Obduction (video game)
A spiritual successor to Myst and Riven.
Cyan Worlds, the studio behind Myst and Riven, created Obduction as a spiritual successor to those games. In this adventure, a player is transported to alien worlds containing human elements, where they must solve puzzles to find a way home. Funded by a 2013 Kickstarter, it launched on Windows PCs in August 2016.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Cyan Worlds
- Producer
- Ryan Warzecha
- Designer
- Rand Miller
- Artist
- Stephan Martinière; Derrick Robinson
- Composer
- Robyn Miller; Hannah Gamiel
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 4
- Platforms
- Windows
- macOS
- PlayStation 4
- Xbox One
- Released
- Windows
- August 24, 2016
- macOS
- March 30, 2017
- PlayStation 4
- August 29, 2017
- Xbox One
- April 10, 2020
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
In Obduction, the player's character has been abducted from Earth by aliens and transported to alien worlds, with the goal of finding a way home. The game is played from the first-person perspective, featuring traditional navigation controls and a node-based point and click system. Players explore environments mixing alien landscapes and human settings, solving puzzles and making decisions that influence the ending. Many objects can be examined in full three-dimensional view to discover hidden features.
Plot
The player, at a campground, sees strange lights and is transported by a seed-like object to an alien world within a sphere containing an early-20th century Arizona mining town called Hunrath. The town appears empty except for holographic messages from mayor Josef Janssen. Journals reveal that dozens of humans from the 19th-21st centuries were brought here. Four spheres or cells are linked via Trees to a common Heart; Trees drop Seeds that swap spherical areas between worlds. Humans worked with alien species: the Mofang from Soria, the Arai from Kaptar, and the Villein from Maray. The Mofang developed a weapon of mass destruction, and friendly Mofang warned the others, who instituted lockdowns and took shelter in cryogenic hibernation. One human, C.W., stayed behind and asks the player to provide water to each Tree and restart power systems to return everyone to Earth.
Development
After releasing Myst Online: Uru Live, Cyan's team debated between another Myst game or a new property, choosing the latter for creative freedom. Obduction was announced on October 17, 2013 via a Kickstarter campaign headed by Rand Miller. Cyan estimated the game would cost about $2.5 million but set a lower goal to avoid appearing greedy. Miller stated the game is a spiritual successor to Myst and Riven, taking inspiration from the mysterious alien world setting. Collaborators from the original two Myst games and Uru: Ages Beyond Myst contributed. The campaign ended on November 16, surpassing the stretch goal for Oculus Rift support, and the success allowed Cyan to engage other funding mechanisms.
Reception
Obduction received favorable reviews according to Metacritic. Caitlin Cook of Destructoid gave it 9/10, writing that it does what it sets out to do pretty perfectly. Noah Caldwell-Gervais of Polygon gave 8.5/10, stating Cyan made another timeless adventure. Jed Whitaker of Game Revolution gave 1 out of 5 stars, citing bugs, poor performance, and outdated puzzles compared to modern adventure games.
Frequently Asked Questions
What platforms is Obduction (video game) available on?
Obduction was released for Windows, macOS, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Who composed the music for Obduction (video game)?
The music for Obduction was composed by Robyn Miller and Hannah Gamiel.
What engine does Obduction (video game) use?
Obduction runs on Unreal Engine 4.
Is Obduction (video game) single-player or multiplayer?
Obduction offers single-player play.
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