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Cyan (Creators of Myst & Riven) launch Kickstarter for a new game: Obduction

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woxel1

Member
Out of all the companies getting back into the adventure game fold via Kickstarter, there's been one that's consciously absent. The last major release from Cyan Inc. was the ambitious URU in 2003, and since then they've been focusing on iPhone releases. Well no longer! Cyan has announced a new adventure game in the spirit of their classic Myst adventure series and it's a brand new sci-fi world to explore:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/cyaninc/obduction

CyanLanding.jpg
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Farmhouse-LG.png
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Tree-LG.png
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Based on initial backer response I think this has a good chance of being funded, and I'm personally really excited to see an original adventure game from Rand Miller. And hey, it's being rendered in UE4 so... Oculus? Who's excited?
 
Interesting. 1.1M sounds a little cheap, but it might be bolstered by external funding, haven't read the full pitch yet.

Edit: Ah, 1.1M for the base game, then expanding outwards from that? That has some scope, particularly if they go directly for the Myst model of a central hub linked to standalone worlds.

No Robyn?
 
Well if it succeeds i'll have to buy a new notebook to write down notes, drawings and mathematical equations to figure out how to get past a door.
 
The game is being designed with a flexible scope in mind, so that as the budget grows, the game grows. More places; more puzzles; more mystery; more complexity; more adventure!
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Stretch Goal: The Game

Sounds alright though.
 
Alric said:
Well if it succeeds i'll have to buy a new notebook to write down notes, drawings and mathematical equations to figure out how to get past a door.
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I bought one last year for Legend of Grimrock (grid paper!); it got used since for Fez, The Real Texas and - most recently - Might and Magic 1

I hadn't realised how much I'd missed note-taking.
 
I decided I was done with Kickstarter until P:E/W2 dropped, but... I mean, how can you refuse this?

Not to mention the possible Oculus Rift angle, which these games were practically built for.
 
pledged before I even finished reading the thing

me on irc:
> they're already at 44grand in 1 hour
> this is going to get the fuck funded out of it
 
jooey said:
Stretch Goal: The Game

Sounds alright though.
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Well I imagine the lionshare of the million they are asking for is going purely to license Unreal 4.

What kind of coked out fucktard licenses Unreal for a crowdfunded indie title?
 
Will back if I have to get it through. Felt like a really honest Kickstarter video, and a reasonable goal. Smart move not to make it part of the Myst lore.

The intricacy of Cyan's Worlds reminds me of the way Disney's Imagineers work.
 
Sinatar said:
Well I imagine the lionshare of the million they are asking for is going purely to license Unreal 4.

What kind of coked out fucktard licenses Unreal for a crowdfunded indie title?
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Or perhaps it's simply that they have talented people on their staff and pay them well (read: appropriately)? Stephan Martiniere don't come cheap.
 
Backed instantly. Give me another desolate, yet strangely relaxing environment to explore. Keep the storyline simple and let the world speak for itself. Bring back that eerie ambient sound design a la Myst/Riven also.
 
"Or perhaps it's simply that they have talented people on their staff and pay them well (read: appropriately)? S"


Are you unaware of what UE license fees are (rumored to be)?
 
I've been waiting ages for a Cyan Kickstarter. The fact that it isn't more Myst is a little saddening, but I'm okay with a game that's just in the style of those games from the masters themselves.

I will haunt anyone who doesn't back this FOREVER.
 
Sinatar said:
Well I imagine the lionshare of the million they are asking for is going purely to license Unreal 4.

What kind of coked out fucktard licenses Unreal for a crowdfunded indie title?
Click to expand...

Um, one that can afford it? Cyan's been around the block a few times.
 
I like how they've kept the number of reward tiers down (many campaigns get cluttered from all the tiers), but I agree a $500 level might fill that gap.
 
I didn't realize that Myst was so well-liked.

I thought most people generally considered those games to be corny and full of obtuse barely solvable puzzles, with success driven mostly by the novelty of the CD-ROM format.
 
border said:
I didn't realize that Myst was so well-liked.

I thought most people generally considered those games to be corny and full of obtuse barely solvable puzzles, with success driven mostly by the novelty of the CD-ROM format.
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Actually, the world(s) are generally considered to be quite deep and detailed. Not sure where you've heard that they're corny. And the puzzles are generally quite logical. What a lot of people struggle with is not being told what to do and being given a specific direction, which the game avoids doing to encourage exploration and experimentation.
 
border said:
I didn't realize that Myst was so well-liked.

I thought most people generally considered those games to be corny and full of obtuse barely solvable puzzles, with success driven mostly by the novelty of the CD-ROM format.
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Are you sure you're not thinking of The 7th Guest?

I'm not sure how Myst could be considered corny. The puzzles are brilliant and brilliantly solvable.
 
Mifune said:
Are you sure you're not thinking of The 7th Guest?

I'm not sure how Myst could be considered corny. The puzzles are brilliant and brilliantly solvable.
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Haha, that would describe The 7th Guest, wouldn't it?

Still love that game, regardless of its faults.
 
Lissar said:
Haha, that would describe The 7th Guest, wouldn't it?

Still love that game, regardless of its faults.
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Oh I totally love The 7th Guest, too. But its design is about as inelegant as it gets, and I remember it got a lot of pre-release hype because of its CD-ROM assets.
 
Teknopathetic said:
"Or perhaps it's simply that they have talented people on their staff and pay them well (read: appropriately)? S"


Are you unaware of what UE license fees are (rumored to be)?
Click to expand...
Not them but enlighten me please. I bet it's something stupidly high.

Source 2 couldn't get here any faster.
 
border said:
I didn't realize that Myst was so well-liked.

I thought most people generally considered those games to be corny and full of obtuse barely solvable puzzles, with success driven mostly by the novelty of the CD-ROM format.
Click to expand...

It's fair to say that the success *was* driven mostly by the novelty of CD-ROM, but the puzzles are perfectly solvable. Riven's glorious fire marble puzzle's one of the best large-scale puzzles I've ever encountered, and I've seen a *lot* of adventure game puzzles.

As for corny? I'll give you that :-) BLUE PAGES!
 
border said:
I didn't realize that Myst was so well-liked.

I thought most people generally considered those games to be corny and full of obtuse barely solvable puzzles, with success driven mostly by the novelty of the CD-ROM format.
Click to expand...

Absolutely not. Replayed Myst not 4 months ago, had to keep a good amount of physical notes/drawings across 5 pages of paper (that I still have in my desk, hah - a kind of petroglyphic guide to Myst looking at it) to actually make it through the game; but that is definitely part and parcel of the experience, in that the game is driven by what seem to be obtuse metapuzzles, but in fact, so long as you involve yourself in the experience and keep good record of what you see, read and hear, all of it connects in an identifiable way, and each new page collected and each puzzle sorted slowly draw the picture of the island into focus.

Superbly done all around, and Riven was even better. Absolutely excited for something new from Cyan.
 
I liked the Myst games that I've played (1-3), but I don't like the concept art for this at all in comparison.

Hope some media comes out to change my mind, I guess.
 
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