After 25 years, an PC classic gets a full remake

[Bilita]

After more than 25 years, one of the most influential series of all time is about to make a return, thanks to a huge new remake that revitalizes a groundbreaking classic for the 21st century. And it’s arriving really, really soon.

It's a remake of Riven!  I'm so excited 😍

 

[Shagger]

The original was a point-and-click adventure, right?  You click on the screen to move to the next area represented by another image and go on like so until there's something to interact with, like an NPC or a puzzle. Honestly, calling it "revolutionary" and "ground-breaking" seems like a bit of a stretch.  This wasn't even the first time this very developer had done this, this game was sequel to MYST.

 

Anyway, seems like it this new version you explore the world in real time and have full control over the character.   A nice way to update this game and I must say it looks stunning.  There are other, similar games I would prefer to see get this treatment, like Syberia or The Longest Journey, but this looks great.

[Shortie]

I can't say I ever played this game myself before but I have heard of it a few times. I do like the concept of the game though and the game in the video above looks amazing!

May not have played the first one when it released but will be checking this one out. 

[Lens]

Oh man, this is freaking out. That's more like a dream come true and I also remember playing the original back in the day. It as a mind blowing puzzles and an immersive world as well .

 

[Ajay25]

A classic adventure built in the early days of the multimedia gaming era, Riven is a beautiful first-person puzzle game that asks players to slowly unravel the mysteries of its unusual world. A sequel to the similarly celebrated Myst, Riven boasted arguably the most detailed pre-rendered backgrounds to date when it was released in 1997. And now it's back, stunningly realised in full real-time 3D via Unreal Engine 5, playable both as a standard game and a VR experience - and there's even a Meta Quest port. However you choose to play it, this release feels like the ultimate expression of developer Cyan's original vision.

Even at launch, Riven was a stunner. In terms of pre-rendered background quality, the improvement over Myst was gigantic. Myst has that early 90s CGI look to it, but Riven's backgrounds continue to impress even now. The world features more life as well: despite ultimately remaining a series of still shots that you flick through, Cyan was able to add animation such as rippling water, plumes of smoke and small insects buzzing around to help bring the scenes to life. Furthermore, larger videos could be utilised enabling full-screen animation that was impossible with the original Myst.

However, delivering this level of fidelity in real-time 3D is something I would say couldn't really be achieved until recently, which is why this Unreal Engine 5 remake is so interesting. Curiously though, it isn't actually using UE5's most cutting-edge features. Nanite, Lumen and Virtual Shadow maps are all absent. The primary reason ties into scalability - Cyan needed to ensure the game could run on a Meta Quest 2 headset.

However, don't let that fool you, Riven demonstrates more than most titles that artistry trumps all and Riven is truly gorgeous. High density polygon models fill every scene, the lighting is perfectly tweaked to simulate that late 90s CGI look while the use of colour is jaw-dropping. Furthermore, Riven 2024 fully supports HDR which is perfect for a game like this - the sun piercing through the clouds creates intense highlights that serve to accentuate its realism.

[Shagger]

@Ajay25

 

I've merged your topic with an already existing thread.