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Myst
Developer	Cyan Worlds
Publisher	Brøderbund, Midway, Mean Hamster Software. Sunsoft
Designer	Robyn and Rand Miller
Engine	HyperCard (Mac), Proprietary (Win)
Released	Macintosh September 24, 1993 Windows 3.1 September 24, 1993 Windows 95 1996 3DO 1995 Jaguar CD 1995 Saturn November 22, 1994 1995 October 27, 1995 PlayStation January 27, 1995 September 30, 1996 November 19, 1996 Amiga January 1, 1998 Windows Mobile March 2, 2005 PSP June 15, 2006 Nintendo DS November, 2007
Genre	Graphic adventure, Puzzle
Mode(s)	Single player
Ratings	RSAC: ALL ESRB: K-A (Kids to Adults)/ E (Everyone)
Platform(s)	Mac OS, Microsoft Windows, Saturn, PlayStation, Jaguar CD, AmigaOS, CD-i, 3DO, PlayStation Portable, Pocket PC, Nintendo DS
Media	CD-ROM
System requirements	Macintosh: Mac LC, System 7.0.1, 4 MB RAM, 3 MB disk space, 256 Colors, CD-ROM drive. Windows: (MPC) 386, Windows 3.0, 8 MB RAM, 4 MB disk space, SVGA Video, Sound card, CD-ROM drive
Input methods	Keyboard, mouse

Myst is a graphic adventure computer game designed and directed by the brothers Robyn and Rand Miller. It was developed by Cyan Worlds, a Spokane, Washington-based studio, and published and distributed by Brøderbund (among others). The Millers began working on Myst in 1991 and released it for the Macintosh computer on September 24, 1993. It has spawned four direct sequels and several spin-off games and novels. Myst was the bestselling PC game for several years, until The Sims exceeded its sales.

The success of Myst increased interest in graphical adventure games rendered from a first-person viewpoint. Many games that followed this formula are often referred to by both fans and non-fans as "Myst clones".

Contents 1 Accomplishments 2 Development 3 Gameplay 4 Story 5 Ages 6 Endings 7 Ports 8 From Macintosh to Windows 9 Remakes 9.1 Myst: Masterpiece Edition 9.2 realMYST 9.3 PSP Remake 9.4 Pocket PC Remake 9.5 Nintendo DS Remake 10 Parodies and fan games 11 Criticism 12 TV Miniseries 13 Appearance in Popular Culture 14 See also 15 References 16 External links 16.1 Official websites 16.2 In the media — articles, reviews and interviews 16.3 The soundtrack music 16.4 Game Archive and Review sites

Myst and its sequels have sold over 12 million copies ^[1] and held the title of best-selling computer game of all time throughout much of the 1990s before being overtaken by The Sims. Its popularity led to the following:

• Four sequels: Riven, Myst III: Exile, Myst IV: Revelation, and Myst V: End of Ages
• Two remakes: Myst Masterpiece Edition, and realMYST
• Uru: Ages Beyond Myst, and its expansion packs, Uru: To D'ni and Uru: The Path of the Shell, hybrid single-player games set in the modern day Myst universe. They were later released in a single compilation called Myst Uru: Complete Chronicles.
• Uru Live, a version of the Uru games resembling a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG). After a short-lived online beta, it went live, but was cancelled shortly after. It was brought back in a limited capacity under the name Untìl Uru. It was released as Myst Online: Uru Live on February 15, 2007 by Gametap, and is currently available in the U.S. and Canada via subscription.
• Three derivative novels, written by the Miller brothers together with David Wingrove and published by Hyperion, entitled Myst: The Book of Atrus, Myst: The Book of Ti'ana, and Myst: The Book of D'ni (with two more releases coming up, one of which will be Myst: The Book of Marrim).
• Two comic books published by Dark Horse called Myst: The Book of Black Ships. A series of four was originally planned, but Cyan canceled the series after issue #1 due to disputes over artistic license taken by Dark Horse.

The Myst creative team consisted of the brothers Rand and Robyn Miller, with sound designer Chris Brandkamp and graphical artist Chuck Carter. Robyn Miller designed the Ages of Myst Island, Stoneship and Channelwood, while Carter was responsible for the Selenitic and Mechanical Ages, as well as D'ni (K'veer).

The game was created on Apple Macintosh computers, principally Macintosh Quadras (the music was composed on a Macintosh SE). Each scene was modeled and rendered in StrataVision 3D, with some additional modeling in Macromedia MacroModel. Each image was edited and enhanced using Photoshop 1.0. ILM's John Knoll released a Photoshop Plugin to lead artist Chuck Carter so as to read PICS animation format files in filmstrip form which helped with some of the animation editing and color correction. Video editing, compression and compositing were performed in Adobe Premiere.

