Myst

Myst is a computer game created by the brothers Robyn[?] and Rand Miller[?] and developed by Cyan, Inc. They began working on Myst in 1991 and released it in 1993. It has sold over 9 million copies. Its popularity led to two sequels, Riven[?] and Myst III: Exile[?]; an improved rerelease featuring seamless landscapes, realMYST[?]; a parody, Pyst[?]; and two derivative novels by the creators. A third sequel featuring massively multiplayer gaming aspects, Uru: Ages Before Myst[?] is currently under development.

Development

The game was created entirely on Apple Macintosh computers, especially Quadra models. The entire game was essentially a very large, color Hypercard stack, with each card consisting of a three-dimensionally rendered scene.

Gameplay

The gameplay of Myst consists of a first-person journey through an interactive world. The player moves the character by clicking at the outside border of the game display and can interact with specific objects on some screens by clicking or dragging them. Unlike most computer games, there are no enemies or threat of "dying" or a "game over" event. The only competition is the player vs. the puzzles presented in the game. To complete the game, the player must discover and follow clues to be transported via books to several Ages, each of which is a self-contained mini-world. Once traveling through the Selenitic, Stoneship, Mechanical, and Channelwood Ages, the player would return to the starting point of the game, Myst Island, with all the information necessary to complete the game. For those less patient, this information could be obtained from an outside source and the game objective could be completed in a matter of minutes.

External Links

• Official Cyan, Inc. website (http://www.cyan.com)