Turner Broadcasting System’s GameTap service on Tuesday announced the release of Myst Online: Uru Live for the Macintosh. This is GameTap’s first foray into Macintosh games.
Myst Online: Uru Live is the continuation of the story first introduced to Mac gamers more than a decade ago with the release of the original Myst. The game series describes realms of “Ages” created by an ancient, long-vanished race that had the power to turn books into portals to other places entirely, creations of their own imagination.
In Myst Online: Uru Live, you assume the role of an explorer who’s examining the ruins of the D’ni, the civilization described in Myst — subterranean dwellers who created a vast labyrinth of intricately detailed buildings, and creators of many of the perplexing puzzles that entranced gamers in other Myst games. You and other explorers work as part of the D’ni Restoration Council to explore these domains and try to learn the secrets of the D’ni people.
Myst Online’s arrival on the Macintosh was made possible using Cider, a translation layer engine technology that enables Intel-based Macs to run games made for Windows on the Macintosh, without having a separate Windows installation. It first appeared with Freeverse’s release of Heroes of Might & Magic V and is also being used to make a Mac version of EVE Online, a massively multiplayer online role playing game set in outer space.
Like other GameTap offerings, Myst Online is being offered as part of a monthly GameTap membership that costs $6.95 per month. Unfortunately, Myst Online: Uru Live is GameTap’s only Mac-compatible title at the moment, so you won’t have access to the many other games that GameTap offers (unless you reboot your Intel-based Mac into Windows).
System requirements call for Mac OS X v10.4.8 or later, 1.83GHz Intel Core Duo processor or faster (Intel only), 512MB RAM, ATI or Nvidia graphics, 3GB hard disk space, broadband Internet connection. GameTap notes that Myst Online is not supported on Macs that use the GMA 950 graphics processor. That includes Mac minis, MacBooks and some low-end iMac configurations.