Customer Reviews

Journeyman Project 3: Legacy of Time

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought Journeyman Project 3 as soon as it was released (was it THAT long ago?) and have been playing it on a regular basis ever since. Gorgeous graphics, engaging storyline, cute one-liners by AI sidekick Arthur, and moderately difficult puzzles make this a game you'll come back to again and again.

Being able to view every, and I mean EVERY screen in 360 degrees was a neat feature that I had not come across before. It showed off the golden architecture of Atlantis and the rugged Himalayas in photorealistic splendour. The soundtrack was pleasant enough, as was most of the dialogue between the characters.

The really great feature about the DVD version is that everything is on one disc, which is much simpler to use than the four-disc CD-Rom version due to less disc swapping in the middle of gameplay. Classic in either format.

This is an excellent game. The game is not too easy, not too hard. One of the best features of this game is the time traveler's sidekick Arthur (an R2D2 type of guy), who provides hints and tips throughout the game so that there isn't any of the "wandering around aimlessly without a clue" that pervades many of the Adventure games out there. Arthur even lets you choose the amount of information he will reveal to you...you can click on the lightbulb icon above his head in order to gain as many clues as possible to help you solve the puzzles. The storyline of the game is interesting and varied, and the puzzles seem to fit seamlessly into the storyline. All in all, I highly recommend this game.

Legacy of Time is the final game in a three game trilogy for Journeyman Project, but fear not if you've never played the previous two games, the writers had this in mind when they designed it and the game stands alone quite well. You play Gage Blackwood, an officer for the Temporal corps whose duty is to protect the timestream from being damaged or altered. You travel back and forward through time with the use of timesuits that have various abilities built into them.

In this game, Earth is being threatened by an alien race who are demanding something called the Legacy, plus you have to hunt down a rogue agent who tried to frame you in a previous game (don't worry, they wiped your memory of it). In your travels you learn that the invading aliens had visited earth previously and destroyed the cities of Atlantis, El Dorado, and Shangri La. It is your job to travel to these cities before they were destroyed and try to retrieve the legacy.

Your time suit has the ability to copy the apperance of anybody you meet, and you also have the help of Arthur, an advanced and somewhat quirky AI to translate things and drop hints. Sometimes Arthur gets a bit irritating, but the game is generous enough to offer players with the option to hush him up if they so choose.

Legacy of Time has a very good cast of actors and theatrical grade props and sets. There was never a point in the game where I felt that a better actor could have been cast for a certain role (Even Genghis Kahn is done fairly well!) or that a string of dialogue was badly written.

The interface is also very clean and you have the ability to 'look' a full 365-degrees around you if you desire. If there's anything particularly interesting in the room you can instruct the game to center it in your viewpoint, and Arthur will offer a comment or two about an interesting person, place, or object just to further help you along.

And finally, I highly reccomend this game because it's something that you can play with the kids around without fearing that they might be exposed to any foul language or excessively gory situations. The game tells its story without the need for any of this and still very much remains an epic worthy of any big budget sci-fi movie.

The Journeyman series is the best set of adventure games that I have ever had the pleasure to play. However, I have to be a bit strict in my rating by not giving "Legacy of Time" a 5, because I didn't find the story to be as intruiging as the second Journeyman "Buried In Time". Buried in Time took you through several worlds to do some detective work, finding clues in a search for the person trying to frame you. This made the game a bit suspensful and gripping and kept you playing. However, "Legacy of Time" only sends you to retrieve an artifact from each of the worlds. You could pretty much figure out how the story would end so in this respect, it was a bit of a disappointment. To be fair though, Presto did an excellent job as usual in integrating the story with the various worlds.

The graphics were excellent as was expected of Presto Studios, and the music blended well with the game and didn't distract you from the game. The 360 environment was nice in that you could really immerse yourself into the game, but as with all 360 environments, you are limited to using your mouse for all movements within the game, whereas in BIT, I was quite happy in being able to move around the environment quite swiftly by using the keyboard.

The chameleon jumpsuit was a very interesting upgrade from the previous jumpsuit and having a chance to interact with various characters gave the game a slightly different feel from other "MYST" type games where the worlds seem to be "sterile" with no real human activity going on.

Overall, as in the tradition of the Journeyman series, it was a very entertaining game, but I felt that it was a bit too much like a "walkthrough" and not enough story and gameplay, but it is definitely worth getting your hands on.

Throughout time there have been many adventure games. But, Presto Studios really hit the mark with the 3rd Journeyman Project chapter. If you haven't played, you should, IMHO. Not only are the graphics BEAUTIFUL, you get to vist Atlantis, Shangri-La, and El Dorado. Plus, this series are the only ones with that cute little AI sidekick, Arthur!(Voiced by the one and only Matt Weinhold.) Though, you may want to play the 2 just-as-cool games before it first for the full gameing experience.

