From Myst to Riven: The Creations & Inspirations [Hardcover]

Richard Kadrey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1997

With full-color photographs, MYST / RIVEN: The Art of the Game gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at the luminous art and fantastic creation of the world's bestselling CD-ROM phenomenon, MYST, and its stunning sequel, RIVEN.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

When Myst--the bestselling CD-ROM game of all time--was released, it was a labor of love between two brothers and a small staff. The team used relatively simple tools and pure imagination to craft a game that was like no other and that appealed to millions of people worldwide. When the Miller brothers and their growing company, Cyan, began work on the sequel, Riven, they knew that topping themselves would be no easy task.

Not just for Myst junkies, From Myst to Riven is a wonderful journey through the minds and imaginations of everyone who created this more-than-worthy sequel. Told alongside dozens of beautiful full-page photos, development sketches, maps, and diagrams, the book describes the ground-breaking process that was the creation of the most highly anticipated computer game of all time. Throughout each chapter, you can follow the entire development process, from the first seeds of a concept to fully rendered realization. There are plenty of behind-the-scenes stories, profiles of the creators, and insight into their inspirations to keep Myst junkies sated, but the true gold of this volume is the artwork.

More than simple backgrounds for gameplay, the design and look of the original Myst was beautiful, haunting, and original. Riven far exceeds the standards set by the original, delivering even more breathtaking imagery and landscapes, combining the weird and fantastic with the familiarity of nature.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 128 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion Books; 1st edition (November 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 078686365X
• ISBN-13: 978-0786863655
• Product Dimensions: 14.1 x 10.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #824,113 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Your Linking Book to How Myst and Riven were Created, November 26, 2001

By 

Lee DeWald (Nebraska) - See all my reviews

This review is from: From Myst to Riven: The Creations & Inspirations (Hardcover)

This is an absolutely gorgeous book. There is no other way to describe it. Hardcore "Myst" and "Riven" fans will be holding onto this one for a long time to come. Being a fellow fan, I can guarantee that this is one book that won't be sitting out on a picnic table during a garage sale.

This book goes in-depth and behind the scenes as it pertains to the making of "Myst" and "Riven." This book came out before "Myst III: Exile," so fans looking for information on that title will not find it here. You get everything you could ever want to know from this book - early sketches of concepts you see in the games; the development of Cyan Studios; the man and machine behind the music; how real people were seamlessly integrated into computer worlds; there is so much information in this book regarding the "Myst" and "Riven" phenomenon that it's mind boggling.

The pictures in this book are, what can I say, gorgeous. There is one particular page dedicated to the Sunners in "Riven" that is stunning. It's not in the game, but it's just the most beautiful image. The whole book is presented so majestically; neither Gehn nor Atrus could have made it better themselves.

One thing to take into account that I did not know about until I had gotten it: the book size is BIG. It is not that same size as "Myst: The Book of Atrus," for example. It is probably three or four times as big. But that just makes it more beautiful to look at.

In short, this book is a must-have for all "Myst" and "Riven" enthusiasts. Anyone wanting a little background on arguably the best-selling computer games of all time would love to have this book. It gives you way more than you could ever think of.

"From Myst to Riven" will not disappoint.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A gorgeous, glorious book . . ., August 20, 2002

By 

Michael K. Smith (South Louisiana) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: From Myst to Riven: The Creations & Inspirations (Hardcover)

Most computer games don't much for me. I'm not into shoot-'em-ups, and I learned back in the days of the original ADVENTURE and ZORK that I wasn't that great at puzzle-solving. Oh the other hand, I've been playing MYST and RIVEN regularly for years, even though I haven't solved that many of the puzzles. I'm what this author calls a "tourist," a player who just likes to wander about the Ages of these games and gawk at the exquisite artwork and music, and marvel at the fantastic realism the design team has managed to put into their worlds. This book brings all that out in some detail, describing how Rand and Robyn Miller came up with the basic ideas, how Richard Vander Wende turned all their plans on their heads and made the game the masterpiece that it is, how even the sounds you hear are apt to be clues (I never knew that!), and -- above all -- how none of the team let themselves be hurried in their quest for something as close to perfection as they could manage. Like Tolkien, they even invented a detailed language for the D'ni. Amazing stuff.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book no Myst, gaming, or computer fan should be without!, March 17, 2002

By 

Adam Lenhardt - See all my reviews

This review is from: From Myst to Riven: The Creations & Inspirations (Hardcover)

This gigantic book features stunning full page renders of key scenes from Riven, as well as various high resolution screencaptures. It also takes you through the entire process of making Riven, from the completion of Myst to the completion of Riven. It shows you how the story was developed (and additional bits to the story), how the stunning photo-realistic graphics were acheived, how the sound was done, how the design and visual look came about. In the background, it tracks Cyan's rise from a small company in a garage into one of the most profitable independent game designers in the world. Being a fan of the whole Myst universe and of computer technology in general, I absolutely love this book. I have it on my coffee table. While I have other things to attend to, my guests can flip through it until I have time to sit down. The process that went into making Riven was enormous and complex, and I salute Mr. Kadrey for getting down into words.