Reviews / previews
Reah claims to be "An Atmospheric Adventure
Game." Turns out it's actually a disappointingly
typical point-and-click puzzle game with the outward
trappings of an adventure.
The detailed and speedy opening sequence breaks
the news: You're a reporter trying to escape an
alternate reality that you fell into while checking out a
mysterious military base on another planet.
But once the game
begins, the plot
thins, and it's puzzle
after puzzle after
puzzle.
It's hard to argue
with the
"atmospheric" part.
Polish developers
L.K. Avalon have
done a thorough job of creating an immersive world.
Well-placed, resonant sound effects--sudden bells,
wind whistling through empty pipes, dripping
water--startled me. Swelling musical effects--of this
world, yet at the same time from somewhere
else--and a magical tinkling when you've hit upon a
clue add a welcome dose of drama. The rendered art
is beautiful.
And thank goodness. Had it not been, the endless
wandering from puzzle to puzzle would have been
intolerable.
However, I could've lived without the music; it
vacillates between ambient or overly kinetic techno,
depending on the situation at hand. Besides coming
off as a (weak) bid for a high hip quotient, it detracts
from Reah's many sonic hints.
To be fair, Reah's
adventure
interface, with directional cursor and
360-degree Panning, does impart the
sense of wandering around in a vast world,
even while paths and stopping points are
predetermined and limited. It's also much
faster than any adventure game I've
played. It almost gave me motion
sickness.
But Reah's accomplishments only make it
seem all the more unsatisfying. Given the
effort I exerted on solving the array of puzzles, I didn't feel rewarded with any
real involvement in a forward-moving plotline. No sense of urgency
accompanied this so-called adventure.
Reah's not a complete loss: its environment is pleasant enough for those who
delight in such things. But for those of us still seeking graphic adventures
powerful enough to drag us in and make us want to find solutions, Reah is just
so much extraneous, indigestible fodder.-- Karen Eng / GamePro
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