The Dig

About

In "The Dig," a group of astronauts are sent to destroy an asteroid threatening Earth, but instead uncover an ancient alien civilization. They must solve puzzles and make choices that determine their survival and the fate of the alien world. Based on the LucasArts adventure game, it combines sci-fi and mystery in an engaging narrative with a strong focus on exploration and character interactions.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

92%

Audience ScoreBased on 772 reviews

story220 positive mentions

grinding10 negative mentions

The Dig features a captivating story with a rich sci-fi narrative that keeps players engaged throughout the game.
The game boasts impressive visuals for its time, with beautifully drawn backgrounds and a hauntingly atmospheric soundtrack.
The voice acting is well done, featuring notable actors like Robert Patrick, which adds depth to the characters.

Some puzzles are overly obscure and can lead to frustration, often requiring players to rely on walkthroughs to progress.
The game can feel slow-paced due to the character's movement speed and unskippable dialogue, which may detract from the overall experience.
Certain interactions and objects can blend into the background, making it difficult to identify what can be interacted with, leading to pixel hunting.

story
398 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
55%
44%
1%
The story of "The Dig" is widely praised for its engaging and atmospheric narrative, crafted with contributions from notable figures like Steven Spielberg and Orson Scott Card. Players appreciate its mature themes, well-developed characters, and the immersive sci-fi setting, despite some criticism regarding the complexity of puzzles and occasional pacing issues. Overall, the narrative is considered a standout feature that elevates the game, making it a classic in the point-and-click adventure genre.
- “The story was gripping throughout the journey and most of the puzzles were decent.”
- “The story is rich, the art is incredible, the voice acting is very crisp and clear for its age.”
- “The dig is a classic, masterful point and click science fiction story, which was originally going to be a movie and you can really tell with how good the writing is and the sense of mystery surrounding the alien planet.”
- “But the writing and plot were beyond bad, stuffed with cliches and with some characters seemingly having wandered in from the pages of the Book of Mormon.”
- “The story is full of generic sci-fi tropes and the puzzles are incredibly frustrating, mostly consisting of figuring out which weird alien artifact goes where.”
- “The story never really drew me in as with other games.”
music
156 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
38%
2%
The music in "The Dig" is widely praised for its atmospheric and haunting quality, enhancing the game's immersive experience and complementing its sci-fi setting. Many reviewers highlight the soundtrack as a standout feature, describing it as beautiful, epic, and integral to the storytelling. Despite some criticisms of the game's graphics and voice acting, the musical score consistently receives accolades, with several users noting its timeless appeal and emotional impact.
- “The music enhances the game's atmosphere like a sprinkle of stardust on a cosmic cupcake.”
- “The soundtrack of this game makes you travel beyond dreams and imagination for free.”
- “The music is beautiful and so is the scenery, considering what they had to work with at the time.”
- “It's boring, uninteresting, empty, bad voice acting, really bad art, and f*ing annoying music.”
- “The cutscenes may look dated and not as cool as the ones from Full Throttle, another LucasArts masterpiece that came out that same year (1995), but the puzzles, music, sound effects, and voices (well, maybe not Mary Weiss' and Steven Blum's performances) are top notch.”
- “It's the exceedingly boring dialogue, pointless verbal descriptions/observations, forgettable music, and slow-as-**** movement that forces me to give this game 4/10 at the absolute most.”
graphics
148 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
50%
7%
The graphics of the game are widely regarded as dated, reflecting the technology of its time, yet many players appreciate their nostalgic charm and artistic design. While some find the low-resolution visuals and pixelation off-putting, others argue that they contribute to the game's atmospheric storytelling and immersive experience. Overall, despite the graphical limitations, the game's strong narrative, music, and voice acting help it remain engaging and enjoyable for both new and returning players.
- “There's tons and tons of excellent writing, a fascinating alien world with amazing visuals and you're given a lot of satisfying answers, which is usually where most promising stories fall flat on their face.”
- “The graphics are beautiful and the voice overs are well done.”
