Myst III: Exile
| Myst III: Exile | |
|---|---|
| Exile box cover | |
| Developer(s) | Presto Studios |
| Publisher(s) | Ubisoft |
| Designer(s) | Mary DeMarle, Phil Saunders |
| Platform(s) | PC, PS2, Mac OS, Xbox |
| Release | May 7, 2001 (PC) |
| Genre(s) | Graphic adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Myst games |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Uru games | ||
| Novels and fiction | ||
| Related topics | ||
Myst III: Exile is the third title in the Myst computer game series. Unlike its predecessors, Myst and Riven, it was not produced by Cyan, Inc., the series' creator; it was developed by Presto Studios and published by Ubisoft.
However, the game continued in the style of the previous games, allowing the player to navigate through imaginary worlds by clicking on prerendered images. On the technical side, a 360-degree panorama system was introduced (first seen in The Journeyman Project 3: Legacy of Time and Atlantis: The Lost Tales), allowing the player to look around smoothly, with video clips seamlessly integrated.
The game featured live action performances including Rand Miller, the creator of the Myst series, returning to play Atrus once again, and Brad Dourif, starring as the villain of the game, Saavedro. Other performances included Maria Galante as Catherine and Audrey Uhler as the baby Yeesha. Robyn Miller was not involved in the making of Myst 3.
Storyline
The story takes place about 10 years after the end of Riven. The Stranger — Atrus's friend whose role the player takes in the first four of the Myst series games — arrives inside the new home of Atrus and Catherine, a beautiful little oasis surrounded by a desert. Catherine calls this place "Tomahna" (in Uru: Ages Beyond Myst, it is explained that Tomahna is not a separate Age, but actually a small area located on Earth). Atrus has called the Stranger to Tomahna to show him his newest Age called "Releeshahn", which he wrote for the D'ni survivors to live on. Suddenly, a mysterious man links into Atrus's study, appearing out of thin air, sets the study on fire, and steals the Releeshahn linking book. He links out, leaving another linking book behind. This linking book leads to J'nanin, the lesson age where Atrus had hoped to teach his sons the Art of Writing many years ago.
This mysterious man is called Saavedro (played by Brad Dourif). Twenty years ago, Atrus's sons, Sirrus and Achenar, destroyed his home age of Narayan and then trapped him on the lesson age of J'nanin. For twenty years, Saavedro suffered the horror of believing that all of his people living on his homeworld were dead. Now, Saavedro is taking revenge on Atrus and his family for the suffering he has had to endure. Saavedro does not realize though that Atrus has already imprisoned his sons for the horrible crimes they committed.
There are several possible endings to the game, depending on the player's actions. The most ideal has Saavedro returning to Narayan and giving back the book of Releeshahn. You then link back to Tomahna via a Tomahna linking book in Narayan.
Alternate Ending 1: in Narayan, if you stand out by the gondala long enough Saveedro will kill you for not helping him get back to Narayan.
Alternate Ending 2: you turn the power off in Narayan, leaving Saavedro trapped. He begs for release and hands you Releeshan, and you link home without freeing him.
Alternate Ending 3: you can link back to Tomahna before solving the last puzzle. If you do that, Saavedro will follow you and kill you, Catherine, and Atrus.
Alternate Ending 4: after you trap Saavedro, you can release him. He will then kill you.
Alternate Ending 5: you can do what Saavedro wants. He will then throw the linking book into the void, laughing at your stupidity. Catherine and Atrus are very sad that you did not bring the Releeshan book back.
Alternate Ending 6: after you trap Saavedro, you can release the outer shield, so he cannot kill you. He is in a total rage, goes home, and throws Releeshan into the void.
Ages
The structure of Exile is quite similar to the first Myst game. J'nanin is the "hub" age, where the stranger must solve various puzzles to gain access to the three lesson ages of Edanna, Amateria and Voltaic. In each of these ages the stranger must solve more puzzles to uncover a symbol to bring back to J'nanin. After the stranger finds all three symbols, s/he gains access to the final age; Narayan, Saavedro's homeworld.
The six ages present in the game are:
- Tomahna, Atrus, Catherine and baby Yeesha's home, where it all begins
- J'nanin, the 'hub' Age, from where you will link to the other Ages
- Amateria, the age of dynamic forces
- Edanna, the age of nature
- Voltaic, the age of energy
- Narayan, Saavedro's home, which you visit only after you have completed the other three.
See Ages of Myst III: Exile for descriptions.