Myst

aka: Myst 1, Myst I
Moby ID: 1223
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Description official descriptions

You have just stumbled upon a most intriguing book, a book titled Myst. You have no idea where it came from, who wrote it, or how old it is. Reading through its pages provides you with only a description of an island world. But it's just a book, isn't it? As you reach the end of the book, you lay your hand on a page. Suddenly your own world dissolves into blackness, replaced with the island world the pages described. Now you're here, wherever here is, with no option but to explore.

Myst is a first-person point-and-click adventure where the player controls a character known as The Stranger. Magically transported into the world described in the book, he needs to explore Myst Island and solve its mysteries. The game is presented as a series of static scenes where the player acts with the environment by clicking and manipulating objects. There are no enemies and it is not possible to die. Through Myst Island, the game is further divided into mini-worlds set in different ages accessed through different books.

The game's interface is reduced to a single cursor for navigation and interaction. Rather than collecting items and using them to solve puzzles, the player must gather subtly placed clues and manipulate complex mechanical devices in order to advance in the game. The world of Myst is mostly uninhabited, and the game has very few live-action scenes with characters and dialogue.

Spellings

  • ミスト - Japanese spelling

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Credits (Macintosh version)

28 People (10 developers, 18 thanks) · View all

Designed by
Directed by
Graphics
Animation
Environmental Sound Design
Sound Effects
Musical Score
Video and Movie Editing
Producer
Production Assistant
Assistant Product Manager
Senior Marketing Manager
Marketing Coordinator
QA Lead Technician
Alpha Testing
Manual
Special Thanks to
[ full credits ]

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 78% (based on 66 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.3 out of 5 (based on 330 ratings with 12 reviews)

Big and small

The Good
Memorably described by PC Format as a 'game for people who don't like games', this was a hugely-popular, completely empty CdROM-only title from the days when that was reason enough to release a game - along the lines of 'The 7th Guest', it presents you with some attractive locales and simple logical puzzles. And that's it.

The Bad
It isn't really a game. That's the big problem. It's a nice graphical demo, but there isn't really a game in there. You point, and click, and point, and click, and lose interest. The fact that it sold many more copies than the excellent adventure 'System Shock' speaks volumes about effectively marketing.

The Bottom Line
A distressingly-popular graphical showcase for people who don't like computer games.

Windows 3.x · by Ashley Pomeroy (225) · 2000

Pretty To Look At, But Maybe Not So Much Fun To Play

The Good
Myst is a revolutionary adventure game, which wowed 1990s, audiences with its amazing graphics, tough puzzles, complicated mystery and a lack of the sort of graphic violence and gore that was popular in the industry. The Atari Jaguar CD edition is pretty much flawless when it comes to recreating the original Myst game.

The Bad
Myst in its original format, is a game that has not aged particularly well. The pretty pictures may not pretty may not wow a 2021 audience and the pretty pictures do not come with much animation or music. Except for a few Full Motion Video clips, you do not really interact with anyone on the island and the puzzles are some of the hardest ever put into a video game. All of these faults are found in the Atari Jaguar CD edition of the game because it is an exact copy of the original Myst game.

The Bottom Line
Myst is a video game that revolutionized the industry when it was first released in 1993. Modern gamers may not be especially impressed with the game's technical achievements and world building. If you have played the original version of the game, then their is nothing new or improved on the Atari Jaguar edition to justify a purchase.

Jaguar · by ETJB (428) · 2021

This game is so weird, it's simply brilliant.

The Good
When this was released, it was not like other point and click adventures such as Monkey Island and Maniac Mansion, but a first-person view game so that YOU become the protagonist. This makes it fresh and unlike anything else. Instead of fighting baddies you are totally alone on this island and you have to find clues to discover what happened and solve puzzles to progress. This way the (brilliant) story slowly unfolds. Therefore if you are an action gamer stop reading otherwise read on. You'll soon find out that there are two brothers called Sirrus and Achenar trapped in books and you need to free them but they but both blame each other for being a liar so who's right and what about Atrus and Catherine, their parents? That's for you to find out. You need to travel to all the different ages (worlds) of Myst by finding the linking books in which these worlds are described and retrieve the pages torn from the books to take them back to the library. In each age a blue (Sirrus) and red (Achenar) page is hidden and a linking book back to Myst. The puzzles are challenging and fun (you may find them too difficult at times, though) but if you concentrate on them and think logically and look for relations between things you'll find the solution eventually. You need to explore everything to gain all clues and solve all puzzles. The game can be completed in different ways but only one is the correct one (That's up to you). The graphics are also surprisingly beautiful and combined with the realistic sounds it really gives you the feel of being alone on a deserted and surrealistic island.

The Bad
The puzzles may be a bit too hard as mentioned before so you may need a walkthrough at times.

The Bottom Line
If you like puzzling and exploring, this is for you. If not leave this!

Windows · by Rensch (203) · 2005

[ View all 12 player reviews ]

Trivia

1001 Video Games

Myst appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.

Development

Myst was rendered entirely on stock color Macintoshes using only Stratavision Software. Until the success of Myst, The Miller brothers ran Cyan from their basement.

Easter egg

A mosaic on the floor in the D'ni Age shows the face of developer Chuck Carter.

Novels

Hyperion published three novels set in the Myst universe:1. The Book of Atrus (1995), by Rand Miller, Robyn Miller and David Wingrove; 2. The Book of Ti'ana (1996), by Rand Miller, Robyn Miller, and David Wingrove; and 3. The Book of D'ni (1997), by Rand Miller and David Wingrove.

A fourth novel, The Book of Marrim, by Rand Miller and David Wingrove, was put on hold while the last Myst games were completed, and is now expected to be published at some point in 2006.

