If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the
FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to
register or
login before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.
| 17 DEC 2006 at 2:13pm |
CarolineJA+ Overseer
Posts : 16540
Joined: 28 JAN 2007
Location: AU
Status : Offline | There were characters in Aura? You don't mean that annoying man with the jigsaw do you?
Seriously. Aura looked scrumptious. Who can forget those swinging bridges in the Himalayas world? And that snowy world with the sound windmills puzzle. You should see the wacky names I came up with to distinguish those sounds. And the huge planets in the sky.
And you found people - interesting people - to talk to. Gosh.....
I loved Aura. Can't wait for number 2.
|
| 17 DEC 2006 at 2:22pm |
IviniaGuild Master
Posts : 4459
Joined: 7 JUN 2003
Location: US
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Caroline (17 DEC 2006 2:13pm)
There were characters in Aura? You don't mean that annoying man with the jigsaw do you?
Off the top of my head, I count at least 6.
The jigsaw puzzle guy, the guy in the jail cell, the blacksmith, the one that tower office with the elevator thing, the one at the end, and wasn't their another one, a woman I think, where those pots were on those elevated wooden platforms?
|
| 17 DEC 2006 at 6:31pm |
MdaGIntergalactic Janitor
Posts : 10
Joined: 28 OCT 2006
Status : Online | Even though I LOVE Riven, Exile and Revelation I too found Aura superior to Myst (and End of Ages)
|
| 17 DEC 2006 at 7:08pm |
AndromusGuild Master
Posts : 5538
Joined: 6 NOV 2002
Status : Offline | It's interesting how impressions vary. I didn't find Aura's storyline particularly intriguing, but really enjoyed the game anyway for the puzzles. And Aura's characters didn't do much for me. They did their job, they presented challenges or advanced the game in some way, but felt flat.
On the other hand, (and I know I'm in a real minority here) I really got into Myst's story, with its background of tragedy and betrayal, and wondering which brother I should be helping.
|
| 17 DEC 2006 at 7:31pm |
Jenny100Guild Master
Posts : 3510
Joined: 12 OCT 2002
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Caroline (17 DEC 2006 2:13pm)
There were characters in Aura? You don't mean that annoying man with the jigsaw do you? I thought the characters in Aura were ghastly. I wished they weren't there.
Seriously. Aura looked scrumptious. Who can forget those swinging bridges in the Himalayas world? And that snowy world with the sound windmills puzzle. You should see the wacky names I came up with to distinguish those sounds. The sound windmills sound like Sanselard in Sentinel. Did Aura have them too? I forget.
And the huge planets in the sky.
And you found people - interesting people - to talk to. Gosh..... I found these grotesque stiffs. Truly frightful.
I loved Aura. Can't wait for number 2. I liked it too. It was colorful and fanciful and the puzzle machines were fun. But I can't remember the story, except I remember being disappointed in the ending.
|
| 17 DEC 2006 at 7:39pm |
MarkGuild Master
Posts : 3803
Joined: 10 OCT 2002
Location: US, Georgia
Status : Offline | I returned Aura after playing it for a few hours. I don't know why, but I didn't like it. I'm at a loss to understand my dislike for it.
Maybe the first character I met was so creepy that I couldn't stand it. I don't know. I know I'm a bad, bad person for returning Aura (it was the first and only time I'd had ever returned a game), but CompUSA didn't mind at all.
I think it was that creepy guy in the tower. He creeped me out. I wasn't expecting to run into anyone, and I didn't like him - the creepy dude - intruding in my game. He had to go. >
Please proofread your posts carefully to see if you any words out.
|
| 17 DEC 2006 at 7:44pm |
SirDaveGuild Master
Posts : 4941
Joined: 17 OCT 2002
Location: US
Status : Offline | One of the things that the Myst games always had was 'polish'. There was something special about the 'fit & finish' of them like a finely-detailed new car. The Myst games just had 'it'...all of them! Sometimes, it's hard to put your finger on 'it', but you know 'it' when it's there. And you know it within a few minutes of playing the game. Certainly, the graphics are what draw you in initially, but there has to be something more to keep you fired up and that, usually, is the quality of the puzzles and enough of a story to get your imagination/fantasy going.
