im the lights, make yourself comfortable, make sure that no one will disturb you and put on your headset. Now you should be ready to experience the fantastic world that is Amerzone. From earlier games like Myst and the sequel Riven, not to mention the legendary Return to Zork, we have all experienced the kind of gameplay that is ahead of us. These are the games where you really have to think hard to come up with solutions, study letters and carefully read through notebooks to find the answers you're looking for. Exploration is done just as much in reading material as in moving around your surroundings. Without studying the letters and documents you find, you'll become aware that you won't get anywhere.

A lot of time has obviously been spent creating a compelling story that's revealed throughout the game. As the game progresses you will get further into Amerzone and learn its secrets. Amerzone isn't just a game, it's a new world and you will have to take time to put yourself into it. Playing the game can at times be frustrating because of all the details you have to find and remember but don’t be discouraged. Discover a new world and let yourself be captured by it on a rainy day.

The visual quality is nothing less than stunning: light, shadow, and sounds makes the scenes seem real. The detailed and rich characters are incredibly well modeled. The excellent 3D models give the characters superb depth and realism. The clear sound contributes to make everything seem real and lifelike- playing with a headset is surely a must for this game. (“more” is a comparison but to what?)

Most of the information you need can be discovered through notebooks and diaries. Make sure you read everything twice, every sentence you read can hold information vital to your journey. The standard point and click interface is simple and easy to learn.

I felt that sometimes the scenes felt a bit lifeless and dull, especially after going back and forth to many of the same locations over and over. Occasionally a few elements were added that were not in that scene before to add realism but not enough. There wasn't as much interaction with the environment as I would have expected. As the genre develops games should endeavor to progress, not just maintain a years old standard.

Disappointingly, movement was limited. I saw so many paths and objects that I wanted to investigate further or at least just get closer to yet I could not. Things like that started to annoy me, fooling me into thinking that I could, when in fact I couldn't. After a while the game started getting tedious with its riddles, puzzles and password codes. If you found one password, you knew that there would be at least two more and it all pointed back to Emile's stupid notebook. Although the visual quality was stunning, it suffered from heavy pixelation, especially the animations.

Overall, Amerzone is a by-the-book adventure game that starts off well, but has trouble sustaining it's gameplay. The graphics are clearly it's prized possession but the engine is lacking and it takes more than visuals to keep an adventurer happy.