culturally). It's what makes the game last, even after repeated walk-throughs. The only criticism I've heard with regard to this game is that it is very difficult and very slow (with regard to action, not software performance). Indeed, if you'd rather punch holes in aliens, you're better off with Duke Quakem Nine - it will require far fewer brain cells to hack through, and I'm sure it will be action-packed. Otherwise, I think you'll find Riven a satisfying, thought provoking, and even rewarding experience; akin to reading a good book, but one in which you get to take part! What fun!
Rating:
Summary: By far, the greatest game I have ever played
Review: I'm not much of a gamer, which is not to say I don't enjoy a good game, but that I so seldom find one that I latch onto. Riven is an exception. And what an exception it is. Those who have played - and finished - Myst were probably fairly disappointed in the end. Who is this guy Atrus? Where is the camera-shy Catherine? What is this place Atrus calls D'ni and why can't I explore it? How did I supposedly come across this Myst book in the first place? In short, WHAT HAPPENED? Riven explains it. And then some. Riven is the archeological uncovering of one culture (the D'ni) through its surrogate (the Rivenese). Players learn details regarding the history of D'ni, of Riven, and most importantly, of Atrus and Catherine. In Riven we learn how this all started - while it is no doubt a sequel to Myst, the story we uncover regards the events that preceded our journey through Myst. And that nagging thought in the heads of you Greek and Theatre scholors - the one that can't help but have you accidentally pronouce 'Atrus' as 'Atreus' - will be assuaged. Riven in beautifully constructed, from its panoramic landscapes to the minute and evocative details of its intricate puzzles. The gameplay offers something that Myst did not - a sense of danger. Myst was a lonely experience for the gamer. Dispite the presence of our slightly unbalanced guides Sirrus and Achenar, we felt very alone travelling through the ages of Myst. Not so in Riven. In Riven we are watched at all times, albeit from a distance, which heightens the sense that anything can happen. And anything does. One would think that this many years after a technological release that the gameplay would seems old and trite, not up to present-day standards. But I have yet to see anything that has raised the bar to Riven's level.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding Game, but Very Hard.
Review: I havn't played Myst yet, but I have completed this one. What an immersive game this is. Great graphics, great sound, great features to play with and great fantasy world. Riven might only be a small world, but it's well worth the visit. You even get to see some alien creatures here and there. I give this 4 stars because the puzzles were a bit too hard for a lot of gamers. It took me 3 months in all, WITHOUT HINTS I might add. If you like fantasy, puzzles and exploration. GET IT. It's worth it just for the graphics alone.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic. How could anybody NOT like it?
Review: How could anybody NOT like this magnificant game? I've always loved a challenge, and I found Riven was it. The Puzzles are difficult, but not "so-difficult-that-i-hate-this-game"...more of a difficulty which gives you that tingly feeling in your gut when you solve one of those big puzzles. This game teaches you patience, observation, and determination. That is the overall puzzle of Riven (and Myst of course)...if you give up because "it's rubbish" or "Its too hard" or "I hate the gameplay" or even "It's a slideshow", you fail at YET another puzzle which will be relevant to you in the future. You need to always keep your wits about you otherwise you'll miss something. The Animal puzzle, once I had finally cracked it after several months, I saw the video clip afterwards and, man did that give me the tingly feeling. Yes, there were 3 bits when I appealed to a friend for help...but those were 3 REALLY obvious points I should have been able to get. Don't blame the game because YOU can't do it. blame yourself for NOT SEEING it. Use thinking Those people who say "It's a slideshow"...think how much MORE time it would take to create the game. how much WORK the creators have to go through. How much DISK SPACE/SWAPPING there would be, how higher the MACHINE SPECS have to be. It's a good game, and you should appreciate the hard work, because Riven isn't gonna get any better than it is. Yes, realtime movement would be nice, but it ain't gonna happen without severe degrading of graphics, stalling and crashing computers, about 18 CDs and an extremely high price...and there'll MORE complaining. Teach yourself to read Machine specs before you buy. I've had minimum specs ever since I bought it and I've had no trouble ok, enough gripe. Fantastic game - buy it at all costs :)
Rating:
Summary: The most beautiful slide show ever.
Review: This is one of those cases where I bought a game just from looking at screenshots in gaming magazines, and I considered that all the hype had to be talking SOMETHING other than the graphics. There was no doubt about it; the graphics sure were pretty. However, I found this game to be a big disappointment. It requires a lot of disk swapping and has a tedious installation sequence. The story is really hazy, and the text on the back of the game's box reads like an excerpt from an ancient scripture. The game plays like a slide show, and the puzzles make no sense. Probably the most annoying thing is that the manual is about two pages long. It doesn't help you understand the story or the puzzles, all it does is give you the installation instructions and how to move around. As I said earlier, the graphics are quite nice. But after you get dumped into the beautiful world of Riven, you just don't have the foggiest idea where to go or what to do. You would expect that the objective of the game is to explore the world of Riven, take a bunch of cool photos, and send them in for money. Anyhow, if you still want to get this game, get the guide first before you pull all your hair out. But even with the guide, I didn't have the patience to spend such a long time on such a tedious, slow-moving game.
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