What is Myst?
Myst is arguably one of the most iconic point-and-click puzzle/adventure games of all time. If you’re a younger gamer, you may not have even heard of this game, however. Myst first released in 1993, and it was a fairly ground-breaking game at the time. The graphics were incredible for the time, and people were captivated by the game’s mysterious story and difficult puzzles. In a world where you couldn’t just open YouTube and find a walkthrough, Myst was one of those games that you would spend months trying to crack. This specific genre of game is hard to come by these days, and I think that, to this day, Myst remains almost one-of-a-kind.
If you’re looking to play a game like Myst, you could always just opt for a PC port. They exist, and they’re pretty easy to come by. However, you have to consider that this game is over twenty years old. It’s still a great game, but some aspects of it, like controls and graphics, haven’t aged very well at all. There are remastered versions of the game that you could also try out, but for whatever reason, ports for this particular game are typically terrible and highly prone to crashes and glitches. So, if you’re looking to scratch your puzzle/adventure itch, you are going to have to probably look elsewhere. Luckily for you, there are a few games out there that I think do a good job in capturing the original feel of Myst. In this article, I’ll talk about some of those games. Without further ado, let’s jump right in.
5. Layers of Fear
One of my favorite parts of classic Myst was the story. It was so mysterious, while at the same time being so simple. It felt like fantasy, science-fiction, and mystery rolled into a single story, and I wish I could wipe my memory so that I could experience it all over again. Layers of Fear is a game whose story I think at least comes close to having that same level of magic. In this game, you play as an artist who has returned to his studio, in order to complete his final work. Players add to the painting by walking around an old spooky mansion and solving puzzles. The story in Layers of Fear is really captivating, and fans of the game will often replay it multiple times to determine what it all means. This game is really beautiful, and I think that fans of Myst’s intrigue will really like it.
4. Riven
If you’re a die-hard fan of the original Myst game, you’ve probably heard of this one. Riven is the true sequel to Myst, and the events of the story take place immediately after the events of Myst. Thankfully, this game retained most everything that made Myst so successful. The game’s visuals were highly praised upon its 1997 release, and the puzzles were just as enjoyable. Although the game is a sequel, it keeps itself from feeling too much like a clone of the original game. The story is presented and progresses in an entirely new way, and the environments that the player explores feel entirely brand new. The game manages to feel both familiar and fresh at the same time, which made it a very successful game.
3. To the Moon
At first glance, To the Moon is your standard indie RPG Maker title. It has the same pixelated figures, the same general look, and to be honest, it doesn’t seem very impressive. However, this game is probably one of the more emotionally stirring RPG Maker games that I’ve ever played. In To the Moon, a pair of doctors (scientists?) are trying to help a sick man fulfill his one dying wish. He wants to go to the moon. The story that follows is simple, but deeply poignant. Whereas Myst is more mysterious, To the Moon is significantly more touching. The game features a stellar soundtrack that complements the story and the characters beautifully.
2. Ether One
I really like Ether One, because I think it takes To the Moon’s poignancy and combines it more effectively with Myst’s overall aesthetic. This game is essentially a story about dementia. You play as a person who is walking around another person’s mind, and you are tasked with restoring their memories. Just like with Myst, you can expect a story that is fragmented yet cohesive — something mysterious and thought-provoking all at the same time. It’s a very beautiful game, and I think that it’s “realistic but still a little cartoonish” art style matches Myst’s art style wonderfully. It’s a very good looking game, and its story and themes are ones that a lot of people could relate to. (I have to warn you, if you know someone who is afflicted with any kind of memory-related mental illness, you may want to have some tissues on-hand when you play this game.)
1. The Witness
Finally, we get to The Witness. This game is one of the most recent and most popular Myst-like games to have been released in a couple of years, and it has attracted a lot of positive attention. The set-up is pretty familiar. You wake up alone on an island, and you have to solve a bunch of different puzzles to figure out what’s going on. I have to say, the puzzles that I found in The Witness are some of the best puzzles that I have ever found in a story-driven puzzle game. Some of them are incredibly challenging (without ever feeling unfair) and the satisfaction of solving one is indescribable. (However, it’s worth noting that all of the puzzles are more or less the same. The primary difference is in solution and context.) Visually, the game is absolutely stunning. It’s a very strange art style, in that it is very colorful and alive without ever feeling entirely realistic. It gives the game a very surreal overall feel, which I really appreciate.
And that’s that. In my opinion, those are the top five best games like Myst. The puzzle-adventure genre seems to be shrinking, and it’s sort of difficult to come by quality games that belong to that category. Did I miss a hidden gem? Feel free to drop into the comment section below and tell me about it.
I loved both Riven and Myst but unfortunately they didn’t last long. Solved them in just a few days.
Quern, released after this article came out, is another fantastic game in this genre. Very comparable to Riven, I think.
You forgot the third game in the myst series: Exile.
I really loved all 3 but I looking forward to try Quern… it looks promising.
Any idea where I could find either “Ether One” or “The Witness” to buy? I want to give it to my dad as a Christmas gift but can’t find them anywhere. He was obsessed with Myst series and I would love if I could find him something at all close