echowood

The terms "remake" or "reimagining" elicit eye-rolls as, often, they're nothing more than cash grabs banking on a fanbase's nostalgia. They may be prettier, higher resolution, and capable of running on more powerful machines, but they don't normally add anything to the game. When I heard Riven was being remade, I was incredibly hesitant. In 1997, Riven was a masterpiece of environmental storytelling. Its visuals, plot, and puzzles were heralded as pushing the success of Myst forward. But why, after all these years later, did we need to return to the islands of Riven? It turns out that returning to Riven is not just a fantastic way to revisit a game I loved; it's also an altogether new game. The puzzles are redone, the story is expanded, and for a game that had a story tied together with small hints, Riven's remake builds more on those tiny elements of lore and rewards those whose curiosity drives them to piece things together. The visuals are stunning, as usual. That Cyan, a small developer in Spokane, built this world so wonderfully is a testament to the team's passion and skill. This is a game to be pulled into, to experience, to live in. This is a remake, true, but one that was built from scratch and delivers more than its exquisite predecessor.