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The father of Myst weighs in on the closure of URU
Rand Miller is probably one of the most influential game designers you've probably never heard of. He, along with his brother, co-founded the company Cyan Worlds. Cyan is the developer of the title Myst and subsequent titles in that series. With 12 million copies sold to date, the simple (but beautiful) point-and-click adventure game has impacted the public perception of videogames to an unprecedented degree. As you might imagine, Mr. Miller had a few things to say about the closure of the online version of Myst, URU Live.The game ended its run earlier this week, with a touching farewell given by the Restoration Engineers. Julian Murdoch, of the Gamers with Jobs website, had a chance to chat with Mr. Miller to get his reaction on URU's closure. What resulted is a twenty minute conversation that touched on GameTap's decision to close the service, Miller's hopes for the MMO genre, and what the talented designer plans to do next with his life. If you're still looking for some closure about the closure, this is some of the best you're likely to get.
The Restoration Engineers say goodbye to Uru Live
It's official: Myst Online: Uru Live is dead. It was a complex, beautiful world and those who had the opportunity to experience it have come away all the richer. This blogger didn't, but has always been a fan of the Cyan Worlds aesthetic, and regrets not jumping into it when the opportunity arose.As a final farewell to its explorers, the Restoration Engineers (Uru Live's version of Greeters) have recorded their thoughts on what it was like to work for the community every day, and how much fun the whole thing was. When it came time to say goodbye, one of them was obviously too moved to say more than 'thank you', and that was enough. Here's hoping that the creative minds behind it all find something new to put their hands to -- in a world filled with knockoffs and retreads, the universe of Myst was a true original.
GameTap gets interviewed on Myst Online's untimely demise
Recently, Ten Ton Hammer sat down with GameTap's Creative Director and VP of Content to discuss the death of Myst Online: Uru Live. The interview itself covers a lot of ground on the why and how of the game. Subjects like the reason GameTap originally picked up the title are covered, as well as how satisfied the publisher was with Cyan Worlds' first season of content. It's a fairly short interview, but there is some knowledge to be gleaned from it for anybody interested.It's not surprising to us that their biggest disappointment was a lack of subscriber interest. We have to wonder just how many people actually ended up playing the game, considering its alternative nature. Niche titles are loved by many of us here at Massively, so one thing we've been noticing is that some developers are still trying to figure out the exact cost-to-profit ratio when creating them. Hopefully GameTap learned something from this venture and doesn't shy away from other alternative MMOs in the future.
GameTap turning off Myst Online in 60 days
A little over a year after being reborn on GameTap, Myst Online: Uru Live will be unplugged. GameTap's VP of Content and Creative Director Ricardo Sanchez writes on the GameTap forums that the decision was made for "business reasons" rather than any design or vision issues with developer Cyan Worlds. The game will remain live for another 60 days and then it's over, but MystOnline.com will stay active.Sanchez went on to say that GameTap looked at a "wide variety of possibilities for maintaining the game," and in a later forum post writes the company "isn't a bunch of evil corporate types who do nothing but count pennies and wear Brooks Brothers suits." Taking a sip from the "glass is half-full" perspective: At least GameTap gave Myst Online a chance for a year.[Thanks to all who sent this in]
Myst Online: Uru Live Tap-ped out again
Ricardo Sanchez, VP of Content and Creative Director for GameTap, has officially announced that they'll no longer be carrying Myst Online: Uru Live and its final day of operation will be 60 days from today, either April the 5th, or April the 7th, depending on whether they'll end it over the weekend or not.This will doubtless hit many fans in the heart, and it's not stated exactly why GameTap's discontinuing service, but if I had to guess, I'd say they looked at the subscriber numbers vs the maintenance costs and made their fateful decision. Historically, this marks the second time this title's been canceled -- the first time, of course, being in 2004 when Ubioft gave it the axe. Our condolences to all fans of the wondrous Myst universe, and we'll wait to hear if Cyan Worlds has any final thoughts.[Thanks, Veotax!]
