It's taken a few years, but I have managed to replay all 8 of the Myst games in order, including the three Uru ones! This time I used a walk thru guide in order to properly follow the story, though most of the puzzles I still worked out on my own. Many times I was stalled for a very long time. However, I now have a better sense of what it is all about. The three novels need to be read in their proper place, too, to make everything work out. The original Myst game is now out in many different versions. The original slide slow version is still playable and remarkably good. Next came a Masterpiece edition, with better graphics. Then came RealMyst, with the ability to move anywhere. In addition, there was a continuous day/night cycle in the main island, as well as in the Mechanical Age and Channelwood. Some of the sunsets and moon rises are breathtaking, especially from different vantage points. My favourite places to be during these times is on one of the tiny islands that surround the fortress in the Mechanical Age, as well as being high in the treetops in Channelwood on a moonlit night. There is now an even newer version, with eye-popping graphics. I am waiting for the price to come down a bit first. Then I might restart the entire sequence of games and books again. It's kind of like a Lord of the Rings thing with me (not the movies--the books!)
The second game in the series is Riven, and at the time there was simply nothing like it. It still ranks as one of the best adventure games ever created. In these games it's all about the environments, at least for me, and Riven has acres of it. The puzzles are sometimes fun, but often frustrating. Walking around as a tourist is more fun. The final puzzle of the game is almost unsolvable, and since it resets and changes each time you play, a walk thru solution doesn't work. I've played Riven three times so far, and only managed to finish it once. The jungle setting, with its original music, has yet to be beaten by any other computer game so far in my experience. It's mysterious and spooky, and fun to visit. My other favourite area to visit is Volcano Island. No other version of Riven ever came out. I would love to see a day/night cycle incorporated into this game.
Screenshot from Riven.
Myst III Exile tried to put some story into the proceedings, a very basic one of revenge. Again, I really couldn't care less. But walking around the environments available was a very welcome way to spend time. The puzzles again are often quite fun, but here the payoff for solving them was grand! In Riven, the player got to ride some fabulous transportation devices, and Myst III upped the game for that aspect. My favourite puzzle reward is the one with the rolling ball, where, once the puzzle is solved, the player gets the ride of a lifetime through a midway roller coaster construction. Again there is no day/night cycle here, but several of the environments have different times of day, including a stormy twilight. And another jungle appears, dark and dense. Myst 3 is quite a good game, if not on par with Riven. I will replay it gladly yet again.
Myst 111, the opening landscape area.
Myst IV Revelation again has visuals and atmosphere beyond the beyond, but by now the puzzles are getting really weird. My favourite part of the game is just wandering around the various pods that are the home and laboratory and study of Atrus, Catherine, and Yeesha. If there was ever a perfect paradise on Earth, these people are living there. The story directly concerns the two sons from the original Myst (there were indirectly involved with Myst 3), and their young sister Yeesha. There is another jungle in this game, but it's a far cry from the one in Riven. Overall, this is quite a good game, and offers enough scenery to make it worth the time and effort to complete.
The kitchen and living area pod from Myst 4.
The home of Atrus and family. At one point in the game when the player returns here, it is night. This is a beautiful area to explore, and worth the price of the game.
The next three games are called Uru, and take place in D'Ni. Uru Ages Beyond Myst is one of the most graphically amazing games I have ever seen! it is a vast game, very much in the tradition of Myst. Only now, explorers and restorers from the land above have discovered D'Ni, and are trying to make it safe for visitors. While much remains of the city, some of is damaged and unsafe, likely due to Earthquakes. However, the game begins in the bright desert sunshine of New Mexico, and near the famous
cleft from the novels. Getting from the bright sunshine of the desert
into the cool, dark cleft is also a game highlight. That cleft is
really amazing to visit! From there, it's down, down, and down to D'Ni, where the amazing sights and sounds never stop. Though there are shortcut links to help get around the vast city, it's much more fun to simply walk around at leisure, enjoying the city all by oneself.
Uru has two additional add-ons that make the game even larger--it really is a small universe for the explorer to wander in. Terrific graphics, and endless walking and exploring are available. There are annoying things about the game, but at least one cannot die. Having said that, at times the player might have to make several attempts to get somewhere safely, and replaying can take some time. Oh well. Like I said; a walk thru guide is handy, but it won't always save you from grief. The two add ons are called To D'Ni, and Path of the Shell. This makes for nearly ten different environments to explore, after the game they are all accessible to the player. This game goes where no other Myst games have gone, playing with reality in a major way.
Uru was supposed to be a multi player on-line game, but that never worked out. I am so glad! I would much rather wander around these special worlds myself. I rate Uru very highly, again not so much as a game, but as an environment worth visiting time and again.
Screenshot from the expansion To D'Ni. The entire city of D'Ni is awaiting the explorer.
Screenshot from the expansion path of the Shell. This game really messes with the player's mind!
Myst V End of Ages is just that. This is the final Myst game of the series. Sadly, it's not very good. The areas to explore are mostly small islands, though there is a chilly winter environment that proves a challenge to escape from. On the good side, there are some nice day to night sequences, and a story, as well as a very fine astronomical setting. But for the most part it's quite a mess, and I doubt if I will ever play it a third time. After the Uru games, it's a major disappointment.
One of the effective night scenes in Myst V.
In movie news, there are two to report, both being my choices. First came The Mole Man, a 2017 documentary about an autistic man in rural Pennsylvania. In his 60s, he lives with his mother. He lives in a deprived area with many abandoned homes, and collects things from the homes; doors, windows, wood, furniture, toys, just about anything still usable (he has a very large collection of clocks and toilet plungers). He has built an interconnected dwelling of 50 rooms, many of them underground, with electricity, lighting, and heat. The film follows Ron around as he collects and adds to his buildings. It also deals with the problem his brothers and sister are having trying to guide him to a different future. His mother is 92, and won't live forever. What then? This is a really excellent film, looking closely at a man with certain gifts, who seems to belong nowhere except at home, doing what he does. A fascinating story.
Exterior of Ron's creation. The interiors are much more appealing.
Ron with some of his clocks.
Leaving Criterion on August 31st is Midnight Run, a fun romp from 1988 directed by Martin Brest (Beverly Hills Cop) and starring Robert De Niro. Along the lines of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, this film came out a year after that one. De Niro is a bail bondsman, and must get his man from New York to LA in five days. But the mob is trying to kill his man, and the FBI are also after him. There's probably never been a film with more smoking and cussing, but it's fun from start to finish. Somehow, much of the violence also seems to be quite funny. This would make a good pairing with the earlier film, starring John Candy and Steve Martin.
Leaving Criterion August 31st.
Mapman Mike
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