First off, this game is a Zork game in name only. The fun, quirky humor and story of other Zork games has been replaced with a dark and foreboding atmosphere. The music also feels less inspired than Return to Zork. Although there are a few places that have a bit of humor, it almost seems forced and out of place with the rest of the game. Judging the game on it's own merits I still find it lacking. For the most part the puzzles are not that challenging. There really is no inventory like other Zork games and you generally use the things you pick up right away. The most frustrating part of the game is the navigation. Some screens take awhile to load and getting yourself in the correct position to zoom into things can be a bit frustrating. I bought this game when it first came out after loving Return to Zork. I promptly returned it. After repurchasing it on GoG my opinion of the game hasn't changed, but at least I completed the whole game time time before writing a review =p
Featuring live actors, full motion video, an inventory with multiple ways to interact with different items, and multiple ways to complete the game, Return to Zork is an excellent gem of an adventure game that was unfortunately overshadowed by the more popular Myst that came out several months after. Despite being a fun, challenging, quirky game with fun humor and interesting, albeit strange, puzzles, the game is not without it's issues. There are lots of clues throughout the game for the majority of the puzzles and things you must do. However, you have to pay very close attention or you'll miss the clues. A lot of them are very vague and you'll probably not even know they're clues. But I think in some ways that adds to the challenge and fun :) But there are as many ways to screw yourself over as there are to complete the game. So just save often and don't overwrite your old saves.
