Riven – Playing Guide

Riven - Playing Guide

Playing Guide

The Temple Island
Once  you've  been released from the cage, look at  the  telescope
ahead of you. There's a lever on the right-hand side, as well as a
button,  although Neither works for the time being. So, return  to
the  cage, bear right, and go up the steps. If you walk  onto  the
bridge and look behind you, you'll see the dome in
the  distance.  To  get to it, go back over  the  bridge,  and  go
straight on into the
room  leading  off from the gold room. From here, go forward  into
the  gold room proper, and have a look around. You 'll notice  two
open  doors  -  one of which (the one with the grill barring  your
passage)  leads to the dome. The beetles you  see on  the  pillars
reveal  paintings  if you pull them, while the walls  all  contain
very  tiny  pin-holes. Return to the room that leads to this  gate
room,  and  push the button you find on your right to  rotate  the
walls of the gold room. By looking through the tiny glass lens  in
front  of  you, you can see that the room has rotated.  The  grill
door  is  still  blocked, though, so push the  button  three  more
times. Now you need to go back to the path, bear left, and go down
the  steps. When you're at a dead end, turn left twice,  then  you
should  be in front of a gate. Click the cursor under the gate  to
enter, then climb the ladder and walk across the board. Next, walk
through  the  gold room and enter the cave. Here,  you'll  find  a
lever.  Pull it, then return to the gold room. Pull the lever  you
find  here, then push the button twice, then across the gate  room
and  take the door to the left. Turning around, you'll see a lever
to the left of the  door. Pull it, then push the button twice, and
walk  across  the gold room to the main entrance. Here,  push  the
button  twice  to  rotate the wall, then, with the  grill  raised,
cross  the room, and enter. Now, go across the bridge to the large
dome.  Don't  touch the lever you find here, but enter  the  large
chamber instead. You'll see a sign which tells you how the chamber
relates to the five islands, and shows the walkway you're on which
has a missing piece (visible to your right).
Go  down  the walkway to the left, and go up the stairs. When  you
see  the  steaming pipe, pull the lever, then return to  the  main
walkway and follow it to the left.
Continue around the perimeter of the dome, going through the rocky
tunnel, and you'll eventually come across another lever. Pull  it,
then  return  though the  tunnel. As you leave the tunnel,  you'll
see a button to your left which comes in
useful later...
For  now, though, return to the dome and go in, and up the stairs.
Pull the lever
you  find,  and you'll see the bridge raise. Pull it  again,  then
return  to  the gold room. From here, go over the bridge,  through
the  entrance  and  down the passageway. Enter the  stone-coloured
door  you see on the left, and sit on the throne. Now go  over  to
the round device you can see to your left, and pull the lever next
to it. You should see a door open in a pillared room.
Now  leave the room, go left, then down, and go through the  metal
door  you come to. You'll now be in a room with a similar cage  to
the previous throne room.
Now  turn around, and you'll be able to see an exit other than the
one  visible  between the pillars. Go through the open  door,  and
you'll  soon  see a lever with a small blue light on top  next  to
some  small steps. Press the light to call a cable car,  then  get
in, press the big button to rotate the car, then push the lever to
go forward, and onwards to the next island.

