Turning A Page ..

Cyan announced a few days back .. that they .. with GameTap .. have decided that not only D'mala shard .. which was expected .. but also ALL of Until Uru .. would be shut down on the 5th of February. Cyan has firmly declared the decision 'final'.

I was told last year .. by someone who's word I absolutely trust .. that Until Uru was a dead duck regardless of which way this went. If Uru Live flew .. then UU was gone as it had served it's purpose. If this attempt at resurrecting Live failed .. UU was still gone .. as Live was never going to happen .. so .. no 'until' existed. And it all seems a completely cut and dried way of handling it.

Unfortunately .. it has caused a HUGE uproar in the community .. and many are upset at losing the shards. A bunch are just leading the debate for the pure pleasure of being disruptive .. but others are legitimately and deeply grieving at it's loss.

I had a feeling something was coming when Tapestry was unexpectedly resurrected for a week .. I even said so to my friend tolip and my daughter MC. It's not always pleasant to be right.

I took the news of the temporary opening with a roll of my eyes .. and not that sick feeling I used to have at the mere mention of the place. So I'm pretty pleased I've put so much of THAT behind me. :)

For the entire Until Uru closing .. I've had almost a feeling of .. relief .. for some reason. I must have still had so many bad feelings from what's gone on associated with UU as a whole .. I'm guessing .. that seeing the back of it is like finally getting away from my in-laws .. the relief is totally freeing .. O_o .. LOL

And please .. these are only MY feelings as they relate to ME .. the result of some of MY UU experiences. This does NOT minimize in ANY WAY the painfully raw feelings of ANYONE ELSE in the community .. who's experiences were far better than mine !!

Truthfully .. I feel so badly for those who are losing their close connection to Uru .. those with shards who've worked so hard to 'make a home' for so many. Their sense of loss must be deeply felt and overwhelming. Just as some of my UU identity was wrapped up in a painful experience .. their UU identity is wrapped up in their far more pleasant experiences .. so the pain of their loss is something that must seem unbearable to them. :(

The arguments have all been made by many .. in a long and often overblown thread .. for and against the closing. For me .. in my very logical thinking .. we were initially only ever guaranteed 1 month .. that was it. We got 2 and a half years. It was also clearly stated .. that Until Uru was meant to keep the heartbeat of Uru alive .. until Uru could live again. Despite the flogging of the 'it is not our intention to take away what was given' statement made LAST YEAR .. when things were very different .. the Cyan 'Giant Gnarly Disclaimer' clearly stated .. at any time .. at their discretion .. they owned it .. they could pull it .. and they have.

Yet .. as many times as you say those things .. it seems to not even come close to recognizing the human hearts that have put so much into it .. and loved it so dearly.

It is true .. Uru no longer needs the 'life support' that Until Uru was .. it really HAS been reborn as Myst Online : Uru Live .. and that IS what we've ALL been dreaming .. and hoping .. and waiting for all this time. I just don't think that anyone ever really considered what that might mean .. that word Until .. and the giving up of so much .. for the gaining of something else so desperately wanted.

I'm hoping that EVERYONE is able to move on .. and that EVERYONE gets the opportunity to get into Live .. one way or the other .. there are some *cough* 'interesting' options being suggested. ;)

Good luck .. not only to Cyan .. but to all of us. :)

*waits impatiently for February 15th .. the OFFICIAL launch of MO : UL*