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massively multiplayer
GameTap Passes Myst Online Back To Cyan
Posted by Mike Fahey at 2:20 AM on July 2, 2008
Myst Online: Uru Live has had somewhat of a difficult life. The online multiplayer component of Uru: Ages Beyond Myst never made it out of the beta testing phase before being canceled in 2004. Then in 2006, Turner Broadcasting's GameTap service revived Uru Live, officially launching the game in February 2007 only to discontinue operation a year later. Now GameTap has given the publishing rights for the game back to Myst creators Cyan Worlds, who plan to relaunch Myst Online later this year.
Cyan president Rand Miller says that the newly relaunched game will include features that will allow players to create their own content, which was hinted at during the game's first relaunch. The revitalised title will carry a fee ($AU 26.24 for 6 months was suggested) to cover the cost of maintaining servers.
There's something to be said for tenacity, but I fear in this case that something is "Just let it die already".
GameTap gives Myst Online back to Cyan. Cyan says it's opening the game to fan development [TXT - Thanks Kyven]]
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
TearsandScreams
Posted 3:22 AM 2/7/08
I've only ever played Myst on the DS. I get the impression it's not the greatest version. Myst online is a baffling concept though.
TearsandScreams
DashTheHand
Posted 3:03 AM 2/7/08
I enjoyed the books, I never got to play the online game, and I only played the original Myst briefly when I was much younger and unable to figure out the puzzles. If its free when it relaunches I'll give it a spin.
DashTheHand
hagridore
Posted 2:50 AM 2/7/08
I never wanted to go "Myst-ing" with company. I think its supposed to be a solitary experience. Plus it always took me ages to solve the puzzles. I'd probably just leave my Uru gang impatient.
hagridore
Hickeroar
Posted 2:45 AM 2/7/08
I was an URU beta tester, and later a gametap URU player...and the game never REALLY went anywhere.
Partially because the dev team was small, partially because it's been plagued by huge technical issues since day one, and partially because I don't think there is a widespread desire for an MMOARG in the vein of URU. If it was done RIGHT, yes, but URU probably wasn't done RIGHT from the start.
I really believe it's time to stick URU into cold storage, and maybe 5-10 years down the road break it back out, use a lot of the "ideas" from it, and create a new, innovative, fun, OPEN world.
Hickeroar
Jeff Paine
Posted 2:33 AM 2/7/08
I don't know why Myst Online ever went out of planning. It's a terrible idea.
The whole point of Myst is the feeling of being all alone and having to figure everything out for yourself, save for a few not-so-helpful NPCs. If you're running around with a hundred other people telling each other how to solve the puzzles, that kind of ruins it.
Jeff Paine
PsycheE
Posted 2:25 AM 2/7/08
Its so sad to see it so, floundering to catch up to the present times. Myst places a dear place in my heart next to Space Quest.
PsycheE
Seg
Posted 4:06 AM 2/7/08
Zombie game refuses to die!
The Myst franchise will always have a special place in my heart. It's one of the two titles that got me into this business in the first place (Sam & Max being the other). I've followed the project's development since it was code named MUDPIE.
For Uru, I loved the basic premise of a narrative based, non combative MMO. Enough structure so it doesn't fall into disarray like Second Life, and the attempt of making an MMO that didn't require long time investment. This is what I feel really draws people to Uru. The intentions of this MMO hit a sweet spot that isn't tapped in the market.
However, there are core design problems with Uru. The interface wasn't planned out to well. Invite system isn't that easy. Etc. There's also the larger problem under a production stand point. While Cyan Worlds intended Uru to be a platform to speed up releases using digital distribution, their development scheduling never delivered on this promise. This is what I feel was Uru's real demise for the Gametap era. Cyan Worlds simply doesn't know how to develop content in a timely manor.
I love Cyan's work and I'm happy for them. I like many people really love the Uru concept. But there are still fundamental problems that will always hinder Uru until they are addressed, regardless of who's funding. I wish all the best, but I'm afraid that we'll end up back to canceled 'unrealized project' mode again.
Seg
baldwinsucks
Posted 5:52 AM 2/7/08
I live in Spokane, and I went to Cyan's headquarters in school to get a look at this game back in 2001, and nothing on it's really changed. Why keep pushing an outdated game?
baldwinsucks
skatterfelt
Posted 3:03 AM 2/7/08
I'm going to step up and defend Uru here.
I played Uru while it was on Gametap, beat the game and collected every little nibblet you could collect. It was incredibly fun, never repetitive (unlike other MMOs, and yes, I've played them) and a wonderful idea. No one is ever "waiting on you" to solve a puzzle, and if you want to solve your puzzles alone then you can. What it promised to be was essentially a monthly puzzle delivery system with multiplayer and a story told, not through NPCs, but through live actors.
Not to say there weren't problems--lag was atrocious and there literally wasn't an end-game to keep players interested between puzzle releases. But the ideas were so solid and unique. If any game deserves another chance, it's this one.
skatterfelt