One of the great things about having lived throughout the entirety of the video game age is that when classics such as Riven are remade I get to reexperience them for a second time, often in an entirely new way. I still remember the first time playing Riven on my Gateway PC back in November of 1997. It was a jaw-dropping masterpiece at the time, with FMV actors and video transitions between islands that were home to the most detailed environments any adventure gamer had seen up to that point. The game was massive at the time, coming on five CD’s that you were constantly swapping unless you were fortunate to have one of those fancy new 5-disc CD changers. Of course, the game shipped the following year on a single DVD, so switching discs wasn’t an issue for long.
Riven has been ported and released and re-released on multiple systems, but it took nearly thirty years to get what might just be the most iconic remastering of one of gaming’s most endearing adventures. There are a few ways to experience Riven, both in a stunning 4K screen version as well as virtual reality. I tried all the ones I had available to me starting with the Meta Quest store version and playing on a Quest 3. A lengthy pre-load awaits the first time you start the game and then you’ll need to check the various comfort settings. Oddly enough, the transportation videos were toggled OFF by default so the first time I took the tram ride it simply faded to black and I reappeared at the other end of the track. These tiny video rewards are the carrot on the stick that keep you invested in all the puzzle-solving, so I quickly found that setting and turned it on.
Most of my issues with the Meta Quest store version are a direct result of obvious concessions the developers were forced to make to keep this masterpiece playable on a cell phone stuck to your face. It’s remarkable that they got the game to work this well, and while I could go into great detail about horrible LoD popping, geometry warping, missing or flickering textures, and some obvious lighting and shadow issues, none of these issues (even when they’re happening all at once) can take away from the joy and freedom to explore Riven in virtual reality while not being tethered to a PC. One sacrifice to the VR gods was having to swap out those infamous FMV characters with 3D models. They still look great with some quality voice acting and even some performance capture.
As far as comfort, you have all the options for smooth and teleport movement, vignetting, and the ability to turn off or tweak transportation videos for added comfort. VR controls work well and add some additional interactive elements over the simple point and click of the standard version. Being able to pick up and hold and manipulate items in VR is done well, and you have an easy-access satchel for inventory items. You can play standing or seated, and I chose seated so I could stay plugged in and play longer than two hours at a time.
Moving on to the PC version I was curious to see how much better Riven could be with a powerful PC driving it (13900 and RTX4080). Since it was already attached, I first tried Riven with my Oculus Rift S, and while it was certainly better than the Quest version it was still lacking that “knockout punch” to set itself apart from recent competition in the VR space. Most of the technical issues were eliminated or reduced playing with the SteamVR version, but I had forgotten about the Rift’s screen door effect that was blatantly obvious given the generally flat shaded nature of Riven’s art in VR. Switching back to my Quest 3 and using Steam Link to wirelessly connect to my PC offered me the best possible results of all my VR solutions, giving me stable technical performance and the best color and visual clarity. I was shocked at just how different the same game looked and played on the same headset based on which version/store it was purchased.
Unknowingly, throughout all my testing I had been slowly getting better and better quality, but when I stowed the goggles and sat back to enjoy the game on a 77” OLED in full 4K it was like stepping into a new world. As transformative as experiencing Riven in VR can be, playing it on a high-end PC at full Epic settings in 4K is often beyond words and even screenshots. What we all thought was photo-real back in 1997 was just a hint at the expansive 3D island chain Cyan Worlds has created today using Unreal 5; while not even tapping into the advanced feature set you would expect for an outdoorsy game such as this. Seeing Riven running all-out can easily bring tears to your eyes – or maybe that’s me just not blinking – but rest assured this is not your dad’s (or granddad’s) Riven.
Back in 1997, Riven was just a set of locations and puzzle rooms that were connected with videos and slideshows, but now that the game exists in real 3D space the developers had to completely redesign the layout for scale so you can view the entire archipelago at once from almost anywhere. Naturally, this has triggered a few tweaks in room locations and some new puzzle variants, so even Riven veterans will have to figure out some new tricks. The Myst and Riven games are all about the puzzles, and this 2024 version of Riven does not shy away from all sorts of brainteasers ranging from cryptic to diabolical. You’re expected to take notes Sherlock Holmes-style and put together elaborate cyphers to solve numerous puzzles throughout. This can be difficult to do in VR, so the game offers a clever option to take screenshots and store them in your in-game notebook.
In addition to the fantastic visuals comes a fully immersive soundscape that puts you into the world of Riven and never lets you go. There is a moment when you are starting up a set of stone stairs on Temple Island and you hear a hydraulic switch and a hiss like a rollercoaster launching at a theme park, and you look out and see a trolly launching from Jungle Island making the sweeping ride toward you. The sound and the 3D positional audio make this seem as natural as if you were really there, and it only gets better with crashing surf around the islands and hollow reverb in interior areas, and all the fun sounds for the mechanical puzzles and gadgets.
If all you have is a Quest 3 then by all means play and enjoy one of the best adventure games in history, and certainly the most difficult adventure game on VR (so far). But if you have a PC anywhere close to being able to play this at 4K then the Steam version is the one for you, and as a bonus you can still play on the Quest 3 with a link cable or Steam Link. The SteamVR version is the best option for a quality VR experience worthy of the Riven name, but for the ultimate in visual fidelity overload – especially when you compare this to any of the versions that have come before – playing Riven on a nice big screen is the way it was meant to be played. Riven is a timeless classic and a cornerstone of videogaming history, that can now be enjoyed by a whole new generation of gamer on a whole new generation of hardware.
Now, bring on the Myst 3 remake…
