I finally got to playing this game. I am a Myst nut. Love everything Cyan does, even though some has been too hard for me and I never finished a couple of their games. But I love the thinking, the planning, the artwork, the music, the FEEL. I have played the first 3 several times. Obduction got me addicted. I have played it several times. It never stops being "new" to me. So following Obduction, I was looking for the same kind of experience with Firmament. Firs impression was jaw dropping. The graphics are stunning. Incredibly realistic and immersive. But I was immediately struck by the lack of interaction. Almost no "literature" at all. Like previous Cyan games, you could "educate" yourself from reading books and documents and learn about what is going on. Sometimes getting ideas and clues as to why you're there. Not in this game. Other than the talking woman who is fun to listen to, but adds no help at all, you really are in the dark as to what to do. And when you figure out what to do, you can't do it because you don't have to right "tools". No where in the game is there any indication as to the order of solving each of the 3 realms. You don't know if you can "carry over" stuff from one realm to the other. This confusion made things extremely frustrating for me. You put enough time into one puzzle only to not be able to complete is because you don't have what it takes...... Not fun. And some of the puzzles are just that....puzzles. No satisfaction or feeling of accomplishment. I waited for years for this game to happen. I regularly checked to see when and IF it was going to be released. After so much time, I expected something totally glorious. It's not. Not for me. Makes me very sad because who knows when and if Cyan will make another awesome game.
I played this game when it came out. I figured that GOG had worked its magic to bring it up to date with today's graphics and machines, but alas, that is not the case. I struggled and struggled, found patches and mods, and no matter what, it just doesn't run right. I can't even access the entire menu. Top and bottom are chopped off. Tried all resolutions, even changing my graphics card. It should NOT be so difficult in this day and age. Very disappointed.
Played the first and really enjoyed it. Couldn't wait for this one. Right off the bat, during the first mission, I encounter a group of Morkons. They are mean looking, bad mouthed, spike wearing nasties. The tell me to F off. I saw a life potion on one of the crates and picked it up, assuming they were going to rush me. Nope. Nothing. So I picked up more stuff. Cleaned them out as they sat around. I even took a nap in one of their beds to heal. No problem. At that point I expected one to get in bed and give me a massage. I finally started beating them. Killing one at a time. Ran away a short distance, came back and they were back in the same spot. I did get a message telling me that they were upset. LOL! That was about an hour into the game and enough for me to quit and uninstall it. The acting is horrendous. The dialogue painful to listen to. It's just plain awful. Very disappointed that Piranha is getting so lazy and careless. They won't be around much longer at this rate. Bummer.
