Copyright c) 1997 Tim & Greg Hildebrant
Recently, there have been a lot of reviews in magazines about Ultima Online. Ultima is a game of epic porportions. Ultima is the largest online game of all time. Tousands of real players can play at once side by side in one world. Although, I have yet to play the game, with over 8 levels of spells and 40 skills to master, the depth of Ultima Online rivals that of Daggerfall.
One of the most interesting aspects of the game is that the world is designed to be completely self-sustaining. The game servers actually track animal populations , how rare items are, and how skilled people are becoming, the servers then adjust the game to keep the world an enjoyable and balanced game for everyone. The creators of Ultima wanted to make this game as close to actually being in Britannia (The fantasy world of in which Ultima takes place.), with players making being able to create businesses and decide how the politics unfold in their world.
One would think that have thousands of simultaneous players communicating with the servers would slow performance. To tell you the truth it does, to some extent, Origin has tried to aleviate this problem many ways. One such way is in creating a multitude of servers to choose from. These servers are spread thoughout the country, however there are about four in California at the momment. Another way they have help raise performance is by storing most of the game info on the servers, this also has the advantage of helping to curb cheating. This also has the side the unfortunate side effect of requireing the players $10/month to play the game (I believe they charge this, first because they can, second because it costs money to keep these servers running.). Finally, they have sped up the game by using programming techniques to increase the amount of information they can over the lines.
Realism is a big issue in Ultima Online. Players can choose many paths to follow, but without income an adventurer won't get very far. For instance, a player can choose to be a blacksmith. Of course, to make anything one needs metal, but metal can't just be found on the ground. A blacksmith must either mine the metal ore and melt it in a forge, creating ingots, or else they can buy ingots directly from a fellow blacksmith. They then can use one of various tools (tongs, hammer, etc.) to mold the metal into the weapon or armor they want. This isn't the only profession people can have they have tailors, fletchers (Makers of arrows), and even some less conventional professions.
The politics of Ultima Online are extremely diverse. The main part of the Ultima World is guilds there are both guilds made by Ultima (Like the Krosis Imperium) and also guilds that Origin has created. The dieties of Ultima are Lord British and Lord Blackthorn, these characters are played by Richard Garriot (The creator of Ultima) and I believe the producer of Ultima. They are the leaders the land and recently created two groups of guards that players can decide to join. Origin has wanted players to create most of the storyline, but Origin has had to help spur the player's imaginations.
The world of Ultima is one of fantastic wonders and an immense player base. The diversity of skills and options adds realism to the game. The game still has a few bugs and some lag, but it is still playable. The potential of Ultima is unsurpassed by any other game in existance and is one I thoroughly look forward to this holiday season.
--Krosis
