MYST: A Retrospect

It was 18 years ago that the original Myst was released and blew my young mind. Read on for my loving retrospect of the classic adventure game!

Call it cliched if you must, but I remember a time before the internet when my family had a Macintosh desktop (yeah, that was before it was shortened to 'Mac' and became the hipster brand of choice) I used to play games on it from floppy disks and CD-roms, simple but entertaining stuff for a kid. Then came Myst.

Originally released in 1993, it blew the minds of kids and adults alike for its mysterious, interactive environments, stunning graphics for the time, and a sense of free-will play that until that point wasn't often seen in games. The character you play as is never given a name and the perspective is first person, making you feel like it really is you exploring these strange new worlds.

It all begins with a book. As you flip through it and come upon the last page, the picture seems to be moving, flying over what looks like an island. As you decide to touch your hand to it, there's a droning whir sound and suddenly, things go dark. When you come to, you find yourself here:

So what's going on?! The answer isn't immediate, and you're only left to explore and find out for yourself. It turns out this island is a host to a number of strange mechanics, like switch boards that seem to power something, hidden panels in the wall that hide chambers with holographic projections, and a library with moving bookshelves that reveal a secret elevator. Soon enough, though, you discover this island was once inhabited by a man named Atrus, who is able to create other worlds using "linking books"-one of which has brought you here. He has a wife and two sons, who, according to his journals, have betrayed hm and forced him to place them in prison books.

With this knowledge in mind, you set out to find out what happened here, and are faced with a few different choices as to who you should trust-Atrus, or one of his sons? In your adventure to find the truth, you end up visiting several different worlds created by Atrus-everything from a giant rock island to a "mechanical age" that sits on giant gears.

The Channelwood Age

It's here that the game really excels-the exploration of the different ages is simultaneously exciting and eerie as hell. The more you explore, the more you find out about the characters through their journals and personal objects left in the ages. Some of them are really quite strange and creepy-for example, a hidden room with a crate that contains something with teeth rotting inside...

Am I gonna turn around and see him waiting for me with an axe?

Ultimately, the ending is up to you, and it really all comes down to how much you see/read and who you want to believe. The crazy thing is, 3 out of the 4 endings are not happy. At all. The only real way to get the best ending (without cheating of course) is to pay a great amount of attention to Atrus' journals, notes, and the remnants of the brother's presence in the ages.

As a kid, this can be incredibly frustrating. When you're young why would you wanna play a game that involves a ton of reading?! But you know what? It made me think. It thrilled me, it scared me a little, but it also made me think. And despite getting frustrated one day and giving up, I came back the next because I couldn't wait to see what else was waiting for me.

There are those who say that Myst doesn't hold up, like IGN. Well, I say they're spoiled brats who only like to play huge quest games on their PS3 and can't appreciate a game for how groundbreaking and still exciting it is, despite the 1993 graphics and sound.

The fact of the matter is, in my opinion, Myst will always be exciting. There have been several versions of it, including anniversaries and even the beautiful "RealMyst" which gave the game real time elements including changing weather and day and night, plus 360 degree turning. Unfortuntately, there isn't a version currently available that works on your PC or Mac. However, the game has in fact been released as an iPod/iPad app, which you can get in the app store for only $5. It's not the most ideal way to play it, but it's still Myst, and it's still awesome!

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to fall through a crazy rabbit hole to Myst island.