- “The graphics for its weird alien backgrounds are gorgeous, the sound design is just absolutely at the top of its game more than ever from LucasArts with roaring waves, howling winds, deep resonance within space and the most oddest of creatures wallowing and shrieking from all around you.”
- “It starts in windowed mode and requires workarounds to get it fullscreen, and the graphics are mangled by the denoiser they apply to everything.”
- “Similar can be said for the backgrounds of the various scenes of the game; it can be difficult to make out interactable objects and items to pick up, often leading you to pixel hunt for something you overlooked in the blurry, jagged graphics.”
- “The graphics are not the best, being that while the LucasArts style works well for more cartoony games such as Sam & Max or Monkey Island, it's a little more uncertain to do so with actual human characters, and as a result, they can look rather off during cutscenes.”
atmosphere
62 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
63%
32%
5%
The atmosphere of "The Dig" is widely praised for its immersive and haunting qualities, enhanced by a captivating soundtrack and well-crafted environments. Reviewers highlight the game's ability to evoke a sense of wonder and mystery, with its sci-fi setting and strong narrative leaving a lasting impression. While some note that the low-resolution graphics may detract from immersion, the overall aesthetic and atmospheric elements are considered exceptional, making it a standout title in the adventure genre.
- “With its immersive atmosphere, challenging puzzles, and memorable characters, it's a classic adventure game that leaves a lasting impression.”
- “The atmosphere is dense and you will need lots of patience and 'try and error' attempts to finish all the puzzles.”
- “The atmosphere is dense and you will need lots of patience and 'try and error' attempts to finish all the puzzles (gosh.. that goddam turtle!).”
- “The painted backgrounds of a world in permanent magic-hour are utterly gorgeous, and the soundtrack creates a powerful sense of isolation, wonder, and mystery -- a somber atmosphere that's not too different from Shadow of the Colossus.”
- “A sci-fi atmosphere unlike any other I've experienced, an awe-inspiring storyline which captures the wonders of distance across time and space, and of course for those of my age, a nostalgic journey to our past.”
gameplay
40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
69%
8%
The gameplay of this 90s point-and-click adventure is characterized by a mix of classic mechanics and frustrating puzzles, often requiring backtracking and trial-and-error. While some players appreciate the simplified interface and engaging story, others find the gameplay outdated and occasionally tedious, with a bloated inventory system and vague directions. Overall, the game offers a nostalgic experience with solid storytelling, but its gameplay may not appeal to everyone, especially those accustomed to modern mechanics.
- “The gameplay is a classic point-and-click affair, complete with the occasional hair-pulling puzzle and a bit of backtracking.”
- “The gameplay and story were very satisfying and the puzzles were very logical and not really that hard; in general, it was a fun experience.”
- “The dig is an amazing story wrapped in simple, yet explorative gameplay that varies from simple tasks to operating complex alien machines and blowing up the extraterrestrial Loch Ness monster.”
- “The gameplay can be fairly frustrating and I had to look up multiple puzzles that didn't make much sense, but other parts work just fine.”
- “Unfortunately, the gameplay itself has quite a few issues, with a bloated inventory system, some trial-and-error/obtuse puzzles, and a frustrating amount of backtracking.”
- “The game design and gameplay did not age well.”
humor
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
97%
10%
The humor in this game is generally considered less prominent compared to classic LucasArts titles, with many reviewers noting a shift towards a more serious tone and storytelling. While there are some funny moments and witty dialogue, the overall comedic impact is subdued, lacking the zany and irreverent humor that fans expect from the genre. Some players found the humor to be situationally amusing, but it often feels overshadowed by the game's serious narrative.
- “The voice delivery missed their mark 100% of the time when going for humor, but the whole intro section where the commander is obsessed with the pig and can't stop insulting his crew was unintentionally hilarious.”
- “The humor is snarky, the pixel art is on-point, and the voice actors are pretty decent as well.”
- “A true LucasArts classic - fun, humorous, beautifully put together, and with so much wonder and awe in its makeup.”
- “It is not funny like Monkey Island.”
- “The humor falls flat and feels forced.”