The original Macintosh version was constructed in Hypercard. Each "Age" was a unique Hypercard stack. Navigation was handled by the internal button system and HyperTalk scripts, with image and QuickTime movie display passed off to various plugins (XCMDs and XFCNs in HyperCard terminology), mainly Simplex HyperTint and Apple's QuickTime XCMD. Images were stored as 8-bit PICT resources with custom color palettes and QuickTime still image compression. Animated elements were QuickTime movies with Cinepak compression. This careful processing made the finished graphics look remarkable despite their low bit depth; in an 8-bit era, Myst was so visually appealing that it quickly set the standard for its contemporaries.

The gameplay of Myst consists of a first-person journey through an interactive world. The player moves the character by clicking on locations shown in the main display and can interact with specific objects on some screens by clicking or dragging them. This is an evolution of interactive exploration games such as Zork, except that the narrative unfolds primarily via nonverbal images and sounds rather than as text.

To complete the game, the player must explore the seemingly deserted Myst Island. There he discovers and follows clues to be transported via Linking books to several Ages, each of which is a self-contained mini-world. Each Age - Selenitic, Stoneship, Mechanical, and Channelwood - requires the user to solve a series of logical, interrelated puzzles to complete its exploration. Objects and information discovered in one Age may be required to solve puzzles in another Age, or to complete the game's primary puzzle on Myst Island.

Apart from its predominately nonverbal storytelling, Myst's gameplay is unusual among adventuring computer games in several ways. The player is provided with very little backstory at the outset, nor are any goals laid out. In a sense, the primary objective of the game is to discover the objective of the game. There are no obvious enemies, no physical violence, and no threat of "dying" at any point, though it is possible to reach a few "losing" endings. There is no time limit, nor any reliance on physical speed or dexterity. The game unfolds at its own pace and is solved through a combination of patience, observation, and logical thinking.

According to the creators, the game's name, as well as the overall solitary and mysterious atmosphere of the island, was inspired by the book The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne. Also said to have been an inspiration is The Invention of Morel by Adolfo Bioy Casares, a novel which deals with an anonymous traveller entering a surrealistic island created by a brilliant but deranged scientist.

In some sense, there are two slightly different stories for the game; one is the "real story" that was recovered from D'ni manuscripts (as mentioned in the instruction manual), while the other version includes liberties that the designers used to turn the "real story" into a game.

Under obscure circumstances, a mysterious person known as the Stranger (the player, assumed to be male in order to simplify this description) finds an unusual book titled "Myst". According to the instruction booklet, he then reads the book and discovers a detailed description of an island world. The Stranger then places his hand on the last page and is whisked away to that world with exploration as his only option. However, the events occur slightly differently in the game. Upon opening the book, the Stranger discovers that the first page is occupied by a single moving image or linking panel. The picture shows an aerial view of an island. Touching this image, the Stranger is transported to that island and is left with no choice but to explore.

Myst Island contains a library where two books can be found: a red book and a blue book. These books are traps for Sirrus and Achenar, respectively, two men who claim to be the sons of Atrus. Atrus is the mysterious and powerful owner of Myst Island who could write special books ("linking books") by an ancient practice known as the Art, which would transport the user to the worlds, or "Ages", that they described. From the linking panels of their books, Sirrus and Achenar plead to the Stranger to let them escape. However, the books are missing several pages, so their messages at first are faint and unclear.

As the Stranger further explores the island, more books are discovered hidden behind complex mechanisms and puzzles. There are four books in total, each linking to a different world or Age. The Stranger must visit each Age, find the red and blue pages hidden in that age, and then return to Myst.

Those pages can then be placed in the corresponding books. As the Stranger adds more pages to these books, the brothers can speak more and more clearly. Throughout this process, each brother maintains that the other brother cannot be trusted. After collecting four pages, the brothers can talk clearly enough to tell the Stranger where the fifth page is hidden. If the Stranger gives either brother their fifth page, they will be free. The Stranger is left with a choice. Should he help Sirrus or Achenar? Or neither?

The brothers plea to be liberated and, above all, that the player not touch the green book that is stored in the same location as the last pages. They claim that it is a book like their own and that, if opened, will trap the Stranger. In truth, it leads to D'ni, where their father Atrus is imprisoned. Upon opening the book, Atrus asks the player to bring him a final page that is hidden on Myst Island. He cannot bring justice to his sons on Myst without the final page. The note explaining how to reach the page has been ripped and brought to two of the ages by the brothers. This is the only way that leads to victory; entering D'ni without the page leads to eternal imprisonment, and freeing either of the brothers leaves the player trapped inside a book.

Answers to the FAQs on Cyan's website imply that in the "real story" Sirrus and Achenar were in prison Ages, not trapped in the linking books, which means they would have no way of communicating with the Stranger at all.

