My first thoughts on Uru Prologue shutting down? To be honest, we new of its impending demise weeks before – first a whisper in the cavern, with the usual “no, it can’t be!” The banter was rife – “have you heard? Prologue may have to shut down because there aren’t enough people that want to play it”. Funny thing is – every time I logged in there were scores of people. I just found it hard to accept that something as good as this should come to an end.

It was a very sad day when we left the cavern for the last time. Playing ‘To D’ni’ and ‘TPOTS’ just did not have that same feeling anymore – empty hoods, no-one around – I thought it was criminal how something as good as Prologue should suddenly cease to be.

I mean, what does one do now? There could never ever be anything quite like Uru Prologue. Perhaps the members that never experienced Prologue may just understand what ‘Uru Live’ means to a lot of us ‘Prologuers’. I see ‘Uru Live’ as a rebirth of what we once had – and believe me, once you experience it – you will be smitten. By all accounts it has come back. And you will be addicted (in a nice way) to logging in most nights simply just to meet up with people you know, meeting newcomers, and carrying on with what’s new.

And that, my friends is why we are all so excited – the free will to do what you want singly, or with new found friends – there is no greater pleasure on the net.

Roll on Uru Live.

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oh wad some power the giftie gie us - tae see ourselve's as ither's see us

I remember going through a few different stages..

I remember shedding a tear even though everyone that did the same knows in the end it's just a game (even though we also know it's so much more).

Then I got angry at the great people at Ubisoft. I think that was misdirected, looking back.

I just don't think the world was ready.

I think starting small is key here.

I also remember being saddened at the empty bookshelf.

I think the most important thing I remember is on February 3rd, there was supposed to be a big announcement the next day. I was so excited, we all thought it was the end of the prologue or some other big GOOD news. I remember the dread I felt when I started to read Rand's letter.

Man!

Anyway..

Well, I technically wasn't around during prologue, but I started with CC as my first Myst game.

Needless to say, I was thoroughly confused- not so much by the lack of Myst-related understanding, but more that it just felt like all these areas were meant to have lots of people in them.

Yet I had to go through and kind of find out everything about the past history of Uru myself, so it just felt so strange and...lonely, even for someone who knew absolutely nothing of the past history of the place.

Anyway, after really researching the history of the game and finding out what Uru Live had been meant for, (and playing all the other Myst games) I finally started to understand what happened- but it only made the lonliness worse. So I just quit halfway through To D'ni.

And then I found UU- but never really actually joined until the day I found Rand Miller's letter and the activation of D'mala. Since then, I'm in the cavern all the time, and am looking forward to the re-launch of Live.

The Law of Averages- sooner or later, you're back on top, even if it takes a long time. But let's all remember- the higher your mountains, the lower your valleys...

-Calam

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I miss my old signature.

Shock - after so many had worked so hard on both sides of the server, to have it all for naught.

Anger - at what I perceived at the time was a half-hearted effort by Ubisoft.

Awakening - when I began to realize that all these folks have to eat, after all, and when all is said and done, computer games are a business.

Hope - that the then new games which were in fact the unpublished ages from Uru would help Cyan get back on their feet

Faith - that Cyan could do it, if anyone could.

Now, after Until Uru, User shards, Plasma servers, Cyan closing for a day, several other games, it looks lik there is again hope. I wait eagerly for the beta invitation - I want to help, again.

Perhaps, after all, the ending has not been written.

Walt

Walt. I can't say it much better than you did.

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Beta schmata. I want the real thing!

I really should update this, but meh.

I wasn't in prologue. At the time, Prologue was still, technically a beta, and I didn't want to subject my computer to any undue hardship. When I heard it was canceled, I was more mad at myself than anyone else, at first, for missing my opportunity. I kept thinking to myself that if I had just signed up, there would have been enough people to make Ubisoft happy...

Having been in prologue since late '03, it was the 5 Stages of Grief here. Pretty much what Walt said -- except for me there was a lot more of 1, 2 & 3 and less of 4 & 5.

The hope & faith didn't really kick in until summer '04, when the buzz was going around about the work the COBBS guys were doing. And then the big shot in the arm, August '04, when UU launched! That first Friday night on Maz' shard was unbelievable. People running around giggling like idiots... people crying... LCC in Yeesha-drag pointing at the stuck Library doors and proclaiming "Open! In the name of Atrus!" (Which they didn't.)

