Video games - Myst V: End of Ages

Home > Listing Index > Video games > Myst V: End of Ages

	Video games - Myst V: End of Ages

Myst V: End of Ages is the fifth and final installment in the Myst
computer game series, and is a culmination of all the storylines from the previous games. The game was released on September 20, 2005. Like Uru: Ages Beyond Myst, the game was created by Cyan Worlds and published by Ubisoft. CEO of Cyan Worlds Rand Miller, stated that "Myst V: End of Ages follows the Myst storyline to its conclusion -- closing the book on the Ages of Myst".

Technology

Myst V is rendered in real-time 3D for the first time in a Myst game (with the exception of realMyst, a remake, and Uru, a spinoff). This technology typically sacrifices graphic quality and detail for a more interactive and animated environment. The Myst franchise has traditionally used a prerendered environment, so those games which have strayed into the real-time 3D mode have often been dismissed as having lower graphic quality and more difficult controls.

Myst V seeks to solve both of these problems, by incorporating the most advanced graphics engine seen so far in a Myst game, and by introducing the option of different control schemes. Players are able to choose whether they want to play the whole game with a one-button mouse, stepping around nodes like in the original Myst and Riven, or whether they wish to use an "expert mode", designed for more experienced gamers. The "expert mode" contains FPS controls, and the ability to go anywhere, and investigate anything.

The other concern players have with the transition to real-time 3D is the loss of live-action video. The Myst franchise has traditionally employed live actors to play all of the roles. Instead Myst V features live-action video of just the actors' faces, used as facial textures, and mapped onto the real-time 3D characters, which also employ motion capture from real actors.

Storyline and Characters

Myst V takes place some time after Uru: Ages Beyond Myst, but it is part of the central Myst plotline. Hence, it makes some effort to tie both stories together and wrap them up.

The game contains numerous references to all of the previous games, and draws on the themes of those games. However, it primarily focuses on the story of the Bahro, which began in Uru.

The game revolves around two major characters: Yeesha (previously seen in Myst III, Uru and Myst IV) and a new character, Esher, one of the last surviving D'ni. In order to fully restore D'ni, it was said that the Grower (who is believed to be Yeesha) must utilize a powerful artifact called the Tablet. The Tablet contains the ability to fully control a mysterious slave race: the Bahro. Yeesha made the wrong decision upon unlocking the Tablet and failed. She can no longer use the Tablet.

Yeesha gives the player the "Quest" to unlock the tablet upon meeting him or her in K'veer. Over the course of the game, the player must unlock the Tablet by exploring four different ages. Throughout this quest, the player will also encounter Esher, who attempts to influence the player's decision of what to do with the Tablet upon unlocking it.

The player's own choice is the crux of the game. Upon unlocking the Tablet, he or she is burdened with the fate of the D'ni civilization. The player must make a choice with the Tablet that ultimately decides whether the civilization will prosper or collapse. This choice echoes the fateful decision required in the original game Myst.

When asked about the ending in an interview, series co-creator Rand Miller explained: "The future of civilization is down to this point, and the choices you make determine where it goes."

Myst V also makes reference to a new character, Calam, a D'ni Writer. However, Calam is murdered before the events of Myst V occur, and is never seen.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Myst V: End of Ages ]

This page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia article Myst V: End of Ages; it is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.

Searches on eBay