Riven gets remake 25 years after original release
In Cyan World's hands, fans of the classic puzzle game are getting a top-to-bottom remake.
Cyan Worlds has announced a remake to classic adventure platformer Riven with an exciting new teaser trailer this week. The studio is rebuilding the game, which was first released back in 1997, from scratch. A release date or launch platforms have not been revealed yet.
The Cyan Worlds website features a short FAQ regarding the project; home to all the current facts and public information on the game at this time. This includes the revelation that the remake will be “fully traversable in 3D space” rather than point-and-click (like the original). However, the same FAQ states that "any other supported navigation methods will be announced at a later date", so there may be hope for fans of the more... classic method.
Cyan previously remade Myst — Riven’s predecessor — back in 2021 in what was a widely-praised reimagining of the original. The response was positive enough, and the financial returns were worthwhile enough, to warrant the same loving restoration for the rest of the series.
Fans of the series may be aware of the Starry Expanse project. This was a fan project effort that came to life over a decade ago in an attempt to recreate Riven, a team that according to the FAQ “assist in kicking off this project”. In a separate blog post focused on this topic, Cyan Worlds confirmed the two parties were working collaboratively, but separately. Cyan Worlds also eased fears that the fan project team were killed and eaten, which is always good to know for certain.
It’s at this point in a news piece where I insert a touch of personal impression, however I wasn’t even alive back in 1997! I do wholeheartedly support the idea of remakes of genre classics like Riven though, and I am glad to hear that there’s still a large enough user base of nostalgic fans or curious newcomers to justify such an undertaking. Fingers crossed it will live up to the high bar the original has set!
While on the topic of remakes, why not check out our coverage of The Witcher being totally remade in Unreal Engine 5, as well as our feature on how much we want a Dead Rising remake. C’mon, you’ve got to admit it would be lush.