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Als Ergänzung hier noch das Bild

We’re calling this the Myst for everyone”, declares Rand Miller with a sly-grin. The co-creator (with brother Robyn Miller) of the ground-breaking, and now quite legendary, Myst series is referring to the nearby LCD showing a demo build of Myst V: End of Ages. “This is the last entry in the series and you will decide how to close the final chapter, whether the world survives or not.” End of Ages indeed! More like end of an era. As I stand here looking at the familiar world drawing me instinctively in I flash back to my first foray into the world of Myst on my Quadra 800 and the many hours I lost in its fantastic ages. If this should truly be the last time I will visit this realm then I cannot think of a better guide than Atrus..er..I mean Rand himself to take me on this final journey.
In 1995 Myst brought a fully beautifully rendered fantasy world to life on our PCs (and Macs ) forever changing and shaping the expectations of gamers. Our PCs weren’t quite capable of offering the highly detailed free-roaming environments we now take for granted so the brothers Miller, and their team at Cyan, decided on a simple and intuitive click and point interface. Much like a highly stylized 3D Viewmaster, Myst led the player through a series of pre-rendered depictions of their surroundings offering “hotspots” which triggered animations when moused-over thus breaking the 2D barrier somewhat. This simplistic approach to gaming brought many gamers, turned off by the emerging FPS genre, into the fold, selling more than 11 million units along the way.
The series lost some of this simplicity, in the franchise’ successive entries, as it tried to bring a wider audience to Myst. “This last time out we wanted to make sure as many players as possible could enjoy the game”, adds Rand as he demonstrates the upgrades to the classic interface. And so the team has returned to the signature point-and-click interface which made Myst so successful. But fear not, if you were one of those few who felt chained onto a rail while playing previous Myst titles, the folks at Ubi and Cyan Worlds are leaving in a free-roam mode which in all honesty feels quirky and un-Myst-like at this stage – but it’s there! The point-and-click node-based control style has been so refined that I would venture to say most will find it pleasing, quick to learn and less inhibitive than previous outings.
“The goal this time out”, explains Rand, “was to recreate that feeling you found at the end of the original Myst. You could choose between the two options but you weren’t really sure which was right, you were torn in the end. This time out you’ll need to observe what is happening in the world around you and make note to help in your final decision. We also wanted to make the puzzles more logical and enjoyable. Some of the previous puzzles were so difficult you forgot there was this beautiful world around you to explore. We want to let players enjoy the scenery this time out” Myst V is taking the photorealistic scenery to the next level with more creatures, movement within frame (e.g. vegetation, wind blown trees) and weather effects. One sample had a summoned rain storm working to help reveal part of a puzzle. It’s nice to see development teams doing more with these types of effects than simply making things more “pretty” to look at.
In Myst V we will visit four ages, some of which are visible here in the screenshots below. You will however have around six distinct environments which to explore including the tunnels which the D’ni used to reach the depths of the world – this will be a fully explorable area, complete with puzzles, which is technically not an age so don’t let the relatively low number fool you. There will be plenty to explore, discover, and solve in this final installment.
One addition of note is the ‘slate system.’ Described as a “stone-age PDA” by Rand, the slate allows you to communicate with a group of mysterious creatures in-game by actually drawing symbols on the tablet and leaving it for them to view. The symbols revealed throughout the game will illicit various responses from the creatures including the summoning of the aforementioned rain storm. This adds a unique layer to the Myst gameplay system and is notably the first time any new gameplay elements have been introduced. Too bad it’s in the final chapter as this seems as though it might really bring something fresh to the franchise. At first thought it reminded me a lot of the language system Richard Garriot has been striving to incorporate into his upcoming title Tabula Rasa. Finding new ways to communicate in-game, other than simply with the barrel of your gun, is welcome here!
As the demo drew to an end Rand reflected on the series, “It’s been a long journey but I’m ready to move on. My brother and I actually have a new game idea we’ve been working on but we’re not sure it will get published”, he explains. “It’s pretty out there and not what people are used to. The publishers need to see exactly where it fits into their demographic or their not going to take the risk anymore.” I quickly reminded him that Myst had fit that description once upon a time. “Your right”, he responds, that sly-grin making its way back across his face, recalling Atrus, the father of Myst. Meanwhile, as we and the brothers Rand wait for the gaming world to catch up with their ideas, we can rest assured that Myst V: End of Ages will deliver one last enjoyable foray into the familiar world many of us have come to love.
Myst V: End of Ages will be available this Fall and we’ll have more for you from E3 as we update you on the games progress.
-->Joe Markert aka Pachoey
also ich denke das wir uns in dem nächsten teil der saga auch wieder in der egoperspektive durch das spiel klicken werden. obwohl ich ja lieber mit einm avatar spiele. das macht es für mich realistischer.Locutus hat geschrieben:
Was ich mich frage, es ist ja ein 3D Spiel. Werden wir mit Avataren durch die Welten wandern oder gehen wir wie bei Myst 1 - 5 in der Egoperspektive durch die Gegend? Man sieht da auf zwei Bilder so ein Händchen, kennt man meist von Adventurespielen. Nur, heißt das wirklich wir klicken uns durch die Gegend, oder sind das nur Dinge die man anklicken/betrachten kann? In Uru z.B. änderte sich der Cursor auch wenn was anklickbar war.