Rhem 2 review
 

I played part of Rhem, perhaps 1/3 of it and gave it up, and sold it to someone else. My feeling about Rhem was that it was Myst for plumbers. I see from your review, walkthrough and all, that this is more of the same. I definitely won't be tempted to buy this - thanks for the detailed warning!

Lynsie

;) You do know you're famous for saying that, don't you? I think Scottsie wants your autograph.

Nice review, Emily. Rhem is the kind of game I sometimes feel tempted to buy (after all, I loved the first Schizm game), but without being sure if I'd like it. Well, I think your review has settled it for this one: no, thanks!

BTW, I wouldn't even have noticed that there was a new review without this thread; seriously, do you really think the front page needed a fourth boring brownish-greyish screenshot? Tsk, tsk, tsk. :P

Sometimes you take what the games give you. ;) If you were hoping for neon purple RHEM pic, you didn't read the review very carefully. :D

Believe me, if there were another image I could have used for that feature pic, I would have. Not many bright colors underground. ;)

Yeah, I gathered that much from the review. But complaining is good sometimes (for the one who's doing the complaining, at least :D; and I really didn't notice the new review because the screenshot looked so much like that of Scratches).

And if the reviewer is blameless, then it must be the editor's fault for not thinking about that and inserting another article in between. :P

And, more seriously, is there really some kind of trend with first-person games with muddy tones at the moment, or is this just a coincidence? (please tell me it's a coincidence, or I'm going to be depressed)

It may not have appealed to you, FOV, but your review has me drooling. I have recently bought the game knowing this will be a great one for me. I'm actually putting off playing it until I have the time to savor the experience.
Rhem 1 was a joy, looks like Rhem 2 will be too. :D

I'm glad to hear it. :)

As Jack can attest, I worked very hard to be objective. ;)

Guilty as charged. I was considering re-running this article just for a little tye dye pizzazz, but thought we could get away with one more brown one first. Dang! Tough room.

It's a coincidence. ;)

Attested!

Colpet, just out of curiosity, what is it about Rhem (if anything) that you liked over other puzzle adventures? Or does the sheer quantity of puzzles = gaming bliss. :D

You should glance at the little "The Latest from Adventure Gamers" panel at the top of the forums. I never actually visit the front page of AG any more. I just go straight to the new articles from the forum links.

But I don't rate being quoted in his sig, and I never made the AG quote thread either WWWAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!

Lynsie

Aw, Trep, that's sweet! :D

Lynsie

:D

Oh, but that's just too hard for me. If I can't notice the difference between two screenshots, I'm not going notice one between just two lines of text. You know, I'm the kind of person who needs a feed agregator to tell me that there are new news items. And I like the front page, anyway. :)

Rhem 1 had more layered puzzles, rather than the stand alone ones you'll find in Aura or Sentinel. First just getting around was the biggest puzzle. It wasn't just mazelike; there is a central tower that rotates with 2 openings at different levels. You have to figure out how to use it and then think through to pick which option to use. Each time you come through, you can figure out the best way to shorten your distance. The multitude of walkways, bridges and gates really gave you lots to explore.There are puzzles to work through that will gain you new access, and eventually everything connects. I love working through a 2D space and translating it to 3D in my brain. These types of challenges appeal to me. All through this are clues to to a bigger (overall) quandary that actually lets you escape. Plus, there are letters and writings to find that help you sort out what is going on. Puzzle fests are fun, but Knut takes the challenges to a different level. You can really feel your brain working (getting the big picture into focus), and I feel he integrates them well into his made up world. They feel more organic that way than just blockades to your progress. It's very close to the Riven experience (if you liked that).
From what I've read of Rhem 2's reviews, seems that he was able to accomplish this again.

I loved Riven, but hated Rhem. I didn't even play for more than two or three hours, because I felt myself turning sick and claustrophobic in all these ugly , boring corridors, trying to solve all these sad-looking puzzles. I can see what you're talking about (the layers of puzzles, etc...), but I have to say that in my opinion, this similary in puzzle structure doesn't prevent Riven and Rhem to provide two completely opposite gaming experiences. It's basically escape-ism against maze-ism. ;)

Kurufinwe, I liked Schizm a lot, too, but if you're playing games for the "voyage" they provide, Rhem (and, supposedly, Rhem 2) is a definite no-no.

Haha... I think you just illustrated the difference between you and me. :D

I couldn't translate a 2D space into 3D in my brain if my life depended on it. Seriously.

Neither can I FOV, I'm strictly a 2D person. I think that's why mazes are so hard for me.

Lynsie

Started to play but didn't get very far.

Just how do you actually solve Riven-style puzzles? I was fine with Myst(and I'm a big Myst fan), and (not wishing to boast) am fairly smart, but Riven seemed to me absurdly obscure;

Spoiler:

Wasn't there a bit where you had to recognise that a little ball looked like the eye of a frog in a rock formation that looked nothing like a frog? And a bit where you had to figure out the grid positions of 7 of those big domes on a little holograph device? That was just masochism. I did however, like the way all the puzzles fitted together into one puzzle, but I think Amateria in Myst 3 did it much more elegantly.

Can someone tell me how they solve stuff like this?