SPOKANE, Wash. — “The House that Myst Built” could have been built anywhere.
The home of Cyan Worlds, on the northern outskirts of Spokane, was made possible by the success of the company’s iconic adventure video game, as indicated by the nickname that Cyan CEO and co-founder Rand Miller uses for it.
Miller and his brother, Cyan co-founder Robyn Miller, had been building the company in Spokane when Myst was released. After debuting for Macintosh in 1993, the blockbuster franchise would ultimately expand to basically every major game platform, on its way to lifetime sales of 15 million units across its different versions.
But before they started working on their next virtual world, Myst sequel Riven, the brothers put their imaginations into making a physical world of their own — dreaming up a new headquarters suitable to be the home of Myst.
One of their questions: was there someplace else they’d rather be?
“We looked at a lot of places, including Hawaii, and the usual fun places you can think of,” Rand Miller recalled.
But ultimately, they realized it would be hard to beat Spokane’s affordability, four distinct seasons, proximity to outdoor activities and the airport, and minimal traffic, among other benefits.
People they tried to recruit from larger cities quickly got over their skepticism about moving to Spokane, especially if they were at a stage in life where they were thinking about or already raising a family.
“They’d laugh at first, but they could afford a house here, and they never went away,” he said. “It’s a great place to raise a family. It’s a great place to get out of the rat race, if you’re so inclined.”
Rand and Robyn Miller moved around a few times as kids, living in places including New Mexico and Texas. As adults, they started the company from different areas, and ended up in Spokane after their parents moved there.
Over the years, Spokane has evolved significantly, with more entertainment options in the city, for example, including a reinvigorated downtown, Riverfront Park, Spokane Arena, the Spokane Symphony, and more.
Along the way, as the population has swelled, Spokane doesn’t have quite the same affordability advantage, particularly in the area of housing prices. Spokane County’s cost of living is 11% higher than the current U.S. average, according to the Spokane Workforce Council. As recently as 2020, it was less than 1 point above the nation.
Another big change, of course, has been the rise of remote work.
Prior to the pandemic, Miller said, Cyan primarily employed people in the Spokane area. Now, out of the company’s approximately 25 employees, about 25-30% of them are based elsewhere. Two of the most recent hires probably wouldn’t have joined the company if not for the fact that they could remain in the L.A. area.
“It really does change things,” he said.
These days, the Cyan team is at work on a modern version of the critically acclaimed Riven, which is billed as “a meticulous, from-the-ground-up remake of the historic puzzle adventure game.”
As for their headquarters, Miller jokes that he and his brother didn’t know that they were supposed to blow all the proceeds from Myst on fancy cars and other luxury items, so they decided to construct a building instead.
In all seriousness, he said, owning their own corporate home is one of the best decisions they’ve made.
“It’s one of the things I think that has kept us alive over the years through the ups and downs,” he said, displaying a pragmatism that’s characteristic of people in Spokane. “Having cheap or no rent really makes a difference when you’re in a downtime.”