As enjoyable as many of the Myst-like games are, very few have 'it'. In fact, the only one (before Aura) that had 'it' was, IMO, Obsidian and maybe to a lesser extent Schizm I & 2 and Journeyman Project 3 (and I guess a few others would be in that 'lesser' column, but I won't get into that). However, when I first started up Aura, I knew it had 'it' almost right away!
The future ain't what it used to be!
|
| 17 DEC 2006 at 10:41pm |
CarolineJA+ Overseer
Posts : 16540
Joined: 28 JAN 2007
Location: AU
Status : Offline | In Aura I had to just ignore the characters because they weren't the story - they were just facilitators for my journey. That's how I like them. I don't want to know their problems. In Post Mortem I was sick to death of the conversation options. And when I picked the wrong one, the other unchosen options would vanish and I'd be left wondering if I'd missed out on a vital clue. Arrgghhhh..... >
With the Myst games and the superior Myst-clones, the main character in the game is ME. I like it that way. Minimal conversation works just fine for me. I thought Riven had it perfect. Isolation until Ghen. Wicked fun.
Unless the people are in a cut scene they don't look real and interracting with cartoon characters ruins the sense of immersion for me.
As for the original Myst. I found the story intriguing - I actually picked the wrong brother only to discover that the other one was just as crazy and a lying bastard the same. Got locked up twice. LOL Last time I trust a man his father has imprisoned. I played Myst IV in fear because I knew the brothers had escaped - violent pyschopaths, what happened to make them turn out this way.
Back to Myst though. Wasn't it creepy discovering the two sons' different personalities and the sadism of one? Urgh....
These games need just enough story to pique your interest and give your journey meaning without stopping you every five minutes for another half an hour of tedious dialogue. I thought Atlantis managed the dialogue ok though, very short bursts, just enough.
Gosh, listen to me - I sound like a hermit, and I'm a person who loves a real chin-wag.
|
| 17 DEC 2006 at 11:29pm |
BazzaLBPrivate Detective
Posts : 512
Joined: 27 AUG 2005
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Agree with Caroline.. I loved playing Myst, Aura etc, but I couldn't give a rats for dni mythology or reading copious books on dribble. Lush environments and puzzles, thats what I liked and as Caroline says, enough background story to keep you going... just like the good old days of classic adventuring.
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 12:01am |
Melanie68Intergalactic Janitor
Posts : 83
Joined: 20 JUL 2006
Status : Online | Originally Posted By Caroline (17 DEC 2006 10:40pm)
In Post Mortem I was sick to death of the conversation options. And when I picked the wrong one, the other unchosen options would vanish and I'd be left wondering if I'd missed out on a vital clue. Arrgghhhh..... >
The dialogue tree in Post Mortem was incredibly messed up and poorly designed. Even gamers who like conversation in their games hated the dialogue tree. It drove me crazy.
[s]I agree with Timelapse 2 though. After playing the first and hearing about the sequel, I was bummed too. I should load that up again. I'm in the mood for a familiar game to play - my brain is too frazzled to figure out a new one (although I'll look at the walkthrough for that Mayan calendar puzzle though, I usually have to).[/s] (oops, I'm merging threads in my head )
What I resist, persists and speaks louder than I know.
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 1:21am |
MarkGuild Master
Posts : 3803
Joined: 10 OCT 2002
Location: US, Georgia
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Melanie68 (18 DEC 2006 12:01am)
oops, I'm merging threads in my head
You just knew we were going to read the strikethroughs but you hit the "Post" button, anyway.
Didn't you. You knew what you were doing all along. Striking through those words like that, then just sending it along. Tsk.
Please proofread your posts carefully to see if you any words out.
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 2:56am |
CarolineJA+ Overseer
Posts : 16540
Joined: 28 JAN 2007
Location: AU
Status : Offline | I have a problem? As you know so much about it, maybe you should be the one to offer help?
Have you bought that damn cell phone yet? I'm waiting for my telephone call...... :-*
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 3:12am |
MarkGuild Master
Posts : 3803
Joined: 10 OCT 2002
Location: US, Georgia
Status : Offline | Who are you talking to?
Help! Caroline's talking and she can't shut up!
It's creepy.
Please proofread your posts carefully to see if you any words out.
