Amber Journeys Beyond

"AMBER: Journeys Beyond" is a classic-style graphic adventure game, very immersive and atmospheric, presenting a suspenseful horror/ghost story. It was released in 1996 by Hue Forest Entertainment.

The creators, Frank & Susan Wimmer, credit their inspiration for this game to a stay at a haunted hotel in Louisiana called Myrtle's Plantation, once featured on Ghost Hunters (although their stay and this game were before the TV show).

Their story, and other interesting information may be found at an archived copy of their original website found here:

http://web.archive.org/web/1...w.hueforest.com/overview.htm

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This torrent includes the XP/7 installer patch named "amber_install_"etc. .....

This torrent also includes the virtual game disk, of course, in ISO format; the game manual; screenshots, and this (complete) readme. The manual encourages the player to start playing without consulting the instructions! It is very intuitive. If you need a hint though, there is a hint file on the disk itself, named simply HINTS; it is meant to be opened with WordPad. If that isn't enough, several different walkthroughs can be found on line.

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AMBER is short for Astral Mobility By Electromagnetic Resonance device invented by a promising scientist in the field of paranormal activities, Dr. Roxanne "Roxy" Westbridge.

As "AMBER: Journeys Beyond" opens, you receive an e-mail asking you to help out Roxy, an old friend and colleague. A renowned paranormal researcher, she has been developing technology that will allow her to communicate with the spirit world. Last you'd heard, Roxy had just purchased an old (reputedly haunted) house in the foothills of North Carolina. Apparently, she thought the house would be an ideal spot for her paranormal research.

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When you arrive at Roxy's house to check on her progress, you find that she has indeed made startling progress -- but desperately needs your help. In order to help Roxy and the spirits haunting the house, you will have to use a number of high-tech gadgets, including the AMBER device, which allows you to relive the spirits' last hours on Earth. If you're up to the challenge and can hold on to your sanity, you can lead the tormented souls to whatever is waiting for them on "the other side." And of course, pull Roxy back from the brink, herself.

Although the game does require the player to solve inventory-based puzzles, the emphasis is more on the exploration and presentation of the story. The key element of the gameplay is exploring environments in order to advance the plot by revealing crucial information as to to the reasons of ghosts' bonds to the world of the living. The different stories are experienced almost as dreams, each with a unique artistic style and feel.

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Although little noticed when released and not a commercial success, coming from a small, independent publisher, it did earn much praise from critics and those who did play it. The main critiques leveled against it are that it was too short, and the ending perhaps anticlimactic. I bought this when it was on the clearance rack at Office Max! It was an instant favorite. I've played through it a few times since, and it has not failed to be engrossing and entertaining.

Adventure Gamers - 4.5 / 5.0
Adventure Classic Gaming - 5 out of 5
GameSpot - 7.4
MobyGames - 79

See full readme file in the download for additional installation and game info.
NOTE: this is an updated version of an earlier torrent of this same game.