It’s hard to hear the word Faraway and not think of Eliss ($2.99) developer Steph Thirion’s forever-in-development constellation creating game, but while I’m not sure if that one will ever actually see the light of day in the meantime there’s a new Faraway in town that’s stolen my heart. Officially titled Faraway: Puzzle Escape (Free), the game makes no bones about being a “modern tribute" to the all-time classic Myst. You’ll explore 18 different temple ruins solving various types of puzzles in order to open the path ahead and continue marching onward. There’s also quite a bit to discover, too, including hidden pages from your father’s diary which will help flesh out the story and explain why you’re doing what you’re doing. Or you can just solve puzzles, it’s up to you!

I love the clean aesthetic of Faraway, and that coupled with the way you move about its interesting world in a grid fashion reminds me a lot of the fantastic Severed ($0.99), though without all that bodily dismemberment. The puzzles so far have been really neat, though not extremely difficult, but I’m still not quite halfway through the game and the levels have been increasing in complexity at least. Speaking of which, the pay model for Faraway is quite awesome, as it gives you access to the first 9 of the game’s 18 levels for free with just occasional ads. You can purchase the rest of the levels as well as disabling ads and getting unlimited hints for a one time $2.99 IAP, or you can even buy the rest of the levels in packs of 3 for 99¢ each if you prefer. There’s really no reason not to give this one a shot, and people in our forums seem to be digging it just as much as I am, so give Faraway: Puzzle Escape a download and let us know what you think!