this version is actually 2.68GB, not 1.6GB. if it looks too compressed then do what I did and disable the 640-480 resolution setting. sure, it makes it a small box in the center of the screen, but the image quality is much better. honestly, that's it in a nutshell. this is a game that was designed with windows 95 in mind. by default the game was made with shit resolution, and monitors these days are much larger. the only way to make a game this old not looks pixelated it to make the display smaller.

Interesting...Can anyone else address this issue?

I'm pretty seriously considering buying Riven during this sale (along with Myst and Uru), but I'm not sure I will if the graphics will be disappointing. I played Riven years ago (from the CDs) and remember how beautiful it was. It was not pixelated. The whole point of having the pre-drawn art was to allow it to be so clear and beautiful with the weak graphics processing of the time.

At the time I played it back then, I had a 19" Viewsonic CRT (running at 1024x768, I think). Now, I use a 20" Samsung LCD at 1600x1200. A bit bigger, but not so much that it should force a pixelated full screen view (or a windowed run).

So, is it possible something's odd with Raggyman's setup or is this GOG version simply poorer quality than what some of us played from retail years ago?

Thanks,
Justin

There is no difference in the resolution of the DVD or CD Version of Riven so far as I understand greatgreybeast in this thread:
http://www.gog.com/en/forum/myst_series/riven_graphics_cd_dvd_comparison/page1

However, there are differences in the quality of the cutscenes.