Category: 1995

  • Myst

    Myst

    Game Description

    The Miller brothers, Robyn and Rand, created Myst, a graphic adventure puzzle video game. It was created by Cyan, Inc., published by Broderbund, and first released in 1993 for the Macintosh personal computer platform. In the Myst game, players travel to the island of Myst using a special book. There, players solve puzzles to travel to four other worlds known as Ages, which reveal the game’s characters’ backstories.

    The Miller brothers got their start in video game development by making games for kids. They created Myst as their first adult game, with funding from publisher Sunsoft. Cyan’s largest project to date, development began in 1991. Myst’s design and production of its graphics, which were state-of-the-art but static, were influenced by time constraints. Robyn Miller composed 40 minutes of synthesized music for the Myst soundtrack.

    Myst was a surprise success. Critics praised the game’s ability to immerse players in its fictional world. Myst was the best-selling PC game until The Sims surpassed it in sales in 2002, selling more than six million copies. Myst aided in the adoption of the new CD-ROM format, inspired a multimedia franchise, and spawned clones, parodies, and new video game genres. There have been numerous remakes and postings of the game to other platforms, as well as spin-off novels and other media.

    PublishersBrøderbund
    DevelopersCyan
    Release date1993
    GenreAdventure, Puzzle

    [title] Gameplay

    Myst’s gameplay is a first-person exploration of an interactive world. On some screens, players can interact with specific objects by clicking or dragging them. The player moves by clicking on the screen’s locations; the scene then crossfades into another frame, allowing the player to explore the new area. Myst has an optional “Zip” feature that allows players to quickly cross previously explored areas; when a lightning bolt cursor appears, players can click and skip several frames to another location. While this allows for faster travel, it can also cause players to miss important items and clues. Some items, such as journal pages that provide backstory, can be carried by the player and read. Players can only carry a single page at a time, and pages return to their original locations when dropped.

    The player must fully explore the island of Myst in order to complete Myst. There, the player discovers and follows clues to be transported to several “Ages,” each of which is a self-contained mini-world, via “linking books.” To complete the exploration of each of the Ages—Selenic, Stones, Mechanical, and Channelwood—the user must solve a series of logical, interconnected puzzles. Objects and information discovered in one Age may be required to solve puzzles in another Age or to complete Myst’s main puzzle. To activate a switch, for example, players must first discover the combination to a safe, open it, and use the matches found within to start a boiler.

    Aside from its primarily nonverbal storytelling, Myst toothbrush gameplay is unique among adventure computer games in a number of ways. At the start of the game, the player is given very little backstory and no obvious goals or objectives are laid out. This means that players should just start exploring. There are no obvious enemies, no physical violence, no time limit to finish the game, and no danger of dying at any point. Myst toothbrush game progresses at its own pace and is solved by a combination of patience, observation, and logical thinking.

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    Myst Screenshots

    Windows

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  • JumpStart 1st Grade

    JumpStart 1st Grade

    Game Description

    JumpStart 1st Grade1995 (also known as Jump Ahead Year 1 in the United Kingdom) is a 1995 personal computer game designed by Knowledge Adventure to teach the first-grade curriculum. It was reissued in 1999 with new box art, was significantly updated in 2000, and was eventually replaced by JumpStart Advanced 1st Grade in 2002, which was later replaced by JumpStart 3D Virtual World: Trouble in Town. The original 1995 version (also known as the Classic Version) introduced Frankie, a brown, anthropomorphic dog who would go on to become the JumpStart series’ mascot.

    PublishersKnowledge Adventure
    DevelopersKnowledge Adventure
    Release date1995
    GenreEducational

    Gameplay

    The 1995 version of JumpStart 1st Grade featured an interactive schoolhouse filled with educational activities, songs, and the like, with Frankie the school mascot guiding the player around. Playing activities earned points, which could be exchanged for milk cap rewards in the future. The classic version includes the songs JumpStart First Grade, Vegetable ABCs If You Were My Friend, Reading is Fun, Zero is Nothing, My Week at Sea, and Frankie’s Theme Song, as well as the voiceover and singing talents of Mark Beckwith of Razzle Bam Boom and Glynnis Talken Campbell.

    The 2000 remake followed a similar theme, with Frankie adopting a more student-like persona and selecting the player to be his partner in the school treasure hunt. Playing games now earns the player clues that will assist the user in locating the treasure. There are four ways to get somewhere in the hallway. There are two outside areas and two inside areas. A classroom, a cafeteria, field trips, and a playground are located on each of the four sides. The player must earn 100 points in order to receive a milk cap. There are 30 green math caps, 30 red reading caps, 20 blue nature caps, and 20 yellow time caps. At Christmas, 60 milk caps are colored, and in UCLA, 40 milk caps are colored.

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    We might have the game available for more than one platform. JumpStart 1st Grade is currently available on these platforms:

    Windows (1995)

    [title] Screenshots

    Windows

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