The Dig - nice adventure but...

[Iliya]

Few weeks ago I finnished playnig "The Dig". I liked the game from the beginning. The characters are interesting. The graphics are good. The music, atmosphere, voice acting and the animations (especially the diving in the water) are really nice. But somewhere near the end something started to annoys me - the puzzles. The puzzles in the middle of the game and near the end were very annoying.

Examples:
1. See this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGo9IKf1RiM (the rod with the stone puzzle).
2. Also the lens puzzles (you must hold the mouse button down in a strange mechanism button - how should I know that).
3. The animal trap puzzle - it was very confusing.

I think that the puzzles near the end must be very clever constructed - not very difficult.

"The Dig" left a bitter taste. Bacuase of the puzzles. And it's pity - bacuase all other things in the game were really great!

[ThreeOhFour]

I agree, the puzzles in The Dig really hindered my ability to enjoy it, sadly.

[LUniqueDan]

2. Also the lens puzzles (you must hold the mouse button down in a strange mechanism button - how should I know that).

Oh yeah ! That was the exact reason why I ended up looking for a walkthrough, and it was still not working (The walkthrough stated to click on it too!) And when I figure it out  I was so pissed.

The fact is : The Dig was already set in the Post-Myst-Era where Adventure games ended up with longer and longer cutscenes, more and more machine puzzles, longer and longer speeches and less and less interactions.

I do maintain that this is a side-effect of the increasing of resolutions/sounds quality who are pumping up the cost of game creation.

[Igor Hardy]

I thought the puzzles in The Dig were fun, but I played it already a long time ago. I don't think I needed to look in a walkthrough. The door codes put on those rods was something that did strike as wee bit too convenient and Myst like.

The fact is : The Dig was already set in the Post-Myst-Era where Adventure games ended up with longer and longer cutscenes, more and more machine puzzles, longer and longer speeches and less and less interactions.

From these I think only the inclusion of machine puzzles is true about The Dig.

[Shane 'ProgZmax' Stevens]

Some of the puzzles in the Dig suffered from 'designer logic' I'll warrant, but some were awesome too.  If I was put on the spot and had to make a judgment, I'd say that overall The Dig had 'good' puzzles...some ridiculous, some obtuse, some reasonable, some exceptional.  It pretty much crossed the gambit of puzzle design.

In terms of overall experience I'd say it's one of the more memorable games I played because of the cinematic nature of it and the beautiful visuals and creepy overtones.

I only wish the issue of the asteroid (and IMPENDING DOOM) was used for more than a set piece, an introduction in an otherwise unrelated story.


I'd give it an A- overall.

[Peder 🚀]

Read the book!

also

I love The Dig.

[Secret Fawful]

You people are a bunch of babbies cryin about the puzzles in The Dig. You want to be MEN!? PLAY SOME TEXT ADVENTURES. Try to beat Savage Island Parts I and II.

[goes back to playing Anchorhead]

[Armageddon]

Oh I loved Anchorhead, best text adventure ever.

[Ali]

I'm with ProgZ.

Maybe it's a sign of what a great adventure the Dig is that I had forgotten all the rubbish puzzles you've mentioned, and only remembered the magical atmosphere and the amazing underwater travelling balls!

[Igor Hardy]

Balls? I don't remember any balls in The Dig? Perhaps you were thinking of Riven?

[Ali]

Oh there were balls, my friend.

(4:40 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qdk7ycC9K4&feature=related)

There was an excellent bathysphere in Riven too!

[Igor Hardy]

OK - it looks like I played the game such a long time ago (and only once) that I could benefit considerably from replaying it from start to finish.

[antipus]

Read the book!

also

I love The Dig.

Now you've got me wanting to read the book!

I always felt that the overall story was excellent, but it just didn't work well as an adventure game. I can't tell you how many hours I must have wasted walking in circles looking for rods or trying to power up the spheres. And that stupid skeleton! And that awful picker-upper machine! And the moon magnets... oh... the moon magnets... 

But the drama was better than any game I'd played to that point. Brink's growing madness, the overall atmosphere, and particularly the voice-acting were truly top-notch.

[Peder 🚀]

Now you've got me wanting to read the book!

You should!
It gives you a really different but interesting look on the story!

I loved it, and I don't read a lot of books! .

[theo]

Now you've got me wanting to read the book!

The book was a fun read for me, as a fan of the DIG, but I'd recommend reading RAMA or 2001 by Arthur C. Clarke instead. They do the same thing but way better. The book left very many interesting stones unturned, and never really fleshed out the characters in a satisfying manner. Also it wrapped up equally abruptly as the game. I was definitely hoping for more there.

I would agree that the strong points of THE DIG (Game) were by far it's ambiance, the music, design and voice, they we're all spot on. I agree that some of the puzzles felt pretty forced though. I remember having to resort to a walkthrough too, which is never a good memory to have of an adventure game.

[Igor Hardy]

Well, there were a couple of interesting things explored storywise as well. How many adventure games explore the possibility of coming back from the dead - exactly like you were, but without the soul? And what that actually means.

Oops, spoiler! 

I think it was one of the Brian Moriarty's version storyline leftovers - his The Dig was going to be the most rad game ever.

Anyway, I liked the game pretty much through and through, except for the disappointing ending. As far as I'm concerned, Brink never managed to get out of the alien dimension and his mind got lost in hallucinatory fantasies.

[Armageddon]

I wish I could play The Dig, I bought it on Steam but it turns out one object is missing at the beginning of the game which makes one of the first puzzles unsolvable. Maybe I can find an old copy on Ebay.