Line #58 VideoGame/MystIVRevelation


1	[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/2688c0e23a574da6887cb0846bd6e349.png]]
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3	''Myst IV: Revelation'' is the fifth game in the ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}'' series. This game was developed and released by Creator/{{Ubisoft}} in 2004. It was so big and pretty that the game had to be put on a DVD-ROM instead of a CD-ROM, an uncommon occurence in 2004. Rand Miller once again reprises his role as Atrus.
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5	This game [[{{Retcon}} retcons]] the end of ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}''. It ends up Sirrus and Achenar were not trapped in Prison books that Atrus destroyed, killing them, but are stuck in actual Ages and Atrus only destroyed their Linking books. Twenty years later, Atrus has made new Linking books to their Ages and invited [[FeaturelessProtagonist the Stranger]] to act as their one person parole board.
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7	Before the Stranger can see if they've repented, a explosion knocks the Stranger out, and Atrus' and Catherine's daughter Yeesha disappears in the chaos. The Stranger wakes up and goes into Sirrus and Achener's Prison Ages of Haven and Spire to locate Yeesha.
8	----
9	!! ''Myst IV: Revelation'' contains the following tropes:
10	* AllThereInTheManual: The biggest retcon in ''Revelations'' is fully explained two games prior, at the start of ''Riven''. [[GuideDangIt Atrus gives you a notebook]] [[ReadTheFreakingManual explaining everything.]]
11	* AllThereInTheScript: Some of the Protectors' names are only revealed in the credits:
12	** Yannin, the one who discovers the broken harvester.
13	** Caradell, the one who is suspicious of the Stranger.
14	** Moiri and Raeane, the twin sisters.
15	* AndIMustScream: Though it's better than what was implied with their experiences in Trap Books in the original game, Sirrus and Achenar were nevertheless completely alone and isolated for nearly 20 years in their Prison Ages, the former not even having wildlife for company. Given their actions, it's ultimately fair enough, and the karma is made equivalent in that they'd done exactly the same thing to Saavedro ForTheEvulz.
16	* TheArtifact: The Cyan Worlds logo plays during the opening even though the company had no involvement in the making of this game.
17	* ArtifactTitle: Around the beginning, in one of bedrooms (the one with the lamp puzzle) there is a painting above the fireplace of Atrus, Catherine, and Sirrus and Achenar as kids hanging out by the tiny pool on Myst Island you can also see the clocktower in the background. Otherwise Myst is not mentioned.
18	* BambooTechnology: Achenar apparently built a rail-based chair in Haven using this [[spoiler:that leads all the way back to the Linking Chamber at the start.]]
19	* BigElectricSwitch: Sirrus' Spider Throne has one used as a circuit breaker, which trips open if there's too much power going to the throne.
20	* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:Yeesha]] is safe, but [[spoiler:Achenar]] dies in a [[spoiler:RedemptionEqualsDeath moment]].
21	* ButThouMust: Averted. At the beginning Yeesha insists you take a picture (but doesn't tell you how) if you take too long trying to figure it out, or simply don't want to. She'll eventually say "Don't want to? That's fine".
22	* CallBack: Three of the Ages in the original ''Myst'' have separate rooms that Sirrus and Achenar have inhabited at some point, where their pages are. Not so in the Selenitic Age. Sirrus' page is in the middle of crystalline ''spires'', while Achenar's is in the little spot of vegetation left - a ''haven''. Then comes ''Myst IV.'' [[spoiler:[[FridgeBrilliance Three guesses what their prison ages are named, and why.]]]]
23	** There are three in the first puzzle.
24	*** The puzzle involves Crystal Viewer Version 2.0.
25	*** When the sound system blows out causing a partial power failure, Atrus heads off to Rime to get some spare parts.[[note]]These first two actually break if the only version of Myst you played was the 2021 VR-supported remake, since that version doesn't contain Rime or the crystal viewer.[[/note]]
26	*** The Descriptive Book for Rime is stated to be located in the Cleft.
27	* CastAsAMask: Inverted and has some [[GenderBender gender bending]] thrown in with [[spoiler:Sirrus]].
28	* ChessMotifs: Yes Sirrus, Atrus made a [[{{Pun}} Légal move]].
29	* {{Chronoscope}}: The necklace.
