Despite being a point & click adventure game player all my life Myst was the one "huge classic" of the genre I always wanted to to get into, but couldn't. The game was just so very hard, and the lack of characters and any easy-to-understand story was always putting me in my place. I just didn't quite understand what to do, or (barely) how to play it.

The meme about being stuck in a place forever and not knowing what a lever does is probably how many experienced it. I could never be sure if the game wasn't for me, or if it was my fault. I always suspected the latter.

So, I actually bought Oculus Quest 2 just to play Myst, and try to get into it, and I'm very happy to report it worked. I'm finally one of the Myst fans, which strangely feels like an exclusive club.

VR is an amazing way to experience Myst. It feels like you are there. The universe is immersive. It's like Myst was always meant to be played like this. It's been said before by many people, but yes, the game and the puzzles is usually pretty hard or even very hard (depending on your skills in puzzles), but it's always so incredibly rewarding when you get something to work.

There's also a quite rich plot when you get into the game. The story with the two brothers, who both want you to help just them, while telling you to NOT trust the other one, is classical, and keeps the tension going to the end.

Myst does need patience though. However, if you stay with a problem long enough, you'll eventually figure things out. You have to imagine being stuck on an island where there is nothing else to do than to figure out a mechanism or a puzzle of some sort. It's also very peaceful and meditative to play.

Either way, I can finally understand the hype. Better late then never. If you have a similar experience with Myst. Keep at it, it's worth staying with to the end.

Reviewed on Jul 10, 2023


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