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 4:18am |
Melanie68Intergalactic Janitor
Posts : 83
Joined: 20 JUL 2006
Status : Online | Originally Posted By Mark (18 DEC 2006 1:21am)
Originally Posted By Melanie68 (18 DEC 2006 12:01am)
oops, I'm merging threads in my head
You just knew we were going to read the strikethroughs but you hit the "Post" button, anyway.
Didn't you. You knew what you were doing all along. Striking through those words like that, then just sending it along. Tsk.
I was too lazy to move that blurb to the other thread and I think using the strikeout thing is fun.
Back to the topic - I like both Aura and Myst. The characters didn't seem particularly deep to me either. They were there to move the game along.
Spoiler AlertYou're naughty for deleting your post. There'll be coal in your stocking.
What I resist, persists and speaks louder than I know.
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 4:58am |
CarolineJA+ Overseer
Posts : 16540
Joined: 28 JAN 2007
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Is that Mark hitting the delete button again? He bloody takes it off his keyboard and carries it around in his pocket you know. He LOVES that button. Probably sleeps with it under his pillow.
Mark, give it up old chum.
And I am not creepy. >
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 1:37pm |
IviniaGuild Master
Posts : 4459
Joined: 7 JUN 2003
Location: US
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Keeper of the Evil Broccoli (17 DEC 2006 7:31pm)
I thought the characters in Aura were ghastly. I wished they weren't there.
They were, but at least they were kept to a minimum and they didn't talk much!
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 2:25pm |
AyaGrand Inquisitor
Posts : 7277
Joined: 16 OCT 2002
Status : Offline | why aura? i have no idea! magic perhaps?! all i know is aura is the puzzle adventure game that myst et.al. could never be... looking forward to aura 2 8-)
You have gotten the attention of the mysterious lady. She turns to face you. Her face is devoid of any flesh. You are frozen with horror as she begins ripping your body into a bloody mess.
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 2:53pm |
| Deleted User | Originally Posted By SirDave (17 DEC 2006 7:44pm)
One of the things that the Myst games always had was 'polish'. There was something special about the 'fit & finish' of them like a finely-detailed new car. The Myst games just had 'it'...all of them! Sometimes, it's hard to put your finger on 'it', but you know 'it' when it's there. And you know it within a few minutes of playing the game. Certainly, the graphics are what draw you in initially, but there has to be something more to keep you fired up and that, usually, is the quality of the puzzles and enough of a story to get your imagination/fantasy going.
As enjoyable as many of the Myst-like games are, very few have 'it'. In fact, the only one (before Aura) that had 'it' was, IMO, Obsidian and maybe to a lesser extent Schizm I & 2 and Journeyman Project 3 (and I guess a few others would be in that 'lesser' column, but I won't get into that). However, when I first started up Aura, I knew it had 'it' almost right away!
Schizm 1 and 2 have the X Factor?? Huuuuuuuu!!
How anybody can call the Journeyman Project 3 a Myst-like game is totally beyond me. It's story-driven, filled to the brim with characters and dialogues and inventory-based puzzles. The only thing it has in common with the Myst series is the 1st-person perspective.
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 2:57pm |
AyaGrand Inquisitor
Posts : 7277
Joined: 16 OCT 2002
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Betje (18 DEC 2006 2:53pm)
How anybody can call the Journeyman Project 3 a Myst-like game is totally beyond me. It's story-driven, filled to the brim with characters and dialogues and inventory-based puzzles. The only thing it has in common with the Myst series is the 1st-person perspective.
sigh....... the perpetual misconception of ppl who call everything you see thru the character's eyes "myst-like" : wouldn't surprise me a bit if doom was called myst-like too :
You have gotten the attention of the mysterious lady. She turns to face you. Her face is devoid of any flesh. You are frozen with horror as she begins ripping your body into a bloody mess.
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 7:14pm |
KsandraSchattenjger
Posts : 2459
Joined: 2 APR 2003
Status : Online | I enjoyed Aura a lot, but I can't say I really thought much of the story (in fact, my thoughts were more along the lines of "There was a story?" OK, I'm exaggerating somewhat, but the plot was paper thin and any enjoyment in meeting other characters was spoiled by the poor dialogue and voice acting. What saved the game were the beautiful graphics and some very good puzzles.
