Myst IV preview

GameSpy's written up a preview on Myst IV: Revelation. The two-page review goes into detail in the graphics aspect of the game, and touches a bit on the puzzles. It also mentions that Ubisoft are doing heavy in-house playtesting to make sure the puzzles are balanced, and various other bugs.

 

Another common complaint of former Myst players has been the difficulty of the puzzles (I'd still rank the fire marble puzzle from Riven as maybe the most overly convoluted in gaming history). The puzzles we saw during our playtest are certainly as elegant as ever, combining elements from mathematics, colors and sounds with codes or mechanical challenges. To make sure that the puzzles weren't too hard, Ubisoft has been doing extensive in-house playtesting -- something that Presto Studios (being an external studio) couldn't do to the same extent with Exile.

 

And, if you still get stuck, don't worry: Myst IV will have an in-game help system with three levels of help, ranging from small hints to outright solutions. As the team explained, the worst thing that could happen would be for someone to quit the game halfway through; they'd rather help someone through a difficult puzzle and let them see the entire game. Although you're not penalized for using the help system, you do get a rating at the end of the game, sort of like a palm reading, so there's some incentive to solving the game completely on your own.

 

Read the rest here.