Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Overall, this is a pretty good game. Even though Uru presents the world in a fully immersed 3D view (using either 1st person or 3rd person), it's still very much like the rest of the Myst series. Personally, I'm not quite sure if I like the 3D perspective or not: I spent a lot of time switching between 1st and 3rd person (the game's written to work better with 3rd person) and trying to see things around me, but I'm still not sure if I prefer the old Myst "still-life" mode or Uru's 3d perspective. I suppose it's six of one or half a dozen of the other (EDIT: I'm now playing Myst IV: Revelations. It's written in the old "still-life" Myst style. I can now say that I much prefer that mode over the 3D, real-time view used in Uru).
Anyway, for the positives, the game is beautifully drawn (though I don't think it's as captivating as the earlier Myst episodes) and has great sound (Note: I've got a 3.0 GHz P4C with an ATI 9800 Pro and SB Audigy 2: all the graphic/sounds settings are turned to their highest). Since everything's static until you do something with it, there's no time pressure and you don't have to worry about dying. For the most part, the puzzles are fun, interesting, and doable. However, near the end, that changes (more later).
Unfortunately, I've got more negatives than positives:
- The game consistently crashed to the desktop every hour or so. There was really no rhyme or reason to it: one moment I'd be doing something in the game, the next, I'd be looking at my Windows desktop. I also had one instance where the game crashed Windows XP and caused a reboot.
- The game doesn't properly explain it's operating procedure. Specifically, it doesn't really explain that there's no SAVE process. In the game's defense, saving isn't really needed. As noted above, you can't die and nothing happens that you don't cause. Also, there are Journey Cloths that you touch that save your position (the game state is always up-to-date). Most of the sub-areas are small enough that coming back to the last Journey Cloth is no problem. The biggest problem is that the first time you leave the game you're really worried that everything will be reset when you come back. Of course, it's not.
- There's a device called a KI which appears to be associated with the Live (online) part of the game (i.e., it's not used at all in the single player version). Unfortunately, it's not well explained at all in the game and a good portion of one world is devoted to finding this KI. Also, when you get it, you're not really sure that you DO have it. It's basically added to your wrist when you use a certain machine. If you're not watching, you'll miss it's addition.
- In each world, there's a subquest for "Yeesha pages." They're added to your "Relto Book" and modify your home base. These are purely cosmetic changes with no value whatsoever. Sort of a worthless process.
- There are a LOT of totally useless, long, boring history books strewn around the game (in one room, there were around 12). Since you assume that everything you find in such a game is useful, you end up wading through them all. Yet, they serve no purpose whatsoever except for fleshing out the background.
- Each world seems to have a jump to a room which serves no purpose whatsoever. You jump there, look around at nothing of value, and then have to find your way back to where you were. Silly.
- When you put your mouse pointer over something important (i.e., you can manipulate it), it changes to a sort of bullseye thing. Unfortunately, it doesn't change unless you're close enough to the point and facing the right direction. You can pass right by important things because you weren't in the right spot when you examined it.
- Very early in the game, it gives you positive re-inforcement that closing doors behind you might be useful. However, later on this same activity can cause you trouble since it will make retracing your steps very troublesome. There's a similar problem with jumping down chasms: sometimes you need to jump down them in the right place (with very little indication that you should). But, most of the time, doing so will end up in your "death" and subsequent return to your home base.
- Several puzzles have NO indication how you are supposed to manipulate them. There are usually clues present that tell you what the answer should be. But, you just don't know how to change the state of the puzzle to get there. VERY frustrating.
- In one case, you push a button to lower a drawbridge and nothing happens. You think you've missed something and end up running around for long periods of time trying to find out what's wrong. It turns out that in this particular case the bridge is stuck. You have to body slam it to get it to drop. VERY irksome.
- Two of the puzzles require you to move objects into certain positions. BUT, you can't pick things up. You have to kick them into position. In the later puzzle, this is EXTRAORDINARILY frustrating because of the hidden nature of the need to position the objects and the degree of precision required. Also, most kickable objects serve no purpose whatsoever.
