Editing Myst Online: Uru Live (section)

== Mudpie ==
'''Mudpie''' was the codename for Cyan's project that eventually led to the release of [[Uru]], but had conceptual differences.

The name is both a basis of jokes (regarding Mud Pie ice cream, Mud Pie cookies, etc.) as well as of backronyms, i.e. acronyms whose original meaning was apparently never actually agreed upon. Still, the backronyms are a reasonable, accurate description of the project's objectives:
* The '''MU''' can stand for ''Multi-user'', referring to the fact that Mudpie was, exclusively, a multi-user game. (Uru, however, is both single- and multi-user).
* The '''D''' can represent ''D'ni'' or ''DIRT'' (''D'ni In Real Time''), the project Mudpie was original based on<ref>{{cite web|url=https://guildofmessengers.org/2019/07/13/pre-uru-dirt-descent-demo-released/|title=Pre-Uru DIRT/Descent demo released|website=The Guild of Messengers|access-date=October 25, 2021}}</ref> (DIRT, however, was exclusively single-player).
* The '''P''' can mean ''Person'' or ''Player'', signifying the role a user of Mudpie has: unusually, the role they play is themselves.
* The '''I''' is sometimes lengthened to ''Integrated'', but more frequently to ''Interactive'', alluding to the unparalleled amount of influence every player has on the story, another key aspect to the game.
* The '''E''' is typically regarded as meaning ''Environment'' or ''Experience''.

Most importantly, ''Mudpie'' stepped away from the single-player nature of ''DIRT'', radically replacing it with a multi-user model, commonly known as [[w:Massively multiplayer online game|Massively multiplayer online game]]. To date, virtually every MMOG implementation is a role-playing one; MMOG is therefore often considered synonymous with MMORPG. In Mudpie, however, the user is not meant to play a role; they are to be true to themselves. This idea has been carried over to '''[[Uru]]''' and is perhaps most clearly visible through the [[avatar]] customization options: Cyan has over the years added additional adjustments such as more clothing, more distinct facial complexions, more hairstyles, etc., to make the avatar match the real-life appearance (or, at least, the appearance a user would ''like'' to have in real life when exploring) as closely as possible.

Mudpie mostly reflected a similar storyline to that of DIRT, but put a lot more focus on the [[City Proper|City]]; with the multi-player aspect, interaction in the City becomes a lot more feasible and realistic, leading to such ideas as a collaborative restoration effort, or, as in Uru, one led by a controversial organization, the [[DRC]].

In order to make Mudpie feasible, [[Plasma]] had to be rewritten, leading to version 20, with much improved networking facilities, and the ability to easily script Ages using the Python language. Unfortunately, this rewrite took significant amounts of time (and money) away from Cyan, who hadn't had a notable product since [[Riven (game)|Riven]], with the exception of the minor [[realMyst]] release. At this time, Cyan had an unusually high amount of employees working on the project, but in order to make the project financially feasible, they had to partner, and ultimately did, with Ubisoft, but this would significantly change the focus, and change the game's concept once more, towards a hybrid single- and multi-player one.

The first announcement of the game was preceded by an ([[wikipedia:Alternate reality game|Alternate reality game]]) called '''''[[Preafter]]'''''.