Return to Mysterious Island

About

"Return to Mysterious Island" is a survival adventure game where players control Mina, a castaway stranded on an uncharted island. The game is a sequel to Jules Verne's novel "The Mysterious Island". Players must explore the island, gather resources, and solve puzzles to uncover its secrets and find a way back home. The game features stunning visuals, a compelling story, and a variety of challenges to keep players engaged.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

76%

Audience ScoreBased on 319 reviews

story50 positive mentions

grinding4 negative mentions

The game offers a nostalgic experience with well-designed puzzles and a unique crafting system that allows for multiple solutions to challenges.
Beautiful visuals and excellent voice acting enhance the immersive atmosphere, making it a delightful adventure for fans of the genre.
The gameplay encourages creativity and exploration, providing a satisfying sense of accomplishment when solving puzzles.

The game suffers from technical issues, including frequent crashes on modern systems, making it unplayable for many users.
Some puzzles lack clear logic, leading to frustration and requiring players to rely on walkthroughs to progress.
The story is considered short and somewhat forgettable, with a lack of depth that may not engage all players.

story
116 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
52%
5%
The story of the game is primarily inspired by Jules Verne's "The Mysterious Island," featuring a straightforward narrative about a castaway's adventures, which can be enjoyed even by those unfamiliar with the source material. While some players found the story engaging and immersive, others criticized it for being simplistic and lacking depth, particularly in its ending. Overall, the narrative is seen as a charming backdrop to the gameplay, with references to classic literature enhancing the experience, though it may not be compelling enough for extended replay.
- “Return to Mysterious Island is a delightful adventure game that offers a captivating storyline and a unique gameplay experience.”
- “The game is based on Jules Verne's classic novel 'The Mysterious Island' and follows the story of Mina, a young woman stranded on a mysterious island after a shipwreck.”
- “With its captivating storyline, immersive gameplay, and stunning visuals and soundtrack, it's a standout title that's sure to leave a lasting impression.”
- “There really isn't much in the way of story - it's mainly the main character moving across the island and encountering things from the aforementioned novel.”
- “I am glad I finally finished it, but the story was not compelling enough for me to feel like this was 'worth it'.”
- “The story is a bit of a let down, especially the ending.”
graphics
48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
48%
6%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the beautiful artwork, immersive 360-degree visuals, and overall aesthetic appeal, particularly for its time. However, some players find the graphics dated and reminiscent of older educational games, noting that while they hold up reasonably well, certain design elements feel outdated. Overall, the visuals are considered a strong point, contributing positively to the game's nostalgic charm and immersive experience.
- “This game has a good aesthetic, and the 360-degree view allows you to fully explore it in detail.”
- “With its captivating storyline, immersive gameplay, and stunning visuals and soundtrack, it's a standout title that's sure to leave a lasting impression.”
- “Its graphics and textures are really well made for a game of that time.”
- “Graphics are awful.”
- “Graphics are out-dated and it sort of reminds me of those Magic School Bus educational games from 20 years ago.”
- “Some of the reviews call the graphics and interface 'dated', which technically they are.”
gameplay
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
61%
7%
The gameplay is characterized by a blend of classic adventure mechanics and innovative crafting systems that require players to use various types of objects creatively. While the puzzles are logical and engaging, some users noted issues with the user interface that hinder progress. Overall, the game offers a satisfying and immersive experience, reminiscent of classic titles, with a focus on inventory management and problem-solving.
- “Return to Mysterious Island is a delightful adventure game that offers a captivating storyline and a unique gameplay experience.”
- “One of the game's most impressive features is its immersive gameplay.”
- “I love the mechanics of having to put different items together and the sense of satisfaction when you thought up a solution and it worked.”
- “Gameplay is fine, but the UI (user interface) is impossible to play with; therefore, you cannot progress.”
- “Gameplay-wise, there's nothing to say about it; it is just a simple good point-and-click game.”
- “Really like it, but it could use some improvement on gameplay.”
music
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
45%
15%
The music in the game is generally described as sparse but effective, enhancing the atmospheric experience and complementing the themes of survival and exploration. While some reviews note a lack of a robust soundtrack and limited voice lines, others highlight the haunting quality of the music and its ability to immerse players in the game's world. Overall, the sound design is considered decent, with some standout moments that contribute positively to the gameplay experience.
- “The haunting and atmospheric music perfectly complements the game's themes of survival and exploration, and further immerses players in the island's mysterious world.”
- “With its captivating storyline, immersive gameplay, and stunning visuals and soundtrack, it's a standout title that's sure to leave a lasting impression.”
- “There is not much of a soundtrack and voice lines are scarce, but they are okay in English.”
- “The music is sparse, but effective, and a joy to listen to.”
- “Sound and music are decent.”
replayability
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
The game offers a moderate level of replayability, primarily through its scoring system that encourages players to explore different solutions to tasks and puzzles. While some players find the late-game complexity can be confusing, the potential for higher scores and discovering missed solutions adds an incentive to replay. However, opinions vary, with some users questioning the overall replay value.
- “Can get confusing in the late game due to the many different ways to complete singular tasks, but this adds to its replayability.”
- “However, more complex solutions give you a higher score, which is meant to increase the replayability of the game.”
- “It even has some replay value, because you get points for all you do and all puzzles you solve - and you can always try to get a better score and see which solution you might have missed last time.”
- “I'm not sure it really provides replayability though.”
- “I haven't played back through, so I can't comment on the replayability value.”
- “It even has some replay value, because you get points for all you do and all puzzles you solve - and you can always try to get a better score and look which solution you might have missed last time.”
atmosphere
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The atmosphere in "Return to Mysterious Island" is richly immersive, enhanced by effective lighting, weather effects, and haunting music that evoke a sense of danger and mystery. Players are drawn into a classic adventure experience that emphasizes exploration and survival, with multiple puzzle-solving approaches contributing to the overall ambiance.
- “The game's use of lighting and weather effects also adds to the atmosphere, creating a sense of danger and mystery as players explore the island.”
- “The haunting and atmospheric music perfectly complements the game's themes of survival and exploration, and further immerses players in the island's mysterious world.”
- “Return to Mysterious Island is a very fun, albeit short, 3D point-and-click adventure title with a nice classic atmosphere and multiple ways to solve the puzzles.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Many users find the grinding aspect of the game to be outdated and tedious, often describing the experience of searching for nonexistent items as a frustrating waste of time.
- “Too dated and tedious for my liking.”
- “Wandering around the level and looking for non-existent items is a pretty tedious waste of time for me.”
- “Wandering around the level and looking for non-existent items is a pretty tedious waste of time for me.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with numerous glitches reported across different computers, rendering it unplayable. Despite previous enjoyment, users find that the transition to newer machines has exacerbated these bugs.
- “I tried playing this on several different computers, and the game is full of glitches that make it unplayable. I loved the game when I owned it several years ago, but it was buggy back then, and putting it on a new machine just makes it unplayable.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game is reported to have excellent optimization, with no performance issues noted by users running it on Windows 8.1 laptops.
- “No performance issues were encountered - running on a Windows 8.1 laptop.”