In honor of the release (finally) of Myst Online: Uru Live on the 15th of this month, GameTap has issued a press release of sorts, but instead of simply announcing the game and following it with ten paragraphs of 'About ...', they decided to actually be informative and deliver a concise history of the Myst franchise by year. I've become fascinated by press releases since I started here at Kotaku, and this is one of the better ones I've come across. Classy. Even better when you imagine the beginning to Falco's Rock Me Amadeus while you read it. Michael Fahey

GameTap presents the grand evolution of Myst

In anticipation of the February 15th release of Myst Online: Uru Live on GameTap, we take a look back at the history of one of the most famous video game franchises of all time:

September 24, 1993
Designed and directed by brothers Robyn and Rand Miller and developed by Cyan, Inc., Myst is distributed by Br derbund for the Mac. The game sets a new mark as the best-selling video game ever at the time and ushered in the first-person adventure puzzle game genre.

1995
Hyperion Books releases The Book of Atrus, the first book in the Myst series of novels, set in the same universe as the Myst computer games by Cyan. The Book of Ti'ana and The Book of D'ni, the second and third books in the series, are released in 1996 and 1997, respectively.

Making it into the mainstream: In The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror VI, there is a segment in which a 3-D version of Homer Simpson encounters the library from Myst Island.

1997
Br derbund's RedOrb Entertainment division releases Riven, the sequel to Myst. Riven, which is even larger and more beautiful than Myst, is considered the most mind-challenging chapter in the series.

1998
Virgin label releases Myst and Riven soundtracks, by artist Robyn Miller, in the UK.

Selling more than 11 million copies, Myst and its sequels held the title of best-selling computer game of all time throughout much of the 1990s.

2000
Updating the original Myst with the latest technology, realMyst was released featuring realtime 3D graphics. This is the version of Myst that Cyan and the world-famous Miller brothers always wanted to make, but the technology wasn't available at the time. Myst fans could now experience a fully immersive, dynamic world that they could wander through and interact with.

2001
Ubisoft Entertainment Software publishes the third Myst sequel, Myst III: Exile. This game focuses on a new villain whose home world was ruined, so he's out for revenge.

2003
Ubisoft releases Uru: Ages Beyond Myst, the offline version of the planned online game Uru Live, but cancels the online version shortly before it is launched. Since the online version is halted, the offline Uru: Complete Chronicles is released. This special edition includes the original offline game and its two expansion packs, To D'ni and The Path of the Shell, which contain content that had been intended for the online game.

To accompany the game, a soundtrack combining an eclectic collection of various rhrythms, voices, and moods is also released.

2004
Ubisoft releases the fourth installment, Myst IV: Revelation. Myst fans travel through environments pulsing with life to unearth a treacherous scheme involving two of Myst's most sinister villains.

2005
Ubisoft rolls out Myst V: End of Ages, the fifth Myst installment. Players embark on an epic journey into the heart of a shattered empire as the only explorer who can still save it - or destroy it with the wrong choices. Cyan Music Director/Composer Tim Larkin composes the game's original soundtrack with the tell-tale haunting and beautiful sounds that adeptly evoke the Myst series.

2006
GameTap announces it will be publishing Myst Online: Uru Live and opens the door to subscribers to check out the beta version of the game. In conjunction with the beta preview, GameTap launches www.GameTap.com/mystonline, a website that houses videos, podcasts, artwork, forums, wallpaper, game details and a host of other game-related offerings.

February 15th, 2007
GameTap introduces Myst Online: Uru Live, the newest chapter in the Myst story. This title gracefully fuses the social concepts of a traditional massively multiplayer online game with the mystery and problem-solving facets of an adventure game.

Join in, explore and help forge an entirely new Myst story: yours.

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