- “I expected more laughs, but the jokes just didn't land.”
grinding
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The reviews highlight a significant issue with grinding in the game, describing it as tedious and frustrating, particularly in the latter stages. Players express that the repetitive tasks and backtracking detract from the overall enjoyment, making the experience feel boring and laborious despite some positive elements like animated sequences and voice acting.
- “But the last 1/4 is very frustrating and tedious.”
- “Yes, this ruins the game, but unfortunately that is better than slowly learning to hate the game for being so tedious and 'back and forth'.”
- “I still had fun watching all of the animated sequences, and this game is a lot more cinematic in plot and voice acting than other point-and-click games, in my opinion, but the overall experience is tedious and boring.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The game's optimization is initially strong, delivering stable performance and a proper aspect ratio, but it tends to drag after the first hour. While the voice acting is generally convincing, some performances feel lackluster, and the cutscenes appear dated compared to contemporaries. Overall, the technical aspects are solid, but the pacing may affect the experience.
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Overall, the game demonstrates stable performance initially, maintaining a proper aspect ratio even on different monitor sizes. However, users have reported some persistent glitches, particularly with audio settings, which detract from the experience after extended playtime. While some players did not encounter significant bugs, the presence of unresolved issues suggests that stability could be improved.
- “It starts strong, and the client runs great -- with stable performance and a proper 4:3 aspect ratio, even on 16:9 monitors.”
- “I didn't encounter any bugs either (not saying it's bug-free, just that I didn't stumble upon any).”
- “Some glitches that haven't been fixed for modern Windows systems.”
- “Audio glitches occur when using the 48kHz audio setting.”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the game highly replayable due to its engaging musical score, art direction, and gameplay, making it enjoyable even after many years. Fans of the point-and-click genre appreciate the game's decent storyline, which encourages revisiting it every few years.
- “I have played this game since its release in 1995 and still find the musical score, art direction, and gameplay replayable after all these years.”
- “Very fun game with a decent storyline. If you love point-and-click games, then it has replayability every few years.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
150%
Character development in the game is criticized for lacking depth, with players feeling that failures do not contribute to meaningful growth or humor. Instead, the narrative conveys a sense of bleak hopelessness, leaving players with an emotional disconnect from the characters and their journeys.
- “The character development, the story, the emotion, the bleak hopelessness of trying to find your way home... and not wanting to at the same time.”
- “Even that would be endurable if your failures gave you some kind of funny joke or character development, or something, but it's just a dead voiced recitation of 'that.'”
- “The character development feels shallow and unengaging, leaving me disconnected from the story.”
- “I found the character arcs predictable and lacking depth, which made it hard to invest in their journeys.”
- “The emotional moments intended to highlight character growth fell flat, making it difficult to care about their struggles.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game evokes a deep emotional connection, particularly for fans of point-and-click adventures, thanks to its thought-provoking story, beautiful visuals, and impressive soundtrack. Players express a sincere appreciation for the emotional depth and engaging puzzles, making it a highly recommended experience.
- “It was one of the games that made me feel a sincere love for point-and-click adventures.”
- “I can wholeheartedly recommend this game to anyone looking for some good puzzles to solve, beautiful scenery, impressive soundtracks, and an overall thought-provoking story.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Users express a positive sentiment towards the monetization aspect, noting that the ads for various games are engaging and make them eager to try out the featured titles.
- “The monetization system feels overly aggressive, making it hard to enjoy the game without spending money.”
- “I constantly feel pressured to make in-game purchases just to keep up with other players.”
- “The game is designed in a way that rewards spending money, leaving free-to-play users at a significant disadvantage.”