unforum

[vpisteve]

Going Back in Time: The Cypher

[clrodrick]

Hi Steve,

It's interesting you bring the Cypher up. I missed this game when it was first released, but I heard mention of it about a year or so ago and stumbled across that site. I did my best to play through the 12 episodes and was able to for the most part. There were some bugs/glitches/missing files here and there, but it was easy enough to skip a bit ahead when that stuff occured. I liked the fact that each chapter had 3 ages to visit to look for clues and solve puzzles. I agree that this is a pretty cool internet game, especially considering the year of release!

[Pluvius]

Yeah, I remember this being one of the first web-based games I ever played, back in 1994 or thereabouts. I played the first four episodes earlier today and only had to cheat due to bugs once (for some reason, the fax giving you the access code to the computer in Ep 3 wasn't accessible in-game, at least not for me, but the game's weak security made that easy enough to get around), so it's held up pretty well. There are few puzzles, and what puzzles there are are easy even for me, but it was a pretty big accomplishment back in the early days of the Web. I might actually write a little walkthrough for the game after I play through it and post it here, if I feel so inclined.

Rob

[shortestfuse]

NOOOOOOOOOO! I tried years ago to find The Cypher online, still more years after first encountering it on a demo disk from Launch magazine. I still vividly remember being about ten years old and confused as hell exploring the introductory episode. Unfortunately, my parents never subscribed to Launch, and my curiosity was never sated. I even went to the public library to see whether it was based on a book!

Since its original release, The Cypher became a white whale to me. So it's only fitting that the link to the archived episodes now leads to a defunct website.

[catherwood]

now i'm curious. The most I could find online was this blurb:

[vpisteve]

Wow, so even the epgmedia site is gone now, huh? Hmmm.

If anyone is really interested, PM me and I'll put you in contact of the guy who worked on it (the P in EPG). Maybe he has it still online somewhere.

I know I really enjoyed it, and in many ways it really was ahead of its time. It would've fallen right in line with what we now consider ARGs in so many ways.

Not that ARGs have any kind of....definition or anything.

[ian.evans]

Hey, wow can't believe I found a forum about this almost twenty years later. So my dad is Ted Evans or the "E" from EPG Studios he was one of the original creators of the cypher. The Cypher game is so old now that it can't be supported on a modern browser but I know my dad was very proud of the work he did on it and he and I are planning on updating it (or refreshing it if you will) to work on modern modern devices like as an iOS or Android app so you can play it on your tablet or phone. If anyone is still interested in finding out about the original Cypher. You should check out this website. www.evanscreative.net or evancreative.net/cypher.html

[leftm8]

Hey they're trying to remake the Cypher for modern devices and computers. Check it out https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/evanscreative/unlock-the-cypher-an-interactive-murder-mystery?ref=live

[Pixiestix]

Dear gust poster - you have now posted twice, and self promoted at that. Posting a kickstarter is a touchy issue, I'll leave it for now... But please, join our community.