Vacuosity

Missing link

We won't be taking any visitors, sorry. We have Myst III: Exile.

When the original Myst came out, almost seven years ago, Julia and I lived that game for about three weeks straight until we finished it. We were immersed, enraptured, obsessed. We could think of almost nothing else; we were compelled to play until it was over.

Julia wasn't working at the time. I don't think Jordan was even born yet. She would play all day, advancing us as much as she could, then I would take over at night when I got home from work. Sometimes she would call me at work asking for help when she was stuck. "Okay," I would say "describe everything you see." She would tell me all the details of the intricate environments. Sometimes we would hit upon a solution, other times it would have to wait until I could see it for myself.

The sequel to Myst, Riven, built upon the concept of the original, incorporated the technological advancements that had come along in the years separating the two, and elevated its whimsical creations into beautifully rich art, design and ambiance.

Unfortunately, with Jordan already three, the time I had for playing video games was significantly decreased. Julia refused to play it since we had it only on the PC rather than the gaming console (Panasonic's now-defunct system 3DO) where we had played Myst. I began it several times, but lost my saved games to a malevolent computer several times, and gaming gave way to responsibility.

posted by David @ 1:47 a.m.