The Sacred Rings E3 2005 Preshow Report

The Sacred Rings is the newly announced sequel to last year's adventure game Aura: Fate of the Ages, a Myst-like experience that let you explore beautifully rendered worlds, as well as solve some truly diabolical puzzles.

The story in The Sacred Rings involves a collection of, well, sacred rings that, when combined with other hidden artifacts, give you infinite power and immortality. Naturally, the race is on to collect the relics, especially when the evil Durad are looking to get there first. You play the prized students of the Keepers, tasked with recovering the rings, and you'll journey through a portal to a strange world to do so.

Sacred Rings is set in three worlds: No Man's Land, Manula Valley, and the Keeper's Land, with more than 400 locations to explore. It will also feature 25 puzzles and challenges, but if that sounds low, keep in mind that the first game in the series featured some fairly advanced and challenging puzzles.

The sequel also keeps the proprietary graphics engine that powered the first game, with some improvements of course. The engine blends prerendered graphics and environmental interaction with special effects. There will also be 40 minutes of cutscenes, along with a rich musical score. The Sacred Rings will ship in November.