The Jungle island
When  you  finally stop, get out of the cable car,  turn  to  your
right  and  walk  forward twice. Next, turn right  again  and  you
should be able to find a small wooden eye in the rock. Click on it
to  reveal a symbol, and take a note of it. Also, try to  remember
the sound it makes as you click on it. Now, turn around and go  up
the  steps.  After you've gone three moves ahead, turn around  and
the  cave tunnel should be in the shape of a frog with the  wooden
eye  being  in the frog's eye position. Interesting, huh?  Anyway,
continue  to follow the steps,  arry on out of the tunnel  and  go
down  the  stone  stairs. Where the path split,    turn  left  and
continue  down. Now, you'll soon see some animals on  rocks.  When
they  drop their heads and they stop moving, go forward one  move,
then  leave  the   steps and go onto the beach. If  you  move  too
quickly, they'll swim off. If you move slowly enough, you'll reach
the  beach,  where you'll see one of the creatures  bark.  Try  to
remember  the sound it makes, then turn right and walk  along  the
beach  to  the left. When you reach the end, turn around  and  you
should  be able to see another wooden eye in the rocks.  Click  on
it, and remember the symbol and noise it produces, then return  to
the  rocks where you first saw the creatures. Go back up the rocks
to  the path, then turn left, and follow it along. Now go back  up
the rocks to the path, turn left, and follow the path up the steps
into a tunnel. Cross the walkway and continue to the end, past the
guard  tower. Go down the ladder you find at the end on the  left,
and  walk right  up to the empty pool. Turn the valve on the right
to  fill  the pool with water,  then click on the wooden eye,  and
note  the symbol and sound it makes. Now, go around the pool, down
the  ladder, and follow the bridge to the end. Walk along  to  the
left,  go  through a short tunnel, and you'll find a  ladder  that
leads  in  to the water. Remember this, as you'll be returning  at
the end of this section.
For  now, though, go back up the ladders, follow the walkway,  and
go past the
beach  all  the way to where the stairs split into two  paths.  Go
past  the landing  where you came in, and go straight up the steps
in front of you. Once you've
reached  the  top, go over the bridge. And take the  path  to  the
right  when it branches into two. Take the next left branch,  then
turning should bring you in  front of a gate. Click on the  beetle
on the gate, then go through the gate. Follow the path along, then
go  down  the  steps and through the tree. When you get  past  the
green  fungus  on  your left, turn around, and you  should  see  a
massive  dagger-shaped object to your right, just  off  the  path.
Click  on it, leaving the  path, turn right, and follow the  steps
down.  Now click on the light, and click on the wooden eye,  again
remembering  the symbol and sound it makes.  Now,  return   o  the
main  path  and go left. Take the left-hand path when  it  splits,
then  go  through the gate, turn left, and go up the  stairs.  Now
return  to  the gate, and  you should see a large dome. Return  to
the  split  in the path, take the left  path, follow the  walkway,
then go down. You should now see a large fish idol. Walk up to it,
then  turn  around and click on the top of the left post,  opening
the  idol's mouth. Now turn around and go up the steps,  into  the
idol.  Walk to the end, then turn round and pull the lever on  the
right to close the mouth. Pull the lever on the right, towards you
to  go  down one level, then get out and you'll see another  cable
car  station. Next, go back to the lift, and go up two stops. Walk
out of the lift, carry straight on, over the walkway to the right,
and  walk  past the section where the path branches to the  right.
When  you come to the dome, you'll notice that one of the rotating
symbols is yellow. Go back to
the  branch you just walked past, and take it (it's now the  first
left turning),
and  you'll come to a kaleidoscope-type object. Here, you need  to
click on the
button on top of it, when the symbol in the viewer becomes yellow.
(In reality, you can simply hammer the button repeatedly until you
achieve  this aim.) Remember the symbol that stopped the rotation,
then return to the dome, and you
should  see what looks like a book if you look through the  glass.
Pressing the
button and moving the sliding lines does nothing at the moment, so
walk away
from the dome, turn left, and go up the steps to the tower at  the
top.  Go  through the door into the tower, and sit on the  throne,
then pull the hand le
on  the  left; when you've risen through the roof, pull the right-
hand lever to
close  the  platform. Next, pull the left lever to go down  again,
leave the tower,
and return back along the walkways to the lift. Go down one level,
then open the
mouth  with the lever, and leave. Now walk along the path,  toward
the  tunnel beneath the dome, and you should see a small child  in
front of you. When she runs away, go to the split in the path  and
take the right path. Walk up the stairs, go through the gate, then
turn  right on the walkway. Follow the path along, and you  should
soon see the village of mud huts in the distance. Continue towards
them, then climb up the ladders and walk across the plank of  wood
to  the entrance of a mud hut. If you click on the door knocker  a
number of times, someone will appear - but won't talk to you.  So,
follow  the path along to the  left, going up another ladder,  and
you should be approaching what looks like a large brass submarine.
Pull  the  lever on the left and you' ll lower the submarine  into
the water, then you need to return a massively long way, back down
the  mud hut paths and ladders, around the walkways, past the gate
to the dome, across the rope bridge, past the beach, and along the
paths  and ladders behind the dry pool you see filled with  water.
Going  down the last ladder behind the pool will now allow you  to
get into the submarine.

