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Myst Comes to the Net in 2003
erichj writes "Reuters is reporting that Cyan Worlds announced that they will be releasing an online version of the popular adventure game Myst for internet play in 2003. Users will pay a fee for the privilege of unraveling the mystery online." The article mentions some
multiplayer functionality, but I can't really tell if the online version will
be new puzzles or not.
You and 100 of your closest friends...boring each other to death.
I patented screwing your mom. But it got revoked for "prior art."
It'd be dumb itf the puzzles were the same and if someone solves the mystery, does the game just end?
Myst still used to be the most sold game. It was revolutionary back then, maybe it will now. I'm sure Cyan won't screw this up, this is one of the best series of games ever, even if they can get a bit boring. (ok, REALLY boring)
It kind of sucks that the Sims, possibly one of the most useless games ever, surpased Myst as most selling game.
"It's even worse if you're locked into a proprietary operating system." -http://www.wehavethewayout.com/scale.asp?rew=0
Um, your brought your notebook AND your desk outside too?
Can't see this really being 'Myst' themed. I mean the point there was to advance through a landscape by solving puzzles.
Now, the designers of Myst and Riven have done a lot to create a very cohesive story and universe, but I'm going to be very sorely dissapointed if this is another 'kill the monster/go on quest' game, merely set in that universe.
How unoriginal!
The next Slashdot story will be ready soon, but subscribers can beat the rush and slashdot the links early!
Why? WHY? This game nearly destroyed me. I am but a mere shell of the man I was before I played it. All the puzzles, all the insanity... now, it becomes universal! Universal insanity! Our world will implode! Implode, I say!!
what, like people don't have enough to try to figure out about life that they have to spend all their extra time trying to solve MORE problems? i don't get it..and now you get to do it online. how fun..
Those who can, do. Those who can't, go into business for themselves.
An online game where the lag isn't noticable. Well, maybe something like:
"Dude, I got my ping down to 45 and now those scene changes just fly!"
Honest question, no sarcasm. What was the friggin appeal? I tried "playing" Myst and damn near threw the CD out of my house after 20 minutes it was so damned boring. I kept kicking the cd-rom drive thinking that the disc was just sticking before I finally realized that they had intended for the game to be that bloody slow.
While the original Myst was a single-player game, Miller said people tended to congregate in groups and play, and so the online version will be one of a class of "massively multiplayer" games that permit group exploration and complex interaction.
I don't know if I am alone on this, but I really don't like the idea of a multi-player Myst. Part ot the mystique (no pun intended) of the game was the isolation, walking around alone on an island trying to piece a story together that might have taken place decades ago. I used to get spooked playing that game, sitting alone at night with the speaker volume up, wondering if at the next turn something would poke its head out.
If while playing the game I see a bunch of other netizens playing with me, the experience will feel less like being on a deserted island and more like being at a cheap amusement park.
But I could have it all wrong.
"I like to wear big boy pants."
these games were both horrendously boring and static. I can already imagine the excitement.... :)
This is worth a triumph the insult dog bit
errr....umm...*whooosh* *whoosh* Is this thing on ?
with this or this?
Although Myst, had been tagged as "Game Of The Year" from 1995 - 1997, the concept of a multiplayer game had been put off according to spokesman Terry Rutger because there could be "no justifable reason" to allow for multiplayer gaming. This was notably due to the fact that Myst was generally a non-violent game.
Also, the Myst team had come under minor attacks from various Civil Rights unions stating that if they were to come up with a multiplayer game, the players would have needed to be available in different races and cultures, so as not to promote "racial supremacy" among any certain player.
The software dev team "Y.H.B.T Software USA" had actually begun portinf Myst to multiplayer, but as expected they came under fire from Myst themselves under the guise of what was then early DMCA laws.
hrmm. multiplayer prerendered screens.... how does this work..
- what is the definition of simultanagnosia?! I've been meaning to look it up!
I gave away my Myst CD after watching it collect dust since the week after I bought it. It took that long to solve the thing. I skipped 2 and bought 3, and I am on the last world only a week after buying that too. Sheesh.
(No, I didn't download the cheats...heh)
This just announced Coleco has unveiled plans to turn the popular 'Donkey Kong' video game into the next big massive-multiplayer-online-roleplaying-game! Players will be able to climb ladders and jump barrels within an online community.
Yuck.. wonder who approved this bomb of a game?
"We don't want to create addicts," he said.
If they do it well they just might, but if it can get really boring like the other games I don't think they have to worry about it.
I think this has something to do with thinking different. Why can't people thin usefull and different?
