1/5/2023 0 Comments Myst review![]() As is typical of Fate-based games, this section gives an unfamiliar reader enough context to understand the next sections, and a familiar reader a sense of how this particular game treats the system. This section also includes a brief section directed at MYST™ fans, explaining that Unwrittentreats the setting in a different way than other media does.įrom there, the book segues into the basics of the Fate system, how the dice work, and explaining terms like stunts, Aspects, and Fate points. The game text takes itself seriously, rather than trying to deconstruct its own material or making a bunch of inside references (or if it does, it’s not obvious to a layman). This sets the tone of the game right away – Unwrittenis about discover, exploration, thought, and creativity. The first section of the game itself is the obligatory “What is a Roleplaying Game” essay, but it begins with an explanation of what characters in Unwrittendo, what kinds of people they are, and what motivates them. The opening pieces go on long enough to convey the feel of the game and introduce some of the terms of the setting, and then the game proper begins. ![]() The fiction is brief, evocative, and easy to follow – again, I’m not especially familiar with MYST™, but I never felt lost while reading it (I did understand that I was missing context, but I didn’t feel like it hindered my understanding of the material). The book starts off with some in-character fiction, presented as a collection of letters, emails, and so forth, that present the history of the D’ni people and the caverns that act as the base of operations for the characters. Some of the other pieces are straight illustrations, and they vary in quality from impressive to rather cartoonish. The artwork in the book is a mixed bag some of the pieces resemble notes and sketches that a character might write into a book, and those are flavorful and interesting. The text isn’t crowded on the page, the headers are easy to parse and identify, and the fonts are perfectly legible. The interior of the book is nicely readable. In addition, in the print version, the text on the cover is too close in color to the background, meaning that at any distance it’s hard to tell what it says. The cover has a vaguely steampunkish feel, given the explorer’s garb and goggles, and while I don’t think the cover art is an inappropriate way to glimpse at the game, I do think that a vista of an Age (in the vein of the box covers to the video games) does the game more justice. The cover depicts a young explorer (apparently but not necessarily male) wearing goggles, falling through a dark space, and reaching for a book with a shimmering white panel (a Linking Book, in the game’s parlance). The Look Unwritten is a 6x9 softcover book. If you’re unfamiliar with Fate, the Fate Core system is available here on a Pay What You Want basis. I don’t spend a lot of time in this review summarizing how the Fate system works, what the terms mean, and so forth. It didn’t impede my enjoyment of Unwrittenin the slightest. For context, I played the first MYST™ game years ago, but wasn’t (and am not) familiar with any of the expanded universe. #MYST REVIEW SERIES#MYST™ was originally a series of puzzle-based video games, and has spawned an impressive following, including novelizations, music, and other tie-ins. ![]() Unwritten: Adventures in the Ages of MYST™ and Beyond Unwrittenis a roleplaying set in the universe of the MYST™. ![]() In some cases this may mean I get a comp copy in this particular case I did not (I bought a print copy through DriveThruRPG). Anyway, the last one I did was Nefertiti Overdrive. ![]() I'm going to be doing a review of one of the members' games monthly. I belong to an organization called the Indie Game Developer Network, as does Scott Hamilton, one of the creators of Unwritten. ![]()
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