In the Submarine
The  controls of the submarine are fairly simple to work out:  the
handle at the
centre  makes  the submarine change direction, the  lever  at  the
bottom determines
the  track  the submarine will take at a split in the  track,  the
lever  to the right moves the submarine forward, and the gauge  in
the top-right corner shows
when  the  submarine is powered up. So, first, turn the  submarine
around,  then pull the lever to move forward twice. Now  open  the
hatch,  and  climb the ladder. Here you'll find three levers  that
are positioned down, and two that are up. Pull the three to the up
position, then get back in the submarine and go forward, then take
a  left  at the next choice. Get out of the submarine again,  then
walk  along the path and into the school room. Here you'll find  a
cage  that  protects a hologram and a hangman game. By moving  the
rings, you can lower the figures according to a random symbol.  By
counting  the number of clicks on each go, you can work out  which
symbol  corresponds with which number. Play the game to learn  all
the  symbols' ten numbers. By referencing back to the  wooden  eye
symbols,  it's  now  obvious that the symbol near  the  cable  car
station  was  number three, the eye on the rocks was number  five,
the eye in the jungle was number four, and the one in the pool was
two.  These  numbers correspond to (sometimes very)  vague  animal
shapes  found at the eyes' locations. These work out as  beetle  =
two,  frog = three, rock creature = four, fish = five. Now  return
to  the  submarine, change direction, and go forward once;  select
the left track, then go forward once more. Get out when you arrive
at  the  gallows,  and walk to the centre of it.  Here,  pull  the
triangular handle, then click on the bar that's lowered to get  to
the  top of the gallows. Next, walk between the skulls toward  the
circular  portal, and you'll see a person inside. Now  turn  right
and  follow the path to the star-shape in the rock. Click on  this
to  activate  it,  and you'll see the person  disappear  from  the
portal.  Click on the grill on the floor, then click on the  water
beneath  the  grill, and walk through the door that opens.  Follow
the  path through the darkness (going straight ahead), and  you'll
come  to  a light. Click on the branch to your left to light  your
way,  then  turn  around and return to where you can  see  another
light.  Click on the light to turn it on, then walk forward  once,
and  click on another light. Move forward once more and you'll see
a  door. Move forward once more and touch the light, then turn  to
the right and you'll see a door on the right. Open the door on the
right,  and follow the new passage. You'll soon enter a room  full
of  pillars.  Ignore  the  puzzle for now,  and  return  down  the
passage, heading for the secret door you opened in the cell.  Pull
the handle on the ground to open the door, then return through the
cell, go out of the prison door, and walk along the catwalk. Click
on  the ladder, then climb down it, turn around, and go along  the
catwalk, back around the pool. Walk along the path and through the
gate,  then  go  left, then right until you  reach  a  tunnel.  Go
through the tunnel, to the ride, then pull the  handle on the left
to start the ride.

The Boiler Island
When you arrive at this next island, you'll get dumped into a  log
chipping  machine. Click on the ladder to go down,  and  find  the
boiler  that's in the distance. Look behind the ladder, and you'll
find a hatch leading back to  the
ride,  and the previous island. Walk past the boiler to the right,
then  walk  along the beach, around the lake to find a  very  tall
ladder.  Next, walk to the long pier that goes into the lake;  set
the  valve to the middle position, then return to the boiler;  you
won't  be  able to open the door, and you'll notice a  red  light.
Return  along the outside catwalk to the right, to find the boiler
controls.  The  first lever at the split junction  controls  power
from  the pipe, the upper lever (at the left fork of the junction)
powers  the pumps that fill or  drain the boiler. While the  lower
lever  (at  the right fork of the junction) powers  a  grate  that
moves  inside  the  boiler. Leave the lever on  the  upper  (left)
setting,  then turn to the right, and look at the boiler controls.
Turn  the lever at the lower right and you should hear a roar from
the fire. Turn it to the upright position, then turn the wheel  on
the  left.  Now turn to your left, and switch the valve  from  the
upper position to the lower position. Now face the controls again,
and  move the switch to open the grill. From here, return  to  the
boiler  door,  and you'll notice that the red light  is  off  now.
Click  on the door to open it, then look inside. Cross the  grill,
and  go  down into the drain, and you'll be in pitch darkness.  Go
forward six times and continue forward to come out of a pipe above
the  sea.  Next, turn left and follow the path through  the  rocks
toward  the  central lake. Walk toward the railing on the  balcony
against  the  cliff's edge and climb over it. Now  look  down  and
click  on  the round hatch below you. Turning to face  the  cliff,
you'll  see  some double doors. Go through them, then turn  around
and  close  the  doors, to reveal two passages. Don't  go  through
either  door, though; instead, follow the catwalk into  the  cave,
and walk  until you find the strange device at the end.

