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Cindy and Ray's Myst Opportunity
Cindy: For the traditional adventure gamer, the high point of E3 was the Mattel Interactive exhibit, which featured two new Myst titles. The next installment, Myst III: Exile, is currently under development by Presto Studios and scheduled for release in early 2001. At the same time, Cyan is working on a 3D version of the original game. This "dimensional" Myst is scheduled for release in late 2000.
Ray: I know people have made a bit of fun of Cyan for the way they've milked the Myst franchise--DVD versions, Myst Masterpiece, etc. But I've got to tell you, Myst Dimensions looks like an exciting product. Cyan had a station set up with a demo of the Stoneship Age. It was really cool to move around those familiar environments in real-time-rendered 3D. The graphics are even more intense than the old prerendered versions, with extra touches like a fully animated ocean roiling underneath the catwalks, spooky rain, and lightning filling the sky ... It made me want to fall back into the world of Myst again.
Such visual delights, as well as the fact that there will be an entirely new "Age" in Myst Dimensions make this a product I'm eager to see.
Cindy: After watching a stunning movie trailer for Myst III: Exile and playing with a demo of the redimensioned Myst, Ray and I had the privilege of speaking with Greg Uhler of Presto Studios. As a founding member of Presto, Greg has been a key player in the design and development of all three Journeyman Project titles. Being selected for the development of the next Myst game is just one more accolade in his already distinguished career.
Ray: Distinguished is right. Here's a guy who, along with seven other friends, quit college, borrowed $70,000, and created The Journeyman Project, the first photorealistic adventure game ... at age 22. Presto went on to create other titles, including Journeyman Project 2: Buried in Time (which is on my Top Ten All-Time Favorite Adventure Game List), Stephen King's F13, Star Trek Hidden Evil, and Journeyman Project 3: Legacy of Time. If I didn't admire his work so much, I'd want to punch him for being so accomplished at age 30.
Continuity in personnel has surely contributed to Presto Studios' success. Uhler explained that five of the original eight people who formed the company are still working there.
Naturally we asked Greg about Myst III: Exile's storyline.
Cindy: Mum's the word on the storyline for Exile. Despite our attempts at coercion and bribery, Greg would only say that there is "... a strong tie-in with the other two stories" and that "... Atrus and Catherine are back."
We asked Greg why he thought Myst was so successful. He expressed his belief that the Myst and Riven worlds have unique traits that attract players. As the adventure genre evolves away from its core, Myst remains true to the original elements and provides a beautiful world that can be experienced at the player's own pace. At the game's center is a meaningful story with strong characters and a focus on family. It has a simple interface and is accessible to the average person with an average PC. He also pointed out that the worlds of Myst and Riven are surreal but not alien. The player is provided with enough human artifacts to enable him/her to form a base understanding of the purpose of any items encountered.
Ray: I asked the cruel but inevitable question: whether the crew at Presto felt pressured to "score a hit for the adventure genre." Uhler responded with an emphatic "no" and indicated that they are most concerned with creating a game that is true to the Myst universe and supports the success of all that has gone before. To this end, Cyan's feedback has been essential during the design phase to ensure that this title stays within the official "mythology" of Myst.
Cindy: We asked about the mechanics of Myst III: Exile and were told that it would be much like Riven. The images will be prerendered, but the player will be able to rotate a full 360 degrees while viewing them. Presto has decided not to go with a realtime-3D environment in order to keep the image quality high without requiring a top-end machine. Greg noted that they are making an effort to better communicate puzzle objectives and to provide improved feedback as to player progress. Much to our relief, he stressed that they are not planning on "dumbing down" the complexity of the game.
Ray: I was quite surprised that Presto would make the decision not to have animated transitions between 360-degree nodes in a game to be released in 2001. "Don't you think you'll take a beating from the techno-snob critics?" I asked sweetly.
Uhler replied that it came down to disk space. They wanted more story and locations, and this came at the cost of animated "steps."
Cindy: Myst III: Exile will be released on four CDs with a different geographic area on each CD. For those who cringe at the very idea of being asked to "please insert CD #1," DVD will also be available.
Ray: Whether or not the CD and DVD versions will be released simultaneously depends on how many new features are added to the DVD version.
Cindy: In a time when adventure games are not known for breaking sales records, Mattel and Presto are betting on the huge base of Myst fans to support this title. With over 6 million copies sold, Myst has a following that rivals a rock star's fan club.
To give us a sense of how active this following is, Greg pointed out that the Presto Studios web site has an average of 2,000 visitors per day. On the day of the press release for Myst III: Exile, over 85,000 visitors stopped by the site to "read more about it." By the end of that day, these fans were sharing the news at a rate of 50 emails per minute to the Rivenguild web site. It is this level of enthusiasm that Mattel Interactive, Presto Studios, and Cyan are banking on for the success of these new Myst projects.
Ray: I want my Myst III! I want my Myst 3D!