Glorious.

There's a thread over at the DRC site that has an interesting take on those days and how they connect with these days. Well worth a read.

tkwiggins wrote:

There's a thread over at the DRC site that has an interesting take on those days and how they connect with these days. Well worth a read.

It was this thread here which inspired me to post it. I almost posted it here, but it just seemed better off on its own. Thanks for the nice reference.

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OpenUru.org: An Uru Project Resource Site : Twitter : Perfect Speed Is Being There.

Very sad angry Heek a whole range of emotions
BUT never gave up hope.
The Last Words Of Uru Live Prologue 2004 if anyone is interested
I see a lot of names there that still have not returned lets hope they do.

Shock, Denial, Anger, and then incredible sadness. I did not give up hope, not even when Cyan announced their layoffs, but I went through all the pain again and was left stunned for a while.

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I'm not crazy; I'm just a little impaired!
The Goodies List
http://www.mystonline.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=11329

When Cyan hit that slick patch of ice in their employment a while ago, my biggest fear wasn't that the company would fold, but that it would get merged with some other adventure game company. I don't know if Rand would have done something like that, but I do know he would have done everything possible to keep Cyan alive.

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I miss my old signature.

The very, very first thing I thought?

"Crap, I only have 29 markers!"

And then, in sort of a ruthless way, I thought about how hard it wsa to get into Ae'gura and stay there for any length of time (part of the reason I only had 29 markers) and I kind of understood why it was folding.

But I still stayed sad.

I'm going to be brutally honest. I got my e-mail from Zandi, logged in immediately, and faced bug after bug. I explored the online-only areas for a bit (as they were inaccessible at the time, since the expansions weren't out) but the game kept crashing on me so I never logged back in. When I heard it had been shut down, I was a little annoyed, cuz I'd been hoping all the little bugs would be fixed.

After reading about all the great friends you all made, I greatly regret that I let a few errors prevent me from playing and getting to know everyone.

I hope I can make amends for that when Uru Live relaunches.

I believed Cyan when they said that Uru Live was "being put to bed".
Sleep does not mean death. My personal belief was that since UbiSoft was not interested in going the distance for Uru Live, that Cyan simply had to wait out the contractual obligations (time-wise) and then find another partner.
Cyan went out of their way to accomodate the fans during that period, Until Uru and allowing the various modifications, ala User KI, were proof positive to me that time and patience were all that was needed.
Thankfully, I was right.

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MOULa KI 211837

For me, the saddest moment/day was when I got this picture on my screen..

It was taken by YatGirl, in Amber Horizons hood. I'm there, and Matrix, and a lot of other nice people whom I've lost touch with.

Right afterwards, when I'd clicked on the okay button, I just sat and cried. Hands in face. Then I turned off my computer and went to bed, since it was 2 am for me.

Then I found out that Matrix hadn't clicked the OK button but instead esc and he'd stayed alive!

Matrix's gallery. The first seven pix on that page are all of us, frozen in place, like statues. He had to ALT-F4 out though when the egg room door wouldn't open obviously. But yes, I heard of many in the city who did that same thing. Bizarre!

Then as we got together, groups of us on MSN and chatted, we had tears, and yet hope too. I recall To D'ni very sad without my buddies. The hood for me, was so empty and sad. I just cried when I stood and watched the imager. But didn't give up. I was hanging around Cyan Chat I think when I heard about the new Until URU! Got my key and an extra one that day! Gave my extra one to a student in Australia, just so he could enjoy it.

Then, my interest waxed and waned as the politics got in the way. But I've been here all along, and helping to gather people back by using PM's , instant messaging, asking them to gather their circles of friends back into the fold.

That's the only way we are going to get back those who've gone missing. Somebody out there has one of those missing people in their address book, or in their IM list, and just hasn't contacted them yet. It's only with work that we'll gather them back.

Anybody know of a fellow in LadyVye's hood by the name of Kesse? His email is no good Lovely fellow from Northern California, who was also friendly with the Mad Mushroom Bunch. Anybody hear of MadTom, the lovely fellow from Zurich who was mayor of Mad Mushroom? He signed my guest book but no email addy

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Uru will always live on in the hearts and minds of Explorers.