Gehn's Laboratory
The  device you walked up to in the previous walkthrough is a frog
trap - you
don't  need  to  use it to finish the game, so go back  along  the
catwalk to the
double  doors.  Take the left-hand passage you  found  behind  the
doors by closing
them, then go down, through a door to another dome. Close the door
to the dome
chamber,  and you'll see another secret passage on the  right.  Go
in, navigate
your  way  through some caves, and you'll come to  a  room.  Here,
you'll  find  another  device to stop the  dome  spinning.  Again,
repeatedly press the button
on  the  device to halt the dome, then note the symbol in  yellow.
Next,  go  back up the steps, past the double doors and  into  the
opposite  passage. Follow the catwalk along, and  go  straight  on
until you reach a lever. Pull the lever, then continue along, past
the  building,  onto a bridge to the gold dome. When  you  find  a
lever by a raised bridge, pull it, continue into the dome and take
a left along the walkway. Now go past the first left turn-off, and
when  you  get  to the wheel, click on it to extend  the  catwalk.
Next,  return to the doorway you came into the dome from and  pull
the lever on the right to raise the walkway. Then walk to the side
passage you ignored earlier, turn around to find a button,   press
it,  then  walk  along the path to a door with a lever.  Pull  the
lever, then return into the gold dome, and take a left, going down
to  the  lowest level. Walk through the first tunnel, but stop  in
front  of  the second tunnel you reach. Press the button  that  is
found on the wall to your right, and you'll go down. Ohyesyouwill.
Turn  around,  and nip up the stairs to the dome, then  press  the
button  on  the device to stop it spinning. Note down  the  yellow
symbol,  then  return  to the previous island,  walking  past  the
building  you  ignored earlier. Now go back tothe double  doo  rs,
walk through and return to the strange device you were in front of
at  the start of the walkthrough.Standing in front of said strange
device,  look up, then click on the shaft to climb up. Go  forward
until  you come to a grill, click on it, then click again to  drop
down  into Gehn's laboratory. Take some time to explore the  room,
then  find  his red lab book and flick through it very  carefully,
making  notes  of  the  five  symbols that  you  find.  These  are
extremely important, and are the combination to open the domes you
find.  Referencing back to each symbol's numerical value that  you
calculated after playing the children's hangman game in the school
room, you will know some
or  all of these symbols' values. If you haven't seen some of  the
five  symbols before, then try to work out their value by  looking
for patterns in the symbol's
shape.  Note: this code is different each time you play Riven,  so
make sure you
remember  them, eh? Look at the stove in the centre of  the  room,
pull  the  lever to open the door, then look at the  book  inside.
Next, go through the front door and press the blue cable car  call
button next to the door. Walk to the opposite door and go down the
steps to the cable car.

