"; if(is_file("header.php")) include "header.php"; else include "../header.php"; ?>


The ending has not yet been written.......UH HUH

A few things before I get started:
1. The FIRST PUZZLE can be avoided by not clicking on the radar.....just see.
2. Zip mode is actually transport mode.......don't make the same mistake I did by not using it!

Ok....So I am a big fan of the Myst series.....I played Myst when I was eleven followed by the games that came out after.....I even read the three books that filled in the plot holes.

Story: And if one thing is clear......the writers of this game all hope we, the players, have dissociative disorders. This game hardly has a story...yet it rides on the same principles that made Myst famous. So in that retrospect, if you have played the past games, this one will be quite immersive and interesting; if your just starting out - you'll demand much more. The only attempt at a story, was the fact that Atrus did NOT burn the books in Myst, but rather hid the books and placed them in Tomahna so the brothers can once again be set free at a 'redemption date' - when the time is right. Of course, we the players are obviously supposed to forget about the red and blue books that were once one-man prisons, because they are now linking books. Oh, what a surprise! And folks, that's it. I can hear the CEO company manager in the background saying,"Wow guys, I really didn't think we could squeeze another game out of it - but as I've always said, Ya gotta burn it till the candle's completely out." The rest of the game has the player stumbling through four ages trying to figure out what the heck is going on. Who let the brothers out of their cage?!

So what can we do for Myst 5? Maybe Sirrius will reincarnate (So you THOUGHT he was dead, didn't you?), learn the D'ni and their art, and command a secret society to burn books for him? Sounds good. I already have ideas for Myst 6 - 8.

Graphics: Fantastic and amazing. Love them! Of course 8 GB is a bit much to move around Myst 4 normally, isn't it?

Adventure: The 4 ages range from extremely good to extremely bad:

Tomahna (9) - Fantastic rendering; interesting world mixed with good puzzles.

Spire (10) - Absolutely amazing setting; original, one of the most intriguing ages in the Myst series.

Haven (6) - Fantastic graphics, but uninspired local. Jungle made me feel like I was playing Crystal Key - Not a good sign. Too much emphasis on looking for clues.

Serenia (3) - Serene......and completely unoriginal and boring. Just a bunch of dull walkways. A few good puzzles, but you'll see the issue.

Puzzles: And here we arrive at the problem. All of Tomahna's puzzles are fair and salvageable; if you couldn't pass these you should be ashamed. But when Spire and Haven come along, the sh** hits the fan. You don't exactly know why your there and what your there to do (and some will say they don't even care)......and it is your job to make things right again. I understand most of the Spire puzzles, but the problem is with the tuning/breaking locks puzzle. Two puzzles in one: equals difficult puzzle. If your not told if you arranged the first puzzle right, then why should you be dealing with a second? My major beef, though; is with the puzzles in Haven. Instead of giving us real brain busters (puzzles), the puzzle designers decided to make us pixel search (finding notes). You'll have to search hard for those silly papers that tell you how to complete a puzzle.....the puzzle itself, is not difficult. Such as the camoudile puzzle and the bridge puzzle: hard to find clues, easy puzzle. If you enjoy finding those tricky hotspots, this game will probably not be a challenge for you. Lastly, where the hell is the appearing hand on the snake puzzle, CREATORS? We had to find the stupid hand on every damn screenshot - Why should the snake be any different?! The monkey puzzle in this game was insane, as well. I heard the same notes being played in the background music, so I attempted to recreate those on the wheels....oy. Serenia was a little better in the puzzle department. I enjoyed the dream puzzle (I have to admit...it's really not that hard) and the Yeesha puzzle. But the bathysphere puzzle to this day does not make much sense, and the IRRIgation puzzle was IRRItating. This is where the FMV video of walking through a scene could of helped....I couldn't tell where the damn dams were leading to. So overall, there are some good puzzles, and there are some bad ones too. So check the Prima help, unless you want to be the guy who played this game for 100-200 hours. LOL buddy - get a life! For you, I agree with the Sex: ultimate pleasures INSTEAD of Myst IV: revelation. Don't throw away a month on this game people......this game comes last of the series in terms of shear brilliance. (The honor goes to Myst & Riven)

New additions: Camera was fantastic. So was Zip mode. The new hand, however; is idiotic. Oh look....it taps on stuff......how exquisitely gay! You can play musical instruments with pans, you can tap on bars, ...and this a silly feature. Naturally, the new hand is unlike the old hand in many ways.....it means more pixel hunting, less good game play. In the old games you could just click on a chest and get the close up; now you have to find that small little spot at the bottom of the chest where it opens. Was this considered a puzzle? No...This was a problem. As you might have guessed, I WOULD HAVE clicked on the chest. But instead I got to go to the Prima help guide to discover that I could, indeed, open it. What a waste.

New actors: Atrus, Sirrius, and Yeesha were good. Achenar was absolutely horrible, yet I'm sure the scripted events had something to do with it. I'll bet Mr. Achenar was flinching the entire time he watched his sordid scene in action, trying his hardest to forget the series has graced the likes of excellent actors.

Music: Pretty damn good, although the opening music has the new diseased trend of the huge, crushing opera vocals that seems to be in every opening of the new trendy movie that come out - in other words, I just turned off the volume until the game started.

Good game overall. Too bad the brilliant facts of the Myst story got a little muddied up, at the expense of another game. It's a good play, but the Prima help guide is there not so you can lose out on fun, - it's so you don't lose out on life. Horray! We won't see Achenar again!!!