Additionally, Dark Horse Comics published two issues (Passages and the Joining) of an aborted Myst comic book miniseries, The Book of Black Ships.

Reception

Myst is the best-selling game of all time. Over the course of a few years, it stayed on PC Data's top ten list. The game's non-violence (the creators are both pious Christians), simplicity, and amazing graphics contributed to its success. Myst was also responsible for many people buying a CD-ROM drive for their computers.

References

While in D'ni, you may notice there is a mosaic of a face on the tile floor. Though it may look like one of the characters in the game, it is actually Chuck Carter, one of the graphics designers for the game.

References to the Game

In the 1995 episode "Treehouse Of Horror VI" of the TV series The Simpsons the last of three parodies named Homer³ is based on a Twilight Zone episode. Homer gets sucked into the 3rd dimension and enters a 3D animated world where some 3D objects exist on a grid. As he walks along, you can see a replica of Myst's library and a snippet of the Myst finale theme music can be heard.

Cancelled versions

Sunsoft announced releases for both the Sega CD and the LaserActive's Mega LD format, both of which were in an advanced state of completion before being cancelled.

Soundtrack

Myst soundtrack composed by Robyn Miller was released in 1998. This soundtrack is pretty much available everywhere, in almost every online music CD store.

The songs are parted to several Myst game ages:* Myst Island (1-6) * Mechanical Age (7-13) * Stoneship Age (14-17) * Selentic Age (18) * Channelwood Age (19-21) * Finale (22-23) * Bonus Tracks (24-26)

Tracklist: * Myst Theme * Treegate * Planetarium * Shipgate * The Tower * The Last Mesage (Forechamber Theme) * Fortress Ambience, Part I * Fortress Ambience, Part II * Mechanical Mystgate * Sirrus Cache * Sirrus Theme * Achenar's Cache * Achenar's Theme * Compass Rose * Above Stoneship * Sirrus Theme - Stoneship Age * Achenar's Theme - Stoneship Age * Selentic Mystgate * The Temple of Achenar * Sirrus Theme - Channelwood Age * Achenar's Theme - Chennelwood Age * Un-finale * Finale * Fireplace Theme * Early Selentic Mystgate * Original Un-finale

Awards

  • Computer Gaming World
    • November 1996 (15th anniversary issue) – #11 Most Innovative Computer Game
    • November 1996 (15th anniversary issue) – #13 Hardest Computer Game
    • November 1996 (15th anniversary issue) – #3 Least Rewarding Ending of All Time
  • Electronic Entertainment
    • March 1994 – Editors' Choice Awards: Breakthrough Game (Honorable Mention)
  • FLUX
    • Issue #4 - #14 in the "Top 100 Video Games of All-Time" list
  • GameStar (Germany)
    • Issue 12/1999 - #33 in the "100 Most Important PC Games of the Nineties" ranking
  • MacUser
    • 1993 - Best Game (Editors' Choice)
  • PC Gamer
    • April 2000 - #42 in the "All Time Top 50 Games" Readers' Poll

Information also contributed by Adam Baratz, Agent 5, Big John WV, Mu77etOfDeath, PCGamer77, Pseudo_Intellectual, Scaryfun and Scott Monster

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Related Games

Myst: The Collection
Released 2006 on Windows, 2007 on Macintosh
Myst Trilogy
Released 2002 on Windows, Macintosh
Myst (Desktop Edition)
Released 1998 on Windows, Windows 3.x
Myst III: Exile
Released 2001 on Windows, 2002 on Xbox, PlayStation 2
Real Myst
Released 2000 on Windows, 2002 on Macintosh, 2012 on iPad...
Riven: The Sequel to Myst
Released 1997 on Windows, PlayStation, 1998 on SEGA Saturn...
Myst IV: Revelation
Released 2004 on Windows, Macintosh, Xbox
Ages of Myst
Released 1998 on Windows, Windows 3.x, Macintosh
Myst IV: Revelation (Collector's Edition)
Released 2004 on Windows, Macintosh

Related Sites +

  • Cyan's Myst Walkthrough
    Full solution to Myst
  • JTB's Myst Help
    A webpage providing a hint book in three different formats, illustrated puzzle solutions, both spoiler-free and spoiler-laden tips, maps of the Channelwood Age, links to other sources of online help for the game, and a set of save games for the Macintosh version of the game.
  • Myst UHS Hints
    Online web hints for Myst, written by Jason Strautman.
  • Myst.Com
    Cyan's Official Myst Homepage.
  • Play Myst For Me
    An article by Scott Rosenberg, originally published in the SF Examiner Sunday Magazine, detailing his experiences attempting to get Myst running on his (dated) PC (1994 - Feb. 1995).
  • The Myst Guidebook
    The Myst subsection of the Guidebook fansite that provides information about the game and a brief background on the game's production and later remake in addition to game hints and a walkthrough.

Identifiers +

  • MobyGames ID: 1223
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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by MAT.

PS Vita added by Fred VT. PlayStation 3 added by Lance Boyle. CD-i added by Corn Popper. Windows added by Trixter. iPhone, PSP added by Sciere. SEGA Saturn added by Kohler 86. Windows Mobile added by Kabushi. Macintosh added by Terok Nor. PlayStation added by Grant McLellan. Amiga added by Syed GJ. Jaguar, 3DO added by quizzley7.

Additional contributors: Jeanne, Guy Chapman, Havoc Crow, Parf, Ms. Tea, Zeppin, Patrick Bregger, Plok, FatherJack, Evolyzer.

Game added March 29, 2000. Last modified March 20, 2024.