Plateau Island
Use  the cable car to ride to Plateau Island, then leave, go along
the passage
and  continue up the steps. Follow the path along, approaching the
huge building
and  ascend the steps. Carry on through the narrow rock  crevices,
and get in the
lift at the end. Push the button on the left, and when you've gone
up,  go forward and look down. If you've done it right, you should
see  a  map of Riven's islands. By pressing the buttons,  you  can
cause water to flow into each one. Now, turn around and walk  back
the way you came, through the elevator to another
lake. Walk into the chamber in the middle, and you'll see that the
map  here  corresponds to the map seen earlier. Press  the  yellow
square to see a 3D map of
each square, and you can rotate the map by turning the handle. Try
to  identify  to the exact square where the domes are  located  on
each  map  of each island by labelling the columns and  rows  with
letters  and  numbers  to create some handy grid  references.  Now
leave  the  building and go to the split in the path,  taking  the
right  branch.  Examine the dome you find,  and  note  the  yellow
symbol  that  you  can  glimpse as it spins.  Go  back  along  the
catwalk,  then  walk up to the device, and again repeatedly  press
the  button on top until the dome stops spinning. Next, return  to
the  lift, and go down just one stop. Follow the path, then return
to  the  cable car. Enter the car, rotate it to change  direction,
and debark on the opposite side of the platform.  Walk through the
door, along the orange tunnel, and pull the lever you find at  the
end  to  raise a golden lift. Get inside it, then turn around  and
press  the  button. When it stops, get out and follow the  passage
through  the caverns and tunnels. Here, you'll see a man  look  up
before  running away. Follow in the direction he went, and  you'll
arrive at another cable car station. Watch him escape, then return
to  the  main  passage and take a left turn at the junction.  Walk
along,  up  a long flight of stairs and you should come  across  a
throne.  Sit  in  the throne, push the button on the  right,  then
lower the lever on the right once the throne has elevated. Examine
the  wheel,  then note down the symbols. By clicking on  the  ring
pulls,  then  on  the button beneath them, you  can  turn  on  the
underwater lights. You'll notice that the vertical eye symbol with
a dot is associated with the colour blue. The circle with a dot is
green, the horizontal eye with a dot in the middle is  yellow, the
circle  with  a   horizontal line is orange and  the  eye  with  a
vertically aligned slit pupil is red. As you click on red,  you're
given  a  sequence  of  a  fish to look at;  useless,  but  pretty
nonetheless - call him more than three times and he'll get  rather
angry.  Anyway,  next pull the lever on the left,  and  press  the
button  on  the  control  panel to see Catherine  in  her  prison.
Pressing  the  right button will give  you a view  of  the  Jungle
Island, which can be rotated using the ring pulls either side.
Next,  leave the throne, and go back down the stairs to the  cable
car station
that the man escaped in. Get in the cart, and ride it back.

The Moiety Age
Once  you've stopped, leave the car, go through the open door  and
walk to the
lift. Go up one stop, then open the mouth of the idol, leave,  and
walk through
the  jungle  -  turning right at the junction, going  through  the
wooden gate,
turning right again, and following the path through the blue cave,
to the
lake. Climb the ladder you find here, then at the top click to  go
inside the
prison.  Click on the grill to open it, then again  on  the  water
inside to pull the ring. Enter the secret door that opens, then go
down into the caves beyond. Walk along the tunnel towards the side
passage, opening the door as you go, then nip down the passage  to
get  to the room full of stones. When you are in the centre of the
stones,  touch them in this order: triangular fish, beetle,  frog,
rock  creature, and fish idol. You will see water drain  from  the
wall  in  front  of  you, touch the book that  appears,  and  then
click on the picture that is played out in its pages to enter  the
book.  When  you  reappear, turn around and enter the  room  where
there  is a large idol. Turn around, and you'll see two men -  one
of whom will shoot you with a dart. When you wake up, you'll be in
a room. Explore it, and look through the window to see the village
beyond.  Turn around, facing  the table, and a woman should  enter
and  leave  you two books. Examine both books, and you'll  find  a
series  of  five  numbers - note them down, then  the  woman  will
return  and give you a linking book. Touch the image of the stones
room to return to it, then leave the room through the tunnel exit.
Move  forward many times to reach the secret door room,  pull  the
ring  to open it and go through. Turn right onto the catwalk, then
walk  forward, going down the first ladder you come  across.  Turn
around at the bottom, then you must return to the cable car  which
takes  you all the way back to the first level: the Temple Island.
To get there,
continue  along the catwalk, through the blue cave, and  past  the
jungle  and  the  wood  that's  been chopped  down.  After  you've
returned  to  the  Temple Island, walk along  the  passageway  and
across  the bridge to the rotating gold room. The gold  room  door
should  be in the right position for you to walk through  it,  and
out  the  far right-hand side to a ramp which goes high  into  the
gold  dome.  If  not, press the rotation button, but  once  that's
done,  cross  over the ramp, and you'll go into  the  dome's  high
centre - which houses a marble puzzle and a lever. You must  place
marbles in the appropriate holes, based on the colours that opened
the domes, and the grid references that you picked up from the map
room.  Alternatively, simply copy the positions of the marbles  in
the picture below,
not  touching the yellow marble at all, then pull the  lever,  and
press the white
button  that the lever was concealing. If you didn't hear  a  roar
sound after you
pressed  the button, the positions of the marbles are wrong.  Now,
return  to  the  gold room and walk through the room,  taking  the
exit  which  leads back into the gold dome. If it's not available,
press  the  rotation button until it is. Walk along  the  catwalk,
into  the  dome, then take a left at the junction, and follow  the
catwalk along down to the lower level. Go through the door at  the
end, then follow the walkway around the corner, and you'll come to
a red square on the floor. Walk onto it, turn right, and press the
button  to go down a level. At the bottom, turn around, then  walk
forward  and  up the steps to the dome. You should  now  have  the
combination to open the dome using the sliders. The combination is
the  five  number sequence that corresponds with the five  symbols
you  noted  down from Gehn's journal. You worked out the  symbols'
values  from  playing the children's hangman game  in  the  school
room, and counting how many clicks each symbol was worth. So, move
the  sliders along the scale, to correspond with the five symbols'
numbers; the scale's first position is 1, and the last position is
25.  Once  you've moved them into the correct positions, push  the
button, and the inner dome will open, letting you get to the book.
Click on the book, then the  picture inside, and you'll travel  to
Gehn's universe.

