What is Myst III (3) : Exile?

In this age of first-person death matches and frag fests, it’s hard to imagine a gaming company having the cojones to come out with an exploratory adventure title — especially one In which you can never die no matter how hard you try. However, Myst III: Exile is no ordinary adventure title. It’s the third installment of one of the best-selling computer games ever made, and this latest chapter doesn't disappoint.

The original Myst, released by Cyan in 1993, stumped and awed adventure seekers with an engaging storyline. It successfully sucked you into a virtual 3D world, causing you to sit for hours in front of your computer, pointing and clicking in hopes of unraveling the mysterious storyline. Using the same amalgamation of intriguing exploration and brain-numbing puzzles as the original, Myst III continues to deliver.

Exile is a first-person perspective, puzzle-solving game that unravels the story of the Ages and the history of the characters you encounter as you progress — much like reading a mystery novel. At the beginning, Atrus, your mentor, informs you that his book, or “Age,” known as Releeshahn has been stolen. Throughout the Myst series, books/Ages are, in essence, portals to different worlds, and Releeshahn was created to serve as a refuge for survivors of another destroyed Age. It’s your job to find the villain who stole Releeshahn and return the book to Atrus, thereby saving the lives of thousands of people who live within the Age.

While the original Myst fit onto one CD-ROM, Exile spans across four. Luckily, if you’ve got the vacancy, you have the option of installing all the data from three of the discs onto your hard drive, negating the need to swap discs during gameplay (something that drove us nuts with Riven’s five discs, the second game in the Myst series). Unfortunately, the full installation procedure is not simple — you have to manually copy the data folder from each disc to a certain location on your hard drive, a process that should be automated through the installer application.

Once we finally launched Exile, we immediately noticed some dramatic improvements. One of the biggest is Exile’s full-screen, 360-degree, dynamic panoramic technology. You can look up, down, and all around from anywhere you stand. In addition, if there’s something moving in a scene, such as a bird flying in the distance or water shimmering, you can still look around while the bird and water continue to do their thing. You’re no longer locked into a view and forced to watch a QuickTime movie unless it’s integral to the gameplay.

A good example of the interlace dynam ics occurs at the beginning of the game when Catherine, one of the characters, walks across a room while speaking to you. If you look away, she continues moving in the scene as if she’s really there, with hervoice following her every move — depending on her direction and your line of sight, sound shifts from left to right and even behind you, making the experience more engrossing.

The 3D graphics are stunningly beautiful. However, it’s apparent that the attention to detail isn't on par with its more realistic predecessor, Riven.

The puzzles in Exile are, for the most part, brilliant, especially those found in Amateria, the Age of Dynamic Forces. All of the puzzles tie in with each other well and work like one big combination lock. While we won't give away the big pay-offs, we will tell you that the rewards are both surprising and fulfilling.

Of course Exile has its share of duds; a couple of puzzles aren't as clever as we expected and frankly don't make a whole lot of sense. That is, unless you take the time to read Atrus’s and Saavedro's (the psychotic villain) journals, for which we had little patience. At press time, the game was not Mac OS X-compatible, though Presto informed us that a Mac OS X version is on its way.

Exile's full-motion video characters are intriguing — it’s nice to see Rand Miller, one of Myst's original developers, reprise his role as Atrus. Exile also features perfectly cast Brad Dourif (nominated for an Academy Award for his role in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest) as Saavedro. Although the acting is a tad over-the-top, his performance is memorable, especially in the end, where he starts to... OK, we're not that mean.

The music throughout the game is more ambient than either Myst or Riven. Gone are the mono, 8-bit, hissy sounds of old. Exile employs lush, clean sounds, including voice and choir passages, orchestral pieces, and even some rock-like drum patterns. We also could have sworn we heard bits of the original Myst theme at times.

So, what’s the verdict? If you're not impressed by beautiful graphics, mesmerizing music, clever puzzles, and a captivating story line, and you live and breathe by the hard-core gamer's mantra, “kill everything that moves,” you won't enjoy Exile. However, if you thrive in puzzling situations and enjoy being whisked away to otherworldly locales, Myst III: Exile is one thrilling ride.

Tokuda, Andrew. (August 2001). Myst III: Exile. MacAddict. (pgs. 34-35).

Download Myst III (3) : Exile for Mac

Architecture

IBM PowerPC

System Requirements

From Mac OS 8.1

Compatibility notes

Minimum Requirements

• PowerPC G3 @ 233 MHz
• 64 MB RAM
• 200 MB hard disk available
• 640 x 480, 16-bit color display
• 4X CD-ROM drive
• Mac OS 8.1
• 6 MB VRAM recommended

Emulating this? It could probably run under: SheepShaver