30	* ContinuityNod: Both Sirrus and Achenar appear to react with recognition upon meeting The Stranger, which checks with events in the first game, even if the canonicity of their communication through the books is up for debate.
31	** [[VideoGame/MystIIIExile Saavedro's actions]] haven't been forgotten; the study in Tomahna still bears the burnt tapestries his fire caused (and you can even relive the moment through Yeesha's necklace for a full flashback). Achenar also recalls his interactions with his people most frequently in his journals.
32	* DiedInYourArmsTonight: [[spoiler:Achenar]] dies in [[spoiler:Yeesha's arms]].
33	* DisneyAcidSequence: Memory, both times. The entire thing consists of abstract imagery and bizarre spiritual banter.
34	* DullSurprise: Yannin reacts to the broken harvester by saying, "This is so not good".[[note]]It doesn't help that her performance is generally considered to be the weakest in the entire series.[[/note]]
35	* EldritchLocation: The DreamLand location in Serenia where you need a spirit guide to keep you safe from venturing off into oblivion. There's no exploration possible here, rather it serves as the backdrop for solving two non-consecutive puzzles.
36	* FollowThePlottedLine: Most encounters in Serenia are triggered by unrelated actions, allowing you to stumble around wondering whether you're supposed to solve a puzzle or receive more exposition. [[spoiler:Anya will greet you as soon as you enter the temple complex, but Yannin will only appear beside the damaged Harvester ''after'' you enter the memory chamber, and after that Caradell will appear by the dock after you remove the winged snake from the water wheel. Only after Caradell sends you to the Hall of Spirits will the other three protectors receive you there.]] That makes it possible (though unlikely, by accident) to get to the ending early (see OffTheRails).
37	* GadgeteerGenius: Sirrus engineered some fantastic machines on Spire.
38	* HubWorld: Atrus' estate in Mexico[[labelnote:*:]]which gained independence from Spain between the events of ''Exile'' and ''Revelation''[[/labelnote]], dubbed "Tomahna".
39	* ItsAWonderfulFailure: Pull the wrong lever, or [[spoiler:wait too long at that point]].
40	* JungleJapes: Haven, although a bit more realistic than most portrayals since there are no vines to swing from.
41	* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:Sirrus and Achenar. Sirrus' body is an EasterEgg you can find if you look at the metal tube once you enter his hideout. You see Sirrus sleeping in the tube.]] Even then, [[spoiler:Sirrus isn't dead -- [[FateWorseThanDeath only his mind is]], as solving the memory lock he holds on Yeesha essentially destroys his soul, [[AndIMustScream rendering Sirrus a vegetable forever]]]].
42	* LampshadeHanging: One of the Protectors (named in the credits as Caradell) asks why everything falls apart whenever the Stranger is around.
43	* LockAndKeyPuzzle: There are 46,656 possible codes to unlock the door [[spoiler:beneath the old Memory Chamber.]] This code is randomized.
44	* LockingMacGyverInTheStoreCupboard: Or rather, [[spoiler:Evil![=MacGyver=] unwittingly locked himself in the store cupboard called Spire]].
45	%%* TheLostWoods: The first part of Serenia, and your introduction to the Age. However, it's given a twist: the Lost Woods are more like Lost Stones.%%So why is this an example?
46	* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: The strategy guide suggests that the Dreamworld may be the product of hallucinations caused by the gases inside the Memory Chamber (though this does not explain the appearance of the Spirit Guide elsewhere in Serenia).
47	* MindReformatDeath: [[spoiler:Sirrus, after snapping in Spire,]] takes over where the two brothers left off 20 years ago during the events of Myst. Their original plan was retconned into using a primitive computer-like machine [[note]]which begs the question of FridgeLogic on how this is supposed to work in the 1800s.[[/note]] to draw out Atrus' mind and his knowledge of the Art, to subjugate countless undiscovered Ages. [[spoiler:Sirrus seems to]] die this way when he [[spoiler:kidnaps Yeesha]], attempts to [[spoiler:swap minds with her using one of Serenia's containment globes]], and becomes entangled in a battle-of-minds with the player, who, in-tandem with the device and the dream world, severs the metaphysical anchors protecting his essence from being obliterated by the Serenian dream world's chaos and entropy. When done so, [[spoiler:Sirrus' own]] essence flies off into the void and is immediately crushed into oblivion.