After the Myst back-story was further revealed, it was fixed that the events in Myst occurred in the early 1800s.

During the game, the player discovers four linking books, books that allow a person to link to the worlds that the books describe. The Art of Writing was practiced by the D'ni, an ancient civilization that lived in a large cavern deep in the Earth.

The game includes the following "Ages":

• Myst Island, the starting Age. This island remains the central "hub" Age throughout the plot.
• The Channelwood Age, a small, swamp-like Age with boardwalks covering most of the ground.
• The Stoneship Age, a somewhat small Age consisting of a few large rocky islands and a broken ship.
• The Selenitic Age, a very large Age consisting of rocky towers, a small forest, and massive underground caverns, among other things.
• The Mechanical Age, a rotating fortress mounted between three islands.
• The Rime Age, found only as a special bonus at the end of realMYST, the PlayStation Portable, and the Nintendo DS port of Myst. It is a small age with an arctic climate that contains a lab.
• D'ni (pronounced quickly as Deh-ni, but sometimes also as Dunny, Duh-nee, Die-nee, or [incorrectly] as Deny), later revealed to be only a small part of D'ni proper.
• Spire and Haven, the red book and blue book prison ages, respectively. They are only accessible by adding all of the missing red or blue pages. These ages are completely shrouded in darkness. However, sound can be heard at both locations giving clues to the nature of each age, Spire with a low rumbling sound which would indicate some sort of subterranean activity, and Haven with a hollow whistling sound indicative of a constantly flowing cold breeze.

See Ages of Myst for full descriptions.

The game has several endings:

• If you give Sirrus the red pages or give Achenar the blue pages, you'll trade places with them in either case. They will then laugh as they rip out the pages, trapping you. The static will return, covering your view.
• If you enter Dn'i without the white page, then Atrus wll ask you why you don't have the page and say that you and he will live in Dn'i forever.
• If you go into Dn'i with the white page, then you'll give give to Atrus and he goes to Myst island. When he returns, you will be rewarded with his library and tell you that he is fighting a foe even greater than Sirrus or Achenar could imagine, and will need your help at some point in the future. The Myst-linking book is now able to transport you back to Myst island where the red and blue books have been destroyed, with burnt spots insted. You are free to explore Myst island and it's ages.

• 3DO: This port is very faithful to the original Macintosh version.
• Amiga
• Atari Jaguar: This port is identical to the 3DO and CD-I port.
• CD-I: This port is identical to the 3DO port.^{[citation needed]}
• LaserActive: A planned LaserActive Mega LD-ROM port was planned by Sega, but was cancelled. However, a few prototypes exist.^{[citation needed]}
• PlayStation: This port's resolution is poor^[2], due to hardware limitations^{[citation needed]}.
• Sega CD: Like the LaserActive port, Sega planned this, but it was never released ^[3].
• Sega Saturn: This port is identical to the PlayStation port.

When porting the original Macintosh version to Windows, a few technical problems occurred and as a result the following changes were necessary: Sound effects were no longer subtle, for example, instead of a gentle breeze in one area on Myst Island, there was gusting wind. Another example, sounds of running machinery would not fade out as the player leaves that area. In addition, the soundtrack was shortened in several areas and transitions between the different images became less smooth. The Myst: Masterpiece Edition (below) for Windows does not correct these changes. The Masterpiece Edition for Macintosh computers is a complete rewrite using a custom adventure game engine developed by Presto Studios for "Journeyman Project 3: Legacy of Time". The console ports featured narration for the letters viewed during gameplay in order to make full use of the hardware.

Myst: Masterpiece Edition was an updated version of the original Myst. Due to the hint system's bugs and some shortening in the soundtrack, the updated edition was not well received by audiences. Updates included:

• Re-rendered images in Truecolor (24-bit) instead of 8-bit color
• Additional point-of-view images
• Enhanced audio effects and music
• Shortened version of the Pool Imager theme
• In-game maps and hint system

Slight further enhancements, and a restore of the original soundtrack, were made to the MME release as part of the Myst DVD 10th Anniversary Edition which bundled DVD versions of MME, Riven, and Exile.

realMyst: Interactive 3D Edition was a re-make of the Myst computer game featuring various changes from the original:

• Graphics were rendered by an early version of the real-time 3D Plasma 1.0 engine also later used in Uru: Ages Beyond Myst (2.0) and Myst V: End of Ages (2.1)
• Navigation provided much more freedom due to the above.
• Weather effects like thunderstorms and sunsets/sunrises were added.
• Some minor additions to the main Age (Myst Island), like the addition of a gravestone for Ti'ana, adjusted the gameplay to the Myst novels and sequels.
• All of Rand Miller's scenes as Atrus, as well as the opening narration, were redone.
• Several minor alterations in the scenery (e.g., different lamp models) and more realistic textures.
• Rime as a new Age was added and loosely tied into the storyline.

