Uru: Ages Beyond Myst

Love it or hate it, I believe we will look back in five or ten years and see this as a watershed moment in our brief gaming history, in much the same way as the original 1993 “Myst” is now viewed.

A very good adventure game with impressive production values, but if it had actually shipped complete with the promised multiplayer, it perhaps could have been much more.

A spectacular adventure, and while I was sad to see the online component fail before I even got to login and try it I am glad to see that Cyan is committed to keeping the content alive.

An old-school "Myst" adventure tarted up in new clothes. For all the superficial changes to gameplay, anyone who completed the original game ten years ago will encounter a lot of deja vu here.

If you like the puzzles, then you’ll like the game. If you don’t like (or can’t complete) the puzzles, then you probably won’t. Since I’m guessing most people will fall under the latter category than the former, Uru isn’t a game I’d recommend you purchase.

Uru’s deep story and great puzzles easily make it one of the best adventure games of the year.

Until the multiplayer is fully operational, URU is something of an incomplete book, but what's there is simply stunning. [Feb 2004, p.58]

Diehards of the genre will comment that puzzles in this version have been "dumbed down" and are no longer as taxing as previous games, relying instead on simple mechanical or jumping solutions to get the job done. I’ll have to agree with this point, but...

Overall I thought that the answer to most of the conundrums was there to be teased out, with patience and (a lot of) persistence. It isn't easy though, and at times the way forward is indeed a jump, and not an insight.

The Myst games are not for everyone. I have always enjoyed them so I kind of know what to expect and how things work. I thought this game was fantastic.

The plot is absorbing, the graphics are wonderful, the sound and music are enthralling, and the puzzles are challenging. However, interface problems, relatively brief gameplay, and the absence of the critical online component are significant deficiencies.

Even without online play, Uru wins points for style and originality. Diehard "Myst" fans probably already have this, but others may want to wait until February to see if the whole online thing pays off.

Generally overpriced for the offline game, especially considering there's no actual game in the online "game."

Neither a pure adventure, nor a pure RPG in the sense of "Final Fantasy" or "Warcraft." It is an astonishing synthesis of the two, taking the story and puzzle elements of the adventure and the graphic flexibility of the RPG. Adding in a dash of online gaming, and Cyan might just have created a game that will appeal to gamers from all genres. This could be the first true blockbuster, cross-genre game.

The graphics are stunning, the sound is beautifully done, the puzzles are what one expects from a Myst game, the story is deep and the lore is massive and interesting. I really loved this game.

For many, it will simply be the fantastic graphics and sound that seal the deal.

I dream about its puzzles, contemplate solutions in my spare time, and imagine what lies beyond. But most importantly, I've had fun - and that's what adventuring is all about. [Jan 2004, p.100]

Unfortunately, the game shipped with its pay-to-play multiplayer unfinished and nonfunctional, so the only groundbreaking you'll do until that's fully completed is the kind that results from plummeting off cliffs.

Barring the terrible control scheme, the single-player version of URU: Ages Beyond Myst is a solid adventure title. Beautiful graphics and sound, fun puzzles, and lots to read and learn about the D'ni makes for an atmospheric game. But the lack of the advertised multiplayer component is a real disappointment.

The most beautiful PC game on the market. [Dec 2003, p.182]