48	* NostalgiaLevel: [[spoiler:Atrus' study and courtyard on Tomahna, taken directly from Exile. It's only accessible after you leave Serenia once. Also, one of the memories in the courtyard is of Katran dandling baby Yeesha and one in the study is Saavedro torching the library and heisting the Descriptive Book for Releeshahn.]]
49	* OffTheRails: It is possible to bypass the first dream sequence on Serenia completely. The minimal game only requires solving Spire [[spoiler:(to get the random color code)]], solving the irrigation puzzle [[spoiler:(to get into the old memory chamber)]] and then entering the final encounter there. The encounter will play out as if you had gone through the dream sequence. This requires explicit knowledge from outside of the game or from a previous playthrough. The purpose of the dream sequence is to tell you vital information about solving the lock puzzle. Information that is not randomized.
50	* OhCrap: North of the lake, Mangress react this way to us because Achenar subsisted on them for a while.
51	* PracticallyDifferentGenerations: Since they've been imprisoned for longer than her entire life, Sirrus and Achenar are surprised to learn that they have a sister. [[spoiler:Sirrus resents her and sees her as a total stranger intruding into his life, though he [[ManipulativeBastard hides it well]].]]
52	* RedemptionEqualsDeath: ''Myst IV: Revelation'' almost beats you over the head with this trope. The effectiveness of the message is tempered by how well you remember [[BigScrewedUpFamily the events of]] [[ManipulativeBastard Myst]] [[{{Greed}} and]] [[KickTheDog Exile]].
53	* {{Retcon}}: The transformation of 'Trap Books' into 'Prison Ages'. This was not a retcon created for this game however. Richard A. Watson stated in 1998 that trap books, as shown in ''Myst'' and ''Riven'', don't exist; the brothers were always trapped in prison Ages (as shown in ''Myst IV''). The trap books were simply a simplification made by Cyan for gameplay purposes.
54	** Although, this retcon can be justified and/or subverted [[AllThereInTheManual if you care to read the notebook Atrus gives you explaining your mission in Riven.]] Trap books are created by editing a few lines in a linking book to "break" the link, anyone who tries to use the Book is stuck between worlds. If the trap is undone by a skilled writer, the trapped victim is released to where the Book linked too.
55	* SirSwearsALot: Achenar's first journal in Haven is littered with swear words, which is probably the main reason the game was given a "T" rating.
56	* TakeAThirdOption: [[spoiler:Averted. For once in the series, the endgame presents a clear choice between two actions, and clear motives for both actions. Failing to act has the same consequences as performing the wrong action, and there is no third choice of actions.]]
57	* TrailersAlwaysLie: The trailers, box art, and even the official website completely omit Spire.
58	* UndergroundLevel: Spire, for the most part. [[spoiler:Until you see what is either the sun or an electrified planet surface under the clouds.]] Also becomes a...
59	* WhamShot: When the player finally sees it and realizes what has happened.
60	* WhamLine: Several, in fact.
61	** In Haven:
62	*** In a memory playback:
63	---> [[spoiler:'''Achenar:''']] ''[crying]'' '''''PLEAAASE!!!!''''' ''[[TheAtoner I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!]]'' It's too late... ''It's too late...!!'' They're[[note]][[spoiler:All of the inhabitants of the ages he killed in cold blood in the past]][[/note]] all dead! All of them!!!
64	*** In a second journal in the swamp:
65	---> [[spoiler:'''Achenar:''']]: Oh my god... It can't be. It CAN'T!... ...Looked up and saw all of [the mangrees] looking at me. Pointing at the ball, and making that sound... ...[A] Sequence of drawn-out highs and lows... ...This cry I've never heard before... ...Like they were calling [[spoiler:a name. ''MY'' name! THEY'VE GIVEN ME A NAME!]] What am I supposed do with this, Father?!! What am I supposed do?
66	** In Serenia:
67	*** If the player [[spoiler:chooses the correct lever to pull:]]
68	----->'''[[spoiler:[[FamilialBodySnatcher Sirrus in Yeesha's body:]]]]''' NO! YOU FOOL! MY PERFORMANCE WAS PERFECT!
69	----->'''[[spoiler:Achenar:]]''' Thank you!

Context VideoGame / MystIVRevelation