Despite the interesting setup, the story itself is weak. It becomes apparent very quickly that the story only exists to hold the puzzles together. When I realized that, I started to get impatient with the cut scenes where you interact with the Sentinel, because they are very repetitious and don't tell you anything that helps you play the game.

Several of the puzzles were fiendishly difficult, but most were easily solved as long as I took good notes. As with other puzzle games I've played, in most cases clues to solving the puzzles could be found by looking around first. However, there were one or two that required good old fashioned pencil and paper to solve, and then quite a bit of clicking or running around to implement your solution.

As difficult or time-consuming as some of the puzzles were, I was really surprised at how similar it is to other games of this type, especially Myst. Hunting for clues, making notes, flipping switches and turning dials - I've done this all before. Oh, and don't forget the sound puzzles, without which no puzzle game would be complete. You can do the puzzles as many times as needed to get the right result, and there is no penalty for a wrong answer, which makes me wonder what the point is in doing them at all.

I was also dismayed at how quickly I finished the game. I was able to finish the whole game in about eight hours or so, but I did resort to a walkthrough on two of the puzzles when I got impatient with my notes. Actually doing all of the puzzles by hand would have added some time, but it's not impossible to imagine that you could complete the whole game in one long day. I would have liked it if it were a bit longer or if there were some reason for replaying it.

The game ran well on my middle-of-the-road computer setup. The movement was very smooth and takes full advantage of the 3-D environment. It was easy to pan the camera and see everything, and with the beautiful graphics you will want to soak it all in.

The game graphics were crisp and clear with nice textures. The backgrounds were especially well done, with beautiful mountain ranges and blue skies. However, the graphics fell a bit short when it came to people. The human models were a bit stiff and not terribly attractive. This was compounded by the indifferent voice acting. Perhaps it was the lack of a compelling story, but the voice actors sounded bored.

If you're looking for Realms of Illusion at your local game store, keep in mind that it was originally released under the name Sentinel: Descendents in Time. Despite the new name, it appears to be the same game.

If you just can't get enough of puzzle games, Realms of Illusion is a great choice. The setting is gorgeous, the puzzles are complex and some of them will really try your patience and puzzle-solving skills. I imagine it would be a good game to play with an older child. The story is flimsy, though, so only puzzle fanatics need apply.