January 11, 2001
Riddle of the Sphinx™ review by: Michael Lafferty on Game Zone Online.com
Riddle of the Sphinx is a lush game that is fairly immersive. You must explore the world, and though some of the pathways are predetermined, advancing through to them is not. Each step taken is obtained only through using your mind to unlock the carefully hidden clues.
This is an engaging program, very well rendered and quite thought provoking. You will have to spend a bit of time (perhaps 10-15 minutes) stumbling around with the control interface while in-game before you get the hang of it. These are mouse-driven controls, but they only work to a certain extent. You may go to sleep and awaken at night, but you will not be able to do much, other than – say – light that candle and examine the paper. Other elements within the room are not accessible. The challenge in this game comes in combining elements and working through puzzles.
And that is an enjoyable task.
The sound consists mostly of the ambient noises one would expect, as well as voice characterizations and a nice score of background music. All in all, the audio track supports the video very well.
Riddle of the Sphinx is rated for Everyone, and is the type of game that will intrigue and delight. It is suitable for play by parents and their children, and while some of the puzzles may be beyond the ken of younger children, they will enjoy the challenge, the graphics and watching their parents’ brows furrow in concentration.
This program falls nicely in the quality line of products DreamCatcher has released, which includes titles such as Beyond Atlantis and The New Adventures of the Time Machine.