Having only played the CD version previously, I speak with admittedly limited experience. However, I found the game very engaging and enjoyable. Granted, some parts tend to drone; however, considering the age of the game and the series, it is quite good. Most gamers who started with this age of gaming are rather spoiled by the (rather plotless) action or puzzle titles that have flooded the market. By comparing games like Journeyman Project to these, one can see a marked difference. Today's game producers stand on the shoulders of those who created games like this one. This game pioneered the 360-degree viewing concept, an idea that would take Myst a few years more to grasp. As a Myst fan AND a Journeyman Project fan, I find both series have interesting things and this game is no exception.

I love this game. I liked #2 too. Plenty has been said already, so let me cut to the chase.
If you decide to spend over $70 for a used copy of this game (IMO it's probably worth it) you at least want to know it's going to work! :)
I run Windows XP (MCE) with some fairly serious modern hardware and this procedure worked for me:

1> Recommend first uninstalling QuickTime (whatever version) if it's already installed on your machine.
2> Go ahead and install the game as normal.
3> When the game tells you it needs QuickTime 3.0 (ancient at this point) let it go ahead and install it.
4> When the game tells you it needs to install DirectX 5.0, choose the "Advanced" setup and when you get the part where it's just about to actually try to install DirectX 5.0, hit cancel. It will complain, but it didn't seem to affect anything. Actually, letting it try to install DX5 may not hurt anything either -- I just didn't want to risk it.
5> Now, go to Apple's web page and download the latest version of QuickTime (7.0 as of this writing -- you can always google this.)
6> Install this latest version, making sure the "Upgrade existing versions" checkbox is checked.
7> Launch the QuickTime movie player (an icon will have just been added to your desktop.) Then go to the "Edit" menu, select "Preferences", and then "QuickTime Preferences." That brings up another dialog -- select the "Advanced" tab, and in the "Video" section select "Safe mode (GDI only)".
8> Click Ok apply the change, then fire up Legacy of Time!!

That should do it (did for me anyway)! Hope you all continue to enjoy this great game!

I've been playing these types of games since they were invented. It is almost the only kind of gaming I ever do. This is one of my all time favorites. 1. You can actually interact with the environment and it's people, admittedly somewhat limited but thats a huge improvement over every other game I've ever played. 2. The adventures were very different, a unique form of puzzle solving amid, again admittedly, mostly standard fair. I didn't feel as if I were simply exploring an environment, gathering information in which to solve puzzles or simply trying to find the next puzzle to solve. Climbing down into a boat and flying a hot air balloon are truly different in gameplay, especially witnessing a starship battle from a hot air balloon. Did I ever feel vulnerable!!! 3. Most cinematic scenes in these games are short and while they can be stunning, I've never seen any to match this one. They advanced the games with flurries of action and high drama. I was caught up immediately, often watched them over again, feeling as though I were playing a part in a real movie, that I was part of what was going on. 4. The scenes were gorgeous and this is so in many games. Often, thats all a game has going for it but not this time. 5. Best of all, Arthur. My family wondered what was going on when I suddenly burst out laughing at something Arthur said. His off the wall commentary provided much comic relief. He was just plain fun to have around. He also provides hints and the game itself offers "lightbulb" hints that really do help when you're stuck. I never once needed a walkthrough to help me out. Most of the puzzles aren't that difficult and the hints given are often enough to nudge in the right direction, especially with Arthur there to take your mind of your problems. I enjoyed this game so much, I immediately ordered Project 1 and 2. Two was terrific. I recommend all three. You can play Journeyman Project 3 even if you haven't played the first two. It was designed with that in mind. If you enjoy these kinds of games, don't miss this one.

Only things I'd add to the above (I would reiterate, graphics are *stunning*; I'd used the 360 degree pan in two of the Zork games and in *Under a Killing Moon* and agree it's a fabulous way to see your fantasy world): 1) Although I think the Shangri-La scenario is the strongest in this respect, this is a great game for anyone who either appreciates or wants to learn more about comparative religion/mythology. Shangri-La gives you a non-preachy but fairly in-depth look at Tibetan Buddhism (also has one of the better maze problems I've seen); El Dorado touches on indigenous American mythos and Atlantis on the concept that sets it in the Mediterranean instead of in the Atlantic. I played it on a Pentium 75 rather than the -90 it recommends, and it did still run, though it stuck periodically. Fans of Sci Fi series will recognize Michelle Scarabelli of *Alien Nation*, among others, though all of the actors are excellent. 2) The graphics and the movies that kick the game off are so good that my 3 year old sat in my lap the first hour and a half I played it (basically through the introductory scenario and most of disc 1) -- I would say this means they're very, *very* good rather than suggesting they're something only a toddler would like! Does anyone know if and where the other 2 are available???? I can't find them anywhere

This was oe of the most spectacullar games ive ever played. not only did it have incredible 365 degree graphics with photorealitic scenes but it hilariously funny, challenging (REALLY challenging) and educational. It had what little facts there are about the history of the places we visit and still maintained a exciting plot line as well as in-depth carachters. I will say it again, dont waist anytime, just buy the game. The sooner your playinging it the happyer youll be.