Gehn's Universe
You'll  arrive in the universe trapped inside a cage, turn  around
to look for a
star  shape  with a button on it, and press it. Gehn will  arrive,
and launch into
a  long  talk.  Watch this, then, when he asks you, click  on  the
book's picture the
holds  up in front of you. After you go through, Gehn will  follow
and  become   trapped, and you will be back in his house,  outside
the  cage. Pretty strange, eh? Next, press the switch you find  in
the  room,  then  pull the lever located  next to a  window.  From
here, look around for a ladder leading down through the
floor. Go down it, then examine all the things in his bedroom.  In
particular,   click on the silver ball on the table, and  remember
the  sound  it makes. This is important later. Also, look  through
his diary, before returning back up the  ladder to  the cage room.
Walk  into  the  middle of the cage area, then look  down  at  the
linking books in front of you, and click on the book which  has  a
single small square on it.

Catherine's Prison
After  you've been transported to Catherine's Prison Island, press
the button
On  the  floor  to the right of the book to open  the  dome.  Turn
around, and walk
forward  towards the island, go up the steps you find, and through
the door.
Here,  you'll find a device with three keys, a lever, and a  cord.
Press the
Keys  - listen to the sounds they make, then use them to play  the
same sound you
Heard the silver ball make in Gehn's bedroom.
Next,  pull the lever to open the cage, and Catherine will  appear
and pull
The  lift  cord.  After she's gone, return  to  Gehn's  house,  by
walking back to the
dome, and entering the same combination on the sliders as you used
to open
the previous dome. Once back in the cage room, stand in the middle
of  the cage area, and click on the book which features the symbol
for  the first island - the Temple Island (it looks like a square,
with a smaller square on the bottom right hand of it). Once there,
walk through the tunnel to the lift, and press the button to go up
one  level. Walk all the way through the gold dome until you reach
the gate room, then walk through this room, taking the exit on the
right-hand  side  and continuing down the stone steps.  Walk  back
down  the  steps to the location where you started the game  (with
the  portal and the telescope), and walk up to the telescope. Look
down  at the hatch on the floor, and use the code you learned from
Catherine's  journal to open it. Press each button the  number  of
times that the symbol represents going from left to right, and the
hatch  will open. Next, look through the lens, and you should  see
stars in the distance, so
move  back,  click on the bottom left side of the  telescope,  and
you'll find a
supporting pin. Move this up, then step back to the controls,  and
pull the lever
on  the right. Now, press the button just below the lever, and the
telescope
should lower a step. If it doesn't, you obviously forgot to  power
up  the telescope, which can be done by going back and pulling the
lever found
around  the  corner. To get to it, walk through the gold  rotating
room  to  the bridge, and walk left down the steps; at the bottom,
turn  left twice to find the gate and click to go under  it.  Walk
over  the  board, through the door, and you'll find the lever.  If
the  telescope does move, though, keep pressing the  button  until
the glass breaks. Once it has, you can sit back and watch as Riven
destroys itself... And everything ends happily ever after. Aaah.