Immediately the lighting and effects of the Unreal 4 engine coupled with the talents from certain wizards at Cyan twinkled and dazzled via sight and sound, assaulting my senses. The voice of a woman. A trail of light over dark waters. The crash of lightning, blinding light filling the sky. A picnic bench. A flash. A puzzle, seamlessly blended into the environment. These singular moments describe what Obduction is, at least, what we were able to experience. A masterful collection of moments, of feelings, of emotions, of landscapes, of places that look and feel real. I will say that for the build we played, the gameplay was smooth and refined, yet still in passes of optimization. Overall, I couldn't believe how much it FEELS like Myst games but it's not Myst. It's raw, organic, and it plays like a dream. Rand himself also mentioned the team considered a direct Myst sequel. After mulling it over one weekend, the whole team agreed that a spiritual successor was a much better idea.

I have to agree with the team on this decision as I explored old barns, chased after strange lights, meandered aside flowing streams and talked to characters that delight and even terrify. Something strange is going on in the world that I shuffled through as fake smiles and empty assurances were exchanged. I threw switches in different ages and I solved puzzles with Rand's help, I gushed about details I liked, things that worked and very little that didn't. I have to say that one of my favorite moments involves Robyn Miller's (YES!) character. Yes, it's live full motion video, sticking to Cyan's roots, blended perfectly into the surroundings of the digital world. It looks amazing and it just... works! I won't give away much about the story and characters therein but I will say this: CDub'ya for President! Truly, I felt guilty using the shift/run key to backtrack to different areas, not wanting to miss a single thing but Rand mentioned how he loves the psychology of the gameplay, the decisions, and assured that players will all handle the open ended game differently. I examined every gas can, every texture, and every tree looking for clues and marveling at the detail in this huge world. How big? Rand and Ryan assured, it's much larger than initially anticipated, and, drumroll please, it will be around the size and scope as Myst or Riven!