This twit takes his desk and laptop computer outside. Apparently thinking differendt as something to do with wasting money buying something more expensive and then misusing it not taking advantage of the benefits they paid for.
Horray.
More than 100,000 mothers from around the globe are suing the makers of a new MMORPG Myst-style game, each one citing their child(or children in many cases)took their own lives after playing the game for very short amounts of time, often less than 5 minutes. Suicide notes contained the desperate writings of tortured souls, with lines such as "Oh god this is ass, what the fuck was I thinking?" and "Damn Best Buy no software return policy!".
Finally, math books without any of that base 6 crap in them.
Only $39.95 Shipping and Handling!
It would be interesting to see what this kind of technology could do for Myst as well. Perhaps they could combine randomly-generated Myst-like puzzles with MMORPG gameplay to liven up MMORPG a bit as well?
Try not. Do or do not, there is no try.
-- Dr. Spock, stardate 2822-3.
No! Wait! Give those books to 31337A0LeR and do the world a favor...
"It's even worse if you're locked into a proprietary operating system." -http://www.wehavethewayout.com/scale.asp?rew=0
In Myst you have to trap them in the book.
My personal favorite way to kill the sims is to make a pool with only a diving board. They dive in but can't get out.
Amazing what you can do with Hypercard nowadays!
Myst was always a lot of fun, as a single-player game (boring my eye. interesting, complex, and full of wonderful intricate goodness, I say), but why make it multiplayer? I keep reading the article, but I still entirely fail to understand why anyone would want to make an Internet version of Myst. It seems kinda like a combination of the sweetness of the series with the aggrivation of AIM.
Sure, MMO games are lots of fun, but how could Cyan turn this series into one? My fondest memories of the Myst trilogy involve sitting at my computer in the wee hours of the morn, exploring amazingly fantastic worlds full of vengance, insanity, and puzzles, puzzles, puzzles! The last thing I want is to be standing at a particularly complicated device, scratching my head, only to have someone walk up behind me and say, "Oh, I got that one! The answer is..." The joys of Myst, at least for me, have always been found in solitary thought (along with breathtaking scenery), not in group efforts. Exile would not have been the same if played with other people, I can say that much. With Riven it might have been good to occasionally get a hand, but not a spoiler. With the original, the idea of a group constitutes sacrilige in my mind.
I doubt very much that I'll buy this, unless it rivals the previous three in graphics quality and playability (and the chat can be turned off!).
Oh, and a tip for Mr. Rand Miller: Myst is all about addiction.
It's been codenamed "Mudpie". It's going to focus less on traditional Myst-style puzzles and more on Dn'i culture, traditions, etc. This may be a rumor, but I've heard that you can write your own ages (!) I actually can't wait, the screenshots look incredible.
Everything is mainstream now.
Doesnt seem like there'd be much replay value in an online version of Myst (or in any version at all, IMHO) But, what does the multiplayer part add to it? Besides being able to watch the vets do the puzzles so you dont have to figure it out on your own
If you can't see the value in jet powered ants you should turn in your nerd card. - Dunbal (464142)
not owned by Nintendo? I think that DK would have to throw a barrel at you.
But seriously, online games have gotten a little out of hand, but do you really expect them to use a whole new universe for every game instead of just recycling an older one?
I just keep thinking of the Simpsons trying to solve the rubix cube as a family, I don't think puzzle games lend themselves well to team effort.
Of course perhaps online Myst might just be like any other MMORPG where you have to solve some riddle to get some prize to move on, would that lead to new forms of gaming-lamers? Instead of campers waiting for weapons, would you have stump'ders (people waiting around for someone to solve the riddle to get the prize?)
crazy dynamite monkey
On the other hand, maybe it's just going to be a chance to walk around a Myst-like universe with a bunch of people. But doing what? Going on quests? Fighting monsters? Come on, Ubi, stick with your strengths! Give us fun puzzles, intricate, well-designed worlds, and engrossing plotlines, and leave the MMORPGs (or even Small ORPGs) to the other guys. Please? I promise I'll buy Myst 4 if you do.
The MMORPG Documentary film project:
These guys are making a documentary film on MMORPGs, their players, virtual worlds and virtual communities.
Well, the puzzles could require some kind of cooperation. That wouldn't be too hard. You could even introduce some kind of variable elements, to keep it interesting. If the puzzle doesn't change from game to game, either randomly or depending on what other people do, this would get really annoying, of course, since some jerk who already knew the whole puzzle would just race through it.
Most likely, you'll just have to coordinate lever pulling with someone in another room, which would be just like Myst only with the added frustration, I mean fun, of online social interaction.
