[Ariel Type]

Kurufinwe

I'd have said the same thing about Kyrandia if I had been reviewing it, be sure of that (actually, I think Kyrandia is kinda worse when it comes to plot).

I don't agree a bit. It always surprises me when people start talking about how other games (Kyrandia, Dragon Sphere, Ween) tried to copy plot and settings of KQ series. KQ1, as much as other parts (exept for the 6th) had one of the most simplified and cliche plots in gaming history.

They are?(that's a genuine question; I don't often see them appear in top-10 lists or anything, but maybe I'm missing something here)

The series don't need to be in everyone's TOP to be popular and recognized. The reason for that, again, is it's own style and uniqueness.

the lack of clones for the Neverhood is more probably due to a lack of technical competence / money

There is a new game from Russia, Tanita: Plasticine Dream (AG talked about it). It was made by the team of 13 people and it hardly has a high budget (I saw the conditions it was made in). Nevertheless, it looks and plays wonderfully. People tried - and they succeeded.

rather for people who haven't, but might be interested, which often means people who discovered adventure games in recent years.

Then, again, I don't see a point. Ween wasn't popular at its time, and it is one game that is almost impossible to find nowdays (legally). So what's the point in writing such a review for modern gamers, if they even have no chance to experience it?
And about the test of time.. I saw plenty of people that started to play adventures with Syberia or smth like that, and they can't play older games because of "bad graphics", "impossible controls", "crazy puzzles" and so on.

What's the incentive for going on in Ween?

Surprisingly, the same thing can be said about Da Vinci. Of course, that's a matter of personal opinion again, but..
..graphics? Techincally? 360° point of view is ten years old (or more). Beautiful? Gray tones and simple models/animation. It looks worse then, say, Voyage or RtMI.
..music? Most of the game happened in silence or accompanied by simple repatative compositions.
..interface? That's a matter of time. In early 90th it was hard fot designers to find an approriate interface for the game, as the games lost "parser".
..plot? It looks like it was written in five minutes rush. What twists? The plot has no development, and the characters were baddly written and predictable.
..puzzles? They were mostly unimaganitive and cliche. All mechanicle puzzles (and that's not just Mona Liza) were out of place. And "slider door puzzle" in 2006.. I even don't want to talk about that one
It sure looks good for today standarts, but compared to early games it has no chance.

Jackal

Modern standards? As many people frequently point out, not a whole lot has changed since 1992.

Syberia can be easly called "modern standart". Games, that try to attract people with beautiful graphics and simplified puzzles. And the auditory it aims also differs from the hardcore gamers.

But a game's defining criteria (gameplay, story, characters, etc.) must stand the test of time to be of any value to gamers today.

All the games are different. Myst has no story nor characters. Is it usually judged today by those standarts? It is always discussed in the context of "what it turned out in 1994".

Is there something in the review that suggests the game is being discriminated against because of its age?

It wasn't in the review. It was some points in Kurufinwe's comment that I answered to.