- One puzzle puts you in a pitch black location where you're supposed to do things. This requires an external light source (which you don't know you can get since you can't carry things). Also, once you get that light source, you're probably not aware that the pitch black area was even USABLE since when you ran across it you couldn't see anything there.
- And, finally, one of the Yeesha pages requires a very sensative set of running/jumping actions to retrieve. This kind of activity has no business being in a Myst game.
Most of the above irritations are pretty minor. The trouble is that the more serious/bothersome ones occur near the end of the game. So, that's what you tend to walk away with. Overall, the game is pretty good. Irritations or not, I still recommend it. One other thing to note: the Live or online portion of the game is not yet available (since I don't play such things, that makes no difference to me one way or the other). So, keep that in mind if you're looking for online play.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Uru: Ages Beyond Myst
Plunge into a world unlike any dreamt possible before. From the makers of the original Myst and Riven, this groundbreaking adventure beckons players to uncover the elusive secrets of the ancient D'ni civilization. Follow Yeesha, eccentric daughter of Atrus, to discover Linking Books, encounter descendants, and solve puzzles as you venture through visually stunning environments.
Uru: Ages Beyond Myst is the next chapter of the Myst franchise and the most immersive and ambitious Myst experience ever created. The game is bigger, better, and more innovative than any of the previous Myst adventures. Players can move at their own pace, spending hours discovering visually stunning, real-time 3D worlds, solving a large variety of mind-challenging puzzles, and following an epic storyline. Players can continue to discover new areas of D'ni by downloading new maps, worlds, and puzzles.
The Story of Uru
The story of the D'ni civilization began when they established their underground empire on Earth some 10,000 years ago. While living beneath the Earth's surface, the D'ni practiced what they called the "Art of Writing," which enabled them to create links to incredible, alternate worlds of fantastic variety called "Ages," to which they could travel through "Linking Books."
The D'ni people thrived for thousands of years, but later met with a great catastrophe that all but ended their civilization. Their vast cavern was left uninhabited, and their Linking Books and Ages seemed lost forever.
Then, in the late 1980s, a few humans from the surface discovered that cavern. One of these humans was Elias Zandi. He devoted the rest of his life to exploring and, eventually, restoring that ancient city in the D'ni cavern, preparing to one day reveal their discovery to those who were suddenly feeling irresistibly drawn to the cavern.
When he passed away in 1996, his legacy was divided between a foundation that he set up and his only son, Jeff Zandi. The foundation came to be known as the DRC (D'ni Restoration Council). As their name implies, they took on the task of physically restoring the ruins of the D'ni cavern. If you choose to visit the cavern at some point, you're sure to run into them.
Jeff Zandi, on the other hand, was interested in learning why the D'ni civilization fell in the first place. He continued studying the teachings of Yeesha, by far the most talented of all the D'ni writers, and daughter of Atrus and Catherine. After years of learning, the younger Zandi is finally comfortable bringing others to an uru (a D'ni word meaning "large gathering" or "grand community").
On your way to the cavern, if you decide to join us, it might be a good idea for you to learn some of the great teachings of Yeesha. Experience the adventure of a lifetime, Uru: Ages Beyond Myst.
Game Features
Experience a new freedom of movement, a first for the Myst franchise: Explore each unique age in real-time 3D, moving your character effortlessly through the world without pointing and clicking.
Create a realistic character: Choosing from a wide variety of facial and clothing features, you will be able to create a male or female avatar that you will use to explore the world. The range of character options allows you to appear the way you look, or the way you want to look.
Explore the mysterious and graphically intense world of Uru. Uru's work-of-art style graphics will immerse and captivate you like never before.
Follow an epic storyline: At the request of Yeesha, the eccentric daughter of Atrus, you'll journey through a variety of different ages, and discover the lost civilization of the D'ni people. As the story unfolds, you'll be drawn deeper into the D'ni civilization, and if you choose to download new content, the journey expands even further. You can explore new ages and areas of the D'ni civilization, unravel new mysteries, and adventure in a world that continually changes and expands. Exciting new content will be downloaded regularly, providing an adventure experience that is fresh and ever-changing.
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