Shivers

I played this as a teen so I am very biased by nostalgia but in replaying this as an adult, this hands down is the best adventure game I have ever played. Well, maybe kings quest 6 is comparable. I'm in my 40s and it is still so addictive. This game is a perfect combination of all the elements I like in adventure games. An original idea for gameplay with the evil ixupi with a focused objective, a quirky story concentrating on discovering the truth, a huge museum to explore which offers countless surprises in which you are never constrained to get stuck in one area, colourful and fantastic exhibits, and puzzles ranging from simple to downright maddening. And all this with little to no inventory. Sierra combined Myst with their original game ideas and this gem was born. Some call it campy and yet still love it. Think 60s Batman except this is smarter. Whatever it is, it is my favorite. My tastes are very specific. Lucas Arts doesn't really do much for me with a few exceptions. I absolutely cannot stand games that constrain the user to certain settings to go boringly through one objective to another in a linear fashion. Or games that force you to have to use a whole bunch of dialogue options to get little tidbits of info to make progress. This is the opposite. It is fresh, unique, exploratory. If that sounds like it appeals to your taste, go for it.

I have been playing PC puzzle games regularly since 1992 and I was as mesmerized by this at age 40 as when I first played at age 15. It is challenging, exciting, heart-palpitating, well-written goodness. Sierra could do no wrong with their puzzle games, but this one takes the cake. There is a good mix of live action video and animation true to the 90s with an overall creepy musical atmosphere. When I finished this game for the second time around, I felt like I could die happy.

This game scores high marks for atmosphere, creativity, music, and scenery. The puzzles are not incredibly challenging, save for a few, but they all feel fairly fun and unique. Game is probably a 4 to 7 hour adventure. The weakest parts of the game are probably some cheesy acting (which I enjoyed) and towards the end it might be a little unclear where you need to go to solve one of the final puzzles. Worth scaring your spectating children to play.

First off I start by saying this was one of the games that came with my first PC in the mid 90s and I have a lot of fond memories of being huddled around this game with my friends trying to solve puzzles and work my way through the game. Buying this game all these years later (as I never completed it the first time around) I worried my memories of the game wouldn't hold up. They did....at least for the most part. The graphics haven't aged at all well, however I still have a fondness for them that probably boils down to nostalgia. The music however is still fantastic and is what gives the game its sense of atmosphere. The puzzles are largely logical and well thought out, although I admit I had to look up a guide due to the sheer frustration of the puzzle involving flicking coloured balls into their respective slots. The few cut scenes that you will find in the game are all super cheesy in the best way. There are a few frustrations early on, such as having to solve a not overly fun puzzle every time you want to get in an elevator but as you open up more and more of the doors and shortcuts you should find you can stop using elevators almost entirely and will be speeding around the museum in no time at all. For less than $5 I'd say you should get a few hours of puzzle based fun out of it, even if you then never play it again as it doesn't have a massive amount of replay value if I'm honest.

I have been waiting a WHILE for this to finally be put on GOG. I have the original CD for both 1 and 2 and setting up a DOS Box is a pain! Thank you for adding this gem to your store and hope to see 2 on here soon!