Myst wasn't hugely story-driven either, but it used a combination of music, visual clues and the occasional recorded message to create a wonderfully tense atmosphere throughout. The thing about the Myst plots is that most of them require you to piece together what already happened, rather than having the plot unfold around you as you progress through the game. Personally I absolutely love that kind of storytelling, but I can see why it wouldn't appeal to people who prefer more character-driven games.
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 8:28pm |
Jenny100Guild Master
Posts : 3510
Joined: 12 OCT 2002
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Ksandra (18 DEC 2006 7:14pm)
The thing about the Myst plots is that most of them require you to piece together what already happened, rather than having the plot unfold around you as you progress through the game. Personally I absolutely love that kind of storytelling, but I can see why it wouldn't appeal to people who prefer more character-driven games.
That's a very good point. I think Myst IV was the only Myst game that had most of the story going on around you instead of having you uncover what happened in the past. Maybe that's why there are some people who say Myst IV was the only Myst game they liked.
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 9:29pm |
SirDaveGuild Master
Posts : 4941
Joined: 17 OCT 2002
Location: US
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Betje (18 DEC 2006 2:53pm)
Originally Posted By SirDave (17 DEC 2006 7:44pm)
One of the things that the Myst games always had was 'polish'. There was something special about the 'fit & finish' of them like a finely-detailed new car. The Myst games just had 'it'...all of them! Sometimes, it's hard to put your finger on 'it', but you know 'it' when it's there. And you know it within a few minutes of playing the game. Certainly, the graphics are what draw you in initially, but there has to be something more to keep you fired up and that, usually, is the quality of the puzzles and enough of a story to get your imagination/fantasy going.
As enjoyable as many of the Myst-like games are, very few have 'it'. In fact, the only one (before Aura) that had 'it' was, IMO, Obsidian and maybe to a lesser extent Schizm I & 2 and Journeyman Project 3 (and I guess a few others would be in that 'lesser' column, but I won't get into that). However, when I first started up Aura, I knew it had 'it' almost right away!
Schizm 1 and 2 have the X Factor?? Huuuuuuuu!!
How anybody can call the Journeyman Project 3 a Myst-like game is totally beyond me. It's story-driven, filled to the brim with characters and dialogues and inventory-based puzzles. The only thing it has in common with the Myst series is the 1st-person perspective.
Sometimes I just assume that people will remember previous discussions on certain issues and will have noticed that I rarely make statements about adventure games without knowing full well the ramifications of them. Not to mention that when I started the Myst-like List, I spent some time agonizing over the characteristics of Myst-like games before listing them. However, thanks so much for pointing out the characteristics of Journeyman Project 3; I really had no idea! [smiley=rolleyes.gif]
The whole subject of whether the Journeyman Project 3 game is Myst-like has been discussed a number of times before. As a matter of fact, it was put in the 'Borderline Myst-like or Cross-Over' category of the Myst-like games list because a number of people like myself are reminded of Myst when we play it, probably because of the combination of the 1st-person perspective, distinct graphics, relatively lonely exploration and the design of the puzzles. Now I could have explained all that in my post above, but somehow, again assuming people know my familiarity with the Myst-like and Borderline Myst-like games by now, I didn't think it was necessary.
The future ain't what it used to be!
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 9:32pm |
SirDaveGuild Master
Posts : 4941
Joined: 17 OCT 2002
Location: US
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Aya (18 DEC 2006 2:57pm)
Originally Posted By Betje (18 DEC 2006 2:53pm)
How anybody can call the Journeyman Project 3 a Myst-like game is totally beyond me. It's story-driven, filled to the brim with characters and dialogues and inventory-based puzzles. The only thing it has in common with the Myst series is the 1st-person perspective.
sigh....... the perpetual misconception of ppl who call everything you see thru the character's eyes "myst-like" : wouldn't surprise me a bit if doom was called myst-like too :
Damn, I forgot to put Doom in the Myst-like List!
The future ain't what it used to be!
|
| 18 DEC 2006 at 10:23pm |
CarolineJA+ Overseer
Posts : 16540
Joined: 28 JAN 2007
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Journeyman 3 was probably the 3rd game I played. I loved it.
|