If they did this right they would've looked to good, simple/innovative, mutiplayer boardgames for inspiration.
Clue - where there was some information (needed to solve the mystery) that only certain players could get, and you have to pool the info, that could be cool.
Settlers of Katan - there could be items (not just information) that you need from other players, but you have to trade other stuff you actually need (or may need) to get it. An economy of items (where you need X of each item over the course of the game, maybe) could be interesting.
Slasher - one of the other players IS the villain; the identity of the evil one is actually determined during the course of play.
Features introduced by other players could be worked into the puzzles, somehow. This would be incredibly difficult to do in an interesting way; it would also require a level of interaction with the environment well beyond what was present in the The Manhole (anyone else remember The Manhole?)
Myst has beautiful artwork, but I've always had this problem where you don't inject anything into the game; you might as well be watching a movie, to my mind (not intended as a Troll.) This would be a good opportunity for them to remedy that with a vengeance - not only would you alter the storyline in a real way, but so would a bunch of other people.
The good and new comes from no quarter where it is looked for, and is always something different from what is expected.
i'm thinking that if its multi-player and you have to pay a fee, that they will be constatly releaseing new worlds and puzzles. new puzzles that require teamwork (you know, pulling 2 or 3 swithes at once and stuff). I'm sure they will change some concepts around especially for this. I don't know though, usually in myst you sit there for hours in completely silence messing with switches. I don't see how this converts to multiplay. They might also have people with specific abilitys. Such as jumping high, or picking locks. then you would need those specialized characters to get to certain areas. Either way, i would NOT pay for this game.
This is probably the result of the project code named Mud Pie. This is not rehash of any of the current games, it is definetly a Myst IV. From what I can tell it is based on the same technology as RealMyst, though hopefully they will have improved on the engine.
Jumpstart the tartan drive.
I thought the game was slow enough already, but now they want to introduce the concept of lag to it...
That should rank it right up there with such action-packed pastimes as Watching Erosion or Monitoring Continental Drift.
--------
Bleah! Heh heh heh... BLEAH BLEAH!!! Ha ha ha ha...
Wow, i wonder how many people actually got that joke... In case you're wondering, Hypercard was a program (it really defied classification) that started shipping with the Macintosh Plus. Think VB + HTML + a simple database.
What are you talking about? Why dont you actually read the comment.. Do the research yourself. Please dont accuse of being a troll without even checking out the resources first of all. I know its customary to do such things around here, but some people are actually trying to bring useful information to this forum.
Here's what they do: pose real-world puzzles/problems, along with all (within reason) known variables. Then let the Myst players decide which ones they want to work on to help drive humanity into the future. End world hunger? Cure cancer? Stop homelesness? Use the metric system? No problem... the "Mysties" are on it.
I'm almost certain I'm not cranky at you...
idiot, you obviously didn't read up on any of the facts whatssoever. get a life. YOURE the troll.
A lot of people here seem to think is that the game is going to be set only on Myst itself. The game is actually in the larger Myst universe. The D'ni(pronounced Dunny) are the race of people who invented the linking books found in the Myst games. There is a lot of very intresting backstory that is described in the, IMHO very well written, Myst novels. The game mentioned in the article is set in the great D'ni city, which is located under some desert on Earth. The city is in a huge cavern with a large glowing lake for light. So, don't just dismiss the game as stupid and boring, the way the folks at Cyan Worlds look like they have set up a really great experience for all who endevour to attend.
"In
Back in the old MajorBBS days, there was a multi-user text adventure game called (IIRC) Quest of the Alchemists. Potions were scattered throughout the game, and could be combined to create new potions. These new potions could also be combined, and this led to a world where you needed to share your information in order to reach the highest levels.
For some reason, the idea of a multiplayer Myst reminded me of this old game. Anyone else remember it? Anyone ever summon Azz? Anyone ever win the game?
He who refuses to do arithmetic is doomed to talk nonsense.
Though I think I played v2. I also remember that potions could be a mixture of 3 different potions, and I'd actually managed to methodically graph all the combinations of the first 31 potions or so.
Then some bastard found the wheel that you could spin and it would just tell you valid potion combinations. Suddenly my monopoly on garflunk potions was gone.
That Jesus Christ guy is getting some terrible lag... it took him 3 days to respawn! -NJ CoolBreeze
*browses site to heart's content before submitting... just in case the slashdot effect kicks in*
~*~
So how do you frag somebody in this game? Cut the rope when somebody is in a tree elevator? Drown them when they are exploring the ship? Crush them under the tree? Run them over on the tram? Blow up the furnance?
