Post: #1

We all know that Ultima Online isn't as popular as it used to be, I'm just wondering what you all think the future of it will be?

Will it just join the ranks of other MMORPGS that have been forgotten?

Will EA Games try to reinvent it again?

What do you all think? 5? 10? 20 years from?

Post: #2

Look Saint, usually this kind of topics lead the discussion to pessimist speculations and a childish attitude from some people about the game and they turn all the thing into a chaos. So I'm going to leave the thread open as long as we keep it in the right direction otherwise me or any other member from the mod team are in our right to close/delete this thread.

So here is my opinion:
It's obvious that things changed after Richard Garriot and Origin Inc left the scene, we know that the enviroment doesn't feel the same but EA is taking care of it and new expansions are still coming out so the future is not so dark for the father and pioneer of all the MMOs. I personally like some of the features they are including to the game. Many players (me included) expected big changes for UO after the announcement of Ultima X Odyssey back in 2004, new graphic engine, improved combat system, etc. But they kept it classical with the isometric camera view like diablo and the enhanced client still have the same essence. Of course the arts could have been better but at least I know what this entails, all the problems and bugs they are facing nowadays with the enhanced client are because they wanted to make ​​accommodations to renew the game but keeping the compatibility from the old basis and integrating it with it. In a long term I don't know what is their plan but in my opinion they should launch some more expansions and then go for a modern "Ultima Online 2" to cut the ties in the bud with the old one. New graphics, new systems, new playerbase, everything new.

Post: #3

The whole idea of Ultima online would have to change for that to happen.. I mean this in the essence of game play etc. By changing to a normal 3rd person view like many other MMO's it completely changes the persona of what UO game play is -- notably what people are playing it for. I think in the next few years, especially with the release of titles such as diablo 3, and guild wars 2 people will start to move on. From there EA -- money hungry "bastards" as they are will look at the game and how profitable it is for them. ]

I dont know if any of you actually read the OSI Australian forums but I think a while ago they tried to move the server away from Australia to a US / Asia Host to help cut down on costs.

As for Free servers, I think they may remain up for a while but as you can already see they are dwindling in numbers. Most shards out there don't reach a concurrent playerbase of more than 100 and all of those that have the player base have been up for a while.

I would also like to take this opportunity to state that the shards such as IPY2, Hybrid, t2a etc all have "fake" client bases. I mean this in the fact that each player can have multiple accounts logged on at the same time. I think this is why people are turned away from many sphere shards, or the shards that i have played.

Anyway In regards to a new Ultima online I think they would have to re-define the whole MMORPG theme. Would they want to keep a birds eye view? Perhaps they could add the functions of a 3d world in which they could have a rotating birds eye view camera. IDK... It is definitely coming to the end of an era.. In-fact within Australia I looked on steam last night and there were NO populated counter-strike 1.6 servers.. Maybe it is US that have to move on.

Post: #4

i don't think that the ultima online situation is bad

It's still up and running even with the "shitload" of mmorpg that were released in those years

Instead, i am very convinced that free shards should focus on developping new type of gameplays for getting more players !

Post: #5

It's just a matter of adding different camera view presets and/or adding a function to lock the camera view where you left it. These advanced 3d engines improves the dynamics of the game and they can add such thing as jumping for players and not being limited only by the 8 next tiles around you. If they can keep the same concept, emulate the UO feel and adapt it to the new technologies also creating a good storyline for quest with videos-animations. No MMO can beat UO, it is still the most complete game around. No one has the housing system UO has, no one has all the professions it does has, the world is huge... just imagine that rendered into something like this:



Utopia...

Post: #6

Can you imagine "jumping" while wearing a full set of platemail? There is a revival of jousting these days - along with a bunch of TV shows and whatnot - and most of those guys can't even get off the ground when they fall over, let alone jump 6 inches lol. In any case, wouldn't it be cool to have a 3d client where you could joust!

Post: #7

i don't want to go off topic , but there are a lot of historical sources where it's staten that a platemail it's not so "encumberant" as it looks , especially if weared by a trained knight/soldier .!

Post: #8

The agility in all movements would be limited depending on the weight of players. "Jousting" btw, sounds like a good idea for tournaments

Post: #9

Well, coming back to check up on the community and it seems there has been a bunch of changes.

In regards to UO, future, etc. It all depends on how they go about creating this next game. I originally came to play Ultima Online because of the features it had in the very beginning. Why did we all initially log in to play? I was logging in to play because of the crafting, the way you had to harvest resources, take them, process them, and craft a variety of items. Today I see very few games that compare to that initial spirit that UO had and why people played.

There definitely has been an explosion of MMORPG's that have spawned from titles such as Meridian59, Ultima Online, even on AOL there was a MechWarrior style game. I remember these being the precursors to what you have today. Today all I see is simple theme park games (WoW, LOTRO, etc., etc.) with a limited storyline, limited gameplay, and barely any crafting. Some could argue there are more than what UO offered. But I haven't really seen a game that comes close. The whole leveling system that pretty much every game use has been developed from the role-play/table-top games and has never really changed. UO was different using their skill based system. There are definitely elements of skill based stats within level based systems, but again they always seem to make it be a grind-fest instead of a game to play, enjoy, and to be more open-ended.

I'm probably off topic as this seems to have turned into a bit of a talk about game elements. I for one have always had been working with scripts and have been with SphereServer since it was known as TUS, GrayWorld, etc. Those of you out there will know what I'm talking about. I remember initial versions of a software that I just can't remember the name, pre-TUS and pre-GrayWorld. I was around when they had a version of the server where you could connect in, walk around, and chat, nothing else. I come on today and see that "sphereserver.net" isn't functioning? I have been away a long time, so if anyone wants to get me up to speed, please let me know.

I for one can see UO being one of those areas in the internet that once EA Executives decide that UO isn't their cash cow, because without UO and what Origin did, they would definitely not be as large as they are today. I remember days that you had to wait to log in to a server due to ALL of them being full. As much as we all want to admit, there definitely has been dwindling numbers, but we all shouldn't be surprised at this. What has happened in each of our lives in the past 10 years? Life changes, and so trends change, thus games change. I for one would truly enjoy the day that EA drops UO. This would be a great step forward for the emulator community. This could mean that EA might "ignore" any UO emulator as long as we give credit where it is due, and tell people that UO is owned by EA. There are vapourware sites that exist today, and there are different alternative and vibrant communities that have sprung up in that area. So future of UO to me is great. I can see new communities spring up as people get tired of the same big corporate garbage games that are all very similar with small changes. You will see a revival of a sorts if they stop developing and simply administer the population they have and let them stop connecting. All of us continue to grow and learn, with that life changes. You finish school, get a real job if you can, and you earn money to make a living. Most of you are like that and so there are stages of time that you are able to play UO, or any MMORPG for that matter.

For those of you who have read through this, thank you for your time. I have been away from the Sphere community because of the journey I have been on in real life. Funny how everything happens and when events fall into place, I find myself today coming back to read. I decided to post on this to see who all is still here. I apologize if I went overboard and I hope you enjoyed the read!

Post: #10

Fascinating article... check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pla...UdnAt1GM#!