The trailer for realMyst was elaborate and some at first thought that realMyst was a motion picture. It has been disputed who the female voice in the trailer belongs to, with the suspects being Catherine, Ti'ana, and Yeesha. Even though it is a large chance that it is one of the first two (because Myst III: Exile wasn't released until 2001), Yeesha's voice in the URU games, as well as Myst V: End of Ages, sounds very similar and is in fact voiced by the same actress.

realMyst was developed by Cyan, Inc. and Sunsoft, and published by Ubisoft. Production of the game was discontinued after its release in November 2000, due to its slow performance on most computers of the time. A patch was released to bring the retail version to v1.1.1.

In November 2005, Midway announced that they would be developing a remake of Myst for the PlayStation Portable. The remake would include additional content that was not featured in the original Myst, including the Rime age that was earlier seen in realMyst. ^[4] The remake was (and is) reported by IGN as having a Japanese release date of 30 March 2006; however, the actual date was 15 June 2006. The game was slated for release in North America and Europe in the early part of 2007; however, an official release date has not yet been announced.[1]. The game was released in Australia on 21 December 2006.

Mean Hamster Software, Inc. has developed a port of Myst for the Pocket PC. [2]

Available only in Europe in December 2007, this new version of Myst for the Nintendo DS promises "newly remastered video and audio," using source code specifically re-written for the Nintendo DS. The remake will feature Rime as a playable Age, with an all new graphic set.^[5]

• Pyst is a satirized version of the Myst universe, where everything appeared to be trashed and vandalized by disgruntled gamers unable to solve Myst's puzzles. It was notable for featuring a performance by John Goodman. Although nothing more than a slideshow of desecrated Myst screenshots, it was popular enough to spawn "Pyst: Special Edition", which included a preview of "Driven: The Sequel to Pyst", which never saw the light of day, as the company overseeing the project Parroty Interactive went bankrupt.
• Missed is a text-based online game in which you must help Ascii, who is lost on the web, find the six keys of the Internet. The game involves spoofs of various buildings, characters and Ages in Myst.
• Mylk, produced by Bart Gold (PC version by Wayne Twitchell), is a parody based on dairy products and other foodstuffs.
• Missed Island, a recreation of Myst as a map for Marathon Infinity. It can be downloaded from Bungie.Org's Marathon archives.

Though Myst was an extremely popular and commercially successful game, the series is often criticised, mostly for lack of action and storytelling in the game. These reviews often complain about the difficulty and lack of context of the puzzles, which those who like the game would claim is the[3] main point. The Myst page of Mobygames has several reviews putting forth both views. An article claiming its controversial status at Adventureclassicgaming was tellingly posted on December 18, 1997, almost five years after the introduction of the game.

Another common complaint was the fact that all the Myst Islands seemed deserted. Cyan made an attempt to remedy this with Riven. The sequel showed non-interactive clips of people that would leave the immediate scene so the player was alone afterwards.

A miniseries was planned with Cyan and Mandalay Television Pictures, but was cancelled.

• The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror VI included a segment Homer³ where a 3-D version of Homer Simpson encounters, among other notable objects, the library from Myst while the library theme music briefly plays.
• Lucasarts' The Curse of Monkey Island includes, when Guybrush asks the Lost Welshman about the "mist", the Lost Welshman returns that it is pretty, but otherwise dull — a reference^{[citation needed]} to those people who feel that Myst is a minimally interactive slideshow.
• In the 2000 film Road Trip, Kyle sits in the library all day playing Myst with all the foreign exchange students.

• Myst: The Soundtrack

• realMyst Website
• Robyn Miller's Blog
• Rand Miller's Blog

• Guerrillas in the Myst — Wired Magazine's 1994 article about the creation of Myst
• Exploring Myst's Brave New World — Wired Magazine 2003 interview with Rand Miller
• Pupils learn through Myst game — report on the use of Myst in a primary classroom
• Through the Myst - Another World — Interview with Rand Miller

• Information about the availability of CD Soundtracks from the MYST series
• "Re-Splicery" Myst and Riven music videos, approved by Robyn Miller.

• Myst at MobyGames
• Myst and Riven Infopage
• Myst Amiga Port at Lemon Amiga

v • d • e Myst franchise
Myst series	Myst · Riven · Myst III: Exile · Myst IV: Revelation · Myst V: End of Ages
Uru series	Uru: Ages Beyond Myst · Untìl Uru · Myst Online: Uru Live · Ages
Novels	The Book of Atrus · The Book of Ti'ana · The Book of D'ni · The Book of Marrim
Characters	Achenar · Atrus · Esher · Gehn · Sirrus · Ti'ana · The D'ni