Or I guess the old tried and true method, "Hey! Check out this book!"
See you in meta, morons.
...milking a dead cow.
cmon guys - myst's days are long gone... give up. why not try to make something NEW - rather than ride the one game that was good 8 years ago forever.
It reminds me of those guys who would go to highschool parties after they had already graduated - but still wore their letterman football jackets with "county champs, '92" patches. Thinking that all the chicks will think they are cool and hot cuz they graduated, and dont have a 1am curfew... losers.
I would have posted earlier, but I didn't feel like /. the creators of my favorite game series. Anyway, check out http://www.drcsite.org/ for information on the new game.
"It's an official site, but it's not marketing-oriented. In fact you'll have a hard time finding the word "Cyan" anywhere unless you look at the copyright in the source code. That's because the site cleverly discusses Mudpie as if it's talking about real events rather than an upcoming online game," according to the Unofficial Riven Homepage.
Michael C. Hollinger
I remeber reading about this at around the time that Myst: Exile and RealMyst came out. The idea then was to have the user be able to construct their own ages, virtually writing their own linking books. Its a great idea, I'm anxious to see if they pull it off well, it would be a real shame to see them make a complete flop this far into the franchise.
Can I just say, on the chance that anyone involved with the project is reading, that I really, really hope the quality control will be better than Ubisoft's effort on Myst III?
I think I can fairly say that game was a fiasco.* It was released half-baked, and patching efforts, while appreciated, were slow and, well, patchy in their effectiveness.
If nothing else, please, please don't lowball the system requirements as was the case with Myst III. I bought the game a year ago, and despite having more than the minimum specs, contacting tech support and applying the game patch, I've still not been able to play it.
* I can't really speak to the game's content, of course, for reasons noted. I look forward to changing that when I scrape together the money for a faster computer.
Have a look at these screenshots from the testing edition of M.O.
Personally, I hope this does well. Adventure games are my computer entertainment of choice. If you're a Quaker (apologies to the religious sect) who can't enjoy a game without a full arsenal of improbable weapons - your loss.
Gabe
We're there now.
I see a great need.
Just imagine detpacking all those pesky puzzles.
--Pat / zippy@cs.brandeis.edu
not available to the linux-only crowd, but supposedly, adobe atmosphere has a 3-d myst re-creation world you can wander around in, multi-player
The DRC may know something about this. After all, when you've been exploring all, you like to play a nice relaxing game.
Would be more fun than a online
experience now.. Hey what can it hurt..
Nobody really knows anyone anyway, and
if they can solve some puzzles and waste time,
why not.. Hey I'm having a hard time right
trying to save the world from itself.. Can
someone get off their butt and help me please?
The Official URL, plus many more screenshots can be found at mystonline.com.
Well, looks like there really is a market for online Solitaire Microsoft.
I loved the whole Myst/Riven/Exile series, and I think you're wrong that they weren't immersive, but damn, this is the funniest troll I've read in a long, long time.
Virg
Maybe I missed an announcement, but if I didn't, RealMYST isn't available for the Mac, which seems weird, since the original game started there, but the RealMYST 3D engine was developed for Windows and although they promise to port it to Mac I don't think they've done it yet.
Still, I'm with you. I played the original (on Windows) and it was a great experience, but there were a number of concessions made to port it from the Mac (including shortened music tracks and other sound effects and reengineered graphics) that I didn't know I was missing until I played RealMYST and got to see and hear it the way the Millers intended. It made a HUGE difference, especially in the places where one ended up standing still to think or absorb. When I first linked to Channelwood, and I stood in Achenar's temple trying to figure out what to make of it, the music was so good at establishing the atmosphere that I just stayed until it started repeating. When I went back there in RealMYST, just the changes in the soundtrack made a big difference in the feel, even considering that I knew the backstory. It gave me the creeps in a very visceral way.
Of course, there's also the age of Rime. Even though it's just for exploring (there's no "plot" to Rime, it's just exploring and puzzling) it was worth what I paid for the CD.
Virg
I wouldn't normally point this out as I don't give two hoots which word's someone decides to use as long as the meaning is clear _and_ I like the fact that language is constantly evolving, but you went to such great pains to allege 'funner' is a word so....
Inventing new words when it's NOT necessary (as opposed to when it is) just makes life difficult for non native English speakers, historians and translators (and is an annoying and largely American habit to boot). Also the grammar of the sentence in which the word 'funner' was deployed was so bizarre a small part of my brain melted (I'm not a grammar natzi by ANY means, but it was really weird, aka bad, which is worth mentioning bearing in mind the context).
