About This File
Myst is a graphic adventure puzzle video game designed by the brothers Robyn and Rand Miller. It was developed by Cyan, Inc., published by Brøderbund, and initially released on the Macintosh platform in 1993. Remakes and ports of the game have been released for platforms including the Sega Saturn, PlayStation, 3DO, Microsoft Windows, Atari Jaguar CD, CD-i, AmigaOS, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS, iOS, OS X, and Android.
The game puts the player in the role of the Stranger, who uses a special book to travel to the island of Myst. There, the player solves puzzles and travels to other worlds known as "Ages". Clues found in each of these Ages help to reveal the back-story of the game's characters. The game has several endings, depending on the course of action the player takes.
After producing several interactive games aimed at children, the Miller brothers decided to create an adult-targeted game with a non-linear story, believable characters, and an ethical dilemma. Initially turned down by Activision, Cyan was later approached by Sunsoft, who helped fund Myst. The game took two years to develop and was Cyan's largest project.
Upon release, Myst was a surprise hit, with critics lauding the ability of the game to immerse players in the fictional world. The game was the best-selling PC game until The Sims exceeded its sales in 2002. Myst helped drive adoption of the then-nascent CD-ROM format. Myst's success spawned four direct video game sequels as well as several spin-off games and novels.