I dispute your claim that 'funner' is a word in the English language.
The Oxford English Dictionary does not list it.
(From which we can gather it's not British English)
The Cambridge Dictionary of American English does not list it.
(From which we can gather it's not American English)
The Cambridge International Dictionary of English does not list it.
(From which we can gather it's not some *other* form of English)
Additionally, Dictionary.com (http://www.dictionary.com/search?q=funner) doesn't think it's a work either.
MW (Websters) may allow for it, but MW has lots of badly spelled words that don't existing in *any* other dictionary so no kudos to them (and it's hardly in the same class as the OED, or Cambridge Dictionaries, or arguably even Dictionary.com).
So (in future) instead of:
But, it's fun, and is funner (yes, it's a word, so shut up) to a broader market
How about:
"The Sims is fun and appeals to a wider market"
Note that it has all the same meaning, is shorter and doesn't required the use of new and superfluous words!
NB: I'm all for new words (!) when they are warranted (i.e. not when someone is too lazy to learn how to communicate properly!)
LOL. Actually I don't think that /could/ work. CyanWorlds has always been on the cutting edge with technology, I don't think they would still be using slideshow format ;) Their last game, realMyst, was a remake of Myst in RealTime 3D with absolutely GORGEOUS graphics. This game will be in realtime 3D also, and from the looks of the screenshots I'm saying, Cyan is once again on the cutting edge :)
I find Myst appealing because it gives you relaxation from all the stress caused by a hectic lifestyle. It also instills an appreciation for these slower things - for example, nature. In realMyst, I love to just stand on the dock and watch the sunset, or chase the butterflies. In Riven I enjoy just walking around taking it all in. The puzzles in the games teach you to use logic and put everything you have learned together (an essential life-skill I might add ;). Yes, they can be frustrating at times, but the "Aha!" experience when it is solved always makes it worth it. It is a sense of accomplishment you can't get from blowing people up. I hope you all get to experience it sometime :)
As for the game, there seems to be a misconception going around that Myst Online is going to be almost exactly like the original Myst game. This is not true at all. Myst Online (or as I like to refer to it, MUDPIE (its original working title)) will be in real-time 3D format, and from the screenshots that have been released at mystonline.com, and the other ones you can view at cyanworlds.com, the graphics will be absolutely AMAZING. This game has nothing to do with Atrus or his family, instead, it is about the intricate and engrossing backstory hinted at in the games and detailed in the 3 Myst novels. It is the story of a great civilization - the D'ni - linked to a cave deep in the Earth thousands of years ago from their former world, which was collapsing. In that cave they rebuilt their culture and a great city. What made this civilization most unique was their knowledge of The Art - the ability to link to other worlds by Writing about them in special books. They existed on Earth for 10,000 years until a biological attack by some rebels wiped out many of them. The survivors fled through the Books, but the rebels made sure many of these escape routes were infected as well. Thus, the city was abandoned for years. Now in the game Myst Online, we will have the chance to inhabit D'ni. We will travel down the tunnels leading to the great city, and learn much more about their history and culture. We will discover Ages and travel to them. There will be puzzles along the way, but a main focus will be exploration and discovery :) (The game is geered not at the testosterone-driven, heavy-gamer, but athe the general public, who tend to enjoy this type of thing more than blowing up people. It is also a lot better for families, a good marketing strategy in my opinion ;) Information indicates you will probably be able to choose who you will travel with, traveling with a group of friends, not seeing the thousands of others playing as well. The world will be growing constantly, according to an article "Every day new content will be added to the game. Every week a "substantial" addition will be made. Every month an entirely new Age will be added." Someday we might even be able to write our own worlds. Doesn't this sound wonderful?
For more information on Myst Online, check out MUDPIE Obsession :)
SLUGGY RULES!
for the rest of you, go to Sluggy.com
T Money
World Domination with a plastic spoon since 1984
I didn't notice if anyone mentioned these, so I'll just throw them in:
This will take place in real-time. It will not be point-and-click-frame-by-frame game that the orginal myst was. They are putting an almost rediculous amount of effort into detail and graphics. You will explore via a person, or avatar as they call it, that you can see as it moves across the screen. The game will be constantly updated, hence there being a monthly fee. It will require a broadband connection. They plan on revolutionizing this area the same way they revolutionized CD-ROM with Myst. You will have the option of deciding who you can see wherever you go, so there will not be thousands of people standing around you. You can play it by yourself, or with a few friends, or whatever you want.
As for the name, they really should change it because 'Myst Online' is very misleading.